RECAP: Beauty and the Beast – Episode 13 – Trust No One

It's Valentine's Day... Time for flowers, chocolates, flash mobs, life threatening situations and a "Kiss interrupted"

We are almost done with the Alex Arc, we survived the 3 unfortunate episodes and this is a less unfortunate episode for sure, however I am not crazy about it either. There are parts of Trust No One I LOVED! But others annoyed the hell out of me. I’ll explain as we go.

We start the episode with Alex trying to sleep off her Beast trauma. She wakes up as she gets a call from Catherine who gives her some shady directions to meet her outside. Look who ended up acting like a “handler”! Irony. For some reason, no-one mentioned this in the last episode, but I guess it makes sense: Alex is on the run from Muirfield and what does she do? She uses her credit card! “CASH ONLY!” That’s like RUNNING AWAY 101, but this is Alex so what do you expect? Catherine gives her the “Muirfield tracks everything” speech and Alex doesn’t register it right away. Let’s remember even Cat was skeptical at first and made the mistake of running V’s picture through facial recognition; so… once again, this is Alex, she might start blogging about being on the run… anything is possible. We also learn Alex was an “activist”, I wonder for what? Ideas? [“Free the Unicorns Liberation League”?]I do feel a little bad for Alex, she looks like a scared little girl unsure of what to do and she just had her whole life shattered; plus she is probably reconsidering her 10 year obsession with Vincent, or maybe she is just in denial waiting for someone to come manipulate her… yeah, I think it is the latter. Cat sets Alex up with her “how to become a ghost” starter kit: cash, burner phone, etc. Alex asks Catherine how can she sacrifice so much for Vincent and just “accept” his situation [get used to her wondering that because she will repeat it at least 100 times!]. Cat simply replies “He saved my life” [“and I am in love with him, and he is really hot you know?”]

Later at CAT’S APARTMENT, Heather takes “wishful thinking” to a whole new [psychotic] level. Heather is wearing a red dress; she bought chocolates and made reservations for two. All normal Valentine’s Day activities except for the fact that she doesn't have a boyfriend! However, she is convinced the universe will provide her with one before the day ends. Heather’s theory is based on the premise that “Valentine’s Day is not about math, it is about love”, who the hell thinks Valentine’s is about MATH? We also learn that Heather is now “Servicing the city” and that sounds like the motto of an escort service, doesn’t it? Anyway, it’s nothing that outrageous, she is just working for a catering company and she will plan an event at the precinct. How convenient. Speaking of [in] convenient, Cat gets a note from V to meet him at the “Roof”.

Vincent waits for Cat on the ROOF OF SIGNIFICANT RELATIONSHIP MILESTONES. Cat updates him on the Alex situation and then tells him she needs some time; so, naturally, he asks her out [or in] on a Valentine’s Day date. And you wonder why I think men are not very perceptive… He makes some good points like: he “missed enough opportunities” and “he doesn't want to wait another year because who knows where he will be” [aghr foreshadowing sucks]; but Cat is not thrilled about the prospect and tells him [a little too harshly]: “I am protecting you, please don’t mistake this as anything else”. Then she gives him a much needed summary of her mind state: she let herself want to be with him, only to see him go with Alex the second she appeared. He also gives her a summary [and by SUMMARY I mean a sentence] of his feelings: “It was never even about Alex, it was just me trying to live some fantasy life, you know… one where I might seem normal again. What I felt for you, it never went away”. And although he perfectly SUMMARIZED the whole issue [and three weeks’ worth of recaps and discussion], it really is NOT ENOUGH for Cat to forgive him, is it? This scene needed to be longer; unfortunately this is a TV show with limited airtime. To paraphrase Alfred Hitchcock “Drama is life with the dull bits cut out” which is so true, but I think on BATB they sometimes go a little overboard with the “cutting”. And Cat is not like Alex, so she is not going to take the SHORTEST MOST INCOMPLETE EXPLANATION. I understand him; I also think it is good that she is making him work for it [however I did feel bad for V every time he got that tortured look on his face… agrr I want to hug him].

