RECAP: Beauty and the Beast – Season 2 Episode 16– About Last Night

The truth about "Epic"


Tess is confused about girl power, Cat is confused about her feelings, Gabe is confused about his personality, we are all confused about secret societies' organizational structure and I am STILL CONFUSED about how tracking works! There is a lot of lying and denying and finally coming to terms with the reality of this epic [or not] story.

The episode starts with a Vincat montage of all the scenes any respectable fanvid maker would pick. I’ll give you a minute to go “Aw…”  Catherine wakes up smiling due to her artfully edited dream but… the fairytale is quickly over as reality sets in. She realizes where she is and sneaks out of Vincent’s bed. I can’t believe she just left! Even her subconscious knew she was where she belonged!

Later, Vincent goes to the GENTLEMEN’S GUILD to share his sorrows and attempt to have breakfast, unaware that JT doesn’t have any food and/or basic kitchen utensils. At the same time, Cat tells Tess the story about the most ineffective break-up ever. It goes something like this: Vincent says “it was something special”; Cat maintains it was nothing more than “break-up sex” [potato potatoe]. Nevertheless, they both agree that it was “GREAT”. Cat goes one step further and calls it “VERY GREAT” [After seeing Vincent’s smug face, I am not gonna argue with her conclusion… or her grammar].

Tess decides that it was NOT breakup sex because there was “kissing” involved [I thought that was the Pretty Woman hooker-sex test… Didn’t know it applied to ‘break-up sex assessment’ too]. JT is better informed on the subject [thanks to Google and/or personal experience], so he concludes it was NOT breakup sex because break up sex tends to be “sloppy, short and generally not great”. As usual, JT gives V some good advice. He tells him to talk to Cat and figure it out. She may be with Gabe, but he didn’t put a ring on it [and Cat didn’t even take his key], so it is still fair game... I agree. Cat’s EPISODE SPEECH is that she “wants to move forward” so she can’t go back to Vincent. How is Gabe forward? I have no idea. It’s more like “let’s pretend I am moving forward by turning a blind eye to the very DISTURBING things he did in the past… it’s like Amnesia… What you can’t remember is ‘forward’ right?”

While Vincent and Catherine worry about their love life, Sam escapes prison. He uses the oldest trick in the book and gets himself sent to the infirmary (by ingesting the beast-serum). Once there, Sam beastifies another inmate [using a syringe that he got… how?] and runs away in the middle of the confusion…  because it’s not like prisons have doors, or a perimeter, or anything like that… It was NEVER this easy for Michael Scofield… that’s all I am saying. I mean… the guy had a genius IQ and the floorplans tattooed on his body and it still took him 22 episodes to escape!

BACK AT THE PRECINCT, Cat braces herself for coming clean to Gabe. He asks if she succeeded in ending things with Vincent. Cat is all “I tried…but I may have given him a mixed signal or two...” Gabe wonders if she is “having second thoughts” and Cat says she “IS NOT”. She tries to sound convincing, but… Come on! She slept with him! That looks pretty ‘second-thoughtful’ to me... Since Gabe is not a complete idiot [and is well-versed in deception], he notices Cat is totally lying. They don’t go any further with the conversation because they find out Sam escaped from Rikers.

Cat and Gabe go to RIKERS: AKA “THE LEAST SECURE PRISON IN AMERICA”. As they enter, they discuss their need for JT to synthesize an antidote for beast-con, decrypt the file Sam got from the CIA server, cure cancer, achieve world peace and a bunch of other stuff. Sometimes I feel everyone would just DIE without JT. Get some useful skills people! [Yes, I am looking at you Gabe… what can you do now that you are not even a beast? Build a legal defense?] I am not even sure why Cat and Gabe went to Rikers. They don’t do anything there besides talk about their problems and then they leave… separately… So they didn’t even carpool! [What a wasted, environment threatening trip].

As she walks out, Cat gets a phone call from Vincent. And it is “thee phone call”. Vincent wants to talk “about last night” and yeah… unfortunately, not a good time. Cat just wants to avoid that conversation at all costs. In her defense, she is in the middle of a crisis but… all that awkwardness could have been avoided if she had stayed at the houseboat to talk to Vincent in the first place! It’s particularly sad when Vincent tells her their night together was “incredible” and Cat corrects him saying “it was a mistake” [a VERY GREAT mistake?]

Cat gives Vincent her “I need to move forward” speech and adds that she is afraid to go back to being completely defined by him. Cat’s reaction is starting to make sense [sort of]. I think Cat is afraid of giving in to her feelings for Vincent because she knows they are life-altering. She was nearly destroyed last time she lost him, and I don’t think she has recovered yet. In a way, she is falling victim to self-preservation instinct: avoiding pain at all costs [and love brings pain whether we like it or not].

