The Goldbergs – The Wedding Singer

By: Ariba Bhuvad

Have you ever wondered what a “The Goldbergs” and The Wedding Singer crossover would look like? Don’t worry! The most recent episode of the series gives us just that. Barry (Troy Gentile) and Lainey’s (AJ Michalka) wedding is coming up which means Beverly (Wendi McLendon-Covey) is in full planning mode. But she hasn’t actually done much until she realizes Lainey’s dad, Bill (David Koechner), hasn’t done anything. This includes booking a wedding venue or a wedding singer.

Bev goes into panic planning mode and recruits Erica (Hayley Orrantia) and her friends to start taking care of things. She even gets three cake toppers with one of her in the middle of the bride and groom. Barry is frazzled to find his mom in such a frenzy and realizes he’s not even ready to be married and it would be a terrible mistake.

Adam (Sean Giambrone) is busy trying to convince Murray (Jeff Garlin) to hire him as the wedding videographer. But based on past attempts, Adam always makes serious videos silly (cue the fart noises) and Murray doesn’t want him to ruin the wedding video for Barry and Lainey. He uses his cousin Susan’s wedding video as an example of how Adam butchered a video in the past.

While talking to Erica, Barry says he’s just a dumb kid and can’t marry Lainey. Naturally, Erica is pissed because she advised Barry against all of this from the start. However, Barry feels this is exactly why he did it because he wanted to do the opposite of what everyone was saying. Lucky for Barry, Lainey feels exactly the same but was too scared to bring it up to him. They both love each other, but they’re not ready for such a big commitment.

Adam is still deadset on convincing his father to hire him, but he can’t seem to shake off being funny. It’s what helps him escape from the stress of the day and his family and he doesn’t want to give it up. Geoff (Sam Lerner) tries to help him understand why he needs to take it more seriously if he intends on convincing Murray.

Barry and Lainey tell her father that the wedding is off and he cannot contain his enthusiasm. He wasn’t a big fan of Barry anyway and was hoping this would happen. Now, they must tell Bev who will be a whole other obstacle to tackle. However, Bev is off looking for a wedding singer and this is where the epic crossover comes in. The wedding singer she is watching is Adam Sandler’s Robbie Hart from the movie The Wedding Singer! The scene is placed into the episode as if it was actually a part of the film. Bev wants to hire Robbie, but his rival wedding singer Jimmie Moore (Jon Lovitz) offers to do it himself. He wants a nonrefundable cash deposit, which Bev makes just as Lainey and Barry show up. They’re unable to fess up and tell her the truth.

Lainey asks Adam to help make a serious video where she can say goodbye to her friends and family. She’s moving to LA to pursue her dreams and wants to use the video as a way to say bye. Of course, Adam makes it silly and inserts fart noises and clapping sounds as Lainey reveals what she is about to do. The family convinces Barry to go after Lainey and he ends up boarding the plane to see her. Barry offers to go with Lainey, but she says he can’t and that this is really goodbye–at least for now. While on the plane, another The Wedding Singer scene becomes a part of the episode as the scene with Billy Idol and the character of Robbie Hart shows up to sing to the love of his life. Barry and Lainey are “watching” it take place and admiring the love the couple has for one another. 

Upset and disheartened, Barry returns home an emotional mess. Murray steps up to talk to his son and reminds him that he too was engaged before marrying Bev and how life worked out. This whole situation prompts Adam to finally create a serious, heartfelt video about Barry and Lainey’s love. And although Barry and Lainey have parted ways, for now, their paths will cross again one day–even Barry believes so.