And here is my issue with this episode: I am not complaining about what happens; I like the fact that Vincent is trying to make it right with Cat, trying to be romantic and all that. However, if you think about it, his ex-girlfriend just had her life turned around because of him and he is thinking of V-Day plans with another girl? NOT complaining about the events, just the timing. Due to the airing schedule this episode HAD to be the Valentine’s episode, but I think they would have benefited from making this the “Let’s get Alex out of our lives episode” and let the next one be the “Valentine’s, let’s get V and C together” episode. That way they could have focused on resolving the Alex issue with better results for all the characters. However, broadcast schedules are unforgiving.

But let’s get back to the episode. Remember when Alex told Vincent they could torture her, but she would never tell ANYONE about him? Well she is telling someone… but it is OK, because he is just a reporter. Wait! It is not OK, He is a REPORTER! You know what reporters do, Alex? They REPORT stuff! As in telling the WHOLE WORLD about said stuff! Alex tells her reporter friend that he can’t publish anything she tells him… so what was the point of contacting the reporter? Damn, hiring a PI would have been less stupid. In any case, THIS was the time for a short incomplete explanation, but no… Alex actually gives her friend the reporter the MOST COMPREHENSIVE “INA NUTSHELL” EXPLANATION: “My friend, Vincent Keller, he was a soldier. He was turned into a monster in an experiment by a group called Muirfield” Geez… Alex, aren’t you forgetting something, like his address, phone number and known associates?

"Embrace the Cheese-Factor!"

Vincent arrives at the WAREHOUSE and it is time for him to have a conversation with “JT-the-love-guru”. JT really GETS it, most of the times. So he basically translates the situation [from girl to guy] so Vincent understands. Cat doesn’t wear her heart on her sleeve, she opened up to him, he was confused, now he isn’t but it is too late and it is not enough to “be there” every time a “mauling” is in order, he needs to show her he “is in” and won’t leave the next time a hot chick crosses his path. Vincent concludes he has to “win her trust back”, accurate, but could he be any more abstract? JT has a more practical approach: he needs to “woo her”, “embrace the cheese factor” and “make a mockery of his manhood for one day”. He knows all of this, because he looked it up online. And it is actually good advice, it baffles me that guys struggle so much to figure this out. So apparently, when in doubt about what women want… all you need to do is Google it.  

And now it’s time for some Joe/Tess loving. I have mixed feelings about this couple… but not the time to discuss them yet. In a nutshell I like them as a couple, but I don’t like their situation. So, Joe is ditching Tess on Valentine’s Day because his wife is coming early from her business trip. The whole situation annoys me, Tess shouldn’t have expectations for this relationship and Joe telling her “he would be with her if he could” couldn’t have been more cliché. What I liked about this scene was seeing a more vulnerable side of Tess, but I also think she was strong enough to demand something better. The problem with the Joe/Tess thing is that, much like JT/Sara, they never fully developed the arc, resulting in a very unfulfilled relationship.

As Joe and Tess engage on their illicit relationship, Heather arrives at the PRECINCT where she has to plan a party for an award Joe is getting [not for husband of the year, I presume]. She kneels to take some floor measurements and, if that is part of her job description, she is so wearing the wrong outfit! Anyway a cute, smart looking guy, DARIUS, walks up to her. She explains, for no reason at all, that she is planning an event for some “mucky muck” so Darius let’s her know he is actually the mucky-muck’s brother. Heather sort of apologizes and Darius asks her out. Seriously, this DOES NOT HAPPEN in real life! Girls don’t magically get dates by speaking in monosyllabic sentences and insulting brothers while taking floor measurements! Whatever metaphysical crap Heather is into, I might need to check it out because her psychotic wishful thinking totally paid off.

