Photo Credit: The CW - Jay Ryan as Vincent Keller.
OVERALL GRADE = B+ (87%)
Usually before I write any of my reviews, I watch the episode twice and read/watch other reviews. I do this because I want to write out my own thoughts and opinions without getting influenced or swayed by other people’s words. This week, I decided to change things up a bit and I wrote this review after my research on this week’s “Unbreakable.” And . . . my opinion remains unchanged – which is good. Most people may find this episode to be empty. But I find this episode to be HUGE because our characters have taken a huge step and we can really see how their individual arcs have played out this season – especially Vincent’s. We’ll get into that a bit later but for now, let’s talk about why this episode was a major one. Two things stood out to me: 1) We find out Liam is the same beast from 1854 and 2) Vincent proved once and for all, that he has his humanity in check! What does this mean?? A) The whole destiny theme rings a lot louder and deeper and B) we can finally get off the whole “lose your humanity” train. That means you too, Cat. The title, once again, cleverly plays into the plot because we conclude that Liam is indeed an “unbreakable” threat and more importantly, we conclude that Vincent and Catherine’s love is “unbreakable.” Tess and JT also had a nice growth but obviously not as epic as Vincent and Catherine’s. The idea for the writers to throw in a dark, mythological twist to the story succeeded because it has heightened the drama and if solved, ties all the seasons together nicely for us.
I’m going to start out with Catherine’s character - whom I’m beginning to enjoy recently. The reason is because we’re seeing a softer side to Catherine that we’ve been missing all season and it is reminiscent of the sweet Catherine from season 1. Likewise, we’re also getting a Catherine that is much more confident in herself, Vincent, and their connection. In actuality, Catherine had been pretty confident all season long but the problem was that she was confident in herself. She was controlling, pushy, and a tad selfish. And here’s where I can look back and trace her arc from the beginning of the season and really see the growth. I know I shouldn’t compare the seasons to one another because I’ve learned that I have look at each season as its own – but still the way Kristin plays Catherine now just tugs at those same strings. Sure, she still has some doubts and she still worries, but her TRUST has grown immensely. With Vincent, she’s learned that she doesn’t necessarily have to have him on a leash – because no matter how far he goes, he’ll always come back to her. Yes, she has good reason to worry about Vincent having beast quality time with gramps (who wouldn’t?) but Vincent has to constantly remind her to TRUST HIM – TRUST US. And I think this was one of the main issues their relationship faced this season – the same reason why they went to marriage counseling in the first place: co-dependency. Now, one might say, I thought we already jumped that hurdle? To some level yes, but these things take time and this concept was really tested with Liam being the “anti-Cat” a.k.a. the little “devil” on his shoulder. I must also note that along with Catherine’s change in manner and approach, her wardrobe mirrored the same feeling - a bit more feminine and softer. Maybe it’s just me but Catherine has been looking pretty good recently.
This leads me to Vincent who faced the biggest challenge this week – although it may have seemed that his beast abilities were being tested by Liam, it was more his humanity and his love for Catherine that was being tested. Now, keep in mind that Vincent has faced this same challenge before – choosing his beast side or his human side. Of course, this is at a grander scale but Vincent has been down both roads and has learned from his mistakes. Looking back in season 1, Gabe was the beast that made Vincent itch – causing him to rely on his beast side a lot more. In season 2, Gabe was still that primal force but additionally, Tori was the anti-Cat – pulling Vincent to the dark side. This season – it’s a superhuman beast that has been around for 200 years and was the same beast that managed to break apart Rebecca and Alistair. The fact that Vincent managed to go along with Liam while keeping his humanity made me realize just how awesome Vincent is. Not only is he able to make the same feats that Liam demonstrates – he is able to not lose himself in the power, the “feel” of being animal. A temptation that Liam has obviously fallen into and LOVES it. This means that Vincent can be just as powerful as Liam – if not more, because of the fact that he has Catherine. He’s a god!! I also enjoy the fact that Vincent is able to play Liam like a fiddle. Hec, he almost had ME fooled for a second at the very end with the handshake but then psych!! It’s hard to play the duality but Vincent pulls it off and in the end, he looks triumphant as he looks down to meet eyes with a very relieved Catherine. And here’s where their connection sings because they always manage to find each other and communicate without words. #golden moment
Despite the mythological twist to the plot, there’s still a lot that we don’t know about Liam. For example, if he has been around for two hundred years – where has he been all this time?? Does he know that Catherine is related to Rebecca Reynolds?? Why did he want to be injected with a superhuman serum?? What is his ultimate purpose?? We know that he’s been in London but if so, where’s his accent?? We also know that he was engaged to Rebecca Reynolds before but then left him for Alistair – mapping the same triangle that we had with Vincent, Gabe, and Catherine. If so, does he want revenge?? If I’m correct, Rebecca died shortly after Alistair did, so how did that affect Liam?? Was Liam born a beast?? His family history states that he was abandoned by his parents at an early age. What I get from all this is that Liam was a beast with no love and so he became a bitter, spiteful beast. This rings a “Gabe bell” for me but what justifies it for me is that this is more of a family affair. Hopefully, Heather will give us more answers or Bob. If anything, we should be thankful for Bob because he gave Rebecca’s journal to Catherine – the journal that helped save Vincent and Catherine on many occasions and still continues to do so. Last season, Catherine learned that Rebecca’s mistake was that she protected Alistair too much. And this is how Catherine realized how destiny brought them together. This season, Catherine kept speaking about how she felt that they were part of something bigger; meant for a greater purpose. And Liam is just that – her ancestor’s foe that they need to defeat once and for all. I like the fact that they’re bringing back all the mythological elements including the gem and I hope for some period scenes where we’ll hopefully get more backstory on Liam.
