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Gavin's quest to corrupt simple Indianan Henry continues when Henry confesses that he wants to move on up from his job in the mayor's office of city planning. So Gavin pushes Henry toward a job with a city councilman who also happens to be in Gavin's pocket, and there is much scintillating discussion of riverfront property development.
Jane has been exploring the storage room behind the ripped-out wall in the basement, and good news, there is a spooky little girl living there. When Jane comes to Gavin to ask for the building's original blueprints, he asks in exchange that Jane check in with Olivia, who is upset because of the anniversary of her daughter's death. So Jane and Olivia have lunch and Olivia nearly kills them through some reckless Porsche-driving, then confesses that Sasha killed herself—because, it turns out, she knew that her dad was a diabolical manipulator.
Louise Leonard is sufficiently recovered from her elevator accident, so she and Brian take Henry and Jane out dancing to celebrate Henry's new job. But Louise's predatory assistant, Alexis, is still macking on Brian, who is alternately turned on and freaked out because he really wants to nail her.
And building resident Annie is frustrated with her boring job writing obituaries, so she starts making up fantastical back stories for the people who died, and in doing so accidentally invents the savage murderer who then breaks into her apartment to kill her with pliers. Hear that, Jayson Blair? This is why lying is wrong.
Want more? The full recap starts right below!Previously on 666 Park Avenue: Jane and Henry became the resident managers of the Drake, which is owned by the sinister Gavin and Olivia Doran. Jane discovered a mysterious door in the basement that had been plastered over, and after having the wall ripped out, walked through the big scary hole. Building resident Brian Leonard made out with the blonde neighbor lady he'd been spying on, and this while his wife was hospitalized because the Drake's elevator tried to kill her.
This week: Jane appears to be trapped in the room behind that wall she had torn out. It's dark and full of rubbish, like old dishes and creepy baby dolls. And scary whispering people. She bangs on the door and yells for help, but of course she's in the basement and no one can hear her. And her phone battery is dying. She uses the last of the light to see... something moving in a corner. She asks, "Is somebody in here?" and the something whispers back at her, then something seems to touch her and Jane starts screaming. As you do.
Just then, Henry opens the door. He has a flashlight and they explore the room to find what grabbed Jane, but of course there's no one in there. Henry asks if maybe one of the dolls groped her. Jane insists she heard a voice, and he points out an air vent through which they can hear people upstairs (the people who couldn't hear her screaming a minute ago?). Ah, Henry. Bless your heart -- you're so good at mansplaining how Jane is a hysterical lunatic. They head upstairs and Jane asks Henry if she thinks he's crazy. As they walk into the laundry room, something runs through the dark room behind them. It's a little girl, clutching a doll.
Laundry room. Some lady we haven't met asks Brian if he has any idea how sick she is of dead people. He looks up from his laptop as she complains about the monotony of writing obituaries. I don't know, some of them are legit awesome. He asks her what she wants to write and she says she went to school to be a real journalist. Well, sounds like obits are the best you can hope for, sister. The journalist says that her mother also wanted to be a writer and spent years on children's books, but never published any. She asks after Louise and Brian says his wife is feeling much better after a night at home in her own bed. She asks if she can visit Louise later, then heads upstairs.
In the elevator, Gavin greets the journalist as Annie and asks after her work. She bitches about her job, finally saying, "I would do anything to get off the obit desk." You can basically see Gavin's ears perk up into little devilish points. He compliments her creativity as a writer and says maybe he can help with her predicament. It will only cost her... her soul!! In her apartment, at her laptop, Annie reflects on what Gavin said about using her creativity. She's working on a piece about a Mr. Diebold (whose name is practically Dickensian in this context) and says he may not have lived well, but she can ensure he'll die well. She looks over at some books about Russia on her dresser and begins typing, speaking aloud. It appears she's just going to make some shit up about Diebold being a Cold War hero who defeated some Russian guy named Kandinsky. All this seems like a great way to get fired and not be able to afford your apartment at the Drake.
Brian and Louise wake up in bed. He asks how she's feeling and she says much better. So he wants to get busy. She climbs on top of him and they go at it like she didn't just get mashed by some heavy-duty hydraulics a few weeks ago. Then Brian stops and asks if she hears something, like the door, but Louise is feeling randy and keeps kissing him. So of course Alexis walks in, because this is a normal thing you do to people first thing in the morning -- you let yourself into their apartment and come tramping into their bedroom. Christ, Alexis, were you raised in a barn? She says the door was open and she knocked, and that she thought she and Louise were going to yoga. Brian's like, what the hell? Louise says Alexis is holding things together and "without her I would be screwed." Brian flops back and mutters, "Yeah, that was the idea." Welp, guess Brian is going to screw Alexis instead!