Unlike Heather, Cat is not so pleased with her “destined” love. She finds a bouquet of cut flowers on her desk. Tess in immediately on her case about her not-so-secret-secret-admirer but they are interrupted by the arrival of Joe and Darius. Tess is all “Joe talks about you all the time” while Cat is probably thinking “Joe has a brother?” but nothing suspicious about that… … Joe tells them about A CASE, but don’t fret! It is not another CASE OF THE WEEK, it’s just Alex’s reporter friend who got murdered by M... Anyway, the Bishop brothers leave and Cat dumps the flowers on Tess’s desk, with the double purpose of rejecting Vincent’s advance and making Joe think Tess has a secret admirer. Cat explains that “It will take a lot more than roses [to convince her he won’t run away with the next vapid redhead that comes along]”. Nothing says Valentine’s Day like stalking your loved one, so it is no surprise Vincent was eavesdropping on Cat and Tess’s conversation from the next building. He realizes more “wooing” is still in order, apparently the roses didn’t have the necessary level of “cheese factor”.

Tess and Cat walk into the CRIME SCENE of a murder staged as a suicide. They walk into the bathroom and find a body inside the bathtub [imaginary Alias reference number… I lost count, so #47?] and, of course… it is Alex’s REPORTER FRIEND, shocker… not. We also learn that he used to write exposés, so more reason to trust him with the “secret government organization developing next-gen weapons” story that SHALL NOT be published. His laptop is nowhere to be found but Cat finds his phone and his notebook which the perpetrators just happened to left behind. Seriously, M-agents are THE WORST SECRET ORGANIZATION OPERATIVES EVER! Why would they leave the phone and notebook behind? Also, you would think M-agents would learn how to properly stage a suicide during their basic “evil organization training”! Well, at least they have BUSINESS CARDS [they didn't leave one behind, did they?]. Cat looks at the phone and sees several calls from ALEX, but she doesn't get the chance to erase the calls because Tess bags the phone. Always the good detective, Tess concludes that whoever did this “may have been covering up one hell of a story”. Just your partner’s not-so-secret-secret-admirer who sometimes turns into a Beast… no biggie.

For once in his life, Evan is out of the Morgue. He is taking a stroll down the PARK with his fake name fake girlfriend Claire Sinclair A.K.A [for the people who watch True Blood], the big bad wolf. Claire appears to be very distant and Evan is a little confounded that a girl seems to be not into him, before he gets the chance to dump her. Claire is so out of it; Evan starts getting suspicious and tests her to see if she has been lying about her whereabouts. She is unable to keep her lies straight, because M-AGENTS ARE THE WORST SECRET OPERATIVES EVER. After leaving Evan, Claire meets with her maybe M-handler Sorenson. She tells him about Evan’s suspicions but he is not worried about him, because he is more focused on Alex and the dead M-Crew from the woods. He has figured out that Alex is “protecting Vincent”, more like “exposing him” but whatever. Sorenson takes credit for the DEAD REPORTER, but asks Claire to “take care” of Alex, meaning using her to find Vincent then killing her. Sounds easy enough, but I thought Claire didn't look so pleased about that. Also, the fact that NO-ONE can connect Vincent to Catherine at this point is unbelievable! Oh, but I forgot… worst secret agents ever…

Cat goes to the WAREHOUSE to tell Vincent about the DEAD REPORTER. JT shrewdly concludes it was “Muirfield” but he doesn’t stay to have his customary heart attack because he has V-Day plans with Sara. That relationship is doing more for him than a bottle of tums ever could. After JT leaves, Cat asks Vincent to curb his “online spending” [re: flowers] and damn… I still want her to make him work for it… but look at his face! I would have caved right then and there… I guess I am weak. After they briefly discuss their romantic situation [or lack of it], they go back to the more pressing matter: Alex. Vincent obviously wants to find Alex and save the day, but Catherine makes him promise to stay at the warehouse. She suggests he should go “sit on the couch, do a thousand push-ups or level up on every video game he has”… am I the only one who instantly started picturing him engaging on all of those activities… shirtless… no? just me? OK moving on. Vincent is obviously fighting her on the subject but she ends the conversation by telling him he will stay if he wants her to trust him again. Ouch, that should do it… for now.

