RECAP & REVIEW: Revenge “Homecoming” S3 E11

When I first saw the preview for “Homecoming” after the fabulousness that was “Exodus” the first thing that popped into my head was that Emily Thorne is faking her amnesia.  Actually that’s a lie.  When she first said “Who am I?” in that promo, I gasped and said “Holy Shit now that’s the way to press to reset button.”   THEN I thought, no way she’s faking it.  But after watching the episode, now I’m not so sure.

In my mind, one of two things is going to happen (which means neither will) she’s either lost her memory for real and will get it back only to then fake it until she can come up with another game plan.  Or she’s doing a masterful job of faking it now and faking it with everyone until she can figure out what to do next.  At this point, I really don’t think she’s faking.  If she was faking, why in the world would she tell Charlotte that her dad is David Clarke?   And next week’s preview appears to show Emily showing her infinity box to Victoria.   NO WAY she’s faking.  Unless there is some king of CRAZY twist and scheme Emily has concocted she would never show that information to Victoria!    So if she really does have amnesia, which I think she does at this point, how long will she have it and when she does regain her memories, will she tell people?  And whom does she tell?

I love where the show is potentially going with this.  Because let’s be honest, you can only have a show of “revenge on the Graysons” for so long until people start to get tired of the premise because it’s going nowhere.  SO you have to do something to change it up.  I’ve always thought this was a 5-6 season show because of the premise but now with this amnesia and what it appears the Graysons will now discover about Emily, who knows where it goes from here.  It could possibly turn into revenge from both sides…Emily going after the Graysons (once she gets her memory back) and the Graysons going after Emily for lying and deceiving them for so long.   I love it!

And I’m just going to throw this out there….PUT EMILY WITH JACK!  No more Aiden.  No more French girl (although I have come to like her more than I did initially.)   This episode shows that Jack still loves her and I believe deep down, she still loves him.  Plus every scene they are in, sparks just fly!  Emily and Aiden…not so much, at least not for me.  So I’d like to see Aiden go and have Emily, Jack, and Nolan be the team that takes down the Graysons.

What do you think?  Do you like where the show is going with the amnesia angle?   Sound off below!

 

QUICK REVIEW: Criminal Minds, Castle, Revenge, The Good Wife, Blue Bloods

Criminal Minds

This is not a show that needs recapping every week but every once in a while, an episode or string of episodes happen that warrant discussion.  Last week’s episode broke my heart.  In the early days of Criminal Minds, I rooted for JJ and Reid to get together.  A big part of me, still does.  But I’ve moved on from the idea of those two getting together.  As a result, I was 100% on board with this romance between Maeve and Spencer.  And before you start referencing Manti Te’o asking how can you have a relationship with someone you’ve never met, this show handled it very well to the point I totally believed it.  Matthew Gray Gubler and Beth Riesgraf did a fantastic job selling this relationship that up until this episode, only existed via cryptic phone conversations.  The reason for this, she had a stalker.  So she was in hiding until the stalker was caught. Unfortunately, the stalker found her and kidnapped her and as a result, Reid, who is a very private person, needed to out his relationship to the team and ask for their help in finding her.  Turns out it was someone applying for a PhD and Maeve denied her application and therefore Diane (Michelle Trachtenberg) flipped out and murdered her ex-fiance and ultimately murdered herself and Maeve with a bullet to the head.  It was such a sad scene for so many reasons.  First, Spencer had never seen her face.  Even when Garcia had her picture, Reid refused to see it because he wanted the first time to be face to face.  He also wanted to tell her that he loved her because the last time they spoke, she said she loved him and he didn’t respond.  When he finally saw her, it was with her strapped to a chair with Diane pointing a gun at Reid’s head and Reid pretending to love Diane and not her so he could get her free.  Instead of telling her that he loved her, he had to tell her that he didn’t love her so he could protect her.  Unfortunately, Diane saw through all this and while holding Maeve against her, put a gun to her own head and pulled the trigger, killing both of them.  I told my husband I was afraid she was going to die but then I thought, there’s no way CM would do that to Reid.  Yep, well, wrong again!   Maeve is dead and Reid is crushed.  It was brutal to watch and I’m really curious to see how this will impact him moving forward.  Reid is so private and doesn’t open his heart to many people.  And for him to be ready to make a committment to this girl, only to have her murdered in front of him, will completely damage his already fragile psyche.

