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Very quickly, we find out the RSVP card last episode was a bit of misdirection. Amily hasn't laid a trap for Emanda. It's actually Tyler, fresh out of a hospital for the criminally insane, who is out for revenge. He makes it very clear he plans to show up at the Fire & Ice Ball to score some vindication against Daniel and Emanda. Amily does factor into this because Tyler has managed to somehow track her down and kidnap her, using her as a hostage in case Emanda tries to cancel the engagement party. In the time leading up to the party, Tyler starts planting seeds of doubt in Amily's head about Emanda having always been her competition for Jack, and makes sure to fulfill every kidnapper cliché there is. The Stockholm Syndrome conditioning confuses Amily long enough to get her to help Tyler when Emanda gets the drop on him as they meet to exchange money for the infinity x infinity box.
Despite being coaxed by Tyler into examining the evidence within the infinity x infinity box that supports Emanda was using Amily, she eventually chooses to make a break for it and escapes Tyler's grasp. She absorbs a gunshot and heads straight for Jack, who has been offered an opportunity to get his life back on track by being part of a project in Haiti. Amily catches him just as he's getting ready to leave and is ready to set sail with him when Jack offhandedly mentions that Emanda was always in Amily's corner when it came to the two of them being together. This causes Amily to realize she owes it to Emanda to stop Tyler, so she immediately leaves just as Jack realizes Amily has been wounded. He gives chase and they both end up at the beach right after Tyler and Daniel face-off. Amily finds the body, and Jack doesn't hesitate to tell her to run away before assuming responsibility for moving the body, assuming Amily was the killer. Jack is entirely one of those boyfriends who's too good of a boyfriend for his own good.
Daniel was down on the beach because he and Emanda had argued about Dan wanting to elope to Paris to get away from all the lies and secrets of his family. Emanda dragged her feet about this because it probably doesn't serve her plan to poetically run away with Daniel, and Satoshi Takeda mysteriously has returned to town claiming he is poised to set the plan "back on the righteous path." From this point we relive the Fire & Ice Ball as seen in the pilot. Daniel is nowhere to be found as his mother makes her speech, Nolan and Emanda are nervous, Dec and Charlotte go out to strip on the beach and encounter the body being moved by Jack.
There are some things different from the pilot, though. Namely, Daniel wasn't the one who got snuffed. It was Tyler! We've been given the old switcheroo. What makes it work is that Charlotte had started drinking out of depression about finding out David Clarke was her father, and taking Oxycodone she found in Jack's medicine cabinet at the Stowaway, so she easily could've been confused when she found the body and ran back to the party screaming that it was her brother. When it's revealed that the body is Tyler's, Daniel comes stumbling onto the beach covered in blood and disoriented. Victoria is so relieved to have her son that she bursts with relief and reverts to her maternal instinct, telling Daniel not to say a word when it seems like he might utter words of guilt in his daze. Emanda's plan has gone completely off the rails, and Takeda has absconded with Amily, seeming as if he might prefer her as a protégé. Revengin' ain't easy.
-- Pablo G. is some guy who lives in Austin, Texas. He co-hosts TWoP's original "Trailers Without Pity" with his brother Omar G. Check him out at The YES and NO and Pablog and follow him @PendejoJoe on Twitter.
Want more? The full recap starts right below!Faint moonlight glints on the dark ocean. Emanda voiceover: "There comes a moment in each of our lives when the control that keeps us sane slips through our fingers." Gunshot. The camera quickly rotates from the ocean to show Dan fall face down on the beach in his white tuxedo coat and black pants. Ems VO continued: "Most of us aim to seize it back. The best way to fight chaos is with chaos." Inside the party, we get a new glimpse at the giant cake for Dan and Emanda and a slideshow of sappy couple photos fades into a leather-gloved hand back out on the beach reaching down to pick up a group photo that has fallen to Daniel's body. That hand fires two more shots. Gloved hands are always the hands of perfectionists.