However, what I love about this scene is that Vincent, shockingly, doesn’t go into martyr-mode. He actually tells Cat that he knows she is lying, that he can sense what she is feeling and that they are meant to be together. He clearly says he “is not going to give up on them”. The old Vincent would have walked away, so if this is not evolution… I don’t know what is. Looks to me like Vincent IS “moving forward” [and I love his newfound assertiveness!] It’s going to take a while for Cat to notice that, but she’ll get there... But first she has an inmate to de-beastify and a psycho to re-catch. 

Meanwhile at the THE GUILD OF OVEREXTENDED BIOCHEMISTS, Tess cop-bullies JT into finding Sam by illegal means. While JT is coerced into breaking the law, they decide to discuss their friends’ love life. Tess comes to Cat’s defense. Her very lame reasoning is that guys walk out on girls the morning after all the time… so Cat should be allowed to do it too [was she trying to make a feminist argument?]. Tess needs to pick her “gender equality” fights. I am actually with the boys on this one. JT simply tells Tess that women sleeping with guys who have been chasing them for months and then disappearing is NOT NICE [nor empowering]. And yes… he means Cat AND her.
Vincent arrives as Tess leaves and repeats his “to do list”: Prove he is the epitome of going forward, antidote needed, Sam must be caught.

Speaking of Sam, the guy doesn’t waste any time. After the EASIEST PRISON BREAK IN THE HISTORY OF TELEVISION, he quickly finds his first target: JUDGE WESTBROOK. Looks like the encrypted file he got from the CIA server was a list of names. The people on the list belong to a secret organization I am going to call the “M-ALLIANCE”. As it usually happens with secret evil organizations, we don’t get much information about it. We only know that the members are very powerful [a Federal Judge e.g.], that their families would be executed if they talked about the M-Alliance and that they don’t know the other members… If they don’t know each other, how would they murder their families? Hmm… let’s assume they have a security section that sees it all… but if… OK, I’ll stop there because I could go on forever, but the organizational structure/operation of the M-alliance is a very confusing.

OK, I'll buy it
BACK TO THE EPISODE. Sam threatens the judge and demands to have his “pin”. I thought the pin was going to be some cool communications device or something, but it wasn’t anything as exciting. Once Sam finds the pin, he gets ready to kill the judge but stops when he sees a picture of the man with his son. A little on the nose but effective, I guess. I know I call Sam a psycho a lot, but I don’t think he actually is. I believe he loved his son very much and had a psychotic break after he died. As a result, I feel some empathy for Sam [in a way I NEVER felt for Tori… but that’s probably more about the good actor/bad actor factor].

BACK AT THE PRECINCT, Gabe is disappointed with the way things are turning out, but tells Catherine that she is allowed to “change her mind” [so, suddenly he is understanding and not demanding? Dude… pick a personality and stick with it!]. Cat is all “I haven’t changed my mind! I am still trying to force myself to love you!” The problem with Cat is not that she is changing “her mind”; it is that she CANNOT change her “feelings”, no matter how hard she tries. [Also, her mind is a little messed up on the romance department; but, in the end, she can’t tell her heart what to do. “Damn thing just does what it wants!”] Cat acknowledges that she is confused and maybe not ready to take their relationship to the next level. Gabe picks THAT moment to tell her that he loves her. It felt like emotional blackmail rather than a genuine love confession. Gabe wraps it up by TELLING Cat that he is RIGHT and Vincent is WRONG. Cat didn’t seem too pleased to hear it from him [if she hasn’t been able to convince herself of that at this point… ]

Vincent can’t track Sam because he is using “scent killers”. WAIT A MINUTE.  So… that’s all Vincent does? SMELL people? That’s how freaking tracking works!? Then WHAT THE HELL IS UP WITH ALL THE BEASTMONITION SEQUENCES!!? Sorry… I can’t help being upset about the tracking logic, because there isn’t ANY! *breathes* Anyway, JT has partially decrypted Sam’s files and he was unable to find names but got a list of addresses all over the country, two in Manhattan.  The closest one is JUDGE WESTBROOK’S office. Vincent hurries there and asks JT to call Catherine, finish the antidote an bring it to Rikers. JT needs to start getting paid for all of this. When does he have time to teach, grade and do his own research? No wonder he never goes grocery shopping!

Cat and Gabe meet with Vincent at the Judge’s office. Judge Westbrook isn’t sharing ANY information about Sam because “information about the M-alliance must be treated like a virus and the only response is containment”… or something along those lines. Vincent volunteers to “persuade” the judge. Gabe wants to be in charge of the situation so he asks Vincent “What can you do that I can’t do?” Well… a few things come to mind: pull ups, clap pushups, use a rowing machines, eat gummi works, rock a tux and other stuff… hmm oh! and beast out. It’s clear Vincent has some… hm “talents” Gabe does not. So, finally, they allow him to use some beast-persuasion with the judge and he gets the information they needed.

