Revenge, Season 2, Episode 4: “Intuition”
Written by Dan Dworkin and Jay Beattle
Directed by Randy Zisk
Airs Sundays at 9 pm (ET) on ABC
“Before you track her down you better be prepared for what you find.” Aiden’s (Barry Sloane) warning to Emily (Emily Van Camp) at the beginning of this week’s episode rings clear through the rest of the episode.
I was worried that Daniel’s (Joshua Bowman) corporate spying on Grayson Enterprises and his father would grow stale but it’s actually quite fascinating. I can’t help but wonder though if Daniel is really smart enough to unravel the mystery surrounding his father. He’s always been so easily swayed, first by Emily, then Victoria (Madeline Stowe), and now the ever sneaky Ashley (Ashley Madekwe). I get the feeling though that he’s growing weary and more confident.
Though it’s only a few episodes in, I’m already growing a tad bit tired of the Declan (Conor Paolo) storyline. Learning that he wanted to buy the bar did nothing but elicit a shrug from me. With so much else going on I’ve never really been able to muster up a passing interest in Declan.
I’m always left shouting at least one massive question when watching Revenge. This week’s seems to be what exactly is Aiden up too? It’s clear he’s more than just someone from Emily’s past and it’s also crystal clear that he, or whoever he’s working for, has a vested interest in finding Emily’s mother, Kara (Jennifer Jason Leigh).
On a lesser show, Amanda’s (Margarita Levieva) fall from the balcony would have been corny and boarding on soap territory but instead it plays well. This is due mostly to the excellent acting that follows. Each character’s reaction to her injury is perfectly constructed and a great lead in for Emily to reach her crossroads. It is also a great setup to the creepy scene featuring Kara “lovingly” stroking Amanda’s cheek.
Revenge delivers this week on several fronts. Not only does it give us some great scenes with Nolan (Gabriel Mann) and Padma but it also gives us some major revelations. We get a huge answer from Victoria when she confesses to Conrad that “I hand delivered Kara to Gordon Murphy”.
But the biggest admission and biggest surprise comes when we learn the real reason why Kara was in the mental institution. She tried to kill her daughter. The revelation is an expected twist. Before Emily only wanted to find her mother and get revenge for her but now she has to face the fact that Kara might not be who she imagined her to be. The twist shows why Revenge is just so good.
Episodes might start off slow like “Intuition”, did but they always go out with a bang. And I’m fairly certain that I’m not the only one who can’t wait for the moment when Emily comes face to face with Mommy Dearest.
Tressa Eckermann