I loved all you had to say and I agree with so many of your points; here's my take on the episode.
As a whole, I really like this episode, but it also had so many small details that made me scratch and shake my head over and over again....
I love the opening scene, KK looks like a woman who has just spent her first night with the man she loves; she is beautiful, she is happy, she is exactly where she wants to be in that very moment, as she awakens from the kind of deep sleep she has not had in much too long.
I like the domestic scene between them with Vincent cleaning up...but why the broom? everything could just be picked up....and how did bottles fall to the ground without breaking; I thought that that was an unnecessary detail, Vincent could have been making tea for her. I don't think we needed proof that there was passion between them; furthermore, based on AMP. that was not the kind of first night together that they had....it wasn't wild and desperate sex...anyways, that's just my take on it. And why does he give her her scarf and coat in bed...a little strange!
I like that we are made to feel that, now that they have taken the plunge, they can't get enough of each other, that, in a perfect world, they could stay in that bed forever. However, the after sex topic of conversation was odd....really not the time to bring up an ex...especially when that ex is never to make an appearance.
To me, this could have been a perfect scene...but it had these weird details I did not understand.
Both the carriage driver's and Ray's death never get directly linked back to Gabe-I never understood why. I understand why he did it, to lure the beast out, but the case seems like a waste of time to me. On a side note, I liked how they used unshaven Gabe in season 1 vs, shaven Gabe in season 2 to distinguish evil and good, but I never really bought evil Gabe. He's just not Darth Vaderish enough...and so, his redemption in season 2 felt a little shallow to me.
In the crime scene I see many desperate people, each with their own agenda: Gabe to capture the beast alive; Joe to kill the beast and ask questions later, Catherine to protect the beast....followed by Evan, to prove that Catherine is somehow connected to the creature, and, voila, he gets her scarf, so that he can follow the evidence.
VinCat working together on a case always leads to leads! ...but here again, I did not always understand the choice of dialogue...why would they have discussed their grade point averages-could they not have come up with a better, more age appropriate topic?
These are the little things that take away from what could be perfect scenes, and it drives me crazy!
So is the purpose of the antique weapon solely for the viewers benefit; so that we know that Gabe is, in fact, the enemy? The weapon is never shown again; it never serves to enlighten the characters; it never gets traced back to Gabe....what a waste of a perfectly beautiful morning star. How does something so ugly and lethal get such a pretty name?
Poor Evan, he is so out of his depth...he is drowning and he doesn't even know it; his end was unavoidable. Desperate people resorting to desperate measures usually end up dead!
I love the three amigos together, planning their course of action; divide and conquer!
Joes forces Tess to take the cold leads on the vigilante.....because he wants to keep her out of harms way, this comes up in a later scene when she presents her findings to Joe; (ironically, he almost sends her to her death).
One of my favourite scenes in this episode has to be Sherlock Holmes and Watson's visit to the antiquities dealer's shop! Priceless...for so many reasons!!!
When Evan reveals that he has linked Cat to the creature, her reaction is so real, so well acted. Everyone around her is using her to get to the beast, and even though she is not fully aware of this fact, she is beginning to feel the walls closing in on them. On the other hand, she is realizing that the secret she keeps from the other people she cares about, is costing her those relationships, one after the other.
The three amigos again....planning the evacuation and destruction of the warehouse and the death of the creature.....very complicated and more and more lies. They are setting the bate and everyone believes they are about to get what they want (Ga, Evan and Joe)...little do they know that everything is literally about to blow up in their face.....meanwhile, Tess is getting closer and closer to their safe haven.
It's sad that VinCat dream for a moment that they can start over, be together, not have to look over their shoulder.
I love JT when he panics...Like Joe with Tess, Evan is trying to protect Catherine, but almost gets her killed. He has no idea who he is playing with; he's so in over his head! But why doesn't JT call VinCat immediately to warn them about Murfield? Did he forget his cell phone or burner phone at home? It's the small details that can just drive me crazy and that take away from the integrity of an episode.
For a moment, it looks like Murfield will spoil it all, but they successfully escape. It's all very dramatic! Nobody got what they wanted: Joe did not get to kill the beast himself and exact his revenge, Gabe did not get the beast alive and neither did Murfield; (disappointment all around) perhaps only Evan is happy with the outcome: the beast is dead, dead!
I love the scene between VinCat in the tunnels; they have hope for the future; it's such a sweet moment and so short lived. I love the reference to the fab three: "Us and JT against the world". Vincent makes reference to the person that is trying to set him up and Catherine says they will find out who it is..yet they will never refer to this again,,,Why, why, why???
We know Tess and Vincent will meet in the tunnels and that she would find out the truth, but it never crossed my mind that she would shoot him. That was unexpected! The end scene is very powerful; at this point we don't know about Vincent's ability to heal himself. Tess is in shock; everything she had heard about he vigilante was true and what's Cat doing? Cat doesn't know how to help Vincent or how to deal with Tess....
loved your review !