Castle

Still one of my favorite shows on TV and I’m loving this season.  The last two episodes were great.  Seeing Meredith (Darby Stanchfield) around making things tricky for Castle and Beckett was priceless.  But it was also a nice change of pace to see Meredith and Beckett go to dinner together and really get along.  Unfortunately before she left, when Kate asked why they didn’t work, Meredith told her the truth.   Castle knew everything about her but she really didn’t know much about Castle.  He’s fun and romantic and sweet, but he never let her in, especially when it came to his dad.  And she couldn’t handle being in the dark.  It really resonated with Kate because she’s in the same situation…to some degree.  Castle knows everything about her darkest time…her mother’s death.  But Beckett knows nothing about, what appears to be, Castle’s darkest period…his father.  And I know there were people who thought Meredith did that maliciously, I don’t agree.  I think she was honestly answering Kate’s question without trying to sabotage anything.  I also think that Kate’s relationship with Rick is VERY different from Meredith’s.  Yes, she is just in the dark about Castle’s history with his father as Meredith is, but she has seen so many different layers to Castle that I’m pretty sure no one else has.   They have been through so much together and she has been around some very vulnerable sides to Rick, that she can’t compare her relationship with Castle to his relationship with anyone else.   She has seen a deeper side to him.  But I think this issue regarding his father, could be a driving wedge between them.  I hope it isn’t but I think it’s inevitable.

I just quickly wanted to mention how much I enjoyed last week’s episode which focused on Esposito. I like when the show puts focus on another character (especially Ryan and Esposito) because I care about them just as much as Castle and Beckett.  Ok maybe not AS much, but it’s close.  Esposito is such a great guy.  I love seeing a hard-nosed, tough guy get hit in his heart (figuratively) because he has no chance to avoid showing his soft side.  I hope the show brings Joey back.  I know cop shows always have those episodes where the cop gives the troubled kid his card where the cop says to call anytime and the cop promises to keep tabs on the kid.  Well I would like to see that.  Not all the time, but I think twice a year wouldn’t be out of the question.

Revenge

I would have to agree with everyone else…this season of Revenge isn’t as good as last season.  I liked the simplicity of last season with a target of the week under the umbrella plan of taking down the Graysons.  Now we have Aiden involved and his story.  Then you have the Initiative involved.  And there’s the Ryan brothers going after the Porter brothers.   It’s too much.  I don’t know why things need to go to this massive levels of story telling.   Sometimes, less is more.  I’d rather go back to last season’s methods with twists and turns complicating matters along the way.   But having said that, I still love the show.  If we can cut down on the side stories (mainly Aiden and the Initiative) I would be ok.  I’m not a fan of Aiden would rather him go away and just have Emily do her thing.  I also don’t know why we needed some major secret group being behind some the Grayson’s decisions.  I would rather have had the Grayson’s be responsible for all their own decisions without having to drag this secret society in.  But if the show can wrap those two things up and go back to business as usual with Emily driving everything and Nolan being there to help her, things will be good again.

The Good Wife

Alicia and Peter sitting in a tree.  F-U-C….whoa!!!!  I’m not going to go there.  But how about that trailer scene? AWESOME!!!   If the show continues down this path with Alicia and Peter doing their thing and Will possibly working on a relationship with Laura (Amanda Peet) I would be very happy.

The second half of the season is already cranking.  They got rid of Kalinda’s God awful husband storyline, the firm is slowly starting to pick itself back up again, the case of the Justice Department going after Eli (headed up by Wendy Scott Carr) resulting in bringing in George O’Malley is fantastic, and Louis Canning is now one of the firm’s creditors which should be an interesting wrinkle.  My biggest complaint?  Cary Agos.   Can we PLEASE find this man a storyline worthy of him?  I’m so tired of him being on the back burner.  It’s time to bring him to the big front burner and let him dominate a storyline.

