ABC/COLLEEN HAYESLast time on Revenge, we saw Mason (Roger Bart) finally get what was coming to him. After ages of his prodding and tormenting, he's finally off to prison, only to one day be released once Emily (Emily VanCamp) says her work is done. Sure. That'll go off with out a hitch. In the meantime, he has time to write a tell-all.
WHAT WE LEARNED
A Glimpse Into Victoria's Sad Past: In this almost-entirely flashback-based episode, we're thrown all the way back to 2006. But Hampton's style revenge was alive and well back in the day, and some of the most interesting scenes in this ep involve Victoria's mother, Marion (Adrienne Barbeau), who drops by for Thanksgiving after secretly planning a trip, receiving only Daniel's (Josh Bowman) blessing in advance. It was a poor choice on her part. What does she want? To show off a new rich suitor, and to prove to this man that she's normal. It's all going fine and well, for Marion, as Victoria (Madeline Stowe) appears to even be keeping her trap shut about just how horrible of an childhood she had. That is until her mother's beau Ben actually shows up. Then we hear some horror stories, like the time one of Marion's lover want to leave her, so mommy dearest made Victoria shoot him and then tell the police that he was trying to attack them. It was a sick upbringing, and it promptly scares Ben away from Marion. Happy Revenge Thanksgiving!
How Nolan Lost his Lover and CFO: Back in 2006, Nolan's (Gabriel Ross) business was really starting to take off—the company even went public. His lover at the time was the NolCorp CFO Marco Romero (E.J. Bonilla). The two are getting along swimmingly, even canceling other Thanksgiving plans so that they can be cute and festive together. But Marco, workaholic that he is, finds something troublesome while the two of them are alone. Why is $500 million missing, exactly? Nolan has some explaining to do to his CFO, some issues that quickly expand into trust issues between the two lovebirds. Nolan—after some time not explaining the absence of funds to Marco—finally tells him that the money went to the company's initial investor, or his daughter, at least. And that's when he tells him about Amanda Clarke. Depressed and disenchanted, Marco leaves. The relationship is over. Another Happy Revenge Thanksgiving!
Aiden and Emily, Together in the Present: In 2006, Emily and Aiden (Barry Sloane) are training with Takeda (Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa). Together they are trying to work over a man named Dmitri, a dude who, we come to learn, is responsible for the disappearance of Aiden's sister Colleen. Eventually, Aiden does get his revenge on Dmitri, but really the flashbacks here are more about the relationship between Aiden and Emily, and just how it is their current bond came to be. Flash-forward to present day: The two are rolling around in bed, looking jazzed and contented. He wouldn't have believed that they would one day be in bed together, he says, adding to the fairy tale vibe.
The Graysons, Past and Present: In a scene set in 2006, Daniel comes home from college and tells his father that he doesn't want to study business—and, hey, actually, he doesn't want to study law or political science, either. He wants to be a writer, and not just any kind of writer, but—gasp!—a poet. Surprisingly, Conrad is calm and receptive. A little too calm. He offers to read his son's work and send it out to some publisher friends. But of course Conrad has got a very specific and evil plan brewing. He doesn't send the writing samples to his friends, but instead burns them and tells Victoria that he'll have rejection letters sent to Daniel, all graciously denying him acceptance to their publications, and forever crushing his little boy's dreams. Fast-forward to the present: Conrad notes the irony in the current plot set forward by his son to overthrow his empire, and he wishes, just for a fleeting moment, that Daniel had been a poet.
ONE-LINERS
"No, I'm ready."—Emily
"I have to say, I'm impressed with mom. She's breaking out her favorite China patterns."—Daniel
"This is for my sister."—Aiden
"My daddy was in the service. He taught me how to protect myself."—Emily
"Looks like you'll get to use those self-defense classes after all."—Dmitri
"I suspect you'll land on your feet."—Victoria
"Perhaps Daniel should have been a poet after all."—Conrad