Beauty and the Beast 2.04: "Hothead" Review!

 Catherine (Kristin Kreuk) and Vincent (Jay Ryan) just can’t seem to escape each one another’s lives no matter how hard they try. Last Monday's episode,"Hothead", was no exception. Just when a few of us Beasties thought all hope was lost for our beloved VinCat, things shifted for the better.

In this episode, Cat finally stopped long enough to put her life in order. She began by reconnecting with her best friend, Tess (Nina Lisandrello), which was a good start. Also, Cat began to pay attention to Vincent's feelings and quit pushing him so hard to remember their past. This allowed their connection to grow stronger, which is important to all of us that like these two together, whether as a couple or just as friends. 

No J.T. (Austin Basis), although he was mentioned once, by Gabe (Sendhil Ramamurthy). I found Tess a bit annoying in this episode with all her teasing of Gabe about his feelings for Cat. I think she needs to let that go and find something else to keep her busy, maybe like a new man for her.

Vincent had his first meeting with his nephew, Aaron (guest star, Bryan Dechart), who he hasn't seen since he was declared dead. I was very pleased with the chance to see more of Vincent's family and to learn more about his past. The moment he heard Aaron was a Keller, Vincent recovered memories of a family BBQ with both Aaron and William. He also remembered he and his brother Will being firefighters before he became a doctor. Until now, the only thing we knew about Will and his other brother was that they were killed in the towers on 9/11. I think it's great that in the future we may see more of Vincent's nephew and how their relationship develops. 

We also learned that all the Keller men are the same, that is, by being stubborn yet heroic. For example in this episode, Aaron tried to stop the beast of the week without anyone's help. He is a fireman but he should realize there is strength in numbers and it is sometimes necessary to also rely on others. Hopefully, in future episodes he'll learn some things from his Uncle Vincent. I think he has the potential to be a great character. If Heather (Nicole Gale Anderson) didn't leave for the job in Miami, they could have been a perfect match for a romantic connection. 

Gabe was on a mission to save Vincent in this episode, like Catherine did for him at the end of last season's finale by having him die, then bringing him back to life. By doing so, she killed Gabe's beast-side and made him human. Gabe knew it was risky, so he wanted to test it out on the beast of the week first. Long story short, they tried it out on the beast but it failed to worked. Obviously, you can't have a show called Beauty and the Beast without a beast, so maybe they're just hinting at the fact that someday when the show ends they will cure Vincent and he and Cat can live happily ever after..

The ending of the episode was perfect. I thought it was very touching for Vincent when he and Cat stood in front of the 9/11 Memorial. Vincent said "My brothers are here." Catherine's reply was, "they're heroes." It's nice that Vincent's memories are finally coming back little by little. He remembers he had brothers and seeing him visit the memorial was a sweet nod to his growing memories.

Overall, this was an excellent episode of Beauty and the Beast. I really enjoyed every minute of it and the writing on this show just keeps getting better with time. I'm so looking forward to next week's episode when Cat goes to her high school reunion. It should be good for some laughs and we will meet some new characters as well.

Beauty and the Beast season 2 airs Monday nights at 9/8c on The CW.

"Hothead" was written by Roger Grant and directed by Michael Robison. 

Photo Credit: The CW

Beauty and the Beast 2.03: "Liar, Liar" Review!

The CW's synopsis for this week’s episode

“Catherine (Kristin Kreuk) and Vincent (Jay Ryan) track a mysterious beast while keeping their individual agendas from one another in a clever game of cat-and-mouse. Meanwhile, Heather (Nicole Gale Anderson) has a bombshell revelation for Cat, and Tess (Nina Lisandrello) confronts Gabe (Sendhil Ramamurthy) about his real motives for helping Cat. (Austin Basis) also stars as J.T.

In this week's episode we learned more about Vincent's current job and what he does for Cat's bio father as a private agent. Cat is working on the case of an FBI agent that was killed by the beast, Sebastian. The agent had worked with both Cat's bio father and Vincent. So, both Vincent and Cat are trying to find out more about him and track him down. Sebastian isn't like other beasts as he likes to use magic to disappear, which is something he learned from his father. Having a beast that can vanish into thin air proves to be tricky for Vincent as he can't lock onto him long enough to stop him. 

