Beauty and the Beast – 2.06 – Father Knows Best – Review: All the best cowboys have daddy issues

‘All the best cowboys have daddy issues’

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Now on to your regularly scheduled recap…

Up for discussion this week is episode 2x06: Father Knows Best. This week’s episode was written by a character development extraordinaire and myth arc virtuoso respectively, Roger Grant and Brad Kern. This week also welcomed another newbie director into the Beastie family, Paul Kaufman. I found this to be a fantastic rebound combination after last week’s lackluster affair.

Well, I looks like The Power That Be, heard my fangirl complaint because we got some Jay Ryan abs action, and it was an unobstructed view from above. Now, that’s how you open an episode; Vincent, alone in his bed, with his shirt off. He’s remembering VinCat’s greatest hits all by himself (now if only he could remember all that JT has done and sacrificed for him, I’d be even more ecstatic). He’s cruelly awakened by a foghorn but hey, that’s to be expected when you live on a houseboat.

A happy Vincent rushes over to Cat’s place to see if what he dreamt were truly memories indeed. He catches Cat in heated physical altercation with her sparring dummy; seems that keeping the knowledge of whom Agent Reynolds is to herself is causing some internal stress. Vincent asks Cat about the things he remembered and they share a happy moment. Vincent gives Cat a lusty look to which she replies, she sweaty. Vincent offers her some advice about how to improve her kickboxing skills. Cat tries it and it works a little too well when Cat kicks him in the face.

Vincent excitedly tells Cat that he only has two missions left. When he’s done he wants to celebrate alone in the woods with her. Cat gets a dejected look and suddenly remembers that she is a cop. She doesn’t like Vincent being judge, jury and executioner. She goes on to him she can’t get excited about him killing two people. Beasts, Vincent corrects but Cat reiterates that they are still human beings despite what was done to them. Vincent seems less excited but tells Cat that she should go have a talk with Agent Reynolds before he sulks away.

Back at the 125th precinct Gabe is holed up in his office staring at wall of weird and digging through Muirfield research that JT left for him while he went on a retreat. Tess comes barraging per usual. They chat about Gabe wanting to find Vincent’s handler and how Vincent’s time might be running out. Gabe has found a name to track. Tess questions Gabe about why he hasn’t told Cat about his feelings. Gabe says he’s trying to save Vincent, he owes Cat (and VINCENT) that much.
Agent Reynolds aka Condor rings up Vincent to fill him in on the beast of the week. The guy’s name is Kurt Windsor and he’s sort of a big deal. They need this kill to be clean and precise, no mistakes. Not much is known about this beast. The beast is also paranoid and has a high quality alarm system. The window of opportunity is slim. Sounds like a bad mission begging to go sideways if you ask me.

Just as Agent Reynolds is wrapping up with Vincent, Cat shows up at his office. He hurriedly rushes Vincent off the phone and tries to play coy with Cat. But Cat just drops the bomb: she knows he’s her dad. She wants to have a cup of coffee with him and chat. A stunned Agent Reynolds nods and is left speechless (for once). Cat exits stage right.

Next, Vincent waits for the dead of night per his instructions from Agent Reynolds, to slip into the Windsor residence. Tori having stepped out into the balcony to enjoy so fresh, crisp autumn New York night air, leaves a door unlocked and Vincent ever so briskly whisks right passed her. Just as I was thinking this job was going a little too easy, Kurt senses Vincent and comes at him full throttle. Tori rushes back inside to witness the ruckus in all its scary glory. Out of nowhere Kurt goes into an ultra-rage mode and accuses Tori of letting Vincent in and nearly jokes her to death. A stunned and concerned Vincent breaks Kurt’s grip around Tori’s neck and speeds away with her into the night.

The following morning Cat and Agent Reynolds actually have that cup of coffee and a chat. His paternal instincts are in overdrive as well as sneaky side. He gives Cat just enough information while trying to pry more out of her. Luckily, Cat is reluctant and is holding her cards close to the vest as well. He comments on how she has her mother’s eyes (and the Potterhead in me squees, just a bit, not to mention, I’ve always thought that myself). He explains the situation about Thomas adopting her and respecting Vanessa’s wishes. He goes on to explain that he had every intention of being in her life after she turned 18 but after her mother died, he didn’t want to come across as opportunistic and callous. So, he just let her be but watched over her as well. A news story breaks up the father-daughter bonding time. There’s been a high profile kidnapping and there’s a $5 million dollar reward. They both spring into action to leave but Agent Reynolds does manage to get into Cat’s head and cast some doubts about Vincent before all is said and done.

Cat rallies the troops and they connect the dots about the kidnapping and it being part of Vincent’s mission to kill Kurt Windsor. Tess tries to prepare Cat for the possibility that Vincent might be the last name on the list but Gabe brushes that under the rug and Cat is too focused to even be bothered really. Cat heads over to Vincent’s houseboat and finds an earring that belongs to Tori (or at least it better belong to Tori). She’s not able to snoop too much before Kurt and his small army arrives and tears the place to shreds. She manages to get out sight unseen but has to do so by taking a dip in the rancid river that is the Hudson.

