Wedding Shows

Wedding Shows

Do you ever get sucked into a show on TV and wonder what is so eye grasping that you keep watching? Well, the wedding shows on TLC have that affect on not only myself but also other viewers across the nation. The weddings show line up on TLC Friday nights are quite possibly the best thing a television viewer like myself can ask for. According to TLC.com their lineup for Friday’s alternates between, ‘Say Yes to the Dress’ and ‘Four Weddings’ starting at 1pm. They are heavily targeted to women who are brides-to-be and women who love weddings. I must admit I watch it for a feel good sappy story, but also for some comedic relief, as I am sure others do. Some of the shows deal with real competitive broads, who think their wedding is better than the next one. In reality, it should not matter if one wedding is better than another – all that should matter is how special it is for the newlyweds and how happy they are together. There is no way someone is going to please everyone with everything they have at their wedding. That being said, other people’s opinions should not really matter, and it is hilarious to see the little things people critique on these wedding shows. However, the show gives unrealistic expectations to viewers, and makes them believe that they need to live up to these expectations. Which seems to be a reoccurring trend in TLC’s wedding shows.  

            Frequently, people like to believe everything they read, hear, or watch. The TLC channel network likes to appeal to a wide array of brides, women, etc. who want the perfect wedding. When they air these shows they make people believe that anything and everything they want for the wedding is possible and affordable. From time to time, TLC likes to point out the budgets couples have for their wedding so viewers can get a real feel of what they can spend on their wedding. In actuality, according to wedding and event planner Samantha Dockery,

“What you're seeing on TV costs more than you think. This is probably the No. 1 headache for wedding planners and anyone in the bridal industry. While some series, like "Say Yes to the Dress," are upfront about the costs that go into a wedding, most aren't”(Williams). This is valid proof that these shows can be deceiving to people, and make them believe that what they want for their wedding is affordable, when it may be out of their range.

Moreover, People who view these shows are getting unrealistic information about how their wedding can be set up. They are buying too much into what these shows are exposing, and not comprehending the reality of what can actually be done. Addressed by Barbara Thibault-Simon, director of sales and catering for Trump SoHo NY, "Many of these TV shows have a planner completely re-do the venue from top to bottom. That is not practical at many places, and certainly not included in the standard pricing, so we need to collaborate with the couple to ensure that their vision fits the space they are interested in,” (Williams). This conveys how much influence these shows have on couples. These wedding shows overflow a great deal into the audience’s real lives by having an unrealistic vision of their big day because of the show. Having unrealistic expectations of what couples can afford can put a real damper on their day. However, there are couples on the show that do a great job with showing how they can work really well with a small budget. It is awesome to see how creative they can get with what little they are working with.

To continue, many couples that are putting together their wedding are preparing for all sorts of family members, friends, co-workers etc. to celebrate this special day with them. Some of these attendees may be people that the couple has not seen in months or years. That being said, couples want to impress everyone coming to their wedding because these are the people matter the most to them. However, in TLC’s Four Weddings, three strangers in front of a national audience are judging them on who has the best wedding. According to TRIB LIVE News, this is what the stranger brides judge upon, “The show follows four brides who attend each other's weddings and rate them based on venue, food, wedding dress and overall experience” (Federoff). So, these women know what they are getting themselves into by having a ¼ chance of winning. It should not even matter if you win or lose because all the couple should really care about is that they can now live their life happily ever after. Nonetheless, there are still brides who get very caddy and upset if they do not win and just talk down upon the person who won. This is where the comedic relief comes to play. Watch this video, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=404bm6CfTyg (Mickens). Hilarity at its finest. This lady immediately fires back with all the critiques she has as to why the bride who won shouldn’t have. This is a trend that happens frequently in this show because brides get pissed that they do not win the grand prize when they knew the whole time how the competition worked.

After all, TLC’s wedding shows are undeniably entertaining and will be around to fill viewers with constant entertainment. However, people should not forget what the true meaning of having a wedding is, and that is bringing two people who truly love each other to tie the knot and be together for the rest of their lives. After all this is why people have weddings anyway, right?

Work Cited

Federoff, Stacey. "Four Area Brides Are Competing for Paid Honeymoon on TLC Show." TRIB

LIVE News, 25 Aug. 2013. Web.

Mickens, Tevin. “I’m Just Pissed – Four Weddings on TLC” YouTube. Web.

Williams, Geoff. "The Impact of Bridal Reality Shows." MSN, 17 May 2013. Web.