Taking the plunge

Everywhere you channel-surf these days, somebody is getting hitched.

And on TLC, it might just be too much of a good thing.

The network that gave us Jon and Kate is also home to one of my favorite wedding-themed shows: “Say Yes to the Dress,” which follows brides-to-be as they search for that perfect gown at New York city bridal salon Kleinfeld.

Viewers get to know both the brides, who show up with family, friends and, occasionally, grooms, and the bridal consultants who guide the women through the initial search. Each episode also ventures downstairs, where the alterations are made and where most of the drama occurs, as unhappy brides complain about one thing or another.

Kleinfeld attracts all kinds. We get spoiled brats, demure brides, pushy mothers.

But for me, the show’s appeal is the incredibly pricey gowns. I’m a single gal who loves watching brides try on the elaborate dresses, wishing that one day I’ll be able to afford something similar — though I might have to win the lottery first; some of Kleinfeld’s brides come in with budgets as high as $20,000.

Couldn’t most of us plan an entire wedding with that kind of money?

Over the past month or so, TLC has tried to build on the success of “Say Yes” with three new shows, which all aired as specials and are supposed to return as full-fledged series at some point, most likely this fall.

(Other networks have also gotten in on the action, but I have yet to see TNT’s “Wedding Day,” which gives deserving couples the wedding of their dreams, or The CW’s “Hitched or Ditched,” which I’m boycotting on principle because of its rather tasteless-sounding premise: nominated by friends, longtime couples are challenged to either get married or break up while planning their nuptials over the course of one week; they then announce their decision on their wedding day, up on the altar in front of their guests).

The best of TLC’s bunch was certainly “Wedded to Perfection,” which trails husband-and-wife wedding planners Josh Brooks and Jung Lee as they create beyond-lavish nuptials through Fete Events, their New York-based business.

The couple usually plans high-end weddings with budgets starting at $200,000 and reaching into the millions — no doubt that the brides probably all buy their dresses at Kleinfeld, too.

In the sneak preview, Jung and Josh planned three ceremonies: one in the Hamptons and two in the city.

Perhaps the most elaborate was for a reception held at the New York Public Library.

Talk about a dream wedding. Jung lined the front steps with hundreds of tealight candles so the couple could truly make a grand entrance, and the reception area was absolutely stunning, with huge floral centerpieces and perfect lighting.

In addition to the wedding planning and its results, we also get a glimpse into the home life of Jung and Josh, the parents of two young children.

They’re an interesting couple to center a show around: Jung is a hard-driving perfectionist, the yin to her laid-back hubby’s yang.

Watching the inner-workings of Fete Events will never get old, unlike TLC’s other two series — “Masters of Reception” and “Happily Ever Faster” — which already seem stale after one episode.

“Reception” focuses on the Frungillo family, who own and operate four wedding facilities in New Jersey, hosting up to 10 (!) weddings a day, while “Happily Ever Faster” follows the staff at Las Vegas’ Chapel of Flowers, a higher-end spot that hosts ceremonies and small receptions.

My problem with these shows is that the drama in both seemed manufactured, whether it was an obnoxious bride’s slew of last-minute requests on “Reception” or an annoying wedding planner organizing a quickie ceremony on “Faster.”

It was almost as if the producers didn’t think there was enough inherent drama to keep their shows moving, so they created it. I swear, at times, both shows reminded me of “The Hills.” And that is not a compliment.

A good part of “Reception” focused an employee’s search for special Dominican candy (for that aforementioned obnoxious bride), an assignment he wasn’t given until four days before the wedding.

Hey, Frungillos, want a real challenge?

On “Wedded to Perfection,” Jung had 55 minutes to transform a ceremony space into a reception area, a job she said usually takes about 10 hours.

That’s compelling television.

Want to know what isn’t? Watching a guy drive around from candy store to candy store.

A day or two later, the same candy-craving woman asked the owners to find a special dance troupe to perform at the ceremony and, on the night before her wedding, requested menu cards for each of her guests. (That’ll be 250, please. Stat.)

So either the producers are making up these silly requests, which I’m inclined to believe, or this woman is a selfish, flighty bridezilla. I’m willing to give her the benefit of the doubt — I’m convinced the producers put her up to it. Or, at least, told her to hold off on those requests until the last minute.

I also got the sense that both shows were trying to play up the quirky or demanding personalities of the people in charge.

Whereas I believe that “Wedded to Perfection’s” Jung is just as tough as her employees make her out to be, I wasn’t buying the same lines, about owners Robert and Jerry Frungillo, from the employees on “Masters of Reception.”

“Happily Ever Faster” has over-the-top wedding planner Melody, whose pushiness and annoying voiceovers also seemed like they were being enhanced for the sake of the cameras.

I couldn’t help but wonder if the Chapel of Flowers had any other planners that could be followed around instead.

With all these wedding shows, TLC might want to keep something in mind: less really would be more.