Heather finally tells Cat the truth about what she learned regarding their father (or really Heather's father) while he was in the hospital. It's something she has been waiting three months for but never found the right time to tell Cat. Also, Heather got a job offer in Miami and wants to discuss it with her older sister so she invites Cat to lunch. When the two talk, Cat finally learns the truth about her father. Heather has been trying to find the right moment to tell her that the blood she gave was not a match for their father's, so there is no way he could be her biological father. This comes as shock to Cat, as it should... and she gets so upset with Heather for keeping it from her that she tells her to take the job in Miami. 

To make matters worse, Cat is still dealing with what happened at the end of last week's episode "Kidnapped", in which Vincent attacked her on the roof of her apartment building. The tension is definitely high between the two this week. Vincent lies about having memories of her, only to trick her and throw her off the case. But he's not the only one causing tensions to rise because Cat goes undercover, acting like she wants to try with him again, but she is only using him to get more answers. She does manage to sneak onto his boat and grab some information of his laptop by USB. But ultimately, the lying doesn't work out for either of them because she gets caught by Vincent and she realizes he's been lying too. 

Eventually, Cat understands Vincent is not willing to share his secrets just yet and may never be. She reconnects with Tess and Gabe who also have been working on the homicide case. They decide to check out the information Cat got off Vincent's laptop to see if they can determine what he's after. With the help of J.T. they find the information about Sebastian and about an art gallery event he plans to attend. The three of them decide to dress up and go to the event to convince Vincent to give them some answers about what he's doing and who he's working for.

Once at the gallery, Cat finds Vincent and dances with him as she begins to question him. It takes some bantering back and forth, but eventually, Cat gets a little information out of Vincent. We find out that he is, indeed, after a beast and that Sebastian is planning on getting revenge on his father by killing him publicly at the art gallery. We find out that Sebastian's father sent him away to fight in the war and that is why he wants revenge against his father.The team starts working together and even Vincent plays along, because once again, Sebastian is proving to be a difficult beast to track down.

Catherine finds Sebastian's father and hurries him to an elevator. Once in the elevator, Cat explains to Sebastian's father that she is with the police and his life is in danger. Sebastian cuts the controls and power to the elevator making it impossible to move. There is no cell phone service, and just as they're about to be attacked Cat knocks out Sebastian's dad with a tranq from her tranquilizer and then shoots one at Sebastian before running out. He pulls Cat up through the top of the elevator shaft and the two begin to fist fight. Catherine loses her footing and starts to fall but Vincent rushes in and pushes Sebastian out of the elevator to his death. Just as Cat is about to fall, he grabs her arm and pulls her back in. At that moment, he gets a rush of memories of them together including the time he first saved her life in the woods.

After everything settles, Cat gets home to find Heather waiting for her. The two of them have a heart to heart and make up. Catherine informs Heather that, no matter what, they are still sisters and she doesn't blame Heather for not telling her, it's their parents' fault. Cat tells her sister that she should go to Miami, even though she'll miss her a lot, she plans on visiting. After Heather leaves, Cat notices Vincent outside her window on the fire-escape. He tells her, once again, he is sorry and that he had memories of the two of them together. At first, she thinks he's lying to her again but eventually she believes him. But she tells him that they need to back away from one another right now. They both have a lot going on and Vincent's keeping secrets won't work if they want to have a relationship. Vincent agrees and the two of them part ways.

Overall, I really enjoyed this episode of Beauty and the Beast. I think the season is really starting to take off. I'm enjoying the new direction of the show and what the writers have come up with. I wish Vincent and Cat would get back together soon but I know it's just part of the story and it creates good drama. Let's see what happens next week.


Beauty and the Beast season 2 airs Monday nights at 9/8c on The CW.

"Liar, Liar" was written by John A. Norris and directed by Bradley Walsh. 

Photo Credit: The CW

  

OUAT: In Wonderland 1.02 "Trust Me" Review!

"Wonderland" was back last Thursday, with its second episode, "Trust Me", in which we learn more about Cyrus (Peter Gadiot) the genie, who is alive and why Jafar (Naveen Andrews) wants him so badly. 

In last week's episode, I felt that I couldn't take the Red Queen (Emma Rigby) seriously because of the choice of costume. I noticed the costume was changed from the early editions of the pilot since I saw an advance screening and I liked the old one much better. Also, Rigby's acting wasn't the best at portraying a viciously evil Red Queen, but in the second half of "Trust Me, her characterization of The Red Queen improved vastly.

