RECAP: Beauty and the Beast – Season 2 Episode 12– Recipe for disaster

Dungeons & Beasts

Beasts, Dungeons, caged archaeologists, kidnapped biochemists and blood drainage. Just another day in the BatB world. Plus, Cat learns how to make aphrodisiac amuse bouche and I present compelling evidence that Tori was a victim of body snatching. 

Looks like Cat is STILL finding herself and, this week, she is doing it by taking a cooking class. Tess is full of anecdotal wisdom about men: They can sense when women have been single for too long and they don’t like to wait… like Gabe who, by the way, is leaving the precinct. Cat doesn’t seem too pleased to learn that, but she maintains she is not ready for a relationship. Tess gets all #TeamGabe again [which I still don’t understand] and tells Cat she has had enough self-discovery to last a lifetime [agree with that] and that she should go ahead and move on to something that can “curl her toes”. Ug TMI.

But speaking of toes curling, Cat gets a phone-call from Vincent [and his bathrobe]. We can tell they have been “working together” for a while and these late night phone-calls are common. There is an ease to the way they talk to each other that I really liked. In addition, Vincent looks really excited to be talking to Cat [probably just using the investigation as an excuse]. Cat doesn’t seem to mind talking to him either. They discuss the potential threat of Dana finding out about beasts; Cat suggests earning some brownie points by discovering who killed her husband. In order to find the killer they need to find the gem. Vincent is already on it. He is using Rebecca’s journal as a treasure map, which makes absolutely no sense, but I am going to pretend it does [I am already pretending the gem makes sense after all… maybe the journal is magical like the gem…] Vincent tells Cat that once they are done with this beast business, she can finally go back to her old life. It is clear Cat doesn’t want that, but she needs to hang up because she is about to have a flambé kitchen.

Vincent hangs up and Tori comes out of the bedroom wearing a robe [I really hate robes]. She asks who was on the phone, but she already knows the answer. She is upset because Vincent has been calling Catherine a lot. Tori repeats her “beasts against the world” tirade, but it is clear Vincent doesn’t agree. Finally Tori flat out asks Vincent if he is just hoping to get back together with Catherine and he DOES NOT DENY IT AT ALL. In fact, he doesn’t even attempt to deny it. He just looks down and deflects by saying he just wants to “find the gem!”. Ouch.

When things get soapy... 

I actually remembered this scene being different [worse than it actually was]. I think I was so disgusted by the “DAYS OF OUR BEASTS” soap opera setting [complete with bathrobes] that I didn’t pay attention to anything they were saying. However, now that I’ve seen it again I thought it was sort of funny. Vincent was SO clearly pushing Tori away and the scene was more about his unresolved feelings for Catherine than anything else. Nevertheless, I was a little annoyed by it. They shied away from the sexual component of the Vincent/Tori relationship for so long… I didn’t see the point of writing it in now. Also… I thought it was impossible for Jay Ryan to not have chemistry with someone, but he had zero chemistry with Amber in this scene. It just felt awkward; maybe it was deliberate on Jay’s part. In any case… Dana is inside her car some distance apart listening to the entire conversation with a parabolic mic. Dun Dun Dun.

At the GENTLEMEN’S CLUB they are throwing JT a huge bash because he just won a $500,000 research grant. Completely irrelevant question: Isn’t JT basically squatting at that place? I am pretty sure he does not own it or rent it, so…  Why are they inviting people over for a VERY loud party? Whatever…  JT is happy and he is blushing and as Tess points out that he “deserves it after everything he sacrificed for Vincent”. Cat asks what she got for her sacrifice. Tess replies the obvious: “curled toes” [she sure did], which is particularly hilarious because Gabe is listening.