Meanwhile, Alex is walking down the streets… out in the open. Seriously, woman, learn to fly under the radar! She sees a newspaper article about her friend the DEAD REPORTER. “I guess he is not coming” says a voice from behind. It’s Claire. Claire starts by telling her, the reported was murdered and then something about Muirfield, Vincent, grotesque mutations, returning the man she fell in love with blah blah lie lie blah. Alex is back to believing the SHORTEST MOST INCOMPLETE EXPLANATIONS [coming from random strangers on the street], so she decides to trust Claire on the spot; which is a big mistake because Claire would kill you to become pack master… oh, wrong show… she would still kill you though.

At the PRECINCT Cat is trying to find Alex by tracking her credit card charges, only to find out that the cards have been cancelled. Cat is all “no way she cancelled the credit cards, she ain’t that smart”, but she doesn’t get to figure out what’s happening because Tess arrives with a box of cream filled chocolates [from Vincent]. Tess attempts to make a metaphor, because “life is like a box of chocolates” or something, but it doesn’t matter because it is time for Joe to bitch about the unsolved case. The girls better hurry unless they want to be demoted to garbage.

CUT TO Cat walking down the street and suddenly, a group of people suspiciously approach her. If I hadn’t seen the previews I would have assumed she was about to get jumped, but no… it’s just a FLASH MOB to the tune of Bruno Mars Locked out of Heaven. I have mentioned before that I am not the romantic type and I have to confess, after I saw the preview clip I thought it was a little too corny for my taste. HOWEVER, once I saw it in the context of the episode I really liked it! I guess I decided to “embrace the cheese factor” myself. Now I think about it with a smile every time I hear that song and that guy with the red scarf was dancing like he was auditioning for SYTYCD! After the flash-mob ends, someone hands Cat a paper heart with the letter “V” on it… and that was probably a little too much, it’s not like she wasn't going to figure out who arranged it… Anyway, you can tell she is starting to soften up and Vincent can tell that too because he is watching her on his [JT’s] laptop. When actual stalking is not possible, remote stalking is the next best thing.

OK, after enjoying this cute romantic moment, let’s think about it for a minute. Our characters found out, not so long ago, that Alex’s friend was MURDERED. It is a pretty logical assumption that Alex’s life is in danger and Vincent is buying chocolates and arranging flash-mobs? [maybe he ran out of video games…] I couldn’t arrange a flash-mob if I had to study for a test, let alone worry about someone being murdered! You can see where I am coming from… Anyway, for the purpose of this episode let’s just assume Vincent is really good at compartmentalizing/multitasking and he can plan romantic gestures while worrying about people dying. So, right after the flashmob ends, Vincent gets a phone call and answers it all smiley expecting to hear Cat’s voice, I assume. But no such luck, it’s Alex in a panic. She asks him to meet her at the BEAU MONDE hotel because she “needs him”. She hangs up and loads a syringe… dun dun dun

As Alex gets ready to throw Vincent to the wolves [ALMOST literally], Cat and Tess drown their sorrows at the LONELY HEARTS bar. Their pity party for two is crashed by Joe and Evan. You know? My boss never took me out for drinks after I got dumped… I guess Joe is alright, although, now that I think about it he was probably just using Evan as an excuse to find Tess... So, Joe makes a poor attempt to make things right with Tess, but looks like he didn’t get the wooing/cheese factor memo. A half apology is not gonna cut it dude, where are your backup dancers? Still at the bar, Cat gets a call from a frantic JT who tells her about Vincent and Alex and the “Beau Monde Hotel”, which, for some reason I can’t figure out, set off the alarms on JT’s head. What is it about the “Beau Monde Hotel” that says “your ex-fiancé is having a psychotic break and is about to turn you in to your evil makers”?