JT was being dumb this week again – hiding the fact that he’s dying from everyone else – especially Tess. Also, how could JT forget where he put the gem?? In the end, JT and Tess have a talk and they decide to fight through this together. I’m glad that we’re done with everyone hunting JT. He’ll probably cure himself. On the other hand, I loved how Heather was more part of the Scooby gang this week. She did her research and that’s why she is the MVP this week because she saved everyone’s ass!! I like how she is also accepting that this is HER destiny as well and is taking this seriously. Way to go Heather!!
All in all, a very excited episode making me look forward to what we might see in the season finale! Although at the same time, I feel that the finale is coming up too quickly. I wish we had more episodes to really dig out the Liam arc. I want to see more of him and I feel that he’s going to be gone before we know it. I honestly don’t know how they’re going to pack everything in these last two episodes. Especially the wedding because if it is happening in the season finale, they’ve literally had no time to prep for it nor have they mentioned it at all! I almost feel like the whole Liam arc will spill over into season 4 which would mean something to look forward to. I also loved how the episode ended with Vincent and Catherine’s walk down a very pretty street. Snow, winter coats, scarves, Christmas lights – it all means one thing: Holiday season!! I know Catherine Ashton (costume designer) posted on Twitter a picture of a Christmas tree for an episode. If so, I would love if the wedding is during the holidays!!
Side note: What happened to Catherine’s partner??
Usually before I write any of my reviews, I watch the episode twice and read/watch other reviews. I do this because I want to write out my own thoughts and opinions without getting influenced or swayed by other people’s words. This week, I decided to change things up a bit and I wrote this review after my research on this week’s “Unbreakable.” And . . . my opinion remains unchanged – which is good. Most people may find this episode to be empty. But I find this episode to be HUGE because our characters have taken a huge step and we can really see how their individual arcs have played out this season – especially Vincent’s. We’ll get into that a bit later but for now, let’s talk about why this episode was a major one. Two things stood out to me: 1) We find out Liam is the same beast from 1854 and 2) Vincent proved once and for all, that he has his humanity in check! What does this mean?? A) The whole destiny theme rings a lot louder and deeper and B) we can finally get off the whole “lose your humanity” train. That means you too, Cat. The title, once again, cleverly plays into the plot because we conclude that Liam is indeed an “unbreakable” threat and more importantly, we conclude that Vincent and Catherine’s love is “unbreakable.” Tess and JT also had a nice growth but obviously not as epic as Vincent and Catherine’s. The idea for the writers to throw in a dark, mythological twist to the story succeeded because it has heightened the drama and if solved, ties all the seasons together nicely for us.
I’m going to start out with Catherine’s character - whom I’m beginning to enjoy recently. The reason is because we’re seeing a softer side to Catherine that we’ve been missing all season and it is reminiscent of the sweet Catherine from season 1. Likewise, we’re also getting a Catherine that is much more confident in herself, Vincent, and their connection. In actuality, Catherine had been pretty confident all season long but the problem was that she was confident in herself. She was controlling, pushy, and a tad selfish. And here’s where I can look back and trace her arc from the beginning of the season and really see the growth. I know I shouldn’t compare the seasons to one another because I’ve learned that I have look at each season as its own – but still the way Kristin plays Catherine now just tugs at those same strings. Sure, she still has some doubts and she still worries, but her TRUST has grown immensely. With Vincent, she’s learned that she doesn’t necessarily have to have him on a leash – because no matter how far he goes, he’ll always come back to her. Yes, she has good reason to worry about Vincent having beast quality time with gramps (who wouldn’t?) but Vincent has to constantly remind her to TRUST HIM – TRUST US. And I think this was one of the main issues their relationship faced this season – the same reason why they went to marriage counseling in the first place: co-dependency. Now, one might say, I thought we already jumped that hurdle? To some level yes, but these things take time and this concept was really tested with Liam being the “anti-Cat” a.k.a. the little “devil” on his shoulder. I must also note that along with Catherine’s change in manner and approach, her wardrobe mirrored the same feeling - a bit more feminine and softer. Maybe it’s just me but Catherine has been looking pretty good recently.