24 hours earlier. We're at the motel where Amily had been staying. Nolan and Emanda frantically search through the room for the infinity x infinity box for any clues to Amily's whereabouts. No luck in either case. Emanda is pretty steadfast in thinking it couldn't have been Ams who broke into Casa Emily because she didn't know where Ems kept the box. Also, she's too loyal to Emanda to pull something like that. Emanda pulls out her phone, which prompts Nolan to ask who she's calling. "We're about to find out," Emanda replies. Cut to familiar items from the infinity x infinity box while a cell phone rings inside of it. A hand reaches for it and puts the phone up to the ear of a man we see only from behind seated in the shadows. Who is this mystery man? What business does he have derailing the revenge? Then, we hear the trademark smarmy voice of one Tyler "No bullets in the" Barrol. How did he get out of jail?! That's the first question out of Emanda's mouth. Tyler wasn't actually locked up, but instead sent to Springhaven Hospital for the Criminally Insane. Sounds lovely and very lax in the "keeping homicidal maniacs from returning to the scene of a crime within a couple weeks" department. Tyler is his usual smug self, registering Nolan's surprised background chatter and asking Emanda how Nolan's arm is doing. Ignoring the slime coming through her phone's speaker, she asks what Tyler wants. He thinks money would be nice, but he might prefer vindication. He immediately segues to asking how Daniel, the main target of that vindication, is doing. Almost instinctually, Emanda threatens that Tyler won't get anywhere near their engagement party. The problem with that is Tyler has taken Amily captive. He lets Emanda hear her moan through a gag while she struggles chained to a wooden post. Somewhat a step ahead of Ems and Nolan, Tyler threatens that he will kill Amily if the engagement party doesn't go on as planned. I don't know about you, Emanda, but I think that's a pretty sweet deal.
Porter Bar upstairs. Dec tends to a passed-out Charlotte who is sleeping in his bed. Apparently, she continued drinking after finding out David Clarke is her father. Jack comes into the room to lecture Declan about getting a 17-year-old drunk in their bar. Dec turns right back around and blames Jack for making the scene at Grayson Manor that led to Charlotte's current state. Touché. Defeated, Jack goes downstairs to get the bar ready to open. He notices a blinking light on the answering machine (which miraculously exists in 2012). The message is from Jack's contact in Port-au-Prince who has an offer for Jack to go to Haiti and take over a project to raise a grade school out there. The message ends, Jack thinks for a second and pours himself a shot.
Sitting in bed at Grayson Manor, Victoria holds a seating chart and calls out to Conrad about his preferences on who should sit where. The logical question is: Why is Conrad hanging around in the bedroom after the family disaster? Is he sticking around to gloat, Victoria asks. Conrad admits he might lose his position as CEO if they can't play nice. Not surprisingly, Victoria doesn't care. After Conrad's behavior at dinner, she has no problem playing hardball as far as Conrad's needs are concerned. Conrad asks Victoria what that means for Daniel. She expects Daniel will come back to her. Victoria: "He always does."
Ems comes home and finds Dan waiting for her. Like, impatiently waiting (finally). He seems bothered, so Emanda asks what's going on. There's no news on Charlotte, but that's not what's really bothering him. Daniel shows her his phone which he says has received a few calls from his grandfather that he has ignored. Emanda reminds Daniel that Grandpa Grayson wants him to become CEO of Grayson Global. Daniel is fed up with everything. He just wants to cancel the engagement party and not deal with his family anymore. Then, he insists on Emanda promising there'll be no secrets between them, Daniel citing what she's seen secrets do to his family. She agrees and Dan invites her to follow him up to bed. Emanda says she'll be up in a minute, and heads for a cabinet where she pulls out a gun before cautiously shutting the curtains.
At Tyler's hideout, he and Amily get a chance to talk. "She's not who you think she is, you know," Amily says. "I know. She's you and you're her," Tyler sarcastically replies. He tosses a passport at Ams. "And her." He tosses more passports. "And her." Amsy insists that Emanda's takedowns have all been for righteous reasons. Armed with a box of evidence to the contrary, Tyler starts planting seeds of doubt in Amily's head. He shows her burned DVDs of Mason Treadwell interviews, evidence that Emanda's the one who framed Ams and not Victoria. That doesn't convince Amily, so Tyler pulls out her old cell phone and shows all the missed calls and texts from Jack that Emanda kept from her. Amily's on board now. Tyler: "Emily's not your friend, Amanda. She's your competition. You need more proof?" He drops the infinity x infinity box in front of Amily and walks away. She hesitates a second and carefully cracks the box open.
