A mystery fuels old fears for Chelsea. Leslie gets the cold shoulder. Anita and Vernon put Dani in the hot seat. Heather toys with Martin and Smitty. June bolsters Tyrell. Dani's hunt for answers is cut short. Mona hustles Joey. Carlton has an unexpected run-in. Bill has a proposition for Naomi. Tomas leans on Eva. Nicole and Kat clash. Anita wavers on a big opportunity. Smitty unwittingly incites anxiety for Chelsea and Kat. Elon has disturbing news for Jacob.
Episode 2.153
Bill's released from the hospital and Hayley's straight back to poisoning him. She sees a loving moment Bill has with his daughters and immediately envisions his death. She wishes to inflict that trauma onto them. She's desperate for this con to be finished. She's invested too much time. She grows tried in having to deal with people interfering with her plans. She's not having an affair with Randy. The suspicion cast on her is troubling. Dani believes her ex needs to open his eyes to the truth. Hayley is cheating on him. Dani wants to protect him. Anita and Vernon warn that she can't be the person to build him back together. She's setting herself up to be in that position. She can proclaim all she wants about how good Andre is for her. She still feels this pull towards Bill. She appreciates having a mature and civil dynamic now. She doesn't want him dead. That's progress. It also opens her up to be vulnerable in this mess. She remains guilty for sleeping with him during the tornado. That stressful situation carries consequences that have lasted longer than any other plot. She made that decision. Her words are tainted by her actions. Everyone is right to worry. Bill could collapse at any moment because his underlying condition hasn't changed. He refuses to take the appropriate follow-up care. He never wants to return to Garland. That recklessness remains dangerous.
Kat goes to Jacob to find out if Allison has the means to reach out to Chelsea. She reassures her cousin that what happened a year ago will never happen again. The family will protect Chelsea no matter what. The terror still creeps in. Kat has the same fears as Chelsea. She recognizes she can't amp them up with her cousin. She has to be the reassuring voice keeping her calm. She's worried too. She brings that energy to Jacob. He confirms that Allison is still locked up in a psychiatric facility. There's no reason to fear she has escaped and started targeting Chelsea again. Yet it's obvious Chelsea doesn't believe Allison has been adequately punished for what she did. She's guilty but hasn't suffered at all. Bill and Naomi don't pick up on this belief because it comes in the context of defending Madison in her frivolous lawsuit. It's communicated clearly for those who know what to look for. The trauma from that experience still plagues Chelsea. She and Madison are planning for the future. Everyone deserves to be happy and healthy for their wedding. Meanwhile, Naomi deserves to be appreciated for her birthday. Life finds a way to interrupt these plans. That remains a constant.
Grade: B
Episode 2.154
She's back! The narrative confirms Allison will plague Chelsea once more. It's not through any confirmation that she's been calling her from an unknown number. Chelsea's reassured by Kat and Jacob that Allison can't hurt her. The episode ends with a tease of Allison. She's writing letters to her supposed wife. The obsession remains strong. Her passion hasn't lessened in the year since the kidnapping. All of this is ominous for the future. Chelsea panicked during the anniversary itself. The next day a more rational head prevails. That's good for her mental health. It's not enough to eliminate this threat for good. The narrative is obviously plotting a resurgence. That's an intriguing prospect. It asserts energy into the proceedings. Sure, it's alarming how Andre continues to get sucked into Heather's orbit. She's not only in town to reconnect with her brother and rekindle things with Andre. Joey doesn't trust her. She's been much more skilled at keeping her true motives hidden. It's unnerving when she reaches out to Martin and Smitty. She didn't hide her deadly intentions when she first arrived. Now, she wants to know if Smitty is still pursuing his Impaler investigation. He is. That's her focus even though she enjoys toying with Joey and Andre in the meantime.
Andre's abrupt exit from breakfast alarms Dani. The mood shifts once the conversation centers on Heather. Dani and Vanessa don't make the connection. Dani knows something is bothering her husband. She fears her secret has been exposed. Andre's attitude changed suddenly. He was incredibly affectionate until he wasn't. He aims to put a stop to Heather even though he's in the dark just as much as Joey is. He doesn't know what she wants while Dani and Vanessa are blissfully unaware to what she's capable of. These threats dominate the narrative. They stand in contrast to the more earnest nature of the family preparing to send Tyrell off to college. They worry about how he's doing following the breakup with Jessica. They hope he is moving on. It's sentimental when June presents him with a picture of when he was young. It's sweet. June suddenly wants to give her kids the world. She is proud of the people they've grown to be. They reciprocate that affection. It's emotional. Meanwhile, Martin and Smitty enjoy time in the house without the kids. The family has come so far. They remark on that while embracing even brighter days ahead. That's the rosy outlook amongst the dread elsewhere.
Grade: B-
Episode 2.155
It would be amusing if Mona got the better of Joey all the time. It's presented as so easy too. That would likely come at the expense of the rest of the ensemble who have struggled to break free of his grasp. He's built up as powerful and influential. That's been a successful image. The ease with how Mona moves in his orbit diminishes that while making it unclear what the intentions actually are for her and Randy. It's slightly weird. It's not as unwelcome as her previous trip to the casino. The narrative also highlights how imperfect the Armstrong siblings actually are. Heather has been positioned as even more dangerous. She lashes out when Andre refuses to sleep with her while Dani and Vanessa are too busy to get a drink. She still ultimately gets what she wants. That's concerning for Carlton. The show had so much potential with Nicole's love triangle. It fizzled out. The narrative obviously wants to keep Carlton around. He's now being gifted a story. His relationship with Nicole failed because it didn't receive the time and commitment to prove it was worth investing in. It wasn't the fault of the actual characters. Things have seemingly shifted now that Carlton connects with Heather at Uptown. She's entering the lives of more people in this world even though none of it seems all that purposeful on her part.