In this episode, we learn that The Knave of Hearts (Michael Socha) has broken some hearts in the past, for example a fairy named Sliver Mist. She wasn't at all pleased about his return to Wonderland. In fact, she even tried to drown him. He doesn't have many fans in Wonderland and has become a man wanted by many. Now I see why he didn't want to return to Wonderland with Alice in the first place. I'm starting to really like his character however, he has great lines and he and Alice just seem to click on screen.

The dynamic relationship between The Red Queen and Jafar continues to be a very compelling villain team-up for this show. Both of them trying to be one step ahead of the other is intriguing to watch on screen. We learn that their partnership isn't all it's cracked up to be with Jafar trying to control the Queen rather than be equal partners. She and Jafar both want to find Cyrus' genie bottle so Jafar can re-write the laws of magic. The Red Queen finds the bottle first and tricks Jafar, which teaches him that she can't be played or treated like a little girl. 

I'm also really loving the dynamic between Alice (Sophie Lowe) and Cyrus. I love watching how they fell in love. I don't blame Cyrus for falling in love with her as I would too. She's clever, kind hearted, cunning, sassy, and brave. I love that Alice refused to make her wishes and instead chose to keep Cyrus with her. I think she is definitely one of the best-written characters in the Once universe. Lowe has really taken the character of Alice and made it her own. I think she was a great choice as the lead of the series. 

The show's take on the White Rabbit (John Lithgow) is interesting; he's not as baffled as he seems to be in the Disney version. Yet, he's conflicted about whose side he should be on, The Red Queen's or Alice's. I'll be looking forward to the episode in which we learn the reason he started helping The Red Queen. 

I love the twists in this show, for instance, we found out the reason The Knave of Hearts was so cold-hearted, is because he was hurt by someone named Anastasia. We also learned that Alice is clever enough not to speak so loudly in Wonderland, as there are wondering ears just waiting to hear secrets. 

I thought the CGI was improved in this episode, the effects were for the most part fantastic and really made me think I was part of the world of Wonderland. I will admit parts of Wonderland still don't look real. But they did do a better job with the flying fairy than the parent show "Once Upon A Time" did last week. Every new show with special effects improves over time as the money allocated to CGI increases.

In the end, I thought this was another great episode. I'm loving all the characters and the story, so I'm looking forward to see how this season plays out and to see more of the connections to its parent series, "Once Upon A Time", made.



Once Upon A Time In Wonderland airs, Thursdays at 8/7c on ABC. 


"Trust Me" was written by Rina Mimoun and directed by Romeo Tirone.

Photo Credit: ABC

The Vampire Diaries 5.03 "Original Sin" Review!

Great news for "The Vampire Diaries" fans, the ratings for Season 5, Episode 2.03 "Original Sin" are in, and they're looking spectacular. Last Thursday's new episode of "TVD," was all about uncovering lies. One problem, the lies happened over 2,000 years ago.

The episode begins with Stefan (Paul Wesley), not Silas (Paul Wesley), but the real Stefan, who is finally out of his trap box beneath the water, which Silas put him in at the end of last season's finale. 

It seems like Stefan is done with his self-abusing ways as we see him in a bar where he feeds on a waitress without a care in the world. After he drinks his fill, he decides to head into the sunlight but instantly starts to burn because his daylight ring is missing. Minutes later, we find out it was all a dream in Elena's (Nina Dobrev) head and, strangely enough, Katherine (Nina Dobrev) is the same having the dreams too. 

After Elena and Kat realize they are both having the same dreams about Stefan, they convince Damon (Ian Somerhalder) to take them on a hunt for their ex-boyfriend. It's an awkward position for dear old Damon since Kat admitted in past seasons that she never loved him, she only loved Stefan. Elena is currently in a relationship with Damon, not Stefan.

The episode flashes to Silas, the aka Stefan doppelganger. In last week's episode we saw a new character, a woman by the name of Nadia (guest star, Olga Fonda), who is a member of The Travellers. The Travellers are a possible sub culture of Witches with ties to Silas. However there is no confirmation as to whether they are witches or simply a related species. She is another pawn of Silas' who has been sent to kill Matt (Zach Roerig). However, we discover it's not really Matt but Gregor (guest star, Hans Obma), who is another Traveller that currently possesses Matt's body, who must die by Silas' orders. Little does Silas know, Nadia has no interest in helping him because she's in love with Gregor. 