Tori and Vincent arrive at the biochemical party. They all greet each other in a very civilized manner. Cat goes as far as complimenting Tori’s dress. Gabe, Vincent and Catherine start discussing Agent Landon and the gem; Tori is completely out of the loop [and obviously feeling out of place]. Cat fills her in on Vincent’s discovery and it is all VERY AWKWARD. At that point, JT joins the group and starts hugging everyone. When he gets to Tori they try to hug each other, but they just can’t get it right; which was totally awkward but absolutely hilarious! Let’s note that Austin was able to get a funny/cute moment out of Amber. The man is a miracle worker! Tori is so embarrassed she walks out of the party. Come on! There are worst things than failing at a hug! Not that big of a deal… She is acting like she just got humiliated at the prom or something. Regardless, this is the ONE point in the entire season when I actually felt a little bad for Tori. Of course, she ruined that sympathetic feeling in the next scene because, as usual, she didn’t feel genuine enough. But the intention of the scene was there… which made me realize that, with a different actress, at least part of the disaster that was Tori may have worked. But we will never know… the unbearable lightness of being and all that.

Anyway, Tori leaves the party and Vincent comes after her. She basically complains about the way they were “treating her”, which is completely unfair because everyone was being polite to her. But I get her issue… She doesn’t feel accepted; moreover, she doesn’t feel she is a priority for Vincent. He is technically “with her” but his head and heart are somewhere else. She points out that she can sense how he reacts when Catherine is around and again… I feel mildly bad for her because it can’t be nice to actually have the certainty that your boyfriend is in love with someone else. She also tells him that she doesn’t want to lose him because he is all she has. I feel like Tori wasn’t necessarily in love with Vincent either. She just didn’t know how to have a life of her own. We do have to consider that Vincent had a decade of learning how to be a beast [and he was a stand-up guy to begin with]. Tori was a sheltered, selfish girl who didn’t even know who she was as a human. Sadly for Tori, Vincent doesn’t have anything to say because everything she said is true. He basically tells her that he needs a break from the MURKY TRIGGER to think things through; which is obviously code for “sort things out with Catherine first”.

As I said, seeing past the terrible acting, this is the closest I ever came to empathizing with Tori. Now… I appreciate that the writers tried to give Tori some layers and actual human emotions, but… it was too little too late; not to mention, completely inconsistent with everything her character had been so far. It would have been great if they had given Tori an actual struggle from the beginning, but they didn’t. They made her nasty and it was impossible for me to care for her at this point. Like I theorized before, it felt like each writer had a different idea of what Tori was supposed to be. It was almost like she was body-snatched every week. Let’s see how her role kept changing throughout the episodes:

FATHER KNOWS BEST: Poor little rich girl 

GUESS WHO’S COMING TO DINNER: Young girl with identity crisis turned beast femme fatale 

MAN OR BEAST: Defender of Beast-lifestyle/psycho killer 

DON’T DIE ON ME: Fellow Beast 

ANCESTORS: Jealous girlfriend 

HELD HOSTAGE: Mostly unconscious 

RECIPE FOR DISASTER: An actual conflicted person turned selfless hero

Vincent returns to the party as JT leaves to visit his new lab. The remaining members of the gang also get ready to leave and go dungeon hunting in Washington Heights [You know what they say about dungeons: location location location]. Cat stays behind to talk to Vincent. He feels bad, because the gem drama is preventing everyone from moving on with their lives. Cat decides to give him some “friendly” advice. Vincent is not pleased at all with the idea that they are “friends”; however, Cat points out that it is better than “enemies”. She tells him that loving him is not easy, because he tends to shut people out and she urges him to talk to Tori. I respect Cat for being the bigger person here… but I think she went a little too far. I don’t think anyone is that good of a person.

I think Cat wants to be mature about Tori and accept her relationship with Vincent, but I don’t think that is the way she actually feels. I believe she is forcing herself to go above and beyond to prove [to others and herself] that she is over Vincent [telling Tori she looks pretty, helping him make up with Tori, etc]. At this point, it is clear that Vincent is more than ready to get back together with Cat, but she is not. She still has to come to terms with what happened and discover if she can have a different type of life. It’s almost like she needs to know if she can survive without Vincent by her side. In any case, I thought the scene was very sweet. Cat’s honest intention was to help Vincent and even if she was talking about Tori, you could tell Vincent was thinking about them [Vincat].