Blue Bloods

I know I’m really late to the party in commenting on this but I think it’s really shitty the way Jennifer Esposito and her character were handled on the show.  If what she is saying is true, then it’s horrible.  The short version, Esposito had been diagnosed with Celiac Disease.  It went misdiagnosed for years and her form of the disease is pretty severe.  I know people with Celiac and there are varying degrees with some leaving people down right ill for weeks, especially when you don’t know what’s wrong.  Esposito was violently ill but when she finally was diagnosed properly her doctors suggested she have a reduced work load on the show to accommodate her illness.  According to Esposito, CBS didn’t grant the reduced work load nor did they release her from her contract.  She was put on medical leave without pay but because she was still under contract, she wasn’t able to seek employment with another network TV show.   She could do theater, film, or cable TV (as long as it didn’t air at 10pm) but she was pretty much stuck.   That’s the part I don’t get.  You won’t grant her request because it isn’t fair to the cast and crew, that’s fine.  But then let her go so she can find other work.   And they wouldn’t do that.   So she went on medical leave and now she’s gone for good.   I hate it because I thought she was fantastic and her chemistry with Donnie Wahlberg was amazing.  I think it’s a big loss for the show.  Having said that, I don’t think the new replacement, Megan Ketch has been bad.  I actually like her.  Not as much as Esposito of course, but Ketch is doing a good job.  It’s tough shoes to fill and I think no matter who it was to fill them, fans weren’t going to like her.  Now apparently Ketch is moving on and Megan Boone is set to replace her for 4 episodes with an option to be picked up a series regular.  Guess we’ll see how she does.

In terms of the season, as always, I love this show.  I know people can get annoyed at how the Reagan family always does the right thing and makes the right decisions.   But I don’t care.  I like the fact that they are good people trying to do the right thing.  What’s wrong with that?  They still have flaws.  They still struggle with decisions.  But if they always try to go the right way, I’m ok with that.

 

Quick Thoughts on Revenge, The Good Wife, Castle

Since I’m still catching up, here are some quick thoughts on shows I have watched but haven’t had a chance to write about yet:

Revenge

Were you surprised it wasn’t Daniel that died and it was actually Tyler?  It didn’t surprise me.  I had a feeling David wasn’t going anywhere.  It would have been quite a bomb if it was.  It sounds funny saying that seeing as that’s how the show started…with us seeing Daniel in blood, falling to the sand.  I’m glad they didn’t kill him because with some of the information Tyler relayed to him before he was killed, it will be interesting to see how Daniel plays it?  Will he believe Tyler or will he stand by Emily?

What did surprise me was how quickly we learned who actually killed Tyler.  To me it was obvious Daniel was struck over the head from behind.   That’s why he was bleeding out of his ear and has blacked out on some of the details.  But who was it?  Well it was…….DON”T READ IF YOU DON”T WANT TO KNOW……Takeda.  He was basically cleaning up the mess she made by letting her emotions get involved.  We also saw Faux Amanda/Real Emily get into his car and take off.  So is this the last we see of Faux Amanda Clarke?  And how soon until Jack learns who the real Amanda Clarke is?

The best part is, I could watch this for another 10 episodes this season.  But you know what, there are only 3 left!  We don’t have a new episode until April 18th and only one episode between then and the finale currently scheduled for May 23rd.  Seriously who does this scheduling?

This and Homeland are my favorite new shows of the season.  I can’t wait to see how this season will wrap up. “Chaos” certainly could have been a season finale.  So if it wasn’t, I can’t wait to see what Mike Kelley has in store the finale episode!!!!

The Good Wife

Will is on suspension for 6 months.  And I have to say, I would be seriously pissed if my sisters just decided to show up on their own to stay with me without me asking them to come.  I would let them stay one week and then I would send them on their way.  Who needs that?  I don’t like Will (although I’m starting to soften my stance) but he doesn’t deserve that.  Yikes!