She heads back to the 125th and fills Tess in on the details. Tess assess that the smartest move would be for Vincent to use Tori as leverage. Cat defends Vincent and says he probably saved her. That he’s been all about saving the innocent even if he had to kill the beasts in the process. She also goes on to address the issue of Tess’s Vincent hate and reaffirms that he is what is good for her. Once Gabe is all caught up on the latest events, he pitches his flat lining idea (much to my dismay, as well as Tess’s and later on Vincent’s). Cat of course jumps on the bandwagon. She really wants to help Vincent complete a mission that doesn’t involve him killing someone.

Tori has been taken to a place deep in the woods. She is tied up to a tree while Vincent preps the area with sharp, pointy spears. He tries to get Tori to calm down and explains the situation to her. He didn’t kidnap her, he saved her. She mentions that she saw him beast out, so that lead her to believe otherwise. Vincent provides some insightfulness and says that she was always a captive under her father’s watch. Vincent explains he didn’t ask to be a beast but her father did. Vincent goes onto explain why her father has been marked for death. Tori gets it deep down but he still her father. To prove his point, Vincent removes a tracking device from her arm, much to Tori’s astonishment. Vincent didn’t remove because he wanted to lure Kurt to the spot they were at.

Cat gets the bright idea to try to talk to Kurt and offer her help. Agent Reynolds is there as well. They go up to have a chat with Kurt and while they’re waiting Agent Reynolds tries to pry about Cat’s boyfriend. She once again defends Vincent and states that he’s good to her. Kurt of course turns down their offer of help and shoes them out of his residence. But not before Cat recognizes Vincent’s stuff and puts two and two together about where he took Tori. He took her to the place they were going to go to celebrate his “retirement”. She rushes off and leaves Agent Reynolds behind.

Vincent and Tori discuss the woes of being a beast and what keeps him sane. The thing that keeps him sane being Cat. They really have a great chat, so much so that an awkward hug happens. As Vincent hugs Tori his eyes glow a different shade and then he senses someone in the woods near them. Of course it’s Cat and of course she’s gotten tangled up in his trap. Vincent rushes to her rescues just in the nick of time before a spear impales her eye. She sees Tori and I honestly don’t know what that expression on her face was supposed to be. She warns Vincent that Kurt is not coming alone and that he needs to get of the woods. Kurt shows up hot on their trail. But everyone is gone. His guards note that there are three sets of tracks. Kurt accurately guesses that someone came to warn him. His bodyguards ponder what the kidnapper could possibly want. Kurt replies that the kidnapper wants him but he’ll rip the guy to shreds at the first chance he gets.

Cat and Vincent take Tori back to an empty lair. Tori suggests that she call her dad. Vincent is down for that so that the call can be tracked and he can have the element of surprise once more to be able to trap him. Cat lightly scolds him that in the woods he was going to spear him not trap him. Vincent asks what else could be done. Cat pitches the flat lining idea. Vincent is sick of that idea and notes that it has only worked once. She thinks that Kurt might go for it if it means that he gets to have his daughter back. Even Tori is not sure if that is incentive enough. Cat and Tori go on to have a heart to heart about what it means to have a beast in your life while Vincent is on the defensive and is looking every door and window to fortify their position.

Cat heads over to Kurt’s place and makes him a deal. She tells him she knows what he is. She tells him that there’s a possibility of death but hey so what, why not, if it means getting your daughter back. Kurt waits until the last possible second to take the deal. But he does indeed take the deal.

Gabe is now at the liar as has it all prepped for flat lining surgery. He explains the procedure and how it worked on him. They lock him in some nearly inescapable handcuffs and begin what needs to be done. Kurt wonders what will become of him after is fully human. Probably prison but Cat thinks that is still better than the alternative and at least his daughter can visit him there. Kurt is skeptical but is willing to try. But first he wants to see Tori in case it doesn’t work. Vincent leads Tori out and she goes to hold her father’s hand. In a code yellow spike from hell, Kurt beasts out and breaks free. This leads to a pretty intense beast off that results in Vincent ripping Kurt’s beating heart out. Everyone in the room is shocked, as am I. I wasn’t aware we were watching ‘Once Upon a Time’ or maybe more aptly since it’s The CW, ‘The Vampire Diaries’.

A little while later, Gabe fills Tess in and she has the most understated reaction ever. She simply states that it seems like Vincent has taken a step backwards. She ponders how Cat is going to take it. Gabe chimes in with his two cent and a surprisingly non-judgmental way as well. I’ll chalk it up to shock.

Agent Reynolds officially becomes a part of the show and earns his stalking badge as he catches Cat off guard at her favorite coffee shop and orders her exact, overly complicated cup of coffee. She accuses him of staking her out. He sees he isn’t that he just took a chance and was pleasantly surprised to see her there. Un-huh. OK! He tries to get her to open up to him but Cat manages to stay somewhat guarded. Agent Reynolds once again manages to get deep into Cat’s psyche by asking her questions that would lead her to think maybe just maybe Vincent is a lost cause and isn’t getting better.