The story then goes back to the real Stefan. Yes, the show is getting confusing but it's possible to follow along after awhile. We find out that Kat and Elena's dreams are true and Stefan's life is really in danger; but he's saved by Qetsiyah (guest star, Janina Gavankar), Silas' ex girlfriend, who is the world's oldest and most powerful witch. She has come back to the land of the living where we learn Qetsiyah's side of the love story between her and Silas. She believes that she and Silas were true loves, because he had her make a potion so the two could spend eternity together. So, that is how we find out she was the maker of his immortality. To make a long story short, Silas tricked her on their wedding day, he never loved her at all. He was only using her to make the potion, which he stole for him and his real lover Amara (Nina Dobrev) to take... Gosh this show seems to be all about doppelgangers, because Amara looks exactly like Elena. 

Once, Qetsiyah realizes what Silas has done, she counters his actions by making two doses of the cure to immortality, exactly like the potion Elena shoved down Kat's throat in last season's finale to make her human. But after using one dose of the potion on Amara, she becomes mortal again and Qetsiyah kills her. The she imprisons Silas for 2,000 years with the other dose of the cure hoping he would take it and die.

Since Qetsiyah is now back, she needs Stefan because hes the doppelganger of Silas. She plans to link Stefan's body with Silas' in order to break her former loves mind control power. Damon finds Stefan, after the spell is completed. But before Stefan comes back to reality, Qetsiyah warns Damon and tells him, “The universe has programmed all doppelgangers to fall in love." So that's why Stefan and Elena will be drawn to one another for forever. 

Overall, this was a great episode of "TVD" and I think this season could turn into one of the best since season one. This season will mark the landmark episode every series dreams about, it's 100th. It's only episode three of the twenty-two episodes this season, and I'm already interested in finding out more of the stories and twists the genius writers of this hit TV series come up with. 

Season 5 airs Thursdays at 8/7c on The CW.

“Original Sin” was written by Melinda Hsu Taylor & Rebecca Sonnenshine and directed by Jesse Warn. 

Photo Credit: The CW

Beauty and the Beast 2.02: "Kidnapped" Review!

On Monday night’s Beauty and the Beast we saw Cat (Kristin Kreuk) and Vincent (Jay Ryan) do the deed. Only after a picnic, a kiss and asking about their first date numerous times to trigger his memory didn't work. However, that didn't help dear Catherine either as minutes later we saw him tying her up again before leaving on his next mission. That might well be the worst one-night stand I've ever! Poor Cat. Clearly their trust isn't back yet and he didn't want to give her the ability to hunt him down again.

Vincent 2.0 isn't shy or afraid of putting things out there, and that might be okay with some people, but I don't like this new Vincent at all. I'm hoping he gets his memory back sooner rather then later. I know it adds drama to the show but I, for one, would like him to at least remember Cat and build on their relationship from last season. I'd much rather see them work as team and work on missions together. I know Vincent won't let Cat in and he is still hiding his true purpose and who he is working for. But we know it's her bio father who's with the FBI.

Cat isn't listening to anyone, not even J.T. (Austin Basis). Tess (Nina Lisandrello) and Gabe (Sendhil Ramamurthy) try to reason with her but nothing works. Catherine is lucky to be surrounded by good friends such as Tess, J.T. and surprisingly, Gabe yet she doesn't seem to notice it. We learned in this episode that Gabe took his new job at the station in order to protect Vincent. So maybe Gabe isn't as bad as we thought, now that he is no longer a beast himself.

Even though Cat got herself kidnapped by Vincent, her stealthy tracking paid off - we did learned there is at least one more beast running around the city and not all of what Vincent is doing seems so evil anymore. It's possible her bio father is using Vincent to counter-act the vicious actions of other beasts. It's still unclear, yet things are getting kinda heavy for the two of them. Cat keeps pushing Vincent more and more and he doesn't like the suggestions or anyone controlling him. So I think Cat needs to cool it down just a little bit and give him some time to breathe and think things over.