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Porter Bar. Dec knocks on the bathroom door because Charlotte is recovering in there all hung over. Her parents have been calling, Declan says. Naturally, the teenage girl doesn't want to talk to anyone right now. Looking for mouthwash she comes across Jack's prescription bottle for Oxycodone, presumably for his beatdown. Charlotte's eyes get big. Dec has been suggesting through the bathroom door that she see this therapist that comes highly recommended. Charlotte grabs the bottle, opens the door and asks for the number to the shrink.
Grayson Manor. Ems tells Ashley in the courtyard about Daniel's desire to cancel the Fire & Ice Ball. Victoria appears out of nowhere and expresses how much that would break her heart. Ashley leaves the queen alone with her future princess-in-law. Victoria suggests to Emanda that Daniel is a "fickle boy," and hopes she can trust that Ems will be her advocate when it comes to Dan's opinion of his mother. Blood is thicker than water, after all, she tells Emanda, but Ems thinks Victoria really needs to earn her son's trust back. Emanda's interest/idea gets a rise out of Victoria. She asks if Emanda might facilitate such a conversation that would help regain Daniel's trust. It's up to Daniel, Emanda says as she excuses herself to answer a phone call. It's Tyler. He's had a change of heart about this revenge business. It's a waste of his time. Instead, he wants Ems to meet him with a cashier's check, and he'll hand over the infinity x infinity box. As for Amily, Tyler conceitedly assures Emanda that she's all hers. Don't do it, Emanda! It's a stripper trap!
Dan goes to meet Grandpa Grayson for lunch. Since the old man is all about family, he naturally asks about Charlotte first. Daniel tells him she's planning on going to see a therapist. That out of the way, Grandpa wants to talk business. There's a group of investors who are becoming a nuisance regarding the impending investigation from the Securities and Exchange Commission. At the top of a printout list Grandpa has with him is Satoshi Takeda. Dan needs to meet with Takeda to convince him to keep his money invested in Grayson Global.
Porter Bar. Jack has sit Declan down at the bar counter to break the news that he's planning on leaving for Haiti. He thinks his life has gone off track and he might need to leave to set things right. Dec sort of understands. Jack says it'll just be a couple months and he assumes Dec can handle the bar by himself. Sensing a little fear in his little brother, Jack says he won't go if Dec thinks he won't be OK. Dec knows his brother needs this, so he says he'll just miss him and gives him a hug. These guys...
Charlotte arrives at Grayson Manor and looks out the window at her mother who is out in the courtyard directing traffic for the party. Grandpa startles Charlotte and immediately asks about her plan to see a therapist. He tells her he thinks therapists usually do more harm than good. He really needed to add, "I am not a crackpot," to the end of that sentiment. The family's reputation is at stake if she spills her feelings about Victoria's affair. Grandpa asks if she'll gamble her future since she could devalue the Grayson name. Very bluntly, Charlotte says she doesn't care about any of that. The business man comes out in her grandfather. He offers to help get Dec into school since he failed the entrance exam. There's no negotiation needed. Grandpa asks for the therapist's number, which Charlotte hands over on a little slip of paper. Grandpa Grayson walks off with it.