In summary, the M-alliance is as evil and secret as it can get. The working theory is that among their evil plans, they were experimenting on children and turning them into little beasts [that’s even worse than what William Bell did!]. Since the members don’t know each other, they communicated via the CIA server that Sam blew up. They will be holding a secret emergency meeting at a masquerade party [it doesn’t get more cloak and dagger than that!] The “pin” is their way into the meeting. It’s like online dating for powerful psychos. Vincent suggests they visit the other Manhattan address on the list and “borrow” the pins from Mr. and Mrs. Beaumont. Cat will impersonate Mrs. Beaumont, but the question is who will play the part of her husband? The men argue for a while until Cat finally sides with Gabe. That was annoying, but my guess is that she went with him because he was clueless and wouldn’t ask questions; while Vincent was demanding to have “a talk” she wasn’t ready to have yet.

"What is he saying? Damn... that VOICE... Focus!"
The new Beaumonts arrive at the masquerade and quickly realize that Gabe is a little too high profile to use and alias. So… time for Cat to call her backup fake husband. Vincent arrives and time for another relationship conversation that goes nowhere. She wants to go forward blah blah, he has changed blah blah… Honestly I have NO IDEA what he was saying because I was way too distracted by his voice and his tux. At some point he reminds her that they are “better together than they are apart” [Aw] and asks for another chance. Cat refuses to say anything, but it is clear that she is beginning to soften to the idea [it’s probably the effect of the voice… and the tux… she is human after all].  

Back at THE GUILD Tess is being really bitchy with JT. She basically blames JT for their failure at catching Sam and finding his next target. It’s not like catching criminals is JT’s ACTUAL JOB… unlike Tess. JT has had enough. After telling her that he is doing all he can do, he tells her that he deserves better than being her one-night stand. He definitely does! In return, Tess tells him that he was the last person in the planet she thought she would date. In other words, she thinks she is out of his league. Sort of true, I guess… but come on; there is nothing wrong with JT! He is just a little geeky [which isn’t a bad thing] and he is not Vincent-hot [but seriously who is?] Other than that he is an intelligent, resourceful, sweet guy with loyalty that knows no limits. I’d say Tess should feel lucky. On some level she must know this, because she concludes her rant by telling JT that even if they don’t make sense all she does is think about “being with him” and it is “driving her nuts”. That went from mean to sweet pretty fast! Then she kisses him [more like assaults him] just as the M-list gets decrypted.

"Is that so?"
AT THE GALA OF SECRET SOCIETY MEETINGS, Sam finds Cat before she can find him. He is posing as judge Westbrook and tells the security guards that Cat is not Mrs. Beaumont, so they take her away. No-one notices because Vincent and Catherine split up and Gabe is on the phone talking to JT. Vincent approaches Gabe and he recaps his conversation. Looks like Sam is after ALL the M-Alliance members [so?] and the M-Alliance is to Muirfield what Oversight is to Division or the Alliance of Twelve is to SD-6 [which I already figured out like 20 minutes ago!] After that useless conversation is over, Gabe decides to give Vincent some pseudo-advice and tells him to “do himself a favor and stay away from Catherine” because he can’t have her. Vincent gets a smug face that seems to say “I seemed to have her just fine last night”, but he only says “is that so?”

Gabe walks away and Vincent spots Cat being “escorted” out by the security guards. Cat is dragged to the kitchen area where she proceeds to disarm the guards and kick their asses. Vincent arrives just in time to throw the last punch. Cat gets VERY upset at this. I really don’t see the problem… Vincent didn’t even beast out! What was he supposed to do? Stand aside and watch Cat fight? Cat tells him that she had it “under her control” And…  I think that’s at the core of everything. Cat’s desire to be “in control” drove her to be with Gabe, because she saw him as a “choice she was making”. On the contrary, she probably never felt more “out of control” than how she did when she was with Vincent. Not saying her logic isn’t on the dumb side, but hey… at least there seems to be some logic hiding in there…

In any case, Cat walks away from Vincent proclaiming “I am not some damsel in distress, I don’t need a knight in shining armor!” which was a really funny line [but the “characters talking to themselves” device was seriously OVERUSED in this episode]. I was also glad to see Catherine getting her “badassery” back… even if it wasn’t completely justified at that particular moment.

In the meantime, Sam has descended to the basement for the secret M-Alliance meeting. Basically Sam had the EASIEST PRISON BREAK EVER and the EASIEST SECRET ORGANIZATION INFILTRATION EVER in one episode! Go Sam! Sam approaches one of the members, ANDREW MARTIN, who for some reason is British [accents make you more evil and cooler?]. Sam confronts him about the clinical trials they did on children and Andrew just smiles until he realizes Sam isn’t who he says he is. Before he can react, Sam injects him with the Beast-serum. Andrew turns out to be beast inclined so he transforms.