Jane and Henry's. She's looking at plans for the building and talking about the mysterious basement room and its ductwork. I think Jane and Ted Mosby need to get a room and talk about all their boring architecture shit so the rest of us don't have to hear about it. Jane wants to ask Gavin for the building's original 1923 plans, and Henry cautions her not to eff things up for them by ripping down walls and being all nosy, since Gavin is taking him to his club tonight. Jane says Gavin told her to restore the Drake to its original glory, and that she wants to solve all the building's mysteries. Those... are not exactly the same thing.
Gavin's office. Jane knocks and comes in. She mentions the orchids all over the building and asks if it's a special occasion. He says they're in memory of his and Olivia's daughter, who died ten years ago today. Jane wants to come back, but Gavin insists she stay and discuss what she came for. She recaps last week's episode with the birds for him and asks for the original plans. He asks what she wants to know, and she says she's looking for the reason someone wanted to bury the history of the Drake. Based just on the knowledge Jane has, I'm Team Henry here; Jane seems to be making some huge leaps of logic. One boarded-up wall does not a shadowy conspiracy make. (One creepy kid skittering around the basement? Yeah. But she doesn't really know about that yet.)
Gavin says he probably has the old plans, and asks if Jane can do something for him in return. He asks her to keep an eye on Olivia, since the anniversary of her daughter's death is so emotional for her. Just then Olivia gets off the elevator, encumbered by shopping bags, and Jane asks if she's free for lunch. Olivia accepts and says she'll meet Jane downstairs in an hour, "to give you a chance to change your clothes." I love how Olivia keeps pointing out how Jane dresses like an Urban Outfitters hobo.
Annie is in a cab, stuck in traffic. She asks the cabbie if they can go faster, because this is totally a reasonable thing people say when they're in gridlocked traffic and instead of telling her that sure, he'll just push the button that turns his cab into a flying car, the driver says all of Lexington is shut down for some diplomat's funeral. The diplomat? Annie's Mr. Diebold, the cab TV informs her. Annie freaks out as the news lady details all of Diebold's achievements (apparently she put in that he was the director of the CIA? Come on, that is a detail that people would know!), hands the cabbie some cash and hauls ass back the Drake.
In the lobby, she asks Gavin for a word. She tells him the story she wrote wasn't true, that she made it up, and he says sure it was true -- he read it in the paper! Mr. Diebold was an American hero! He asks if she wants to take that away from him and from herself. Because the obituary writer always basks in the reflected glory of his subject? If that was true, no one would ever write Jerry Sandusky's obit.
Gavin's club. He and Henry play a violently competitive game of racquetball. Gavin asks Henry what he wants, and when Henry is first glib and then obvious (water; to marry Jane), Gavin advises that when "someone who is fairly connected" asks what he wants, Henry should mention the things he can't get on his own. Glad to see Gavin isn't suffering from any deficiencies of self-esteem. Henry says he wants to be chief of staff for Bill Edwards, a Brooklyn city councilman who might run for mayor year. And that's the second mention of Greenpoint on this show, which I believe is ABC's way of making it up to my friend Marisa for towing her car a bunch of times while they filmed Life on Mars in her neighborhood.
Gavin points out that Henry already works in the mayor's office, but Henry wants more than city planning and says he has an interview in a month. Gavin hollers that the job will be gone by then and Henry can't just wait in line for his turn. "You've got to take what you want," Gavin says.
Jane is telling Olivia at lunch that Henry always wanted to live in New York and harbors secret political ambitions. She compliments the restaurant, and Olivia says she used to bring her daughter here. The waiter arrives with their lunchtime neat whiskeys, which is a tradition I can get behind. And then Olivia asks how Henry is in bed and to Jane's credit she doesn't choke on her Cobb salad. Jane says the sex is "very nice," then admits that Henry might think she's crazy. Olivia asks why, and Jane reluctantly explains her vivid dreams and says she's not sure what's real. Yes, that is definitely a good way to get people to think you're crazy. Jane says she feels like the dead don't stay dead. Then she realizes what she's said and apologizes. Olivia brushes her off and signals the waiter for more daytime booze.
Annie arrives at work (which looks a lot like NY1's offices) and a coworker compliments her on her story. Which... I don't really understand why she's getting all the attention for this. If someone with an interesting life story dies, they'll probably have an interesting obituary, provided the obit writer isn't incompetent or a crushing dullard. How is this an achievement of Annie's? The co-worker observes, really quite insensitively, "It's a shame your mom isn't around to see it. She'd be so proud of you." Dude. That is a shitty thing to say to anyone. Annie sits down and calls someone, saying she needs to print a small retraction to a piece last month. She opens her program and goes to her mother's obit. She replaces the last graf, about how Karen Morgan was a Minneapolis public school teacher, with a sentence saying that Karen was in fact a renowned children's book author with over 400 million copies of her work sold in 30 languages. (This is fucking ridiculous. That is J.K. Rowling territory!) Annie says, "I love you, Mom," and sends off her blatantly ludicrous changes, before having a tiny panic about how she just submitted for publication a huge, easily disprovable lie.