I'm glad we got a J.T. and Tess scene in this episode. It was probably one of the best moments of the night as they sat in the bar and realized they have lost their best friends.Tess is going along with Gabe, in her attempt to protect Cat, straining their relationship. And J.T. is spending most of his time with Cat tracking down Vincent and has no one really to confide in at the moment. For me it was a nice scene and I've always wanted them together. So who knows, maybe we will see a love connection in the near future between the two of them.

In the end, when Vincent pushes Cat across the roof she comes to the to the conclusion that he is not the same man who protected her for a decade - she is working with someone she no longer knows. Vincent's memories of her and everyone else are gone. She decides that he's just too dangerous and something has to be done fast to save him before it's too late. I don't think the writers will keep us waiting to much longer but you never know. I'm just waiting for the big episode to come where Vincent starts to remember everything including Cat. Let's just hope that day is soon.

Beauty and the Beast season 2 airs Monday nights at 9/8c on The CW.

"Kidnapped" was written by Jennifer Levin & Sherri Cooper and directed by Rick Bota. 

Photo Credit: The CW

The Vampire Diaries 5.02 “True Lies" Review!

With new mysteries, new villain Silas, and a surprising new friendship between Jeremy and Katherine this season is off to a great start. 

At the end of last week's season 5 premiere of “The Vampire Diaries,” we got a glimpse of how this season will play out (shocks and thrills). The first shocker of the season was at the end of the episode when Bonnie Bennett's (Kat Graham) father, the mayor of Mystic Falls, was murdered by Silas (Paul Wesley) aka the Stefan look-alike. In this episode, matters only get worse for Bonnie because her father wasn't of supernatural blood, which means she can't see him in the afterlife. It was a heartbreaking thought going into last night's episode, "True Lies".

There was no happy ending or silver lining for Bonnie this week. She's still a ghost and only Jeremy (Steven R. McQueen) can see her and knows her secret. Until later in the episode, when a plan ended badly and Matt (Zach Roerig), is temporarily gone from the living, which allowed him to see her as well. Only then he found out that he'd forget everything minutes later when he wakes up. Before he was awakened, he did tell her that she needs to tell Jeremy that it's okay to reveal her secret and tell people she's dead. It's a good thing the show still has the Gilbert Family ring that brings people back from the dead. What was this, Matt's 5th death? I lost count a long time ago, I'm just surprised he's still a human in the series and not affected by supernatural powers.

Jeremy and Katherine's (Nina Dobrev) friendship is growing in this episode. Sure they bicker back and forth but they do have a lot of drama between them. I don't see them ever becoming best friends, after what she did to him and his friends in the past; but she did save him from Silas and that was a turning point for them. Now that Kat's human, there’s a lot she can learn from Jeremy and I'm looking forward to see what the writers come up with for these two.

I think the biggest moment in last night's episode was when Silas tried to throw an emotional wrench between Elena (Nina Dobrev) and Damon's (Ian Somerhalder) relationship. He did so by causing her to lose her mind every time she got angry about Damon keeping something from her. Elena managed to overcome Silas's mind control by inflicting pain upon herself by stabbing her leg with the fireplace poker. After cooling down, Elena learned that Stefan (Paul Wesley) has been suffering all summer while she lived happily with Damon and is now on a mission to save him. I think the writers still know how to inject drama into the relationships on this show, for instance, by having Elena be with Damon even though it is clear see she still has feelings for her first love, Stefan. That's not the only problem she has right now. She also has a creepy professor who could secretly be part of an unknown anti-vampire cult at the college, but that task is left with Caroline (Candice Accola) to handle for the time being.

Overall, this was an excellent episode and a good sign the show is going in the right direction this year. I think it's a much easier story line to follow than the originals which took up almost three seasons, dealing with Klaus. They've kind of returned to the basics of the series and for me that works out perfectly fine. I look forward to more episodes to come this season.

Season 5 airs Thursdays at 8/7c on The CW.

“True Lies” was written by Brian Young and directed by Joshua Butler. 

Photo Credit: The CW

Beauty and the Beast 2.01: "Who Am I?" Review!

Beauty and the Beast returns for it's second season, with the search for Vincent Keller (Jay Ryan). Can Catherine Chandler (Kristin Kreuk) find her beloved beast and soul mate before it's too late? If she does find him, what kind of person/creature is left waiting for her as he has been imprisoned for three months since being kidnapped. The first episode this season, "Who Am I?" brings a lot of changes/new possibilities to the story.


