Episode Overview: A business convention finds Bill trying to let Margene pose as his real wife, with poor results.  Nikki decides to throw an engagement party for Joe's second wife.  Rhonda, Alby and Frank all try to use manipulation to get what they want.


After Alby took over Juniper Creek last week on Big Love and his sister Nikki stole his money, he is in a tizzy trying to find the culprit.  Alby gets news that his dad, Roman Grant, is doing well.  When Nikki tries to get a pass to visit for a ceremony to welcome Joey's new second wife, Alby denies it to her because she is banished.  Alby later decides to take Roman home over the doctor's objections.

Bill has to go to a convention to meet with the gaming people, and wants to take Barb with him to the nice hotel.  Margene keeps pestering her about how great the hotel's spa looks.  Nikki doesn't want to go, and Barb is offended, and later that night Margene gets invited.  Her sister wives are obviously upset by this, but say nothing when Bill and her leave.

Sarah and Heather are having some girl time when Rhonda walks in.  They want nothing to do with her now that she has this even bigger ego over all the press she's getting due to being one of Roman's child brides.  Rhonda wants Sarah to come to an event, but when Sarah says no and leaves, Rhonda threatens to expose Heather's lesbian feelings for Sarah unless she convinces Sarah to come and give Rhonda her bedroom.  We need more evil Rhonda, as she's one of the few interesting characters on this show.

Lois and Frank continue to have hilarious misadventures.  He drives up to the gas station, and while washing the windshields, Lois hands him the divorce papers.  He refuses, then chases her with a shovel.  Frank goes to Alby to butter him up in his attempt to get back at his sons and wife.  In exchange for their deal, Frank demands he get Joey's potential second wife for himself.

At the convention, Margene is more annoying than usual.  She talks the ear off of one of Bill's business associates, telling her whole life story, polygamy included, in about 10 seconds.  Then she wants to buy everyone presents at the hotel gift shop: a scarf for Barb and a paper weight for Nikki.  OK, I'll give her that one as actually being hysterical.  Bill runs into some old friends who don't know his secret, so he pretends Margene is his secretary.  In the next scene, she is bawling in the tub.  I'd blame pregnancy hormones if she weren't always exactly like that.

With all the money Nikki stole from Alby, she throws Wanda and Joey an extravagant second wife party.  Alby finds out and evilly tries to shut it down.  When he gets Roman back home, he locks him away and procures countless sedatives like morphine and valium.  Newsflash: Alby is evil.  Now that Barb has to show up at the hotel, Nikki changes plans and agrees to throw the party at her house.

When Barb shows up to the hotel, Margene is a freaking mess, accusing Barb of always ruining her good times.  Hormones are raging.  Bill, after a night of poker, shows up and tells Barb he got a room down the hall for her.  Barb refuses, saying he's the one staying in the other room.  Once again, the message and loud and clear - as good as it sounds, having multiple wives is a pain in the butt.

That night, things go wrong everywhere.  Margene makes a huge scene at the dinner, telling Bill's business associates that she's his mistress.  By the end of the night, Bill comes over and introduces his associates to his wife Barb, and his other wife, Margene.  Awesome.  "How many other wives do you have, Bill?" asks one of the businessmen.  "Just one.  She's at home with the kids."  OK, that's kind of bad-ass for Bill Henrickson.  In bed that night, Margene makes sense, possibly for the first time ever on this show, when she suggests Barb be Bill's wife for Home Plus, but Margene be his wife for the gaming business.  Too bad Nikki's left in the cold until he invests in a third business.

At Nikki's engagement party, a pair of freaky twins hit on Ben.  Alby shows up to ruin the party and to take Joey's potential second wife away.  Alby accuses her of stealing his money, and she lets it slip that they now own a gaming business, he same one Bill stole from under Roman's nose.  Uh oh.

As Alby possibly euthanizes Roman with morphine (though I'm skeptical, as this is now the second episode where it looks like Roman dies at the end), Rhonda is on the TV, singing about being "the happiest girl in the whole U.S.A."  I didn't realize that was a real song, as I only remember it from a hilarious Saturday Night Live sketch with Jennifer Aniston called "Country Roses."  If only they let Rhonda sing, "Ain't nothin' cuter than a fat country baby eatin' peaches off a hardwood floor."


-John Kubicek, BuddyTV Senior Writer
(Image courtesy of HBO)