Ep 18. Cruel Shoes

The episode "Cruel Shoes" from season 3 of Hot In Cleveland starts off with Melanie (Valerie Bertinelli) feeling insecure about her appearance. She confides in her friends Joy (Jane Leeves), Victoria (Wendie Malick), and Elka (Betty White) about how she's feeling and they encourage her to go buy a new pair of shoes to boost her confidence.

At the shoe store, Melanie meets a cute shoe salesman named Hank (guest star Tim Daly). They hit it off and Melanie decides to go on a date with him. However, things go awry when she wears her new shoes and they turn out to be extremely uncomfortable. She tries to hide her pain from Hank, but eventually, she can't take it anymore and ends up ruining the date.

Meanwhile, Victoria goes on a shopping spree, but when she sees her credit card bill, she realizes she's spent too much money. She tries to return some of her purchases, but runs into problems when the store won't accept her returns. Joy and Elka try to help her come up with a solution to her financial problems, but their ideas end up causing more trouble.

Throughout the episode, the ladies are also dealing with a pesky rat that has invaded their house. Joy is determined to catch the rat, and she enlists the help of her ex-husband, who is an exterminator. However, their efforts to catch the rat only lead to more chaos in the house.

In the end, Melanie learns a valuable lesson about the importance of being comfortable in your own skin, and Victoria finds a creative way to pay off her credit card bill. The episode ends on a funny note as the ladies come up with a new solution to their rat problem.

Overall, "Cruel Shoes" is a lighthearted and humorous episode that touches upon relatable themes like self-confidence and financial responsibility. The chemistry between the main actresses is as strong as ever, and Tim Daly's guest appearance adds a fun new element to the show. Fans of Hot In Cleveland will definitely enjoy this episode.