Photo Credit: The CW - Kristin Kreuk (L) as Agent Chandler, Jay Ryan (R) as Vincent Keller.
OVERALL GRADE = B(83%)
So, we’re halfway through the final season of Beauty & the Beast (yes, I know) and we’ve reached a point in the series where our heroes find themselves in a situation that seems familiar yet worse – a point of no return. Although one could argue we’ve had many of these before. Yes, Vincent is on the run again and yes, Catherine is once again doing all she can to protect him - even if it means putting her career and her reputation in jeopardy. And although we’ve seen this season after season, it is this very aspect of their complicated relationship that makes their love story ‘epic’ and more importantly – thematically - it also serves as the foundation for the show’s central theme – saving each other. So although the situation seems familiar, I didn’t mind revisiting it again because this time around, things are much worse – the stakes are higher, the threat is bigger, and there’s a lot to lose for both of them. In terms of plot, I found this week to be a little confusing and flat. But thematically, digging into the themes that have made Vincent and Catherine’s relationship so unique – is what makes up for the episode. And this is a pattern I’ve been noticing recently. The show has been making a habit of revisiting themes and plotlines from previous seasons and weaving them into this season – giving us the chance to study the growth of these characters and better understand the framework of their relationships - making this a very introspective final season.
Let’s start by taking a brief look at our beloved season 1. The drama that made Beauty and the Beast such an appealing show (especially to season 1 fans) was the complexity of the relationship between two people who found themselves on opposite sides of the law. On one side, we have Catherine - whose job is to protect and enforce the law. Although I should note, that Catherine doesn’t just do this because it’s her job, she does it because she wants to protect those who can’t protect themselves. On the other side, we have Vincent who is a supposed ‘vigilante’ – someone who is deemed a ‘threat’ to the public. And there’s no doubt, Vincent has done things that prove the above assumptions to be true. And that’s where the drama unfolds – Catherine develops a relationship with a man that at a first glance – is a criminal! She’s been trained to put people like Vincent in jail! But what shook Catherine’s moral compass is the fact that Vincent had done these things for the greater good – to help people. He didn’t need to protect these people –in fact, it wasn’t even his job – but he wanted to. And that’s where the two connected. Starting a relationship with Vincent made Catherine cross lines she had never dared to before like lie to her friends, manipulate evidence, erase surveillance footage, get involved with secret organizations, etc. And of course, Vincent became Catherine’s personal little secret. And that’s where we got the ‘stolen moments’ of them sneaking around on rooftops, fire escapes, and warehouses. Doesn’t sound romantic out of context but that is where the ‘magic’ of season 1 stemmed from. Since then, we’ve seen their relationship evolve, but the lingering question that always remains is - how far can we go on with this?
So far, Vincent and Catherine have managed to sweep things under the carpet and weave their way practically out of every situation. But this season is making sure to bring up all those little things – which I like. It’s culminating all these ‘holes’, so to speak into one big dramatic moment - the series finale. And here’s why things are much more complicated before: 1) Catherine is now a DHS agent which functions as a double-edged sword. Yes, she has more power and can have more access to “secret” files BUT she also has more of a responsibility to uphold the law and more severe consequences if she fails or is caught doing something wrong. And it’s a long way down. 2) Vincent killed the head of the DHS department and everybody knows it. That’s a pretty high-profile kill and one that will be difficult for Vincent to prove his innocence. 3) The beast bounty is still out there. In fact, the beast bounty may be the one thing they could use to justify all their shenanigans. 4) There’s much more at risk here. Because Vincent and Catherine have come so far in their lives, they have much more to lose. 5) It’s not just about Vincent and Catherine – it’s about the whole gang. As we saw this week, DHS managed to track everybody who had been in contact with Vincent.
As per usual, with Vincent on the run, Vincent always feels guilty for the trouble he’s causing his friends and family. So of course, the old ‘lone wolf’ instinct kicks in and Vincent wants to end this once and for all – on his own. This week, Vincent tries to hunt down the beast bounty and ends up making some progress on his own although his plan to infiltrate Graydal failed. And here’s the interesting clash between Vincent and Catherine - they’re both strong-headed ‘alphas’ in their own way. Because Vincent locks himself up with his emotions, he doesn’t listen to Catherine when she offers a different strategy. It also doesn’t help that her plan involves ‘trusting’ the government/feds to a certain degree. They both have had bad experiences with them – so why trust them now? The thing is that Catherine had to play both cards and she did manage to fool DHS – she got Morgan to begin to trust her and we’ll talk about that whole plan later on. But Vincent seemed a little too stubborn for my liking. Listen to your wife!