With all of the thoughts that Agent Reynolds has left churning in her head, Cat heads over to talk it out with Vincent as delicately as possible. She tries not showing how scared she is off and he tries to not think about whether or not his humanity is indeed lost for good. They tentatively hug but both are silently brooding and trying to hide their concern so that they can comfort each other.

The last scene was not a VinCat scene, it was of Tori. She comes home to her fabulous empty home and is of course sad. She glances into the mirror and notices something different about her face. Upon further inspection, her eyes shift and glow, looks like she’s a beast and didn’t even know it. Or did she? Fade to black…

Grade: B+

Reason: I’m just going to say it. No JT, AGAIN! He’s on a retreat? Really? But we’re just going to use the lair in his absence? RUDE! No, JT? Then we don’t use the lair. What’s wrong with Gabe’s pad? Or an abandoned warehouse (there should be plenty in New York City)? Moving on… I really liked this episode. I loved the chemistry between Ted Whittall and Kristin Kruek as well as the cat and mouse game between their characters Agent Reynolds and Cat. It’s nice to know that Thomas Chandler knew the whole time. I would have hated to add cuckolding to list of sins that have been pinned on Vanessa Chandler.

I loved the addition of Tori (I think we can safely assume that she’s not the love interest, so breathe easy for now my lovelies). I think that the character of Tori, at least in this episode, helped both Vincent and Cat express things they wouldn’t have necessarily been able to otherwise. Very little Tess was featured in this episode as well.

The character of Gabe is really racking up a lot of screen time and it’s starting to take away from the established characters. I love Sendhil. I love the character of Gabe. But they need to stop shoving him in over face at every turn. They also need to either give VinCat a full time out or put them back together once and for all. These yo-yo games of the heart are really irking a lot of the Beasties, myself included.

The beast of the week was not a man I was the least bit interested in, nor did I want him to be saved. They were too many vagaries and nothing made sense. I know that it’s supposed to be a mysterious arc that will get unraveled and all but the set up was a little shaky.

But all in all, this was a fast paced, well plotted and engaging episode. I loved the visual effects for the beast modes. Also, the jaw dropping moment of Vincent ripping out that guy’s heart was bananas and unexpected as heck. I love when Beauty and the Beast surprises me.

Awards

Character of the Night

Tori – I was all set to not like this character for whatever reason. But I was pleasantly surprised with this character introduction.

Favorite Moments

1. Cat kicks Vincent while training
2. Vincent saves Cat from being speared
3. Sally (the blue mustang) makes her triumphant return
4. Vincent in his bed with no shirt (don’t judge me, I’m human)
5. Vincent remembering VinCat’s greatest hits

Favorite Lines

1. Cat: How much money is too much money?
2. Kurt: You’re either really brave or really stupid.
Cat: Well, I’m not stupid.
3. Cat (picking up an earring): This better be Tori’s.
4. Cat: I know my beasts.

Favorite Scenes

1. VinCat kickboxing training session
2. Vincent and Tori have a heart to heart in the woods
3. Cat and Tori have a heart to heart in the lair
4. Cat and Agent Reynolds have coffee (both times)
5. Cat makes the beast of the week an offer to save him in exchange for his daughter
6. Tori sees her beastly reflection in the mirror

Best Character Interactions

It was a tie between Tori and Vincent and Tori and Cat. I’ve very smitten with this character. I’m flush with excitement at all the potential this character has. She could be Vincent’s confidante. She could Cat’s little sister. She could a complete surprise altogether and be playing Team Beastie. But right now, she brings a balance to the show, that Tess and JT, an avatar for the audience. Tori gets to be told all the things out protagonist can’t say to any other character, allowing us much needed insight.

Burning Question

1. Would you guys prefer a straight up review, or do you like my hybrid recap and review method?

Polls

Last Week’s Results – Is Gabe going to be the good guy this season? - Well, it was a three way tie between the choices of Yes, No and Not Sure. Thank you all who participated and especially those who left comments.

This Week’s Poll - BatB Great Debate #6 – Who should Cat end up with?
Also, I’d like to encourage you to leave comments. I’m dying to know why you love your particular pairing and I’m sure other Beasties would love to know as well.

Make sure you voted and commented on this week’s best scene poll as well.

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Lilith’s Beastie Challenge of the Month – December

So, our winter hiatus is coming up fast and it’s going to be a long one, 6 weeks to be exact. Everyone over on the DVMPE’s Beauty and the Beast podcast will be live tweeting select episodes over said break, as well as doing a special edition episode about the season so far.

I also wanted to make a podcast to send to the cast and crew (as well as Mr. Mark Pedowitz himself) over the break from the fans telling them why we love the show and how much we appreciate them. If you guys think that would be an awesome idea and want to participate, let me know and I will throw up a form and some guidelines for entries over on my blog as well make a post here on Spoiler TV.

Want to see what’s happening in the Beastie Fandom for the rest of the week click here.


Remember to watch and live tweet (@cwbatb and @BatBWriters) with the show and me every Monday at 9 PM/8 PM Central on The CW.

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