Tyler paces outside his car in a parking garage with his phone and gets Emanda's voicemail. He starts to be pompous in his message, but Ems appears behind him and puts a gun to the back of his head. She zip-ties him to a nearby chainlink fence because she wants to make sure he's brought everything without having to worry about any funny business. She orders Tyler to put Amily on the phone. While Emanda rummages through the trunk of Tyler's car to make sure everything is there in the infinity x infinity box, Tyler talks trash about how loyal Amily has been to her. When Ems walks up to Tyler, he springs the trap. Amily appears behind Emanda with a gun. She tells Emanda that she took away the one thing that mattered to her, obviously overlooking that she was in her stripper prime before all of this mess. Emanda fires back that she did what she thought was best to protect Jack. Amily corrects Emanda about the one thing that mattered; she meant their friendship. She cuts Tyler free from his zip-tie and hands him her gun. Emanda is forced to hand over the cashier's check at gunpoint while Amily starts up Tyler's car. Before he gets into the passenger seat, he tells Emanda to have fun at the party tonight. "I hear there's going to be fireworks," he slimes her. Tyler and Amily drive off.
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Casa Emily. Emanda cocks her gun in front of Nolan. He advises that she just cancel the party, which is entirely logical now that Amily has turned against her. There's a knock at the door. Emanda hides the gun before being greeted by Jack outside her glass door. We're transported out to the porch after Jack has finished telling Ems and Nolan about his plan to sail to Haiti. Nolan can't believe it's as simple as one call from a benefactor and Jack's gone. Jack reiterates his belief that this might be a sign that he needs to get his life together. Emanda needs to deflect the impact of this, so she asks what's going to happen to Sammy. That's the reason Jack stopped by. He wants to leave Sammy with Emanda. Oh. My. God. This show is not going to make me cry. Not. Going. To. Jack tells Sammy to be good one last time. Emanda embraces Jack, and then he turns to Nolan where there's a barely perceptible awkward hesitation, and then he pats Nolan's chest before going into a full hug. Aww... and Jack's gone. As soon as he's out of earshot, Nolan is crying and completely heartfelt when he tells Emanda to go after Jack. Nolan: "Sail away. Fall in love. Go have... little volunteer babies."(<3 Nolan) Emanda has had so much practice not chasing after Jack that she is able to calmly tell Nolan if he really intends to be helpful, he'll just make sure Jack gets on his boat safely tonight. Nolan goes after Jack grudgingly as Emanda pets Sammy.
Grayson Manor. In the master bedroom, Conrad hands Victoria an envelope. It's the deed to Grayson Manor. Still not appeased, Queen Victoria asks about her shares of the company. She told Conrad before that they were a deal breaker. Conrad isn't ready to relinquish the company and concedes Daniel will have his time at the head of the table. He says if Victoria settles now, he'll see she gets her share of the company in cash. Victoria stays smiling silently when he asks her to at least say she'll think about it.
Dan gets a call from Emanda as he enters a restaurant to meet Takeda. Ems is surprised to hear Satoshi is in town. Dan declines Takeda's invitation to sit at his table because he won't try to convince him to stay at Grayson Global since he doesn't want to stay himself. He admits to Takeda he plans to elope with Emanda. Dan excuses himself and leaves. Takeda's phone rings. It's a call from Emanda, which he ignores. Emanda hangs up on Takeda's voicemail greeting.
Back at Tyler's hideout, Ams looks at the photograph of Emanda and Jack as kids. She rips it right down the middle. Tyler emerges dressed in a white-up-top and black-on-bottom tux. He asks how he looks. "Overmedicated," Amily deadpans before asking why Tyler's going through so much trouble to destroy Ems. Tyler asks if Amily knows anything about Frank. He thinks Emanda framed him for Frank's murder. His version of revenge involves framing Emanda for killing Daniel. Eye for an eye, he says. Tyler gives Ams a dress on a hanger since she's earned herself a front-row seat to the proceedings, and instructs her to put it on. Tyler: "Daniel's about to find out just how bad his taste in women really is." Couldn't he just sign up for Match.com?
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Fire & Ice time at Grayson Manor. All the usual players are walking around the party in their expected capacities. Ashley frets over party things, Nolan creeps around and Emanda remains statuesque while everyone else is schmoozing. Victoria is in the study, scribbling on a piece of paper. Conrad comes in and asks if she's making last-minute alterations to her speech. Actually, she's signing her agreement to Conrad's divorce terms. Victoria thinks it's time they put an end to all of this. Conrad comments on the poetic timing of this and walks out. With him gone, Victoria pulls out a business card for a field director at the SEC. She watches an oblivious Conrad out in the courtyard through the window.