Vincent and Catherine want to go after Sam, but Gabe thinks it is too dangerous. Cat refuses to let Sam get away with it [and to keep allowing Gabe to order her around] and just starts walking to the elevator. Vincent looks at Gabe and says “I obviously don’t make decisions for Catherine” and then follows her to the elevator.  Guess Vincent doesn’t seem so “wrong” for Catherine now, does he Gabe? Vincent and Catherine get into the elevator and there is a silent charged moment. I think it is then that Cat starts coming to terms with the truth she knew, but couldn’t accept: No other man will ever get and accept her the way Vincent does. That type of connection comes once in a lifetime and even with all the mistakes and missteps along the way, it can’t be erased. 

They arrive at the secret meeting floor. It is beast-madness down there. The M-Alliance members are falling one by one to the hands of the newly created MARTIN-BEAST. Vincent transforms and attacks Martin while Cat tends to the wounded. Vincent kills the other beast [very quickly by the way] and Sam breaks down, runs to the rooftop and tries to kill himself. All in less than 30 seconds! 

Vincent and Catherine go after him. Vincent tries to talk Sam off the ledge by giving him a heart-felt speech about not getting lost in the need for revenge and finding a way to honor his son’s memory without hurting more people in the process. This speech, of course, makes Cat FINALLY realize that Vincent has changed. What it doesn’t do is actually convince Sam because he jumps! But Vincent catches him. Sam is completely defeated and simply tells Vincent he should have let him die.

Aw… That was sad… and, although I was very touched by Tom’s performance in that scene, I was really disappointed by the conclusion of his arc. First of all, I don’t think the character was fully developed. It worked well enough because TES is a good actor [something that didn’t happen with Amber], but there was much more to explore. He didn’t have enough scenes with Dana that enlightened how he felt about her. Did he love her? Did he resent her? Did he care when he thought she was collateral damage? Was he happy when he found out she didn’t die? And so on. Sadly, once they started exploring the character of Sam and his motivations, his time was over! In addition, they had been building up to the climax of the M-ALLIANCE for episodes and when the mystery was finally uncovered, the baddies were destroyed/exposed in a one minute scene. I know this episode had a lot to deal with in the Vincat department, but I felt Sam didn’t get the send-off that his character deserved.

BACK TO THE EPISODE. Sam gets arrested and that’s the last we see of him. Sad. Vincent is sad too. He looks at Sam with a feeling of helplessness. Cat approaches him and tries to ease his worries by telling him that he doesn’t have to take the law into his own hands anymore. He assures her that he is not planning on going back to that life, but he understands what Sam is going through. Cat tells him she likes the “new him better” [technically the new new him who is similar but improved on the old him] and that she believes he has changed. The way she was looking at him, it was clear that she had made up her mind by then, but they get interrupted by Gabe’s arrival. Vincent gracefully takes his cue and leaves, but not before giving Cat a swoon worthy look that silently says “I’ll be waiting for you… forever”

Gabe drives Cat home and stops in front of her building. At least you can’t blame Gabe of being dumb, because he has figured out that his relationship with Cat is OVER… and he is NOT happy about it. He calls Cat naïve and tells her she is making a mistake. His argument is that he used to be what Vincent is and he knows he will end up hurting her. To that I say, Vincent is NOT like Gabe, so his logic doesn’t apply. What’s clear is that Gabe does not take the break-up well and his psychotic tendencies begin to show. Cat is done with him [finally!] so she just exits the car.

Cat enters her apartment and goes up to the rooftop. She finds Vincent standing there looking into the city skyline. She approaches him and he silently presents her with a single red rose. He tells her he loves her. Cat looks up at him and FINALLY says what she had been denying for far too long: “I love you too”. They kiss and it is a beautiful scene. They both look gorgeous, the lighting is beautiful, there’s snow, the music is great and it is very sweet, but… I was just a tinsy underwhelmed by it. It didn’t feel as “grand” as it should have been considering the long wait and it wasn’t as great as their first and second kisses. Also, I wish Cat had spent less time talking to Gabe and had a romantic conversation with Vincent instead. But… I still liked the scene. There was something beautiful in its simplicity [and unspoken emotions].

And I think this is as good a time as any to discuss the EPICNESS of Vincat. I know there are very extreme opinions about this and it is obviously up for interpretation [the ‘epic’ is in the eye of the beholder after all] but here is where I personally stand on the subject [and yes, I tried to have a scientific approach to it]:

Combining several sources I’ve come to this definition of “Epic”:

epic
/ˈɛpɪk/

Derived from the ancient oral tradition. A narrative, elevated in style, which extends beyond the ordinary (in scope and size) and is usually exceptionally arduous.