Can someone explain to me how he is able to be at the office while on suspension?  I thought he couldn’t be anywhere near LG during that time and I thought Diane said she had to remove his name from the firm’s name. Am I wrong?  Isn’t that a conflict?  Kiki probably knows so if you’re reading this Kiki, please clue me in!

My guess is that something is going to go down between Alicia and Caitlin.  I love Anna Camp and I love her character.  I’m not ready to say she’s a bad seed, but my husband hasn’t trusted her from Day One.  And as soon as Kalinda told Alicia to look out for that one (meaning Caitlin) that was all my husband had to hear to validate his point.  “Kalinda’s always right!!!!”  I have to agree with him.  Once she said that, my eyebrows went up.  It’s as if Caitlin is too good to be true.  So something has to be wrong with her right?   LOL!

Tonight Colin Sweeney is back!   Also, last week kicked off the final episodes of season and we have 6 weeks in a row of TGW!!!!  I was really getting annoyed how many hiatuses there were with this show.  It’s bad enough being on Sunday during football season when it’s constantly starting 20-30 minutes late.   Then you put it off the air for 3-4 weeks at a time.  Don’t get me started.

Best.  Show.  On.   TV!!!!

Castle

I’m trying to get a pulse on how fans are feeling about Castle and Beckett these days.  Last week’s “Once Upon A Crime” was a great episode but we were back to the looks, the compliments, the hand holding.  Come on!!!  I’ve said this before.  If you are going to have them act like a couple, then make them a couple.  If you aren’t going to make them a couple, then knock it off.

I read another post where the writer (whom I really respect and agree with 99.5% of the time) felt this was a step in the right direction in movement in their relationship.  I don’t see it.  How?   Because he said she was cute?  Because she held his hand at Martha’s reading?  This has been the slow build all season to the fact that they are definitely comfortable with one another, they absolutely care about (LOVE) one another, but nothing else is happening!   That’s why it’s frustrating.

We only have 3 more episodes starting March 19th.  In one of these episodes, the secrets have to come out.  I don’t know if it will be Castle’s or Beckett’s or both.  But something has to happen.  I think at Paley Fest this week, Andrew Marlowe indicated that this was a season of secrets and the consequences of those secrets.  So that tells me something will be revealed before the season is up.  Also the number one question was is it time for Castle and Beckett to get together to which Stana Katic replied a resounding YES!  I knew I liked her!  Marlowe also reminded us that there are also a lot of interesting storylines to tell AFTER they get together.  Which tells me that it is going to happen at some point soon.  The secret thing has to blow up first, but I have a feeling that next season (Season 5) will be the moment they finally get together!  I don’t know that for a fact, but that’s my hunch.  But the waiting is brutal!!!!!

 

RECAP & REVIEW: Revenge “Commitment” S1 E13

This has become one of my favorite shows on TV.  I know I haven’t written much about Revenge.  It’s just been a timing issue.  I’ve always been away or had work commitments that have kept me from talking about it in a timely manner and it kills me because there is so much to discuss!

Let’s start with last week’s bomb shell that exploded tonight…Charlotte isn’t Conrad’s daughter.  She’s David Clarke’s!!!  Emily has a half-sister.  I have to say, I never saw that coming.  That’s one thing I really enjoy about this show…it continues to surprise me because there have been many twists that I didn’t see at all.

I really thought this new development was going to simmer for a while and Emily would use it to her advantage at some point.  I didn’t think that point would be the very next episode!  But it was.  Conrad gets the tape of David confessing and plays it for Victoria and her lawyer.  Afterwards, he basically tells her that she is no longer dictating the rules of this settlement…he is…and he is going to leave her with nothing.  Man these Hamptonites sure are bitter when divorcing!    As a result, Victoria realizes she has to start telling Daniel and Charlotte.  She never gets around to Charlotte but she has an interesting way of telling Daniel.   She leads him to believe that David Clarke raped her and that’s how she was impregnated.  Victoria Grayson is on my official hate list forever.   That is something you NEVER lie about.  EVER.   She is disgusting.