Upstairs at Casa Emily, Emanda slips a gun into a concealed holster on her thigh and lowers her skirt. Dan shows up and hints at a surprise tonight. Ems admits to him that his mother really wants her to facilitate reconciliation between them. It's not a terribly interesting idea to Daniel. They leave for the party together.
Tyler's hideout. Amily packs up the infinity x infinity box. Tyler comes in and is upset Amily has yet to get dressed. You're totally going to be late for the revenging and stuff! Ams gets up and tries to leave (like that ever works when you're a hostage), but Tyler pulls his gun on her. He hands her the dress again. Amily slowly turns as if she's accepting she will put it on, then bashes Tyler in the temple with the hanger and takes off running. Tyler fires a shot, but Ams manages to get away.
At the party, Conrad greets Emanda and Dan. Victoria walks up on the group and is asked by Daniel if they can talk privately. Once alone, he calls out his mom for lying about David Clarke raping her. She contests that technically she never said that, but she realizes she needs to start telling the truth. Victoria tells Dan that she really was in love with David. It's too late. Victoria has cried wolf with Daniel and he doesn't believe her. He reveals his plan to elope with Emanda in Paris and leave the family behind. The best gambit Victoria can muster is suggesting Emanda won't easily give up the Grayson name and fortune, and even compares herself to Ems (willingly!). Daniel thinks they're nothing alike, but Victoria warns him not to be surprised if Emanda isn't warm on the idea of them eloping just as his mother won't be.
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On "The Amanda," Jack's almost ready to set sail. He looks back at the Stowaway one last time. Cut to a close-up on Shamu the video camera sitting on a box on the boat with a glowing red light. Back at the party, Nolan is watching a feed of Jack prepping his boat on his iPad. He switches to multiple surveillance feeds of what's going on at the party. He spots something odd and picks a certain feed. It's Takeda walking up on Emanda, which we cut to. She asks Takeda why he has returned. He says he's there to bring her plan back to the righteous path. He presents her a gift. It's a wrapped box containing the infinity x infinity box. When Emanda asks how he managed to get it back, Takeda says her opponents are careless. He advises burying the box outside of the party to hide her father's secrets, and her questions will be answered when she returns. There's no questions asked by Emanda. She walks out of the party with the box immediately. Dan notices this and watches her walk out. Nolan continues scanning through surveillance while Emanda buries the infinity x infinity box on the beach.
Amily shows up at "The Amanda" out of breath and spots Jack. She apologizes for everything and admits she can't even begin to answer his questions. Then, she realizes Jack is prepping his boat and asks where he's going. He succinctly explains the Port-au-Prince opportunity, and there's not a moment's hesitation before Ams asks him to take her with him. There is a moment's hesitation for Jack, though. She asks again. This time Jack extends his hand to her. Amily embraces him tightly.
Cut to the dark beach. Emanda stands out there alone, staring out at the water. Dan finds her, and asks what she's up to. She unconvincingly says she's just getting some air. Dan abruptly tells her to come to Paris with him. He already bought tickets. Thrown a bit for a loop, Emanda says she thinks it's crazy. Their lives are here. Running away isn't the answer for Dan, she says. Dan says it's the only answer. All that's here are secrets and lies. He asks why Ems wants to marry him. Emanda opts for the simple lie -- because she loves him. Then she should come, Dan reasons. Almost exhausted of the chore of keeping up with the politics of the situation, Emanda asks if Victoria said something to get this idea into him. Dan admits she did and thinks that maybe his mother was right about Emanda. He walks away.
Back on the boat, Jack gives Amily a blanket. She says nobody in this town is fond of her. Jack tells her that Ems was always on her side and advising him to stick with her. Ams' face goes blank. A car horn honks, and Amily brokenly says she still owes cab fare. Jack obliviously hands her cash. She tells Jack she loves him the way someone tells someone they love them for the last time. Amily kisses Jack through tears, and walks off. Jack looks down at his hand and notices Amily's blood. He runs after her, but her cab is already driving off.