As much as I loved the first season of Beauty and the Beast, I was a little worried about rumors of a fresh-start/reboot of the series. Like any first season of a show, it has its ups and downs while trying to build an audience but I thought it was handled wonderfully. The show is not just about an epic love story between its two leads and was never meant to be. It was something we, "the fans" demanded. Now this season starts off with a darker tone and I, for one, am looking forward to the action, mystery, romance and more of the origin story of the beast.

First, the things that are now gone from the series. Yes, Vincent's scar is gone! A few new things have been done to Vincent, as well, including a new beast-out look that is totally awesome. Also, the show seems to no longer be giving the illusion that Vincent is a “beast” all the time since the scar from season 1 is gone. I am a bit upset and think it set him apart in the show from everyone else. Yet, I can overlook it and move along with the story and focus on the characters.

Another thing that is no longer apart of the series is the character of Joe Bishop (Brain White). Yes, Catherine and Tess' Police Captain. He was married and yet romantically involved with Tess Vargas (Nina Lisandrello). I didn't care for the married man, cheating story-line as much as I liked the character of Tess. I think it will be good to refresh that story by just getting rid of it all together. The best way was to excuse the character of Joe all together.

With Joe parting ways from the series, Tess can finally find a relationship worth having. I'm excited for her to meet someone, maybe even possibly hook-up with "our" lovable joke-master J.T. Let's work on that, "fans" I know us beasties can "ROAR" pretty loud. (ha ha) Tess has her hands full with an increased workload at the police station, as she is covering all of it since Cat's been busy on her search for Vincent.

Mister Gabriel Lowen (Sendhil Ramamurthy) is back and being portrayed in a different light. This isn't a huge shock to me because of hearing rumors and seeing cast pictures posted from the set. Gabe is among the living when the show picks up three months after the shocking events of the season 1 finale. He is brought back to life by Catherine, one of the last people you would think of and she still doesn't trust him, as she shouldn't. We will have to tune in to see how they turn his character around.

Cat doesn't give up hope of finding Vincent despite the months he has been missing. She is relentless in her search to find Vincent with J.T (Austin Basis) and she'll get some help along the way from Gabe. One might think that Cat is going crazy on her search for him and is forgetting her other duties in life, even neglecting friends and her sister Heather in the process. We know how strong willed Cat is and I just think she really misses him and will stop at nothing until he's safe.

Speaking of Heather Chandler, it does look like the show is preparing for her character to leave, since the actress that portrays her (Nicole Gale Anderson) is set to star in the new ABC Family series Ravenswood. It is a bit sad for me as I liked the character of Heather and was hoping to see more of her this season. Especially since she and Cat haven't really had much time to talk since the season one finale. When we see Heather, she is really worried about that because she thinks she alone holds the secret of Cat's true paternity. She doesn't know who the father is but we "beasties" know of Cat's real father as seen in the finale of season one.

We saw more of Catherine's bio-father who works for the FBI (Ted Whittall) in this episode and what his involvement is with Muirfield. I'm sure more will be revealed as the season progresses regarding how he met Catherine and Heather's mother. The Season 2 premiere is just the beginning and is an episode we've all been waiting for. I think it will be interesting yet filled with drama this season, once Cat finds out he's her father and that he is one of the people behind Vincent's beastly ways/capture.

A few things I hope to see this season; Vincent and Catherine falling in love again, more jokes from J.T, a new love interest for Tess, meeting more of Vincent's past friends and family members, more of the origin story of the beast, more beasts and the possibility of a she-beast has been rumored. This season is setup for excitement in many ways. I'm excited.

On a final note, I'm liking the darker tone of the show, my reaction upon seeing the opening minutes of season 2 is “this show is evolving into something great with thrilling storytelling," and I can't wait for future episodes of Beauty and the Beast this fall. This is a truly great re-telling of a classic story that only gets better in season 2. If you haven't been tuning in... catch up fast, because you're missing out; this is one show not to be missed.



Beauty and the Beast season 2 airs Monday nights at 9/8c on The CW.



"Who Am I?" was written by Brad Kern and directed by Stuart Gillard. 

Photo Credit: The CW