You know what else was disgusting?  The fact that Conrad kicked Charlotte to the curb after finding out the news.  I’m sorry but she has been your daughter for 16, 17 years.  Now all of a sudden, she’s nothing to you?  When did his become her fault?  I never thought he would do that to her.  Conrad isn’t a good man but I thought he loved his daughter.  Apparently, not so much.   With that family, I can’t believe Charlotte isn’t on massive amounts of drugs or liquor.

In other big news, Daniel proposes to Emily in a very romantic scene.  He brings her on the family yacht (because everyone has one of those just hanging around in a dock) with a four piece string band and private wait staff for dinner.  It begins to rain to everyone runs off the boat, but not Daniel.  He stays and begins to tell Emily how much he loves her and drops to one knee (but not before handing her the umbrella to hold for them.) He pops the question and she says yes.  Did it seem a bit hesitant to you?   It did to me.  I’m not sure if marrying Daniel was part of Emily’s plan but I guess in order to carry out her end game, she has to see this through.  I’m also not sure if she really has feelings for him or not.  I think she’s grown to like him more than she thought, but I don’t think her feelings for him are real…especially after the final scene.

Emily was ready to walk away from the whole revenge game.   Jack was beaten severely and she doesn’t want anymore innocents getting hurt because of her.  So she was going to break it off with Daniel and leave the Hamptons.  Yeah right, like that was really going to happen.  Well before she could tell Danny boy that they were through, he tells her that the “terrorist” that lived in her house prior, is the asshole responsible for raping his mother and getting her pregnant with Charlotte.  Emily amazingly keeps her composure during all this and asks Daniel questions about this new twist in the story.  He is visibly angry and distraught by this and Emily calmly sits and listens to him.  Eventually, Daniel asks her what she was thinking about all morning and her response is “what do you think of a June wedding?”  While she’s hugging him, she sees Victoria on her terrace and gives her the worst stare down since Maximus to Commodus at the Colosseum.   The game is back ON!!!!

The other big twist I didn’t see coming…Victoria’s lawyer, Ryan Huntly, was working with Emily the whole time.  When we first saw the flash back of Emily (in that horrid black wig) with Huntly, it appeared to be a contentious discussion.  Turns out, we see the remainder of the conversation where Huntly tells Emily (then Amanda) that he always believed her father was innocent.  He was trying to help her destroy Victoria from the inside and he did a pretty good job.  He also was able to save the day when Victoria invites Amanda over for tea only to use it as a rouse to get her DNA because she refuses to believe that she’s David Clarke’s daughter.   Victoria may be a vile human being, but she’s not stupid.  Huntly was able to “fix” the DNA test to prove that yes she and Charlotte are related and therefore David’s daughter.  Victoria still didn’t believe it, but it doesn’t matter.   She proceeds to fire Huntly.

Finally Amanda Clarke has left the Hamptons.  Emily comes to clean to her about her real motives for being there and she warns Amanda that she is in danger.  The Graysons are powerful to the point that they could have her destroyed or worse, killed.  Amanda offers to help Emily in any way she can and wants to be there to support her friend.  Emily tells her the best way to help her is to get out-of-town and be safe.  She agrees but she is heartbroken to leave Jack.  She tells Em she can’t say good-bye and Em agrees to do it for her.  Amanda doesn’t say good-bye but she does leave Jack a Dear John letter making Jack’s day even worse than it was before.  (Jack got the tar beat out of him by one the Grayson’s henchmen because he was in the wrong place at the wrong time.)

This show is fabulous!  I am on the edge of my seat each and every week with what will happen next.  I’m a sucker for a good night-time soap.   But this is more than that.  The term “night-time soap” can conjure up different biases.   Mainly because most of them are poorly written and acted.  But that would be a fallacious perception in regards to Revenge.  This show is smart, fast paced, well acted, and has a compelling story that grips you each week.   How many shows can you honestly say that about right now?  I don’t mean watching the first season of Damages on Netflix.  I mean shows presently on network TV right now.   This isn’t a Titans or Model’s Inc.  This isn’t about sex, money, or power.  Well, it is a little about power.  More about bringing down power and the people who have abused it for years.  This is about righting a terrible wrong that was done to many by people who thought they were above the law and paying for their mistakes.  This about a woman who loved her father so much that she will do anything, including destroying her own life, to make sure her father’s good name is cleared.  I am rooting for Emily/Amanda 100% and I can’t wait to see what happens when she gets to her ultimate goal of taking down Conrad and Victoria.