In the meantime, JT meets with TONY BARNES a member of the “Brady Wright Foundation”. JT is escorted to his lab by Tony himself and his muscle. Unfortunately, the place looks way less pristine and more “dungeon-y” than your average lab. Also, they have a guy in a cage who starts yelling “Run, get out while you can”… that can’t be a good sign. Tony and his muscle grab JT and inject something in his neck which makes him faint… That can’t be a good sign either.

BADDIE OF THE WEEK: TONY BARNES 

EVIL MASTERMIND PROFILE:Cheats in cards, Yankee fan, mean but not stupid 

Mission: Create a beast-serum and combine it with beast blood [to create a beast/vampire hybrid? God let’s hope not]

When JT regains consciousness, he realizes he is chained to the floor of the dungeon. With nothing else to do, he starts bonding with the GUY IN THE CAGE. We learn that he has been there for 5 years [and he is most likely crazy]. Tony comes downstairs and starts an expository rant that is WAY TOO CONVENIENT TO BE TRUE: There is no grant for JT, he is there to recreate the M beast serum AND Tony was the one hiring the heist gangs to steal the gem [just in case you weren’t paying attention]. In addition, he knows JT “has a beast” [he made it sound like a pet]. JT refuses to become an evil scientist at first, but Tony threatens to kill the guy in the cage. So JT has no other option than to be a good biochemist and make a beast cocktail.

Tori goes back to the HOUSEBOAT and finds Dana in flagrante. Tori’s solution is to tie her up… and kill her later? That had to be her plan right? Guess we are back to psycho behavior… Vincent arrives and he IS NOT pleased to find a tied FBI agent in his houseboat. How different is V2.0 at this point in the season... A few episodes ago, he wouldn’t have thought twice about neutralizing the “threat”. However, now that he is more or less back to his old self, he is outraged. Tori and Vincent get into a yelling match while Vincent tries to untie Dana. They accidentally touch and Tori beasts out for just a second, which Dana totally sees [even though I barely did!].

Meanwhile AT THE PRECINCT, Gabe is using his SUPER-LOCATOR powers to find the dungeon. He is actually using his board, pins and case notes… which is surprisingly logic. Cat walks in and she can’t help but wonder if this has something to do with “destiny” or “fate” [sure feels like it]. Gabe tells Cat he wants to respect her feelings and honor her decision. Cat says she is still trying to figure out what she wants. I never thought Cat’s decision to be with Gabe was clear to her. I think it was a self-imposed decision resulting from her insecure state of mind. Plus, for some reason, everyone kept pushing Gabe on her. Anyway, they don’t talk more about it because Tess walks in and informs them that JT has been abducted!

At the GENTLEMEN’S GUILD, Vincent pours a drink for Dana while he comes out of the beast closet. Vincent convinces her that their interests are aligned. She seems willing to keep his secret when she realizes that whoever is after Vincent might also be responsible for her husband’s death. There was a silent mutual respect and understanding between these characters, which I really liked. Cat and Gabe arrive just in time to discover Dana is now part of the team. The more the merrier… I guess.

Apparently someone sent a cryptic mass-email to all of JT’s contacts. The non-disclosed message is supposed to be easily decoded by the ones who are familiar with beasts. In summary, they have JT and want the beast in exchange. Vincent doesn’t think twice about it and gets ready to “sense JT’s sweater” like the kidnapper suggested. Cat frantically tries to stop him, she is clearly worried about him and wants to come up with a plan first. But there is no stopping Vincent when he is in hero/martyr mode, so they just let him get a head start. Tori picks that moment to call him to apologize. So we can add “bad timing” to her list of flaws. Vincent quickly ends the call, but not before telling Tori about JT’s kidnapping. Tori decides to be a hero and track JT by herself. Yeah… because that is TOTALLY consistent with her murderous-egocentric-slightly-psychopathic personality. Also… if you are going to track/rescue someone… at least change into some sensible shoes first!