This episode was very tricky to follow. I found myself to be confused about who was lying and who wasn’t. In truth, everyone was playing each other whether they were aware of it or not. Catherine played Morgan while Morgan played Catherine. JT and Heather played the DHS. Vincent played the bounty hunter and Gradual. Heather played Kyle. BUT Catherine and Vincent did NOT play each other - even though it may have seemed that way in one point of the episode. The best part of the episode was when Catherine was going to “turn” Vincent in. At that point, I was confused. Was Catherine actually turning Vincent in? Was Vincent in on the plan? Did anyone know what was going on? But I knew that couldn’t be the case. I trusted Vincent and Catherine. And we rested assured, when we found out that Vincent had actually caught onto Catherine’s plan without ever discussing it with her. At least that’s what I took away from the episode. And that’s the power of their connection. They GET each other and despite all their disagreements, they were in sync in that critical moment. It proves once and for all, they really are “better together” than apart. Although now, they are forced to work apart. As Catherine sums up at the end, “We may be forced apart, but we’ll do it together.”
Although some people may have disliked Tess’ character this week - I find her behavior to be very true to her character. Ever since season 1, Tess has been a cop that has always seen things as ‘black and white’ while Catherine was able to see the “grey” in between. So, it’s logical for Tess to always want ‘out’ of this situation. She never was ‘about this life’ but only does it to support her friend because she’s seen how important Vincent is to Catherine. And as a friend, you want to see your friend be happy - but you also want to warn them when things go too far. And that’s what Tess does although Catherine doesn’t like it one bit. But even now with Tess as captain, her words hold more weight and Catherine knows it.
In other news, Kyle just keeps looking more suspicious and isn’t pleased with Heather. Yes, I would be upset if my boyfriend or girlfriend was keeping secrets from me but I would approach it differently. He threatens Heather and makes her feel guilty. That’s not the way to go. Even then, this isn’t about Heather - it’s about Vincent. So you shouldn’t be worried Kyle. Good news is Heather didn’t really spill any major beans so kudos to her!
In sum, the plot was a bit confusing to follow but its themes and studious exploration of the relationships between the characters make up for it. I like that we’re back in the tunnels and it seems like Vincent has made a little home for himself. And this means that Catherine will have to go behind everyone’s back to go visit Vincent and bring him an apple. And just like that, we’re back to the unique elements that make their relationship what it is.
So, we’re halfway through the final season of Beauty & the Beast (yes, I know) and we’ve reached a point in the series where our heroes find themselves in a situation that seems familiar yet worse – a point of no return. Although one could argue we’ve had many of these before. Yes, Vincent is on the run again and yes, Catherine is once again doing all she can to protect him - even if it means putting her career and her reputation in jeopardy. And although we’ve seen this season after season, it is this very aspect of their complicated relationship that makes their love story ‘epic’ and more importantly – thematically - it also serves as the foundation for the show’s central theme – saving each other. So although the situation seems familiar, I didn’t mind revisiting it again because this time around, things are much worse – the stakes are higher, the threat is bigger, and there’s a lot to lose for both of them. In terms of plot, I found this week to be a little confusing and flat. But thematically, digging into the themes that have made Vincent and Catherine’s relationship so unique – is what makes up for the episode. And this is a pattern I’ve been noticing recently. The show has been making a habit of revisiting themes and plotlines from previous seasons and weaving them into this season – giving us the chance to study the growth of these characters and better understand the framework of their relationships - making this a very introspective final season.
Let’s start by taking a brief look at our beloved season 1. The drama that made Beauty and the Beast such an appealing show (especially to season 1 fans) was the complexity of the relationship between two people who found themselves on opposite sides of the law. On one side, we have Catherine - whose job is to protect and enforce the law. Although I should note, that Catherine doesn’t just do this because it’s her job, she does it because she wants to protect those who can’t protect themselves. On the other side, we have Vincent who is a supposed ‘vigilante’ – someone who is deemed a ‘threat’ to the public. And there’s no doubt, Vincent has done things that prove the above assumptions to be true. And that’s where the drama unfolds – Catherine develops a relationship with a man that at a first glance – is a criminal! She’s been trained to put people like Vincent in jail! But what shook Catherine’s moral compass is the fact that Vincent had done these things for the greater good – to help people. He didn’t need to protect these people –in fact, it wasn’t even his job – but he wanted to. And that’s where the two connected. Starting a relationship with Vincent made Catherine cross lines she had never dared to before like lie to her friends, manipulate evidence, erase surveillance footage, get involved with secret organizations, etc. And of course, Vincent became Catherine’s personal little secret. And that’s where we got the ‘stolen moments’ of them sneaking around on rooftops, fire escapes, and warehouses. Doesn’t sound romantic out of context but that is where the ‘magic’ of season 1 stemmed from. Since then, we’ve seen their relationship evolve, but the lingering question that always remains is - how far can we go on with this?
