Two Takes: The Catch “The Family Way” 

As this title suggests, this week’s episode of ABC’s The Catch was all about family. We picked up where we left off with Alice and Ben both staring down the barrel of one another’s guns as they squared off over who should get the $3 million in drug money — Alice to save her brother, Ben to save Rhys, who is like his brother.

Alice won in the end, but that didn’t mean Ben was left high and dry. Rhys may be like Ben’s brother, but he actually IS Margot’s brother, so after a not-so-quick visit to her hotel, Ben walked out with the money he needed to save Rhys’ life.

But, as with anything on this show, nothing is ever quite that simple. Now that Ben and Margot have been reunited, she’s ready to make him pay for abandoning her and their about-to-be family life — a fee she collects by smuggling smuggled diamonds and giving him a piece of her mind.

And let’s not forget Tommy. Alice not only faced her ex for him, she also risked her life to save him. He “repaid” the favor by, once again, being super shady, snatching up the drug money and going on the lam, leaving her the most pathetic of apology notes.

Oh and the real kicker, we finally found out the identify of the red-hatted women who is trying to kill (and steal from) Margot. And let’s just say Mama Margot seemed just as surprised as we did.

Cortney: Tina, once again, I hardly know where to start with this episode. They pack so much into every week that I’m exhausted by the end, but also eager for more. Since we were on the edge of our seats at the end of last week, I say we pick up where we left off. I not only love that Ben backed down as soon as he heard that Alice had been threatened by the cartel (from gun-pointing foe to fair-hearted boyfriend in 2 seconds flat!) but that Alice’s solution to the problem involved her letting not one, but two cats out of the bag! Telling Ben that she’s working with Margot and revealing to Margot that Ben is out of prison and chumming around with the FBI — I guess desperate times call for desperate measures!

Tina: Ben needed to find out Margot is Alice’s client. I didn’t like this secret hanging over the couple. And, yes, had he known right away he would have advised Alice against working with his ex. He knows it. Alice knows it. We all know it. Consequently, Margot helped with the poison problem and then she helped herself to more.

Margot works very hard to keep her walls up, but we get to see sneak peeks of her vulnerability anyway, which I love. She’s so incredibly hurt over Ben choosing Alice. So hurt she smuggled the smuggled diamonds. Ben, of course, guesses right away and so the two have another confrontation. She tells him she wants him to disappear. She wants every moment with him back. She wants him to stay away from her and stay away from the rectory, which is — as we learn — the safe house for all of the loot the Kensington Firm has amassed in Los Angeles.

I don’t know, Cortney. I may have said this before. I understand these two had a relationship that was both personal and professional but because Alice and Ben have such a sheer amount of chemistry, it’s hard for me to be sympathetic to Margot. Margot and Ben don’t belong together period. Ben and Alice do. Sometimes I feel like she’s making her relationship with Ben to be more than it actually was. It’s difficult when we haven’t really seen these two when they were hot and heavy.

This character analysis of Margot has to include her interactions with Danny. She showed some vulnerability there too, don’t you think? I have to say this was one of my favorite moments of the episode:

Margot: “Where do you think you’re going?”
Danny: “Didn’t you just kick me out of here an hour ago?
Margot: “Don’t be such a baby.”
Danny: “Don’t be such a bitch.”

She thinks that she once again has all the power in this relationship. Danny doesn’t subscribe to this point of view. What did you think about these two?

Cortney: I agree, Margot’s walls make Fort Knox seem like Barbie playhouse. And while it is definitely hard to root for Ben and Margot (Bengot?) having never seen them together together, watching her lambaste him this week definitely gave us some insight into the fact that it was real for her and that her heart was in it. Whether or not Ben felt that way too at one point, I guess we’ll never really know. But regardless, that’s in the past and hopefully putting Ben in hot water with the FBI will allow her to check him off her revengenda and move on.

That being said, when it comes to the physical, she’s clearly already moved on…and then some. She and Danny have no trouble in that department….let’s just say he “mounted her hard drive” many times. Aside from the line you mentioned above, this one was my favorite between those two….mostly because of the stellar way that Danny delivered it, but also the look between the two of them. I don’t think there’s anything emotional there, this is just a fun dalliance for both of them at this point, but like it or not, he’s seeing a more vulnerable side of her. And knowing Danny and the fact that he has heart and cares about people, I’m wondering how long he can or will gloss over her obvious wounded-ness.

And now with another family member coming out of the woodwork, I can only imagine that we’ll be going much deeper into Margot’s past and possibly what caused her walls to be so tall. We both know her mother is a sore subject and can easily shake her, so I can only imagine what a daughter will do to her slowly cracking facade. Speaking of which, didn’t we think that Margot DEFINITELY recognized the picture last week? How is that this week, she seemed truly unaware of the woman’s identity and comparatively shocked when it turned out to be her daughter? What do you think it was about the picture that had her so rattled last week if not recognition?

Tina: Yeah, it seemed to me like there was a flicker of recognition last week but it felt like she was completely unaware this week. Strange. I am dying to know how Margot doesn’t recognize her daughter. I’m also super into finding out what kind of mother Margot is going to be if this is on the up and up.

