Gypsy wedding fans, prepare yourself for some days of Amber and roses (and another quick but delightful glimpse at Pat Baby) when My Big Fat American Gypsy Wedding airs its third episode — “It’s a Man’s World” — Sunday night on TLC.
The ep spotlights the strict division of freedoms, duties and expectations between the genders — and the challenges women from outside the gypsy culture sometimes face when they fall in love with gypsy men.
At the center of the hour is 23-year-old Romany Tommy, a traveling paver and construction worker, who is headed home to West Virginia celebrate his traditional gypsy wedding to a non-traditional bride, bespectacled 17-year-old Amber — who is also 2 months pregnant. Because of Amber’s youth and gorger ways, Tommy’s cousin Laura — a mother of two who also married at 17 — is called in to help Amber polish her gypsy-wife ways and make sure the wedding plans live up to Romany expectations.
With just ten days to go the big day, this involves a frantic call to the community’s favorite dress designer Sondra Celli, who dreams up a frothy white number embellished with crimson, crystal-covered roses and sets her devoted staff on an around-the-clock rotation to get the gown (and a complete suite of accessories) done in the unforgiving timeframe.
In the meantime, Amber and Tommy suffer a series of other setbacks that threaten the wedding of their dreams — a situation further complicated by Amber’s raging, pregnancy-fueled hormones.
The episode also follows the adventures of gypsy Ed, married to gorger Amor, as he attempts to score a fast $10,000 to throw their four-year-old daughter the birthday party of her three-year-long lifetime — which entails assembling a full-scale carnival in the family’s backyard.
Ed’s vocation is one of the most fascinating elements of the hour. He and his cousin are “hot loaders” — on-the-spot pavers who buy costly loads of hot asphalt then go in search of paving jobs in the seven hours before it cools and hardens into uselessness.
Does Ed make enough money to throw his darlin’ her carnival? Will Amber’s delicate condition derail her big day? Find out when My Big Fat American Gypsy Wedding: “It’s A Man’s World” premieres Sunday, May 13, at 10pm ET on TLC.
Image and video: TLC