So… let’s see how BatB fits into this description. It is elevated in style Their emotions are heightened and there is a clear sense of “destiny” and inevitability It extends beyond the ordinary (in scope and size) Vincent and Catherine’s story dates back to over a decade ago, even longer if you take into account Alistair and Rececca! (scope). And it is clearly not an “ordinary” relationship. He is not human and they often find themselves in extraordinary situations of major proportions (size). Finally, it is usually exceptionally arduous No-one can say Vincent and Catherine had it easy. It has definitely been difficult with all the external and internal forces working against them.

Looking at it this way, I would definitely say Vincent and Catherine are an “epic” couple. I believe the word “epic” is often misused to refer to something that is “perfect”, but that’s not accurate at all. As you can see from the official definition epic does not mean “idyllic” nor “impeccable”, it is almost the opposite. Basically epic refers to something that is very long, hard and extraordinary. Have Vincat had an ideal relationship free of mistakes and pain? Absolutely NOT. But they have had a long, arduous journey in an extraordinary setting. So, yes, epic.

But why listen to my boring etymology lecture when Logan from Veronica Mars explains it better:





“I thought our story was epic, you and me… Spanning years and continents, lives ruined, bloodshed, EPIC” [don’t tell me Vincat doesn’t fit that]

BACK TO THE EPISODE, Cat wakes up next to Vincent and I know I know... I was a little bummed too that we didn’t get the actual love scene… but I get why they couldn’t fit it in the third act. It would have ruined the pacing, plus this scene was a nice way to bookend the episode, so I am OK with it. Vincent is happy to see her next to him this time. He tells her that he “doesn’t want to hurt her again” and I ABSOLUTELY believe that it is his intention, but we know he inevitably will... She kisses him and things start getting heated but they are interrupted by a knock on the door [and shockingly it is NOT Heather-interrupter-extraordinaire].

Cat gets up and assumes Vincent was just embracing the cheese factor and ordered more flowers for her, but unfortunately she was wrong! It’s the police; they are there to arrest Vincent for the murder of Curt Windsor DUN DUN DUN


"You are not the flower delivery guy...."
OK... from all the people he’s killed, Windsor is the one they get him for? I guess it makes sense, since he was the one with the money and high profile… funny enough no-one is wondering where Tori is… Guess no-one cares. A part of me wished they had arrested Vincent for Darius’s murder instead… I thought that had bigger story potential for all the characters (Tess, JT now that he is with Tess and even Heather). I have to say, out of all the potential cliffhangers I had in mind I didn’t think of anything like this at all! I was pleased by it. They had finally dealt with all the beast/supernatural stuff and then they get Vincent the “human way”. It was certainly unexpected… plus I’ve come to realize I have a thing for [TV] man in jail but that’s a discussion for next week’s recap. 


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TVEmpress

The TV Empress is a Media Management graduate, screenwriter in the making (and financial engineer in the meantime). She has serious plans to take over global television. You can follow the TVEmpress on twitter @TVRepublik

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34 comments:

  1. I hate how they write for Cat this season.She became weak,codependent,& everyone 's doormat.
    While Vincent deceloped so much,they downgraded Cat just as much.
    too many male perspective on the writing room.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
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  2. Alex, I love you! Your explanation of the epicness of VinCat is spot on! Terrific review as always...insightful and hilarious, as well. Your reviews have helped me tremendously to understand Cat's motivation this season and even the (gasp) dreaded Gaberine fiasco. I'm so looking forward to your review of my favorite episode...217 and then to your views on Cat's telling Glob she had "loved" (double gasp) him in 218. have a gr8 weekend.

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    Replies
    1. Thank you Denise. It makes me really happy to see that my perspective makes sense to other people. As usual, thank you for reading.

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    2. Welcome, Alex! :)

      Delete
  3. your review was EPIC :)
    yeah really great episode - my only complaint (besides the lameness of the organisation AGAIN and the under exploring of a character (sam in this case) AGAIN) is the fact that vincat during the episode were a few times a bit too funny which yeah is ok but not sure suited the specific episode. but besides that great episode for all the reasons u describe. i liked the simplicity of the end scenes - it felt so appropriate for the moment. no need to say anything else. no need for explanations or apologies - they both know they have messed up but they also know they belong to each other. sigh...
    I have to say the Gabe Catherine car scene is one of my fav scenes of them two (which is not hard considering i dislike most others) - felt like a real honest convo and I felt that Gabe was a person at that very moment - not a robot (which is what he was portrayed as for a good part of season 2). anyway, amazing review and can't wait for your review of my fav episode of season 2, episode 17 :)

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    Replies
    1. Aw thanks for you comments:)

      I feel Cat got herself together in many aspects on this ep. She stopped pretending and suddenly it all fell into place, starting with her just doing what she wanted to do and what she thought was right instead of letting the many men in her life (Gabe, Bob and even Vincent) tell her what was best.