This leads me to Vincent who faced the biggest challenge this week – although it may have seemed that his beast abilities were being tested by Liam, it was more his humanity and his love for Catherine that was being tested. Now, keep in mind that Vincent has faced this same challenge before – choosing his beast side or his human side. Of course, this is at a grander scale but Vincent has been down both roads and has learned from his mistakes. Looking back in season 1, Gabe was the beast that made Vincent itch – causing him to rely on his beast side a lot more. In season 2, Gabe was still that primal force but additionally, Tori was the anti-Cat – pulling Vincent to the dark side. This season – it’s a superhuman beast that has been around for 200 years and was the same beast that managed to break apart Rebecca and Alistair. The fact that Vincent managed to go along with Liam while keeping his humanity made me realize just how awesome Vincent is. Not only is he able to make the same feats that Liam demonstrates – he is able to not lose himself in the power, the “feel” of being animal. A temptation that Liam has obviously fallen into and LOVES it. This means that Vincent can be just as powerful as Liam – if not more, because of the fact that he has Catherine. He’s a god!! I also enjoy the fact that Vincent is able to play Liam like a fiddle. Hec, he almost had ME fooled for a second at the very end with the handshake but then psych!! It’s hard to play the duality but Vincent pulls it off and in the end, he looks triumphant as he looks down to meet eyes with a very relieved Catherine. And here’s where their connection sings because they always manage to find each other and communicate without words. #golden moment
Despite the mythological twist to the plot, there’s still a lot that we don’t know about Liam. For example, if he has been around for two hundred years – where has he been all this time?? Does he know that Catherine is related to Rebecca Reynolds?? Why did he want to be injected with a superhuman serum?? What is his ultimate purpose?? We know that he’s been in London but if so, where’s his accent?? We also know that he was engaged to Rebecca Reynolds before but then left him for Alistair – mapping the same triangle that we had with Vincent, Gabe, and Catherine. If so, does he want revenge?? If I’m correct, Rebecca died shortly after Alistair did, so how did that affect Liam?? Was Liam born a beast?? His family history states that he was abandoned by his parents at an early age. What I get from all this is that Liam was a beast with no love and so he became a bitter, spiteful beast. This rings a “Gabe bell” for me but what justifies it for me is that this is more of a family affair. Hopefully, Heather will give us more answers or Bob. If anything, we should be thankful for Bob because he gave Rebecca’s journal to Catherine – the journal that helped save Vincent and Catherine on many occasions and still continues to do so. Last season, Catherine learned that Rebecca’s mistake was that she protected Alistair too much. And this is how Catherine realized how destiny brought them together. This season, Catherine kept speaking about how she felt that they were part of something bigger; meant for a greater purpose. And Liam is just that – her ancestor’s foe that they need to defeat once and for all. I like the fact that they’re bringing back all the mythological elements including the gem and I hope for some period scenes where we’ll hopefully get more backstory on Liam.
JT was being dumb this week again – hiding the fact that he’s dying from everyone else – especially Tess. Also, how could JT forget where he put the gem?? In the end, JT and Tess have a talk and they decide to fight through this together. I’m glad that we’re done with everyone hunting JT. He’ll probably cure himself. On the other hand, I loved how Heather was more part of the Scooby gang this week. She did her research and that’s why she is the MVP this week because she saved everyone’s ass!! I like how she is also accepting that this is HER destiny as well and is taking this seriously. Way to go Heather!!
All in all, a very excited episode making me look forward to what we might see in the season finale! Although at the same time, I feel that the finale is coming up too quickly. I wish we had more episodes to really dig out the Liam arc. I want to see more of him and I feel that he’s going to be gone before we know it. I honestly don’t know how they’re going to pack everything in these last two episodes. Especially the wedding because if it is happening in the season finale, they’ve literally had no time to prep for it nor have they mentioned it at all! I almost feel like the whole Liam arc will spill over into season 4 which would mean something to look forward to. I also loved how the episode ended with Vincent and Catherine’s walk down a very pretty street. Snow, winter coats, scarves, Christmas lights – it all means one thing: Holiday season!! I know Catherine Ashton (costume designer) posted on Twitter a picture of a Christmas tree for an episode. If so, I would love if the wedding is during the holidays!!
Side note: What happened to Catherine’s partner??