So far, Vincent and Catherine have managed to sweep things under the carpet and weave their way practically out of every situation. But this season is making sure to bring up all those little things – which I like. It’s culminating all these ‘holes’, so to speak into one big dramatic moment - the series finale. And here’s why things are much more complicated before: 1) Catherine is now a DHS agent which functions as a double-edged sword. Yes, she has more power and can have more access to “secret” files BUT she also has more of a responsibility to uphold the law and more severe consequences if she fails or is caught doing something wrong. And it’s a long way down. 2) Vincent killed the head of the DHS department and everybody knows it. That’s a pretty high-profile kill and one that will be difficult for Vincent to prove his innocence. 3) The beast bounty is still out there. In fact, the beast bounty may be the one thing they could use to justify all their shenanigans. 4) There’s much more at risk here. Because Vincent and Catherine have come so far in their lives, they have much more to lose. 5) It’s not just about Vincent and Catherine – it’s about the whole gang. As we saw this week, DHS managed to track everybody who had been in contact with Vincent.
As per usual, with Vincent on the run, Vincent always feels guilty for the trouble he’s causing his friends and family. So of course, the old ‘lone wolf’ instinct kicks in and Vincent wants to end this once and for all – on his own. This week, Vincent tries to hunt down the beast bounty and ends up making some progress on his own although his plan to infiltrate Graydal failed. And here’s the interesting clash between Vincent and Catherine - they’re both strong-headed ‘alphas’ in their own way. Because Vincent locks himself up with his emotions, he doesn’t listen to Catherine when she offers a different strategy. It also doesn’t help that her plan involves ‘trusting’ the government/feds to a certain degree. They both have had bad experiences with them – so why trust them now? The thing is that Catherine had to play both cards and she did manage to fool DHS – she got Morgan to begin to trust her and we’ll talk about that whole plan later on. But Vincent seemed a little too stubborn for my liking. Listen to your wife!
This episode was very tricky to follow. I found myself to be confused about who was lying and who wasn’t. In truth, everyone was playing each other whether they were aware of it or not. Catherine played Morgan while Morgan played Catherine. JT and Heather played the DHS. Vincent played the bounty hunter and Gradual. Heather played Kyle. BUT Catherine and Vincent did NOT play each other - even though it may have seemed that way in one point of the episode. The best part of the episode was when Catherine was going to “turn” Vincent in. At that point, I was confused. Was Catherine actually turning Vincent in? Was Vincent in on the plan? Did anyone know what was going on? But I knew that couldn’t be the case. I trusted Vincent and Catherine. And we rested assured, when we found out that Vincent had actually caught onto Catherine’s plan without ever discussing it with her. At least that’s what I took away from the episode. And that’s the power of their connection. They GET each other and despite all their disagreements, they were in sync in that critical moment. It proves once and for all, they really are “better together” than apart. Although now, they are forced to work apart. As Catherine sums up at the end, “We may be forced apart, but we’ll do it together.”
Although some people may have disliked Tess’ character this week - I find her behavior to be very true to her character. Ever since season 1, Tess has been a cop that has always seen things as ‘black and white’ while Catherine was able to see the “grey” in between. So, it’s logical for Tess to always want ‘out’ of this situation. She never was ‘about this life’ but only does it to support her friend because she’s seen how important Vincent is to Catherine. And as a friend, you want to see your friend be happy - but you also want to warn them when things go too far. And that’s what Tess does although Catherine doesn’t like it one bit. But even now with Tess as captain, her words hold more weight and Catherine knows it.
In other news, Kyle just keeps looking more suspicious and isn’t pleased with Heather. Yes, I would be upset if my boyfriend or girlfriend was keeping secrets from me but I would approach it differently. He threatens Heather and makes her feel guilty. That’s not the way to go. Even then, this isn’t about Heather - it’s about Vincent. So you shouldn’t be worried Kyle. Good news is Heather didn’t really spill any major beans so kudos to her!
In sum, the plot was a bit confusing to follow but its themes and studious exploration of the relationships between the characters make up for it. I like that we’re back in the tunnels and it seems like Vincent has made a little home for himself. And this means that Catherine will have to go behind everyone’s back to go visit Vincent and bring him an apple. And just like that, we’re back to the unique elements that make their relationship what it is.