      I also agree that Gabe was written as a robot and feel so sad about it bc unlike other actors... Sendhil could actually pull off a complex character and they didn't give him enough. It was too much of "look at me, I am a nice guy now, I am right for you... " but oh well...

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  4. Hello Alex and thank you for another great review – you have me in stitches most of the time, as usual. I really love your references and comparisons to other shows, even though I do not know all of them.

    Was this a good episode for me? Yes and no! Love the ball setting and the 'kicking Gabe to the curb' scene FINALLY!!!!! And of course love the re-emergence of the 'real Catherine Chandler' up at the boardroom. FINALLY!!! And the ending. Yeah.

    Did NOT agree with some of the writing and there was a (minor) editing mistake in Catherine's dream, because they inserted a scene of Vincent's angst dream about hurting Catherine during love making in it. But that is just me noticing little things like that. Not important.

    I do consider it important, however, and disgusting that the writer found it necessary to have Catherine call her night with Vincent 'break-up sex' and 'a mistake'. Enough already with this imposter being confused - it has been dragging on for too long. Sleeping with Vincent is called MAKING LOVE – being with Gabe is a MISTAKE and just sex and should have never happened in the first place (sorry to all for the broken record theme). Calling her night with Vincent sex just cheapens it and telling Tess that her 'libido' and NOT her heart made her do it, puts this night on the same level as the Tori/Vincent relationship, which was also based on libido and beast pheromones. What a disgusting thought. And yes, I screamed at my tv screen when Catherine said that she was NOT going to change her mind about 'you know who' and later 'I am with you' again.

    Absolutely adore the 'eating cereal with a measuring spoon' scene.

    I disliked Catherine's theme of the week about 'not going backward' so much that I did not even notice that her being with Gabe is also going backward – he is from her past too and he nearly killed her and Vincent – so how is being with HIM moving forward? Thanks for pointing that out. Makes the whole theme of the week so futile and pointless.

    Love the scene at Westbrook's office where Vincent interrupts Gabe's useless questioning of the judge and later Catherine's eye roll when they hear him beast out.

    I like your explanation/exploration of the word 'epic' and from a 'technical' point of view you are correct. I do not think that those of us who believe that 'epic' no longer applies meant idyllic and impeccable. There were plenty of bad moments and rocky stretches in season one for this love. They both had (and still have) flaws and edges and issues, but still they had a moral compass, sacrificed for each other and most of all it was MAGIC and true and strong. THAT for me was EPIC. And I still maintain that after having hurt each other physically and mentally so often and so deeply during this season, epic does not apply anymore.

    I agree also that at the end of THIS episode it was okay to just be back together and not a lot of words necessary. However, as we know now, there is never going to be any deeper relationship talk and then these two sentences: 'I never want to hurt you again' and 'I know' are a bit underwhelming considering all the bad things they did to each other. Of course this IS the CW channel and they are a bit confused about the age and intelligence of their audience, so I guess we have to be happy that we at least got those two sentences.
    Reading over what I wrote above, I guess I need to say again that I love this show with all the flaws and problems and that I watch the 'dark' episodes just as often as the others. It is maybe that gushing over the good parts does not make the discussions as interesting as writing about the not so good parts. And there were plenty good parts in this episode, too.

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  5. Thank you for these fabulous recaps, they make my week.

    I had a very hard time with this episode because of the "I can't go backwards" Then what the heck is she doing with Gabe? It made no sense. She even tells Vincent that she isn't going backwards with Gabe.

    But after the next few episodes, it seemed to become clear. She thought Gabe would be the sidekick she needed to go on "saving innocent people" raids. But he prefers being safe and secure and then taking credit at the end. A true coward after all.

    All she has to do is nod toward Vincent and he is at her beck and call, including beasting out conveniently when needed. Oh dear, isn't his humanity at risk? Apparently not if it is dictated by Catherine.

    Thankfully Vincent does have the chance to think on his own once in a while and actually became assertive. The scene on the stairs of the lawyer's office was outstanding.

    Vincent is the one who finally got the information. Even then, Catherine is questioning him "how do you know?" She asks when he tells Gabe and her that Westbrook is hiding something.

    Yep, must be amnesia for Catherine, did she forget that Vincent can tell when people are lying? Although sometimes he misleads, so it isn't entirely her fault.

    In this script he could tell the Westbrook knew Sam's intentions and where he was going. In previous episodes, he could only tell if someone was lying. In still others, he can't tell anything at all. So I suppose I must forgive Catherine for constantly praising Gabe for his intelligence but questioning Vincent about his.

    The beautiful charity ball scene from season 1 was ruined by the cavalier speech Catherine made about they were after another bad guy and going backwards. Couldn't we have just one beautiful memory of season 1? How dare the writer diminish it to a nuisance afterthought.

