Revenge – Mommy Dearest

Aren’t we all just pleased as punch to have Revenge back in our lives? And at a much more acceptable time! Here in my neck of the woods, it wasn’t airing until 11:00 pm. On Wednesdays, which meant very tired Thursday mornings for me and the occasional instance of dozing off mid-show. I know, that’s a crime – it was never because the show was boring, trust. Now it’s on Sunday nights, an hour earlier, and I couldn’t be happier.

So far, this season of Revenge is all about the moms – Emily needs to find hers (or at least find out what happened to her) and the Grayson matriarch is alive and holed up in a remote cabin under government protection. Did any of you really think she’d be dead? Come now. They’d never cut Madeleine Stowe loose.

I think the quote that defines the episode, and the story arc we’re embarking on, is what Emily said to Takeda after he told her he won’t train her if she’s too hellbent on finding her mother: “Dead or alive, I’m going to find out what happened to her. And when I do, God help the people who kept me from her. And that includes you.” I was always worried that Revenge might run out of steam, but this twist is perfect for injecting more life into the series. Emily is at her best when she’s revenging but not void of emotion. When she’s simply the ninja machine Takeda wants her to be, she’s harder to root for and not as interesting of a character. The search for her mother brings out even more complexities than her original mission of avenging the ruin of her father did.

Victoria won’t be in hiding for long, I’m sure – especially not with Conrad trying to steal Charlotte’s portion of the inheritance. Charlotte was already ten million times more likable in this episode than in the entirety of last season. She always played the victim, but now she actually is being victimized – Conrad had her wrongly sent back to rehab in an attempt to gain control of her assets. Very smart, but he won’t be able to do that when Victoria re-emerges and Charlotte no longer has an inheritance to be stolen.

Just to keep things interesting, Emily saw via the new clam-cam (amazing) that Victoria received a visit from the White-Haired Man. Intriguing! She orders him to kill Emily – little does Victoria know, a visit from the White-Haired Man is exactly what Emily Thorne has been preparing for.

A few other stray thoughts:

• Um, Nolan’s looking pretty good. I’ve never found him remotely attractive before or have ever thought of him as a love interest for Emily, but damn, boxing has been kind to him. That said, I love Emily and Nolan as friends-that-are-sometimes-foes and roommates so much that I still don’t want anything sexy to happen there.
• Daniel dating a social climber like Ashley is a perfect use of that character. I can’t wait to find out what Victoria will make of that.

  “Things have changed a lot in a year.”
  I’ll say.

• Jack’s boat, The Amandagets sunk three months after Memorial Day weekend, when the majority of this episode is set. We’re all hoping Amanda, her mystery baby, and those god awful maternity Daisy Dukes are on it, right?

  Keepin’ it klassy, Amanda.

Whew! What a premiere. I’m so thrilled that this show is back, I’m already completely obsessed again. For those of you who’ve heard all the buzz about the show and want to get on board, I’d recommend watching season one first. The Revenge writers have woven a pretty tangled web of swapped identities, lies, and shady motivations. It’s not a show I think you can dive into without having seen the other episodes. But the good news is that the show is so addicting that if you download season one, I guarantee you’ll binge-watch those episodes at lightning speed.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Couchtime/~3/jJGnqaQANyk/