 

Revenge “Commitment” Recap Coming Tomorrow

Charlotte is David Clarke’s daughter.  Victoria’s lawyer was working with Emily.  Victoria alluded to the idea that David RAPED her and that’s how she got pregnant.  Amanda finally left town.  Can this show get any better?

That sound you just heard was my head exploding!!!!  I have so much to discuss but my dog really needs to pee and I need to get some sleep.  But the recap will be up ASAP tomorrow!  So come back then!

 

RECAP & REVIEW: Revenge “Treachery” S1 E9

It’s official. “Amanda” is going to be a real Thorne in “Emily’s” side. Like that play on words? What I’m trying to figure out is if “Amanda” is a bit of a stalker or is she playing “Emily” the way “Emily” thinks she’s playing her? I’m not sure. Or did she simply change her tune when she saw “Emily’s” lifestyle? That is what is so great about this show. There are so many moving parts and with each passing episode, it gets more and more exciting. There are two shows on TV that I can’t wait for the next episode each week….Homeland and Revenge. With each element that the show introduces, whether it be a new character like real Emily/fake Amanda or a twist in the storyline with Lydia being alive and trying to regain her memory, Revenge always sets itself apart because the storytelling is so compelling.

Here are some key/random takeaways from the episode:

1. Daniel noticed Emily sneaking back into bed
– so what does that mean if anything? Are his suspicions now heightened? Were they before? Or is Daniel starting to feel untrusting of the people closest to him? I don’t think there’s anything sinister regarding his seeing Emily come back into bed (although his look certainly would suggest otherwise). I honestly think that was a typical end of episode eye brow raiser. However I wouldn’t be surprised to see him question her about it.

2. Amanda/Emily outside watching Emily/Amanda hugging Daniel.
– is Amanda a stalker or could she be playing Emily right back? I think she’s has a really strong connection with Emily and isn’t ready to leave yet especially after seeing Emily’s new lifestyle. This is going to turn into a big problem for her, I have a feeling. But what will she do about it? You know now thing I would like to see is how the real Emily Thorne warmed up to the real Amanda Clarke. We know why real Amanda did it (after seeing her conversation with the warden) but how did she turn real Emily from sworn enemy to BFF?

3. Lydia’s memory is still gone and she is off Emily’s back…for now.
– so Lydia is awake and now living with the Grayson’s so they can keep an eye on her. But she doesn’t have her short term memory. However when she sees Emily she doesn’t have warm feelings towards her and in fact brings up the photo again to Victoria. Luckily, Nolan had it photoshopped and Emily is now out of the picture when Victoria and Lydia look at it. But the big news is that Lydia overheard Conrad and Victoria fighting and heard them say how they sent Frank over to her house. Of course she is freaked out and rightfully so. I can’t feel too bad for here since she was bumping uglies with her best friend’s husband.

4. Ashley now hates Emily?
– when did that happen? I thought they were friends and after one walk of shame and conversation with Tyler, she doesn’t like Emily anymore and is with Tyler to bring her and Daniel down? Does that make any sense to anyone else because it makes none to me! And I would still like to know Tyler’s ultimate end game. Is to destroy Daniel? The Grayson family? Conrad’s company? Guess we’ll have to wait and see!

This show is fabulous and if aren’t watching it….what is wrong with you! Watch it now! Of course after your done reading my post! Let me know what you think of Revenge!