I was also ecstatic to see Valerie go into action mode in order to try and track down this mystery daughter. It really seemed like Team VAlice was on a bit of a winning streak in “The Family Way.” So was Team Justine (she gets the team named after her since, as she pointed out, she has the power in this relationship).

Val and Alice caught up with Margot’s daughter at the rectory. Alice turned to her ex in order to secure a confession from Tasker, and in the process, brought down the Southland Drug Cartel. Meanwhile, Ben and Rhys’ quick thinking in turning the diamond smuggling duo against each other resulted in a well-deserved collar for the FBI.

Hmm….we have covered the daughter. Let’s move on to Alice and Tommy. Two things about this story: 1) Tommy sucks. Having said that, he’s aware of who he is. But he broke Alice’s heart and I don’t like it one bit. He made off with the money even though she gave him a chance to join the firm and go legit. He wasn’t interested. I hope she meant it when she told him not to call or write or ever come back.

2) Ethan is super hot. But we knew that since he’s played by Warren Christie from Alphas, Chicago Fire and Girlfriends’ Guide to Divorce. To me, the scenes featuring Alice and Ethan really gave me pause. She turned to him because she needed him for his SEC contacts. But when they were face to face, there wasn’t animosity like I thought there was going to be. He did say something interesting. After she told him that Tommy was innocent, he said: “So was I.”

What did he mean, Cortney? What. Did. He. Mean?

Cortney: Well, obviously I don’t have the answer to this yet but if I had to guess, I’d say it has something to do with Alice’s often-referenced questionable past and why the Nick-Val-Alice band originally broke up. That being said, I definitely agree with you, I didn’t sense any animosity between Alice and Ethan, but rather a cautiousness and overall weariness on her part and the signs of love not yet lost on his. Could he have been the one to lead Alice down a “bad path?” Or perhaps he took the fall for her when she forged that trail for herself? Either way, he’s clearly been branded as a criminal and I have no doubt we’ll find out more sooner rather than later. And as long as he keeps bringing that smoldering stare to the show, I’m on board.

And now on to Tommy. Tommy, Tommy, Tommy. Not only did he ransack her house but he called her ex to bail him out of jail, knowing what it would do to Alice and then after she LITERALLY faces down a drug cartel to SAVE HIS LIFE, he up and steals the money and runs off, leaving Alice to once again deal with the consequences. I. Can’t. Even. Could he be any more selfish or self-destructive?!

That scene at the airport broke my heart. I really thought for a second that he came to his sense and was ready to change. After all, Alice had changed (again, I need more on this!), so he can too! But no, that kind of selfishness is too deeply ingrained and not even her spin-jitsu or the thought of her calling mom could stop him. And to be honest, part of me couldn’t believe Alice let him go. If she had called the cops on him, I wouldn’t have blamed her. Honestly, all I can hope is that if he does call or write or ever come back that she sticks to her guns and doesn’t coddle him again. Oh and I hope karma comes back to bite him in the ass too, because as far as I’m concerned, he deserves it.

Now, on to Team Justine. I have to say, I absolutely love the dynamic between these three. More than I even anticipated I would. Justine may have all the power in the legal sense, but Ben and Rhys are holding their own when it comes to setting up the ops. I was so amused by their divide-and-conquer technique, as well as the resulting who-Rogered-who “lover’s quarrel.” They managed to take down Jesse and Yumi, but of course, thanks to Margot, the job is not over and Justine is determined to find out who stole the diamonds and “go after them with everything [she’s] got.”

And let’s just say, terrible toasting skills notwithstanding, this woman is a shark and I have no doubt she means it, which cannot possibly end well for Ben when the truth comes to light. Part of me wanted him to tell her right then and there, but clearly he still has some loyalty to Margot (and possibly thinks he can outplay her?) and is playing this one close to the vest. Tina, what did you think of this triumphant trio?

Tina: Ben probably thinks he can handle this one on his own, especially since Margot now runs in the same vicinity as Alice. We’ll see how that works out.

As for the end of this portion of the diamond smuggling caper, it was so much fun, I had a smile on my face for almost all of it. Ben and Rhys turning the suspects against each other. Justine having to use her considerable wiles to get close to Jesse. Rhys doing the same with Yumi. And then Ben and Rhys having to once again play a faux couple of sorts. It was pure fun. But something tells me the fun might go away for a while now that Justine has those diamonds to track down. She doesn’t seem to be someone that’s going to be distracted from her mission. Time to see if Ben has what it takes to get those diamonds back before Justine can.

Just a few random notes before we call it quits for this edition of Two Takes:

-Sophie hanging out with The Hammer. Entertaining.
-Danny and Margot playing footsie under the table. Steamy.
-Danny in the shower: Hot (Such a shallow TV alert)
-Jesse to Yumi: “You repay me by sleeping with this old man?” Hilarious.
-The Ben and Alice gunpoint conversation at the beginning of the episode. Fabulous.
-How does Ethan go from possible criminal to being friends with the Mayor and the DA?
-Sophie standing up to Tommy. So enjoyable. Her “Stop lying” and “Fix this” was great. Too bad it ultimately didn’t have an effect.

Next week we’re going to have to talk about whether we still feel the same about Danny and Sophie now that Danny and Margot has happened.

The Catch airs Thursday nights at 10/9c on ABC.