Gavin and Henry's man-date. In the gentlemen's boozing lounge at his club, Gavin points out the district attorney, a deputy mayor and Councilman Bill Edwards. He asks what Henry intends to do. Henry has, you know, manners, and doesn't want to bother people, but Gavin asks pushily, "Are you rich, Henry?" When Henry confirms that he is not, Gavin tells him that they are the same -- they come from nothing and have to fight to get what they want. He asks if Henry wants to be the kind of guy who's a member of this club or just a guest. Henry rises, and Gavin tells him not to come back without the job.
Henry introduces himself to Edwards, and says they have an interview set up in a few weeks. Edwards is eating and dismisses Henry, but Henry is way more scared of Gavin than he is of burning his bridge with Edwards, so he says quietly, "I just want to tell you you're going to lose the upcoming election, sir." Edwards asks why he thinks so, and Henry says voters are mad about some rezoning in Greenpoint. Henry further explains that the residents think he's in the developers' pockets and the developers think he's too harsh on them. He says if Edwards isn't careful, he'll be out of a job before he can even begin his mayoral run. Edwards is impressed and invites Henry to sit down.
Jane and Olivia are tearing up the West Side Highway in Olivia's Porsche. (Excellent idea after you've had lunchtime whiskey.) Jane is freaked out by how recklessly Olivia is driving and Olivia says this is where Sasha died, that it was raining and she shouldn't have been driving, and then they're headed right for a concrete divider at 80 miles an hour. Olivia swerves and hits the brakes at the last moment, somehow managing not to roll the car, and Jane heroically doesn't barf into her handbag. Rattled, she tells Olivia there's nothing she could have done to prevent the accident. Olivia says no, that her daughter drove into a concrete wall on purpose.
Annie's boss's office. He asks her to come in and shut the door and asks her to explain why the 250-word obit she was supposed to write turned into a two-column Cold War thriller. She says Diebold's story inspired her. Annie's boss has a funny feeling about this, so he asked his superiors what they thought. They want Annie to write 1,500 words about the other person mentioned in the obit, Kandinsky. She says she can absolutely do it and starts rambling off a bunch of bullshit. He asks if she's sure she can hit her word count and that all the facts need to be rock-solid. She says she has an excellent source. Now I'm wondering what creative death Gavin has in mind for poor, stupid Annie. Sucked into an IBM Selectric, perhaps?
Henry hollers for Brian to hold the elevator and rushes in as the doors are closing, which understandably freaks Brian out. Brian asks how he's doing, and Henry gleefully shares that he might have a new job. Brian asks if Henry is a lawyer, and when he says yes, if Henry knows anything about breaking leases, because Louise is uncomfortable about living in the building now (liar). In the Leonards' apartment, Henry says the lease is pretty ironclad and that clearly Gavin doesn't like people breaking deals. Brian asks if Henry can talk to Gavin for him, since they've gotten so cozy. Henry agrees, and Brian asks if he and Louise can take Jane and Henry out that night to celebrate Henry's new job. As Brian is in the kitchen getting beers, Henry notices Alexis undressing door. She turns to face him with her best come-get-it-fella expression, then drops the act and covers her breasts when she sees that it's Henry, not Brian, ogling the goodies. She pulls the curtain shut and Brian, noticing, says, "Nice view, huh?"
Olivia hands Jane a cup of tea and says Jane reminds her of Sasha, and that her daughter loved exploring the Drake. Olivia says when Sasha was 15, something changed, and after that they were never as close. She was the one who found Sasha's suicide note, which she says she's never told anyone about, not even Gavin. Olivia says Sasha and Gavin had a fight the night before she died and that he blames himself. Jane tells Olivia she admires her courage, but that ten years is a long time to carry that kind of secret. She says she would have loved to have a mother like Olivia. Gavin comes home, and Jane excuses herself. He sits and Olivia puts her head on his shoulder and her left hand -- adorned with a diamond the size of a baby's fist -- on his chest. He says she has to stop blaming herself.
Jane and Henry's. They make out some, then he tells her about the job and that they're going to celebrate with Brian and Louise. Jane flops back on the bed as Henry goes to change. She hears a tinkling sound coming from the air vent. She crouches to look, then goes down to the laundry room to investigate. The wall she broke through is dripping blood and then she sees the little girl, who says, "It's bad in there." Jane asks, "What's bad?" and just about jumps out of her skin when Gavin comes up behind her. She looks back, but the girl is gone. Gavin hands her the old blueprints (because it makes perfect sense that he'd come find her in the basement rather than her apartment?) and they head for the elevator.