Fire & Ice. Big Ed sighting! Nolan hands him his iPad as Ashley finds Emanda to ask where Dan is and we're at the opening scene from the pilot. Emanda discretely brushes off sand from her hand before sidling up to Nolan to argue about him being there. But now this argument includes Nolan telling Emanda that Jack is gone.
Dan sits alone out on the beach. Tyler appears with a gun in a gloved hand, surprising his former best friend. "She isn't worth it!" Tyler declares. Dan stands up. "Hello, Danny!" Tyler trains the gun on Dan. Close-up on the gun's barrel.
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Tyler asks Daniel if he remembers when he asked Conrad at Daniel's birthday party to tell the truth about David Clarke. Dan brings Tyler up to speed that he knows everything about Charlotte's paternity already. Tyler hands Daniel the Grayson Global group photo with the names of Emanda's revenge victims. Maybe halfway convinced he's been duped and a bit unaware of the situation, Dan tries calling Emanda on his phone, but Tyler snatches it. He orders Daniel down to the shore at gunpoint.
Up at the courtyard, Charlotte downs some pills with some champagne. Emanda walks up to Charlotte, causing her to drop the pill bottle. Emanda sees the label and there's an awkward moment of recognition between the two young ladies. Charlotte walks away without a word when her mother walks up. Victoria asks Emanda about the Paris plans, and assumes Ems talked him out of it. She says that if they stay, she'll properly show her gratitude. Ems gets a text from Daniel, but really from Tyler, telling her to come down to the beach.
In his SUV, Jack is driving frantically after Amily. He arrives at her cab as it drives off and he hops out, sprinting down to the beach after hearing a gunshot. He reaches the top of a hill and spots Amily crouching over a bullet-riddled body. Without waiting for answers, Jack tells Amily to run to his car. He starts to drag the body up the beach. Jack gets it into some bushes and spots Dec and Charlotte running down to the water together, shedding their clothes. Meanwhile, Amily can't find the keys in Jack's car. Cut to the beginning of Victoria's familiar Fire & Ice speech. Ems looks over at Takeda and they nod at each other knowingly. Takeda nods at Nolan. Nolan nods at Ems. Nod, nod, nod. Despite all the head motion in the affirmative, Emanda seems very nervous. She dials Daniel which rings on the body, giving away Jack's hiding place from his brother and Charlotte. Jack grabs the phone off the body and sees Emanda's picture. Dec and Charlotte shout at Jack's shadowy figure, and really sound so out of character in this scene with their pilot dialogue. Jack takes off running after pocketing Daniel's phone.
Victoria continues her speech about welcoming Emanda into the family to its conclusion and leans in to Ems's ear to ask menacingly where Dan is. Cue Charlotte screaming about Daniel being dead. His parents and Emanda rush out of the courtyard just like in the pilot. Emanda voice-over: "Chaos by its very definition cannot be controlled" Amily is picked up by Takeda in his fancy, black car, thinking she's just been picked up by a good Samaritan, and is a little weirded out when he tells her, "It's an honor to be of service." Ems VO continued: "Once introduced all order and intention is rendered useless." Takeda and Ams speed off together in his roadster. The whole party has run out onto the beach now and Victoria in hysterics orders Declan to get away from the body. Victoria rolls him over and very quickly realizes it's actually Tyler. There's brief moment of confusion before Daniel staggers into view covered in blood and in a stupor. Emanda VO continued: "The outcome of chaos can never be predicted." Victoria stumbles to her only son and holds him in a tight embrace, sobbing. Daniel tries with difficulty to speak, but Victoria cuts him off, whispering into his ear that he doesn't need to say a word. Emanda VO: "The only certainty it brings is the devastation it leaves in its wake." Emanda stares on in disbelief at the destruction.
-- Pablo G. is some guy who lives in Austin, Texas. He co-hosts TWoP's original "Trailers Without Pity" with his brother Omar G. Check him out at The YES and NO and Pablog and follow him @PendejoJoe on Twitter.
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