‘Night Court’ Recap: ‘Ready or Knot’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

NIGHT COURT -- "Ready or Knot" Episode 111 -- Pictured: (l-r) Melissa Rauch as Abby Stone, Kapil Talwalkar as Neil, Lacrette as Donna Gurgs, Amanda Perez as Jessica -- (Photo by: Casey Durkin/NBC/Warner Bros.)

Caution: This article contains spoilers for Episode Eleven of ‘Night Court’. To revisit the previous episode, click here.
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We deeply hope when we set out into the world, that our loved ones… will be at our side to share in our accomplishments as we grow and travel through life. After all, they are usually there when we leave high school and college behind, so why not have them there when we land our dream job or when we say our vows to the person, we will be spending the rest of our lives with, and of course… it would mean the world to us to have them there when the next generation comes into this world. But alas, life is a winding journey that doesn’t always provide us with that. For sometimes we lose the ones we love along the way and that can change us and how we view and celebrate the big moments of our lives, a reality that was put on display in a creative manner in the next episode of Night Court on NBC.
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A feat that ‘Ready or Knot’ accomplished by way of a special night at Night Court. Wherein a wedding convention brought about a lot of disorderly conduct crimes. Since bridezillas from all over the nation descended upon this event to fight with other bridezillas over all things wedding and that put Abby in a reflective place. For she came to realize that she hadn’t really done all that much planning for her and Rand’s upcoming nuptials since she arrived in New York City, and well… that lit everyone up in a positive manner. Because everyone thought it would be delightful to help Abby get back to planning for the big day and that led to a bevy of fun shenanigans in this tale. Such as Dan being reminded of the finer things that come with a wedding since a planner that was witness to these bridal crimes, locked onto Dan and became determined to make him a groom again, to cater and plan what would be a high-class wedding for him. 

Plus, Neil started to slip up and admit his feelings for Abby, which made for some hilariously awkward moments, and Olivia and Gurgs? Well, they decided this was their chance to be named Maid of Honor for Abby’s future wedding. Which would have been a huge honor for Olivia since she had yet to be one and Gurgs… well she wanted to impress as one, again, so they both went to town on getting into Abby’s good graces… and that led to some of the most hilarious sequences of the night. Since Gurgs decided to drop some strippers into the mix in the smoothest manner possible to inform Abby of how much fun she brought to the table, and Olivia even set up a lineup to make sure the right dress could be found for Abby, and sadly, all these moments led disappointment for Olivia and Gurgs. Since Abby already had her Maid selected. But on the plus side, these moments and actions inspired Abby to get back in the game, after all, and set up the perfect wedding for her and Rand. In fact, when she learned of an opening at a local gallery that meant a lot to her… she went the extra mile to lock it up.

Going so far as to offer to officiate a wedding in the courtroom for someone that didn’t want to wait for the gallery in question. Which brought about a tender moment for Abby. Who was brought to tears when the father of the bride stepped into the courtroom, and the bride spoke to how important it was to have him present for her big day, and that… led to the commentary regarding that central theme. Since Dan and Abby talked openly, and she spoke to the fact that the art gallery, mattered a lot to her father and her, since he took her there often in her youth. And that getting married there would have been beautiful and meaningful and also painful. Because Harry Stone wouldn’t be there to walk his little girl down the aisle and that… hit her deeply and helped her realize… that life didn’t provide her with the perfect path she wanted, and that had contributed to holding off on planning the wedding in detail.

Which made for some powerful commentary on how loss can change our outlook on a great many things, including moments that are important. But since this series is big on lessons to go with the commentary, a kind gesture from Dan, one that let Abby know there was a way to have the spirit of her father present at her wedding, gave us those lessons. For we came to learn that life can’t stop when we lose those we love because that’s not something they would ever want to us do and because the world does indeed chug along. But also, if the core concern of this episode is present in our lives, that there are ways to honor those that mean the world to us so that it feels as though they are there and sharing in our big moments. All of which, made for another heartwarming and hilarious episode of a series that continues to surprise us, with amazing life lessons and comedy that embodies the spirit of the franchise. And now that Abby has enjoyed a reflective moment of growth, it will be interesting to see what she does with it in the weeks to come. Until next time.

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