Beauty and the Beast – 2.04 – Hothead – Review: The moon of his life and the sun and stars of hers

“The moon of his life and the sun and stars of hers“

Beasties we finally have some good rating news. Click here to check it out!


I just want to say that I’m proud of us Beasties. We got a world- wide double trending event two weeks in a row. We also moved up on the Monday night Get Glue chart to #3 from an abysmal #7 rank last week. Just keep on roaring louder and harder every single week. Please also note that it is PCA voting time so, you know what that means, right?. Rally the troops and steady the F5 button, we’ve got work to do. Let’s make Beauty and the Beast a two time champion this year.

Also TV Guide has been showing us a lot of love lately so be sure to give them so page views on all of their Beauty and the Beast articles.

Now on to the regularly scheduled Beauty and the Beast recap and review…

This week's episode saw a fan favorite return to the writers' room, a one, Roger Grant. There was a new comer in the director's chair this week, Michael Robison. The two came together to make one hell of an episode.

Cat and Vincent just can’t seem to escape each other’s orbit no matter how they try. This week was no exception. Just when a few Beasties thought all hope was lost for VinCat along comes this episode. Redeeming and triumphant. Beautiful and poignant. But more importantly, just in the nick of time.

This episode gave what quite a few of the Beasties have been craving, Cat stopping and taking the time to put her life back together and reconnecting with Tess. While only the latter and not the former happened on screen, I was glad for both. But more importantly this episode put VinCat right back on track but in an unexpected way. Was it too soon? Perhaps for some. Was it needed? Desperately so.

We finally seemingly have a time jump of about one month according to the first scene’s dialog. Cat has been busy trying to deal with all the craziness that is her life and nothing seemed to help. Not crying, meditating or a kickboxing class seemed to help poor Cat so it was up to one of Tess’s good old nights out on the town. I loved the bestie banter about clothing options, wine and therapy. And real talk, Cat really should look into therapy to help deal with her sister leaving and finding out about her father not being her biological father. Her life is a mess and Vincent’s might not be able to heal all of it. Just saying.

It turns out that Cat isn’t the only frustrated party involved in the beastly time out. We are treated to a rare Vincent work out scene. He is doing his classic pulls and some very hardcore pushups with his fists. He has no Cat and no mission and that’s makes for a very intense Vincent. I’m sure Agent Reynolds has noticed and seems like he desperately trying to get Vincent back on task.

Cut to a building on fire and a man seemingly controlling said fire. We have found our beast of the week and it looks like he might be the titular ‘hothead’ of the episode. The news woman is reporting on the fire and the serial arsonist that is at large. Gabe is rushing his office filling in wall of weird and talking to the TV. He has a breakthrough and pokes his head out of office demanding someone go find Chandler.

But Chandler and Vargas are out having some much needed fun. They’re in a dive bar shooting pool and blowing off steam. Although, Tess is open to NOT pretending like everything is OK. Cat says she just wants to forget for one night. An overly inebriated dude bro spots Cat, stumbles over to her and makes a pass at her. Cat turns the guy down but he won’t take no for an answer. Push comes to shove literally and the beginnings of a ‘Roadhouse’ fight scene ensue. Unfortunately for Cat she has roundhouse kicked a federal judge in the head.

No worries. Gabe comes to the gals rescue and bails them out. But not before giving them but mostly Cat, a stern lecture. Gabe just a few episodes ago you said you use to be cool and I believed you. But now you just sound like a blathering little narc. Anyway, after the stern talking to, Gabe dismisses Tess so that he and Cat can have some alone time and discuss the latest beast that’s on the loose and his plan to catch him, which regrettably involves Cat reaching out to Vincent. Cat thinks Gabe’s idea is bad and doesn’t go along with it. She says that she needs to save herself first. I like that, it seems as though the old Cat is still in there somewhere.

In move so bold I’m now sure Gabe has to sets of balls, he marches himself right over to Vincent’s unlocked houseboat and tries to enlist Vincent into working on a mission for him. Gabe was completely honest about their history. And apparently his intentions for wanting to save Gabe and reunite him with Cat. I’m pretty sure this scene might have sparked a few slash fiction writers’ imaginations because when Vincent grabs Gabe by throat, I have to admit, I found it a little hot.

Vincent traipses off to the closest tall building to use his handy dandy beast senses and in no time flat he’s on the trail of the beast of the week. The beast is shocked that someone found him. He quickly realizes that Vincent too is beast, though he does not have the same cocktail that allows him to be fire proof and have a little control over the flames. The beast of the week makes quick work of disabling Vincent and leaves him to be engulfed by the flames.

Meanwhile, Cat and Tess are having a spa day in Cat’s apartment. Complete with massages, pedicures and aromatherapy candles. Cat is kind of coming unhinged and talking about the case around civilians while Tess tries to do not only damage control but ignore Gabe and try to get Cat to focus on herself. But to no avail. Persistent Gabe has won out.

