This week's VinCat adventure was definitely a step up in quality from last week's installment. Beauty and the Beast still has some issues to iron out this season, but things are looking up. Let's review and discuss! I'll be including some lyrics from Tove Lo's song "Got Love," which was included in the episode.
Codependent soulmates? Yep, I was slightly irked when the coffee shop scene at the beginning of the episode had Catherine and Vincent bandying about plenty of terms that have come to define some of Season 3's problems. For me, it's the constant harping on Vincent and Cat's supposed "codependency," coupled with Cat's use of the phrase "experimenting on innocents" (how do we know that every experiment was involuntary, or that everyone experimented on is "innocent"?)* that are getting a bit repetitive and troublesome. I still don't think they're codependent. To me, it seems that the problems in their relationship lately spring from Cat wanting to pursue leads on superhumans while Vincent wants to move on from having his life ruled by his beast side and its accompanying issues - that, and the way they never get to spend time together that isn't dominated by working on cases. I don't really see the sense of trying to enforce rules on Vincent and Catherine staying apart for certain periods of time, especially since they just got engaged and haven't had a chance to enjoy that new turn in their relationship. What they need is a second to breathe and indulge in their romance, not to put pressure on proving some weird point about their independence. Ironically, Vincent and Catherine have retained their own fierce individuality within their coupledom to perfection, and that's why they were arguing in the first place. Seriouslah, writers. Let the co-dependent thing go.
However, in this episode, the way Catherine and Vincent hashed out their continuing debates was wonderfully sweet and pleasantly quirky without ever veering into the near-sitcomy humor of last week's episode. Seeing Vincent able to use his love for Catherine to pull him back from a major beast-out, even though she wasn't there, was more than just a visual treat of lushly romantic flashbacks. Did this break a co-dependent pattern for Cat and Vincent, since the couple don't need to be joined at the hip to succeed in their individual pursuits, or did it just prove the vital importance of their love to winning every battle they face? To me, it's certainly the latter.
"When I breathe, then I breathe into you and I feel you right to the bone
And I give what you give, and we go even higher than we are strong
And the cracks in the walls covered up by the sheets we live underneath
All the nights we stay up, yeah we're stuck but we're more than free..."**
Of course, I especially enjoyed their talk at the end of the episode, when Cat asked if Vincent would ever stop his heart for her, and he replied, "every time I see you." Swoon!
"Got enough to make the ocean look like it's a pond
Got enough to turn the valleys into mountaintops
And we live like legends now, know that we'll never die
We got love, we got love..."**
At the front of the "doubting Catherine" pack this week was Tess, with her captain's bossy pants on and too much attitude when confronting her bestie at the beginning of the episode. It felt like Tess was almost forcing herself to try and nip Cat's attempts to catch Bob and Carol in the bud just to prove a point about her own seniority that didn't need to be made. By the end of the episode, when two killers had been stopped and Tess had been forced rather roughly - by almost losing J.T. - to acknowledge the truth of Catherine's suspicions about Bob and Carol's plans, Captain Tess was looking pretty awkward and sheepish. I know that Tess' behavior towards Catherine is starting to detract from her popularity among fans, and I can see why. Even though Tess was out of line this week, I still like her and the way she and Cat are best friends whose relationship is strong enough to surmount the occasional conflict between them. The writers definitely use Tess as an occasional foil to Catherine out of convenience or just to stir the pot, maybe not realizing that such behavior makes Tess seem alternatively mean or foolish. Hopefully, Tess learned her lesson this time.
I like Cat's new partner so far. He has a cute, youthful enthusiasm about him and seems intelligent and capable, while respectful of Catherine and her talents. We'll have to see how large or small Atchison's role on the show is destined to be.
J.T. was awesome this week. He was quick on his feet, driven, and thought fast enough to thwart Bob, save Vincent, and possibly get rid of the super-serum in his system all in one fell swoop. Even though J.T. was as clever and on-task as Tess was distracted, apparently, by her own ego and too slow to acknowledge what was really going on, I liked their "I love you moments," which were very cute.
But J.T. needs to put his glasses back on. Now. Please.
What did you think of this episode? Share your thoughts in the comments! And be sure to catch an all-new Beauty and the Beast, Thursday at 8/7c on the CW.
*One more point about the phrase "someone out there experimenting on innocents" - the real problem may be that this phrase just reminds us how little we actually know about the experiments and who is conducting them, and on whom, and why. Argh! Haha, I'm sure the answers are imminent...the writers couldn't put it off much longer.
**lyrics taken from the song "Got Love" by Tove Lo
