Beauty and the Beast 2.22 – Déjà vu

by Mieke Trudeau

 

“This is my destiny too”

All along it has been pretty clear that Vincent’s and Catherine’s destinies are linked together. But their paths did not just cross when Vincent saved Cat that first time in the woods, it seems that they started bending towards each other a long time ago, as early as the 1850s; when their ancestors, in fate, found themselves on a parallel journey.

We get a glimpse into Catherine’s present day nightmares, when we see Rebecca and her beast, Alistair, in 1854, running from a pitchforked mob that is determined to get the monster that has been terrorizing their community. What the mob doesn’t know, is that, just like today, another much more evil beast is setting up the good-hearted Alistair. Vincent tries to assure a worried Cat that their days of running are over, but we know better; we have already seen Gabe the beast. And pretty soon our heroes find out about him too; when JT and Tess lead them to the scene of the horrific murder of their reporter friend Beth.

Gabe has injected himself with the beast serum JT made from Tori’s DNA, and it may just make him extra powerful, stronger than Vincent. When Cat calls their ally at the FBI, she finds that once again, Gabe is one step ahead of them, and they overhear Agent Knox being brutally murdered. Vincent is determined to find Gabe and kill him to stop his rampage, but as a mob of journalists, armed with mics and cameras rather than pitchforks, run after our heroes, Cat tries to convince Vincent that this is exactly what Gabe wants; for him to beast out and show he is that monster the community fears.

With the help of JT and Tess, Cat stops Vincent and even locks him in the dungeon, blocked in by the beast-kryptonite gem. Just like Rebecca all those centuries ago, Cat thinks that she needs to protect her beast from himself. That the only way to save him is to stop him from tipping over that line; that point of no return; the line that Gabe has long since crossed. Cat’s father, whom she goes to for last ditch advice, still is convinced that all beasts eventually will go down this dark monstrous path. But Vincent’s, and Alistair’s paths are different. They converged with the path of another; a human that loved and trusted them against all odds. And that made all the difference. Cat finally realizes that the way to keep Vincent from becoming a monster, and the only way to save herself, is for the two of them to fight together. Unlike Rebecca, who, by keeping herself apart from Alistair, unwittingly sent him to his death.

Once again, Gabe has been a step ahead, and when Vincent and Catherine head to JT’s, to gather the evidence he has been compiling against Gabe, they find poor JT hanging from the rafters, within an inch of his life; a horrifying scene. As help rushes in, Tess is devastated. She has been pushing JT away; doubting her commitment to their blossoming relationship. Now she may never be able to make up for her coldness. JT is rushed to the hospital, in critical condition, with Tess by his side.

Vincent is enraged by this assault on his best friend and wants nothing more than to take revenge, but he also finally realizes that they have to be in this together, or all will be lost. He lures Gabe into a final fight and manages to distract him enough for Cat to slip the anti-beast collar, complete with gem, around Gabe’s neck. Stunned, Gabe attacks one last time, and in a dramatic and deadly conclusion, Cat stakes him through the heart.

The new mysterious secret government agents miraculously save JT’s life with some experimental nanobiology and all our heroes are happily reunited. Turns out these new suits want Vincent to work for them, helping them with the new threats that lurk out there in the dark.

What a great wrap up of a season that started out as an almost completely different show, but found its way back to the heart of Beauty and the Beast; the destined love story of Vincent and Catherine. It may have wandered a little, but in the end, its separate paths converged and have opened up all kinds of exciting possibilities for season three. Gabe’s arc, though brilliantly played by Sendhil Ramamurthy, especially as it came to a head, needed to end. All four of our heroes went through their own separate journeys of self-discovery: JT finally let go of his guilt by confessing his role in Vincent becoming a beast, Tess became a voice of reason rather than one of distrust, Catherine found her way back to Vincent by becoming her own person and Vincent finally realized that he could be a beast without being a monster, with the help of true love.

The show is once again peppered with wit and romance, and not just from Vincent and Catherine, the talented and charismatic Jay Ryan and Kristin Kreuk. It’s also been lovely to watch the funny, touching and oh so human relationship between JT and Tess develop. Austin Basis and Nine Lisandrello have been stellar this season in making sure that these characters are not just sidekicks or one-dimensional caricatures, but fully fleshed out, flawed human beings trying to find their way in a admittedly imaginary TV universe.

It looks like our fearless foursome will be some type of monster hunters next season, and I can’t wait to follow them on their new paths together. What about you beasties? Who is bringing the gummies?