Cat and Gabe head over to the hospital to see Vincent. Though they are not the only ones. Agent Reynolds makes his way over as do the arson investigators. But not before VinCat steal a sweet and tender moment together. Also not before Cat scolds Vincent about the risks he taking. Agent Reynolds skulks off when he sees the arson investigators. The arson investigator come to question Vincent, or “Victor” as Gabe dubs him. They don’t get much out of any of them and the young arson investigator is frustrated and quite the ‘hothead’. Turns out, this Aaron kid is Vincent’s nephew and that revelation causes Vincent to have a code yellow. A code yellow which triggers a flashback. Gabe shoes everyone out of the room and hopes Cat can calm him down. Cat cannot calm him down and an overwhelmed Vincent jumps out of the hospital window, to a stunned and shocked Cat and Gabe.

Shortly after Vincent’s escape from the hospital an annoyed Agent Reynolds calls Vincent. He tries to get Vincent back on track while giving him assurances that this will be all over soon and he can get back to his normal life. But until then he’s the only one that can stop the beasts. He also gives Vincent some background on the beast of the week. His name is Eddie Long. Muirfield bought him from a prison. He was not only a pyromaniac but a structural engineer as well. Agent Reynolds tells him to lay low while they track him down and to avoid anything that may act as triggers to his memories. Well, that could only mean Cat was about to show up. And she does. She’s sitting on his couch waiting for him to see if he is OK. Cat wants to know what he remembered and Vincent tells her. It turns out Vincent was a firefighter before he was a doctor. Something neither Cat nor us Beasties knew before.

Back at the 125th precinct Gabe is packing a bag filled with all of things he might need to kill a beast and revive a man. He enlists Tess help for the most simplest of task but receives the highest levels of sass. Tess once again queries Gabe’s motives as well as his feelings for Cat. Gabe basically admits his feelings for Cat but assures Tess that his intentions are pure in wanting to save Vincent. Both Tess and I still remain unsure and a tad bit leery.

Cat has managed to quell Vincent about his worries of being recognized at the firehouse by his nephew. Though it irks me to no end that there were apparently no pictures of Vincent left anywhere in the Kellers’ possession. Aaron is none too pleased to see the very two people who stonewalled his investigation. But his partner welcomes their help with no questions asked. With both sides providing information the case is cracked easily. Aaron slinks off right before a 4 alarm fire to Segen headquarters is called in. The very place they were just suspecting of being the next target as did Aaron.

Everyone rushes over to Segen headquarters and Cat and Vincent share a moment and a kiss. Vincent feels an imperative to save his nephew and thinks that maybe just maybe in the heat of the moment his training might kick in. Gabe also shows up to the scene with a bag filled with the tools he and Cat are going to need to test out their cure on Eddie.

Aaron has found Eddie and dear he has a gun. But that gun does no one any good. The beast incapacitates Aaron post haste and the poor little lamb is knocked out. Thank goodness Uncle Vincent was there. Vincent soon runs into Eddie and manages to get the drop on him. Just when Vincent was about to have the upper hand, he gets distracted by Aaron’s distress signal and flashbacks of his brother William. In the end a vision of William leads Vincent to where Aaron is passed out and Vincent scoops him up and leads him to safety.

Eddie thinking he has gotten away is met by Cat and her gun. She told him not to move but he did and she dropped faster than I could blink. Gabe rushes up from behind and tries to recreate the circumstances that killed his beast. But it didn’t work. Maybe it didn’t work because Gabe’s a first generation beast. How come they didn’t think about that possibility yet?

Once again, our case of the week is wrapped up nicely, though the media has gotten wind of it and Tess is worried and thinks Gabe should be worried as well. It’s not clear if Gabe is as worried as he should be. But what is clear is that he very disturbed that his little experiment didn’t work out. Tess thinks his pursuit is noble but she also still thinks he is carrying a torch for Cat.

Back in the bullpen Aaron stops by to thank Cat and see if Vincent is around. Cat hands Aaron back his gun and tells him that he should be glad that he wasn’t the one to pull the trigger on Eddie. As well as to stay safe because the world just can’t afford to lose anymore Kellers.

The closing scene starts with VinCat walk and talking and reflecting about memories and emotions. The episode could have honestly ended there but the writers did even better. The walk culminated in a visit to the 9/11 memorial. Vincent wanted and/or needed to feel his brothers’ presence. To acknowledge their heroism. To honor their memory. He also ponders that if he hadn’t become a doctor maybe he could have been there to save them. Cat reminds Vincent that he could have died that day to and not been able to be here now to save his nephew. Cat tells Vincent the past is the past and that all one can do is remember, learn from it and move forward. And she hopes that they can move forward together as well. The scene ends with them holding hands and tears in my eyes.
It seems as though they are going to fall in love all over again, but perhaps in a different and even better way. They both obviously have a lot to uncover about themselves and maybe just maybe they can do it together and build a love even more epic than season 1.

Grade: A
Reason: This episode was almost flawless. Almost. If they could have just given me one scene with JT then all would have been right in the world. I just feel like he should have been given the heads up about JT’s memory returning. I’m biased, don’t judge me. But everything else was basically perfect. The lovely addition of Bryan Dechart as Aaron Keller, Vincent’s nephew was wonderful. He breathed life into the role and connected with both Kristin and Jay very well.