 

RECAP & REVIEW: Revenge “Intrigue” S1 E6

I have to wonder if all people ever do in the Hamptons is have parties.  Seriously, every week, there is some major party or event going on.  But I guess they need to find someway to keep Ashley involved in the story.  This week’s episode is the Fourth of July and the Graysons are gearing up for a monster blow out of a bash.  But before we get to that, we need to discuss the fall out from the most popular internet video since Pam and Tommy Lee’s porn video…Lydia’s “accident” that resulted in her being in a coma.

First, Nolan shows the video to Emily, who watches it completely stone faced.   I have to give a round of applause to Emily VanCamp.  I never thought that girl could pull off being a vengeful, cold-hearted person.  She always plays a sweetheart!  Well she’s spectacular and she pulls it off without a hitch.  She admits that this was not part of her plan but regardless, she will use it to her advantage.  She tells Nolan to send the video to Conrad and let the Graysons destroy Frank.   Which is pretty much what happens.  Conrad sees the video and fires Frank after 20 years of service.   Frank not so subtly reminds Conrad that if it weren’t for him, he would be in jail and David Clarke would be alive.  But as rich people do, he ignores it and gives him a ginormous check and tells him to get as far away from the Hamptons as he can.  Sensing a connection between Victoria and Frank, Conrad decides to show Victoria the video.  She watches in horror while Frank polishes a gun telling her to stay away from Frank and he’ll protect her.  I have to wonder, was Victoria’s look of horror because she was watching a woman struggle to save her own life and couldn’t or was it because the man she is starting to care about was the one to have a hand in her demise?

Now that Frank is seemingly out-of-the-way, Emily can turn her sights back onto to Tyler.  He certainly is a trouble maker that Tyler.  Isn’t he?   First he gets Daniel to fall off the wagon.  Then he tries to break Emily and Daniel up.   Now he let’s it slip that Daniel is now a bartender at the Porter’s bar (which he knows will incense Victoria) and he tells her that it was all Emily’s idea.  What a turd face!  Of course Victoria confronts Daniel over this and it goes over as well as a wet fart in church.  (I know my mother just cringed reading that line.)  Tyler doesn’t care though.  He will do anything he can to break up Daniel and Emily, especially after Emily grilled him the night before and basically Sydney Bristowed him in front of Daniel and Ashley.  But Tyler took his scheming to a whole new level and not in a good way.  He went from being manipulative to down right criminal.  From the looks of it, he slipped Daniel a date rape drug while he was working at the Stowaway.   When Daniel starts to go downhill, Tyler brings him upstairs and proceeds to try to make a move on him.  Daniel is still strong enough to push him away and Tyler leaves pissed off.  He goes outside and gives a wooden pillar as suspicious eye.  He then proceeds to smash his face into the pillar.  I was hoping he would keep going until he knocked himself out but it wasn’t meant to be.  With a huge gash on his head, he smirks and goes back to the Grayson party.

At the party everyone is there.  Emily shows up wearing another stunning dress.  The wardrobe department has done an excellent job because all of Emily’s clothes but especially her event dresses have been gorgeous!   Emily and Victoria have their typical friendly, I mean chilly, hellos.  Not soon after Nolan shows up with Jack and Declan.   The Porter men have come to claim their wealthy women away from the oppressiveness of the rich and famous!!!  Maybe it’s not quite that severe but Declan is there for Charlotte while Jack plans to make a move on Emily.  Declan has much more luck with Charlotte than Jack has with Emily.   Probably because Charlotte is actually available.   Call me crazy but that might have something to do with it.   But both Porter men, have very sweet and endearing ways of trying to woo their lady friends.  Unfortunately for Jack, Daniel is part of Emily’s plan and her breaking things off with Daniel to be with the man she really wants to be with, just isn’t in the cards right now.   And as a result, she has to break his heart, which in turn, breaks hers.