Henry and Jane meet Brian and Louise in the lobby and they go to a club. Louise tells Henry and Jane how she and Brian met, and Jane says she's so glad they're having this evening before the Leonards move out. This is the first Louise is hearing of it, and Brian interrupts her to ask Henry about what he said about the Drake being haunted. Henry protests that he just mentioned that Jane thinks there are ghosts. Louise hasn't dropped the issue of why Brian would have Henry look at their lease, but she's distracted when Alexis appears. Henry gives Brian the aha eyebrow.
Annie, in her apartment, treats herself to some champagne, because French bubbles go best with egregious falsehoods. She sits down to write Kandinsky's story, about a vicious mob hit man who tortured his victims to death with pliers and wrenches. As she writes, we see the man she's describing, complete with the facial scar she just invented, entering the elevator at the Drake. She turns in her story (no proofreading, no editing, and I cannot even with this, you guys -- where does she work, the New York Daily Makin' Shit Up?) as there's a noise outside her door. She looks through the peephole and sees Kandinsky, come to life. She flees into the bathroom and tries to open the window. The man kicks open her door as Annie smashes the bathroom window with the trash can. He breaks in and pulls her back in as she clutches at the broken window edges, cutting her hands up and leaving streaks of blood as he drags her across the bathroom floor. And that is what you get for lying.
Club. Henry is drunkenly apologizing to Jane for telling Brian about how Jane sees ghosts and is crazy, and she tells him to take her home for more "very nice" sex and she'll forgive him. He tells her he loves her and they make out. I'm going to need a keyboard shortcut for "Jane and Henry make out."
Gavin's place. He and Edwards are having drinks, and Edwards asks what his compensation is now that he's hired Henry. Gavin says Henry is the compensation, that he's the best hire Edwards can make and that Edwards should be more concerned about getting Gavin the development he wants in Greenpoint. Edwards says there's nothing he can do for Gavin, but Gavin points out that he controls the district's redevelopment rights. Edwards says he can't help, that there's another developer interested in the property. Gavin seems almost pleased to have underestimated Edwards's greed, and asks how much he wants. Edwards says the other developer understands what Edwards really wants. Gavin says, "Enlighten me."
Club. Brian is getting drunk while Alexis and Louise dance and Alexis makes sex faces at him behind his wife's back. He gets up and tells Louise he wants to go home. But the women are having fun. Brian insists and Louise leaves, with Alexis scowling gorgeously at their backs. I hope Brian and Louise don't have any pets we haven't met yet.
By the river, Olivia is reading Sasha's suicide note. She takes out a lighter and sets it on fire. The bench she's sitting on has a plaque on the back: "In loving memory of Sasha Doran, 1984-2002." Pity that Annie didn't write her obituary. Olivia drops the burning note and walks away and the only words really discernible on the page are "He's evil" and "only way out."
Gavin asks Edwards if there's any way he can change his mind. The elevator door opens, but there's no car there. Edwards looks confused, but then Gavin shoves him down the open elevator shaft. He screams his way down into a square of white light as Gavin observes, looking slightly put out that now he'll have to find a new toy to distract Henry.
Lobby. Henry and Jane come home and the nighttime doorman says Gavin wants to see them. Henry protests that it's 2 AM, but the doorman says that's what Gavin told him. He goes up to the penthouse while Jane gets off on the third floor and in the hallways she sees the creepy little girl with her grubby doll. The girl says, "Don't. Don't let him out." And then she vanishes. But doesn't that happen to everyone when they drink tequila?
Penthouse. Gavin asks Henry to join him on the terrace. Gavin delivers a speech about the peaceful nighttime, when dreams are real, and tells Henry he doesn't think the Edwards job is the best idea for Henry. Henry thinks being a councilman's chief of staff is a good step up for him, but Gavin says Henry should be the one running for office. Well, it worked for Rahm Emanuel. Henry is giving Gavin a look that ever so slightly says, "Man, you crazy," but he seems pretty well enticed by what Gavin is implying.
Annie is tied to a chair in her apartment, still screaming for help. Kandinsky shushes her.
Jane and Henry's bed. She hears the tinkling sound again, gets out of bed and goes to the basement (barefoot! Still! Ew!). The formerly bleeding door is open. She calls out, and then ventures into the room that she's already gotten trapped in once. Because Jane is an idiot. She sees a flashlight lying on a box, asks again if anyone is in there, then picks it up. She focuses the light on an old, cobwebby suitcase and tries to open it. She picks up the suitcase and takes it back upstairs, then gets back in bed without even rinsing off the grubby bare feet she's been walking around the building in, ew. The sides of the suitcase start to move, like something is in it. And now I'm going to have nightmares about Takashi Miike's Audition. AAAAACK.
week: Jane has a conversation with the little creepy girl. Henry's office asks him to help investigate Gavin, and Kandinsky is still around and firing guns at people.
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