The action of the episode was dangerous and beautiful. Just the way we Beasties like it. The episode was shot beautifully. The lighting was just right. I especially loved all of the light and shadow during the VinCat hospital scene. Jay actually was able to do all of his own stunts, which is impressive. Everything came together to make this the best episode yet of Beauty and the Beast.

That last powerfully poignant moment of reflection at the 9/11 Memorial had me bordering on the edge of tears. VinCat is back and with a vengeance. Might not be the old one we fell in love with but this new VinCat has the potential to be something even more wonderful. I love that we got to explore even more of Vincent’s back story. It added so much needed layers and depth to the character. I thought that it was wonderful to bring in the Keller family since the Chandlers are no longer a part of the story.

Family is and should always be an essential part of the show because what love could be more epic than that of familial love. Familial love is a love that is unconditional and forgiving. And to steal a line from another one of my fandoms, ‘family don’t end with blood’. Sometimes the family you make is better than the one you’re born into, so here’s hoping now that VinCat is back on track, Team Beastie will be whole once more and better than ever.

Awards

WTF Moments
1. Vincent use to be a firefighter
2. Gabe basically admits he has feeling for Cat to Tess

Character of the Night

It was a tie for me between Vincent and Aaron.

Why I Choose Aaron – Aaron was a catalyst for Vincent’s potent and powerful memories this week. It was nice to find that Vincent could another pull and trigger besides Cat. Aaron also very much embodied the Keller spirit. A hothead? Sure. Stubborn? Absolutely. But at the core a hero ready to dive in head first. I like that heroism is practically hereditary when it comes to those Keller boys. I wouldn’t mind seeing him again. I think that spark the really lit Vincent’s memories was Aaron as Aaron represented hope and in a sense the yearning to make a connection and to have ties that bind him to the world as oppose missions that keep him from living in it fully. I believe Aaron reminded him of not only his brothers but himself as well. I found the addition of a Keller family member to be a wonderful juxtaposition against the fact that the book is closing on the Chandler family chapter. Aaron has the potential to be so much for Vincent, past, present and future. It not only taps into the beast side of him but more importantly, the human side of him.

Why I Choose Vincent – Let’s be honest. Vincent was THE star of the episode tonight. Jay Ryan killed every scene he was in. Whether he was frustrated, happy, scared or overwhelmed he put his emotions and facial expressions on display. I love that writers are giving the character of Vincent more layers and depth. I’m super excited to see what Jay is going to do with all of this new information.

Best Character Interactions

This award goes to VinCat this week without a doubt. With scene after scene of sweet and tender moments, how could it not?

Favorite Moments

1. Vincent rescuing his nephew
2. Code Yellow makes a come back
3. Vincent’s flashbacks
4. Vincent jumping out the hospital window
5. Tess giving Gabe an actual compliment while still managing to tease him
6. The VinCat kiss

Favorite Lines

1. Tess: But Cat do you really think you can just wake up one day and be done with Vincent?
2. Aaron: Well, look who it is… bad cop, mute cop.
3. Cat: Because you feel it too. Memories aren’t just playback. The trigger emotion and emotion doesn’t lie. It’s real. It reveals who you were. Who you are.
4. Cat: Vincent we can’t change the past as much as we both may want to. The best we can do is remember it, learn from it and move forward. Hopefully, together.

Favorite Scenes

1. The opening Cat and Tess scene
2. The VinCat hospital scene
3. Gabe goes to see Vincent
4. Cat and Vincent at the firehouse
5. Cat and Vincent at the 9/11 memorial
6. Vincent working out and telling Agent Reynolds that he can’t focus

Fangirl Complaint

Is it just me or does Stephen Amell's abs have some sort of contract with the CW to be the only set abs to be put on prominent display? Jay Ryan has a nice body and probably works just as hard to keep his physique in top form. It's such a shame Jay doesn't get to show off as often as Amell does. Filed under: #Just Saying

Burning Questions

1. Does Vincent really believe Agent Reynolds is going to let him go back to his life after he is done?
2. Did Agent Reynolds recognize Aaron at the hospital?
3. Why is Vincent’s houseboat always unlocked?

Kudos

Beauty and the Beast’s Visual Effects team on the code yellow eyes during the flashback.
Beauty and the Beast’s stunt coordinator
Beauty and the Beast’s fight scene choreographer

Side Note: I really struggled writing this review (I hope it didn’t show too much). I really didn’t think my words could do justice to describe such a beautiful episode. I was sincerely and deeply moved by this episode. My faith in the writers’ room paid off immensely and I’m looking forward to see what they have in store for the rest of the season.

Polls

Last Week’s Results – The votes are in and a not so shocking turn of events, most of the fans that voted wanted to spend a day with Jay Ryan. He received 70% of the vote.

This Week’s Poll - BatB Great Debate #4 – Which song should be the Beasties’ unofficial theme song?
If you don’t like the choices provided, please leave a comment and include a YouTube link to the song of your choice.
Also, looking for poll topics so tweet me some or leave them on the Facebook page.


Shameless Self –Promotion

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