    And how could Catherine forget that Vincent spent 9 years in hiding? She is talking about sympathy for Sam, she can't understand how "anyone could spend six years holding onto all that pain and anger, I can't even imagine." Vincent has to remind her that he spent all those years doing the same thing. She should have known that and not brought up Sam's pain and anger without understanding Vincent's pain and anger. Plus it happened to him personally so more pain and anger because it is ongoing with him, not a historical event. Shouldn't she remember his struggle and have empathy? That scene was very poorly written unless Catherine has amnesia too. "The I believe you" could have still been the ending line but a little understanding about Vincent's 10 year journey would have been appropriate. After all, it was her journey too.

    Oh well, this episode featured a stunning set and handsome men in tuxedos, offering a feast for the eyes.

    The ending scene left me just a tiny bit disappointed. The "I love you, too" was rather like "I love grape jam" not very emotional. After the Gabe break up scene, I expected a tiny bit more. Thankfully, the kiss was profound, so what if she was a little cool instead of having an "epic" moment.

    Thank you again for helping us through this long, long wait.

    Marsha







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    1. Hi Marsha, thank you for your comments. You made me think of a couple of things I hadn't considered before.

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  6. Thanks TV-Empress for an even better review than last time. You can define EPIC all you want, sleeping around and deluding oneself is never the stuff EPIC is made of. It might make the basis for a great sensational story for Games-Of-Thrones-type shows, no one cares what those characters are up to anyway.
    Very strange ideas aired in the episode about 'break-up' sex. Everyone is happily offering up different and very strange opinions, maybe everyone (including the writers) need a definition of it? Never mind, since it wasn't.

    One wonders why Gabe now suddenly seems worried about Cath's devotion when he has been totally oblivious and smug about it before. Don't tell me Gabe is suddenly sensitive - he is not. In the scene where he tells her he loves her (at the worst possible moment) he actually does it with patronizing lip-curl.

    The Vincat scene in the elevator is charged with tension, they end up standing very close together but that is only shown a microsecond in the glass reflection. The reason for Cath sudden change of heart in favor of Vincent is most likely that he is perfectly willing to go with her, while Gabe thinks it is 'too dangerous'. Maybe she finally realizes Gabe is an emasculated wimp, not the near-beast she was imagining. It is typical that Gabe walks away and Vincent is the one looking out for Cath One wonders why the writers bothered with Gabe at all, the poor guy was given absolutely no redeeming qualities in his repertoire. Unless self-praise and cowardness are hero requirements. No, Gabe was there just to make us BATB devotees mad with fury. That is why they never needed to show any reason for Cath to turn to Gabe, it was just meant to be an irritant, the more illogical the better for this purpose.

    I never bought the theory that Cath is afraid of her strong feelings for Vincent. She is doubting his 'humanity' so she breaks-up, until she suddenly isn't any more because he shows his 'new humanity'. This may come as a surprise for you Cath; it looks suspiciously like the same old 'humanity' he had before.

    I think Sam was played poorly, from evil-sneering-guy to bereaved-father-mad-with grief in 30 seconds or less. Let us say that the transformation was a bit too sudden to be believable.

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    1. Just out of curiosity, do you watch Game of Thrones? Because I do and I actually CARE with capital letters for all the characters... like a LOT. Like I am invested with those characters to the point of obsession... I think GoT is a wonderfully written show and so are the books. But that was just an off-topic Q.... hehe

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  7. I did watch it first season because of Sean Bean. I was very disappointed when it turned out to be a soap just with more gore and deceit than is usual. It made me feel that the writers expected us to be thrilled about how evil everyone can be. That said I will never forget the scene where what's-her-name ate a raw liver with gusto.

    I meant that no one (or at least myself) cares if the characters in GOT are evil or good. While BATB is different in that Jay Ryan made us love Vincent and want everything to end up good for him. Or at least bearable.

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    1. I agree about Jay, and I love Vincent too.

      However, I just don't feel like you do about Game of Thrones at all. I actually think the character development is outstanding [could be because I've read the books and I have more background and insight], and I think the storytelling is remarkable. I do agree that they have some gratuitous sex scenes [but that is almost a mandate at HBO] and some scenes that rely too much on the shock factor, but... the more I watch I realize every shocking scene had a greater purpose in the narrative. But of course that's just my opinion [And I actually love Daenerys arc in the first season!]. I personally don't mind being shocked as long as the purpose is revealed. But now I've gone seriously off-topic... sorry, I am sure you weren't looking to engage on a GoT debate...