At the BEAU MONDE HOTEL Alex waits for Vincent with a hug and a syringe full of “etorphine hydrochloride”. Alex is all “I just drugged you because I love you and this people who I talked to for like 5 minutes are going to make it all better and then we can get married and pretend the last 10 years never happened! Yey!” Then she implies that Catherine wants to keep him as a beast so he depends on her and she doesn’t have to “share him”. She seriously crossed over to psycho territory. Vincent’s all “Catherine accepts me for who I am, that’s why I trust her”, See? I knew he finally got it. Cat arrives at the hotel and Vincent hears her, so he very easily tricks Alex into going to the kitchen. Cat gets into the hotel room and tries to help Vincent up but Alex has a gun! She has some serious issues with getting guns and pointing them at the WRONG PEOPLE. No more guns for Alex! As she points the gun at Catherine she says “She [Claire] told me you might come” Say what again? Claire told her “Catherine” might come? No that can’t be, she doesn’t know Cat exists. Let’s assume she said “someone” might come, meaning M finally figured out someone is helping Vincent and it can’t be just Alex because she doesn’t have the wits for it. To make it even worse, Cat asks Alex who told her “she might come” and Alex answers she DOESN’T KNOW HER NAME. Sure… just go along with a plot to drug your ex-boyfriend in a hotel room but don’t even bother to ask names first! Are you kidding me Alex?! There is being naïve… and then there’s whatever this is!

Cat and Vincent start throwing out every argument they can think of to get out of their precarious situation including that “there is no cure”, “my mom created the beast, then they killed her”, “they are evil and they are just using you”. They didn’t sound particularly convincing if you ask me, but ANYTHING makes more sense than just trusting a random lady in the street who promises to “de-beastify” the love of your life. Finally, Cat convinces Alex that she is being used and puts an end to the “fatal attraction tableau”.  At that precise moment, Claire arrives [looking more badass than usual and walking in slow-mo]. Alex tells Claire that Vincent escaped. Claire doesn’t believe her and decides she has no further use for Alex. She points a gun at her and ominously announces: “If you are gonna die, it might as well be for love” Please… if anything, Alex would have died due to stupidity. Anyway, Alex doesn’t die because Vincent comes crashing through the window and saves her. I guess she didn’t calculate the correct dose for the hydrochloride thingie… Shocker.

The episode is almost over and it is time for some UNBELIEVABLY QUICK EPIPHANIES at the WAREHOUSE. First, Vincent apologizes for everything and Alex comes to terms with the fact that she has to finally move on. It only took her 10 years, multiple murders and an almost fatal betrayal. Then Cat arrives and gives Alex some fake documents so she can finally disappear and hopefully not get killed. Suddenly Alex’s IQ triples or something because she suddenly becomes impressively insightful. She tells Cat “everybody has a first love. Sometimes we outgrow them” which is precisely right! She also concludes that Vincent has outgrown her, that he was just trying to “do the right thing” and make up for leaving her even though she is not the one he loves any more. And again, I am not against what happened, but I have a big issue with the fact that 2 minutes ago Alex was acting like Kathy Bates on Misery and all of the sudden she is the voice of reason? I could have taken that type of transition over a couple of episodes I guess, hell at least a couple of scenes! But no, it was from one scene to the next. From psycho to perfectly together/selfless individual in record time! I also wanted to note that if they had written Alex like they did on this scene I would have liked her a lot more!

After her unexpected conversation with Alex, Cat goes back to the PRECINCT to get rid of the DEAD REPORTER’s phone and notepad. When she is in the midst of destroying evidence she gets caught by Tess. She is VERY upset and tired of Cat’s elusive behavior. She informs Cat that she will request a new partner. Cat is not forthcoming at all and Tess has more than enough reason to be upset, but I thought her change from “I support you no questions asked” to “I am tired of your lies” was a little drastic. Perhaps the whole situation with Joe has her grumpy.