Tori finds JT [faster than anyone] and struts inside the dungeon still in her 5 inch heels. Apparently you can just waltz into this particular dungeon like you own the place… No security cameras, no muscle guarding the door, no dragon-pit by the entrance or anything like that. Tori breaks JT’s chain and they are about to run when Tony shoots her with a tranq and puts the necklace around her neck. So I guess they had some dungeon security after all…

Later, Tony drains all of Tori’s blood because he wants to create a better “mousetrap” [whatever that means] or because he is a vampire… One of those two. While he softly kills Tori he starts a grandiloquent speech that actually works! [Unlike all the beasts of the week’s speeches] I mean… they are inside a dungeon … the ambiance is creepy as hell and I thought fake Tony was a wonderful baddie! I wish he had been the true beast puppet master. But it would have been too easy… But I am getting ahead of myself.

Looks like synthesizing a beast serums ain’t that hard, because JT manages to do it before anyone can rescue him. By the way, since when is Tori that much better at tracking than Vincent? We gotta give it to the girl. She sure is “improving herself”. She became a master tracker and an actual person with feelings in one episode… tots believable [I say with sarcasm]. JT bottles up the serum and has a Dr.Frankenstein/Oppenheimer “Am I creating a monster”/”Am I becoming the destroyer of worlds” moment. Right on cue, Vincent bursts through the door. I bet Tony wasn’t counting on JT being friends with TWO beasts! Vincent hugs JT and decides to save the random dude in the cage, because he is nice and heroic like that. Vincent stays behind to go look for Tori while JT and Cage dude run for their lives.

Vincent finds Tori, but it is too late. She is dying. Vincent apologizes for not protecting her and just like Alex annoyingly did, Tori has a SUDDEN EPIPHANY and tells Vincent that “he belongs with Catherine” Well… duh. Just then, Tony locks Vincent inside the Beast-proof cage and starts a “pre-murder” evil mastermind proclamation. Basically he tells V he got everything he needed from Tori so he will just kill him but… Catherine kills him first. If only he hadn’t wasted so much time “announcing” his plans! That will teach Tony a lesson…. Oh wait, he can’t learn a lesson because he is DEAD.

Vincent turns around, only to realize that Tori is no longer with us [sorry but I am not sorry]. I think Vincent gets appropriately upset about it. It wasn’t over-the-top “I loved you” sadness, but it wasn’t “oh well you are dead” insensitivity either. Nevertheless, I was deeply annoyed by Tori’s demise. So… in the end, Tori died a “heroine”? I hope I don’t sound like a psycho, but I wanted her to die a horrible death, even better if Vincent had to kill her. You know… I wanted Tori to go through something like[WARNING sensitive material & spoilers for GoT and Breaking Bad when clicking the following links] this or this or even better THIS! [OK, I may have gone a little too far]. I acknowledge that this week’s Tori was just trying to help and she came to terms with Vincent loving Cat and whatnot… but this Tori didn’t exist until this episode! The Tori we got to know throughout the season was an awful, selfish, spoiled person, who killed without a second thought. That person was not a hero! I always thought Tori’s death could become her purpose… give Vincent the chance to clearly choose Cat over her… But instead, she died “trying to save everyone”. That was NOT satisfying for me.

Later at the DUNGEON OF BEAST DOOM, Cat approaches Vincent to provide some comfort. Vincent says everything that was expected from him: He feels it is all his fault, people around him get hurt and he failed to protect Tori... This conversation was very enlightening to me. You know how I always wonder how Vincent could have been with someone like Tori? I think this is why. He just wanted to protect her because he was like him. She was a victim who was turned into something she didn’t understand or was able to control. Furthermore, he killed her father… so I think Vincent, being the way he is, couldn’t help feeling responsible for her. That’s why he kept her around. And he unfortunately got “romantically” involved with her not by choice, but due to 1) the [murky] trigger that clouded his judgment and 2) his vulnerable state. Being a beast doesn’t mean he doesn’t have the failings of any man [or person]. It is easy to fall into a “convenient” relationship when you are vulnerable and confused.