Andre only goes to Heather again because he knows befriending Dani wasn't an accident. Heather insists it was a side effect of getting to know Vanessa. Andre doesn't believe her. Dani and Ted obviously see that something is weighing on Andre. Dani rules out what it could potentially be during her brainstorming session with Vanessa. Every time she tries to talk with Andre, they're interrupted. This time it's the latest intrusion from Heather via text. It's ominous while feeling pretty empty. Her taunts don't have much power now that their in-person interactions are driving the story. It's enough to keep Andre scared. He's not confessing to any of his loved ones about what's going on. Keeping that bottled up isn't good. He can't compartmentalize like Ted did. Ted was proud of keeping his secret. He now recognizes how much he betrayed Nicole. It's not a problem for her to forgive him. They've had this conversation before. Ted still reckons with what he did. Nicole wants to just move past everything without addressing the deeper issues. That's true with Ted. It's also true with Martin's obvious resentment towards Kat as now detailed through their competition over receiving the most presents.
Grade: C+
Episode 2.156
Tomas expects unconditional support in a relationship. He was clearly in the wrong for interfering in Madison's lawsuit. Not only does he expect Kat to agree with him, he wants her to take his side against her family. He complains about how close the Duprees are. He doesn't think Naomi has a legal leg to stand on. He was only disciplined by Bill because Naomi complained. He takes no responsibility for his actions. He has expectations and can't reckon when they don't align with reality. Eva supports him. She agrees his heart was in the right place. He shouldn't be punished. He undermined Naomi in front of her client and opposing counsel. He wasn't a team player. He was only looking out for himself. Eva understands that as she too has often had to battle the world to be noticed. Life is different now because Izaiah has treated her so well. He will never do anything to hurt her. Tomas and Eva know they shouldn't talk about Kat. The conversation always makes its way back to her. Eva's insecure upon seeing Kat and Izaiah at Orphey Gene's. She's not inherently in the wrong. Nicole perceives that Kat is befriending Izaiah with the belief that his relationship won't last. Kat thinks Eva's personality will drive him away. He's always trying to offer solutions to everyone. Those boundaries could be blurred. The show refocuses on the tension between Kat and Eva as it pertains to getting involved with their relationships. That's happened before. But now, Kat may be the one crossing a line.
Tomas can't point to anything Naomi did wrong while managing the firm. He assumes she was overlooking legal deadlines. Those didn't involve his cases. As such, he has no right to say how she was handling things. A new cases falls into Bill's lap to work on with his daughter. The narrative is setting up the inevitability of Naomi joining the firm by working on her cases with stronger financial backing. That's how he convinces her to work together for June's friend. Naomi has the expertise in tenant's rights. Bill has the money and connections. He sees the potential to form a great team. Tomas only sees how that pushes him out. That could serve as motivation to find his own cases and prove himself through the actual work. Instead, he laments not being able to suck up to Bill all the time. Bill's motivations don't factor Tomas in at all. Similarly, Nicole assumes Carlton is brokenhearted about her. Their breakup was mutual. He's moving on. That's what he's gossiping about with Ted when Nicole interrupts them. It's awkward only because of the history. Not every conversation is about her. Kat wants it to be. Nicole shuts down the idea of using the nickname for the ChelseaKat bag honoring her. And so, everything has to start over from scratch.
Grade: B
Episode 2.157
The Impaler has struck again. Lia Whitmore has died from an apparent overdose. Joey knows immediately Heather was responsible. He summons her to explain. She had to take other actions upon learning Smitty was protected. This death causes everyone to worry about the Impaler again. Heather isn't worried. Joey was expecting a visit from Elon before he arrived. Jacob and Smitty assume Lia was murdered. They have to wait for the investigation to prove that. They don't want to alarm Naomi either. The news of this death doesn't stay secret for long. It even makes its way to Vernon who immediately arranges a hospital board meeting. All of this was provoked by Smitty continuing to ask questions. He didn't receive anything from Lia. She dies the day after their meeting. He thought her motivation had shifted. She wanted to know what he knew. She was pumping him for information while he tried to keep the conversation on her. It didn't lead anywhere. Heather still saw it as a threat. And so, she causes this drama. She isn't shy about hiding the fact she is Joey's sister either. She makes that relationship clear with most people she meets. The only time she has kept that connection hidden was with Martin and Smitty. That was purposeful. Joey knows she's up to no good. He's still powerless to do anything about it.
Eva's upset Kat is doing the same thing with Izaiah that she did with Tomas. She sees her getting close to her boyfriend in the name of forging an intimate relationship. When Eva and Tomas talk, their conversation always comes back to Kat even when they try not to. Between Kat and Izaiah, it isn't always about Eva. Her presence is still noted. Eva insists that Kat had everything handed to her. She hasn't had to struggle. It was difficult when Kat had to decide about donating her liver. Eva wasn't conscious for that. That action hasn't meaningful changed their relationship. They still bad mouth each other to their loved ones. Eva isn't impressed by what Kat has contributed to her business. She doesn't see Kat as having the experience for that position. That's ridiculous considering Ted literally gave Kat and Eva the same job managing his clinic. Eva wasn't qualified either. She believes she's better because she's made a point to endear herself to the staff. She's grasping for ways to keep Kat down as unworthy. It's in parallel to Kat and Chelsea learning their Japanese partner has potentially used exploited labor. Their trip abroad has been called off. They are disappointed and struggle to find the bright side. Naomi and Dani are fierce advocates in their corner. This still sucks. It represents a true setback for their company.
Grade: B-