Cat is not the only one tampering with evidence that night. At the MORGUE Claire is taking photographs of Evan’s research and… she gets caught… because she is an M-agent, so what do you expect? Evan grabs her from behind and demands some answers, which Claire gives up a little too easily. This scene was sort of hot… in a weird way… I guess morgues can be “enticing” after all. Claire explains that they [M] “created” Vincent, that he was a “mistake” and that “it” is “vicious”… she forgot to add “IT is totally stealing your girl as we speak” but Evan seemed to think it was enough to embark on a crusade against “the creature”.

Meanwhile, Alex is on her way to disappearing. She is sitting inside a bus and dun dun dun Sorenson sits right behind her. Seriously, what is this guy’s job? I thought he was Claire’s handler, but he also kills people? The corporate structure of M is very confusing [and not very efficient it might seem]. And speaking of killing… Is Alex dead? Are we supposed to assume that? I am going to say something really controversial here: I actually want her back… Before you yell at me, let me explain. I would like her to come back so Vincent can reject her properly and put all the fan hatred to rest. When she first came into the show, Vincent and Catherine were in “no man’s land”, they hadn’t even kissed. So, even if we knew they had a great connection, they technically didn’t have a romantic relationship. That is different now, so Vincent’s reactions would be totally different and I would like to see that. Don’t think it will happen, though.

OK, and we have finally arrived to the last scene of the episode AKA “THE KISS INTERRUPTED” scene. I am afraid I won’t be able to make justice to this scene, which is one of my favorites of the entire series, but I will try:

Vincent shows up at Cat’s place and quickly apologizes for breaking his promise to stay in his “loft”. Cat says he doesn’t need to apologize for trying to do the right thing and then she asks if Alex was that? The “right thing”, he says she was. I understand and I believe him but it bothered me that he went from “I wanted to have a normal life” to “I wanted to do the right thing by Alex” without a proper explanation. I definitely think it was a little bit of both and that the whole issue is much more complex but they needed more than two lines of dialogue to explain it… Whatever, it doesn’t matter. There are more important things about to happen. Still standing in the middle of her living room, he thanks her once again for risking herself to protect him, especially since she is not “emotionally attached anymore”. Cat nervously laughs and asks him if he is buying that, he confidently answers NO. He finally got the confidence he needed, it was about time! Said confidence makes him walk towards her, she starts walking backwards but she can’t tear her eyes away from his intense gaze. It’s an incredibly charged moment. Finally she is able to utter: “It turns out you can’t control your heart. Damn thing just does what it wants” “And what’s yours doing now?” he asks, “Other than beating a million miles a minute?” she asks and then she goes on and on about “trust issues” and “taking slow”; in turn he says poetic stuff like “Totally” and “Right” and I often comment on how V is a man of few words… but who needs words when you can make “Totally” and “Right” sound like that! Anyway, I am not among the people who hated Vincent throughout these episodes, but even if I were I think I would have forgotten all about it in this scene! If someone is seriously telling me that they would reject him if they were in Cat’s place they are TOTALLY lying! In any case, Cat is on the same boat as me, because she might be making all sorts of arguments against it but her eyes say differently. He finally closes the gap between them and leans in to kiss her and…. Heather interrupts them by yelling “Oh my God! I knew it!” End of episode!

And that’s it! We finally said goodbye to Alex and we got one of the hottest “almost kisses” ever, that scene was hotter than most actual kisses I’ve seen on TV, so I was pleased with it. Next week we get closer to the good stuff and no more Alex debate!

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QUOTES

JT: Knowing you’ll always be there to rip someone limb from limb in a pinch is a little different than knowing you’re not going to start playing Ice Castles with the next hot chick who comes along.

JT: It’s origami. It’s the time-honored art of a rich culture

Tess: You are either having a very serious relationship or a very serious psychotic break

Evan: I am guessing you are not going through my DNA files to find out what I want for my birthday