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  8. Not my fave episode, but I loved the ending

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  9. I enjoyed this episode for all the reasons put forward already. However the best part for me was that Vincent, having spent the night with Cat, has finally accepted who and what he is and feels worthy of her. He is the good man from S1 but is now stronger; there were times when I wanted to shake the S1 Vincent because he would not believe in himself even when Cat and others made it clear that they knew he was a good guy. I also thought Jay was fantastic in this ep; the comedic bits in the breakfast scene, the look he gives Gabe on the stairs before he questions the judge among others were gold. I too was disappointed by the brevity of the rooftop scene and the interruption by the cops! Can't they just have one day to enjoy sorting themselves out? 😖 Thanks for another great recap, I am a bit behind!

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    1. Thanks for catching up with the recaps and taking time to leave a comment!

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  10. It wasn't break up sex because there was lots of kissing and lots of eye contact. I'm so mad with Cat during the Gabe arc, too, because Gabe gave her so many outs. he asked her 50 times if she was sure and she said yes when she clearly wasn't. That's enough to make any person go crazy bc you're saying one thing and acting another way. When Gabe asked her in the beginning of the ep for example she should have said yes, she was having mixed feelings bc even though she was always having mixed feelings she really just slept with the guy a few hours ago. Also, I hate how Cat denied her heart got in the way, surprising team V action from Tess, and just said it was her libido. It's like it's supposed to be epic love and they reduced it to intense attraction. I hate Cat calling it a mistake. She keeps hurting the guy. My god. Yes, I realize he has hurt her, too. I just want all the hurting to stop. Too painful. I think you're right. Gabe is safe. Vincent isn't bc loving someone so completely is scary and painful bc they can leave you and break your heart. Gabe couldn't break her heart so she was like yeah let's be together. Yes, V was a new more assertive man! He told Cat his feelings and called her out on hers. Liked it. Again, Cat asks her if she changed her mind basically and she denies it. WHY!?!? Hated Cat siding with Gabe as her fake husband. Seriously gross. I like your idea that she chose Gabe bc V wanted to have the talk and she wasn't ready to yet. YES I agree about the out of control with V thing bc he was this consuming love. "This speech, of course, makes Cat FINALLY realize that Vincent has changed" I think this is what snapped Cat out of her denial regarding her deep love for V. She looked touched and like she was falling for him all over again. VC looks fab in this ep. I loved V's look to Cat at the end when Gabe came up and he left like you're coming back to me. He knew! I wish Cat had been more honest and about how she loves V when talking to Gabe. She basically was like you aren't spending more time with me. Bye. Sorry it had to end. SORRY!? Why are you sorry it had to end? That was a disgusting comment to me. I'm sorry it had to start.

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    1. I know G knew it ended bc of her loving V, but she still should have said something to make their breakup better for the audience after the horror of us having to see them together. Like sorry I was with you when I was still in love with V. It wasn't fair. I was lying to you, but only bc I was lying to myself. How hard it that?
      I wish they would have had an emotional conversation about being in love and mistakes and forgiveness before getting back together. I hate to say it, but their getting back together was pretty anticlimatic and not as satisfactory as it should have been bc of all the hurtful crap and OOC stuff we witnessed. Like the hurt each other physically and emotionally. Talk about it. Prove that you're still connected and in love so I can enjoy your reunion. Jeeze. Like emotionally cat just says she loves him back? I wish we could have seen her journey to realize that bc it didn't feel as real as season 1. YES UNDERWHELMED. No convo about denial or I was in love with you the whole time. I have whiplash. Yes it wasn't as grand considering the long wait and pain. We needed and deserved more. S3 better make up for this. NO love scene after writers said we would be rewarded for the separation. I mean ridic. I think we should have gotten one when they were more settled as a couple in future eps like 19 or 20 or 22. I didn't love Cat's line about it being her place. It wasn't flirty, but like well I live here so I stay with whoever wakes up in my bed. I did like the kiss in bed. I did not like Cat's character this season as much. So different. Like past the early eps she just listened to what Bob and Gabe told her. Loved the insight into epic love. thank you. Barbara said. "And I still maintain that after having hurt each other physically and mentally so often and so deeply during this season, epic does not apply anymore." I can see why she thinks this. What I don't get is that the writers must have known this stuff would taint Vincat and the strongest point of BATB was their love, chem, epicness. Why ruin that and lose viewers? Especially when you didn't have to? Again, they could have been separated and single, not in love triangles. And, I wanted more of a romantic reconciliation given that they did hurt each other so much and so deeply. It was a mistake to skip a detailed talk. YES to V having to remind C about his 9+ years living in the shadows. I thought JR was great in this ep.

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  11. Got into BATB about 6 months ago and have re-watched S1 & 2 at least a dozen times already, which enjoying the current season (yay!). Just started reading your recaps and I adore them!

    Also, love the VM's reference :) One of my other most fave shows.

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    1. Hi Cheryl! Welcome to the BATB FanMily (and my blog!) We all have our stories of how we discovered BATB. And yes... I am a huge VM fan too (loving iZombie too now). Thanks for reading!

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