Finally, Vincent admits directly that he made the wrong choice when he didn’t walk away from his revenge against Bob like Catherine wanted. Last episode, I said Catherine gave Vincent an overdue apology… but I think she deserved an apology as well. Vincent tells Cat he wouldn’t know what to do if he ever lost her. Catherine is touched, but reminds him that she is still involved by choice, it is her story too. And then Gabe arrives to ruin the perfectly nice scene. I did hate him a little for that.

Vincent leaves, Gabe asks Cat if she wants to be alone. Cat answers that she’d rather be with him. I had a hard time figuring this out, but I think I did. The look on Cat’s face was full of “determination”. Not love or hope or tenderness. She is “determined” to “move on”. I believe Cat was very conflicted at this point. She was not over Vincent’s betrayal, but she was not holding on to her anger anymore. She wanted to regain control over her life, but she felt alone. I don’t think Cat ever stopped having feelings for Vincent [love like that doesn’t just go away], but she knew that going back to him was not possibility.

I think she was trying really hard to prove she could live without him.In order to do that, Cat decided she needed another relationship [since she already found the hell out of herself]. Gabe was conveniently standing in front of her, totally “in love”. The one thing I cannot excuse is the whole psycho behavior of S1, but for the sake of argument, let’s forget about that for a minute. I think Cat developed some sort of feelings [not love] for Gabe. He was there for her when she needed him and he made his intentions clear [You could argue he took advantage of her vulnerable state]. For a person that is desperately trying to “move on”, I can see how this may have looked like a good idea. I still think Cat was aware that whatever she felt for Gabe didn’t compare to what she felt for Vincent, but she wanted to give it a try and hope it changed in time. Having said that Gabe was clearly the WRONG CHOICE for a new boyfriend! But let whoever didn’t date the wrong guy at one point cast the first stone [I realize this is wrong to the extreme! But Cat was also conflicted to the extreme… that girl hasn’t had an easy life].

At the PRECINCT Tess apologizes to Dana for not telling her about the beasts of the world, but mentions that they may be able to finally find her husband’s killer. Dana tells her she is in no rush to “move on”; solving her husband’s murder is all the life she knows now. How refreshing that someone is not trying to “find herself”! I knew I liked Dana for a reason… At that point another cop comes in to share some disturbing information: The man we knew as Tony Barnes was actually FRANK DARNEL , a con artist presumably hired by the real Tony Barnes. So the real evil mastermind is still at large… That was kind of a neat twist. I didn’t see it coming.

Dana wants to talk to CAGE DUDE, so she runs downstairs to find him. When she does, she realizes that he is SAM (her missing husband whom she thought was dead!) And THAT I TOTALLY saw coming. They are both great actors and I love them; however, I wasn’t particularly touched by the scene. I think it was a little rushed [and there was so much other stuff going on!]. I wish they had taken their time with this reunion, could have been a powerful moment… Oh well… On the positive side, how awesome was having Tom Everett Scott on the show? I really like him.

Meanwhile JT pays a visit to his best bro bearing a bottle of scotch. JT thanks Vincent for saving his life, Vincent points out that his life was in danger because of him. They quickly get into a “whose fault is it” contest. JT was naïve, Vincent is a beast who endangers people, JT studies beasts so he is not a Saint blah blah blah Finally JT plays the “I volunteered you to become a beast” card… and yeah… I guess he wins. Vincent doesn’t say anything; he just looks a JT and silently lets him know that it is OK. I just love this scene so much! It was the typical “guy apology” they don’t even talk about the huge revelation, they just keep drinking and have a moment of quiet forgiveness. Guys really are less complicated. Finally, they toast to Tori and being a good beast or something, but I am just going to ignore that because I still think Tori didn’t deserve a toast-worthy death… In any case… Vincat’s romance is still on the rocky side, but the bromance is back and strong!

And there you go… I liked this episode significantly better on the rewatch! Probably because I already knew all the bad stuff that was going to happen…. Taking away the stress of impending doom allowed me to enjoy all the good bits… and even though I DID NOT like the way Tori died, I am not going to pretend I am not happy she is gone!

Till next week, when the acting average level of the show duplicates for unknown reasons…

QUOTES

Cat: I just hope my canapés don’t make JT’s party into a – 

Tess:-- Orgy?

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