Back at the party, Nolan is on a hunt for copious amounts of Beef Wellington while Frank shows back up with a gun and escorts Nolan away.  Earlier in the day, Frank was able to get his hands on the surveillance video from Lydia’s apartment and saw Nolan entering her apartment the same night he was there.   Needless to say, Frank would like to have a little chat with Nolan about that.   The go into the pool house and Frank wants to know who hired Nolan to plant the camera in Lydia’s apartment.  Frank wants to know if it’s Conrad and Nolan tells him firmly that it wasn’t.  Meanwhile, ass face has arrived with his bloody forehead and Victoria is mortified.  Tyler tells her that Daniel did this to him but that he now more determined than ever to get Danny the help that he needs.  Oh cry me a river!   Emily watches this and follows Tyler to the pool house where she confronts him about what happened to him.  As they enter the pool house, they seeing Nolan lying on the floor shaking with fear and the back door open.  (Frank got out just in time.)  Nolan leaves and asks Emily to join him.  He tells her that Frank knows it was him that sent the video.  She wants to know how and he tells her because he’s better at this than we are.   Nolan is seriously freaked out and tells Emily that she is on her own.   Guess who witnesses the whole conversation….Frank.   This was really the first dumb move Emily has made but more on that later.

In the end, Jack heads back to the Stowaway only to find Daniel passed out upstairs.  Now here’s a dumb question, why was the bar empty and seemingly shut down the for the night?  It’s Fourth of July weekend in the Hamptons.   Probably one of the busiest nights of the year.  Jack didn’t stay at the party that long.  Fireworks were going off so it’s safe to say it wasn’t 2 or 3 am.  So why was the bar empty and shut down?  That bugged me.  But I’ll let it go for now.   Then we flash to Emily at her house and she heads right to the newly fixed porch swing in the location her father always wanted it…aiming towards the sunset.  Jack fixed it for her.  I really like him.  She sits on the swing watching the fireworks….while someone is watching her.    Any guesses?   Of course you know who it is!    It’s Frank.   Dun dun dun dun!!!!   Frank calls Victoria to tell her that he had nothing to do with the video and that he is being set up.  “I think we’re all being set up.”   Uh oh.   You don’t want someone as clever as Frank on your tail Em!   Conrad bursts into the room and grabs the phone from Victoria telling Frank never to call again or he will end him.   He then throws the phone against a pillow.   I guess the big fluffy pillow will not only hang up the phone for him but it will also scare Frank with the enormously loud thud.  I have to say, that’s one of the first really soapy moments of the show for me.  Conrad throwing a phone against a down pillow made me laugh out loud.   First, most smartphones have an “END” button.  You have to push it to hang up, dumb ass.   Second, if you want to emphasize your veracity, maybe throw the phone against the wall so it explodes.  The down pillow won’t do much to instill fear into the person on the other end.  But it was good for a laugh.

Up until now, Emily has been pretty spot on with her Revenge plot.  But I think Nolan is right.  Unless she proves me wrong, she may have severely underestimated Frank.  And now that Nolan is freaked out, I’m not sure if she’ll have her trusty sidekick anymore.  And she’ll miss him more than she realizes.  But something makes me think after the scariness of what happened to Nolan wears off, he’ll be back helping Emily.  I can’t see him abandoning her.  Frank is probably the worst person to be onto Emily.  Possibly Victoria as well but Frank is a little more sinister.  I also have to shake my head at her and Nolan.  She has been so careful and meticulous up until this point.   Frank is onto Nolan in some way shape or form.  Nolan and Emily also know that Frank JUST left the pool house so he isn’t far away and still on property.  So why in the world would you have that conversation with Emily in the middle of the party for everyone to see and Frank to be able to see as well?  I would have pulled her back to the Stowaway or even Queens before I told her anything or linked her to me because common sense would tell you that Frank is watching.  You just mentioned how he’s better than you at this.   Well then why would you talk to Emily in an open forum the way you did?  It was dumb and they are both smarter than that!

Next week’s episode was revealed to be a “game changer.”  I hate when shows do that.  Usually when episodes are promoted as game changers, they aren’t and over hyped.  But this show has been solid from beginning to end so I believe that next week will be the game changer it’s promoting.  So what do we think that means?   Does someone really find out who Emily is?   Does someone major die?   Does the truth about David Clarke come out?   I guess we have to wait and see but I already can’t wait for next Wednesday.