The hardest part to negate is that Reynolds genuinely seems to think he’s doing what is best for Cat. Clearly there are more subtle (and less violent) ways for him to note his disappointment with her dating choices, but he has proven to be a man who believes in extremes – even if that means recruiting help from Cat’s inner-circle to do so.
Gabe is in an awkward position now that Cat has admitted that Vincent is her one and only. On the first season of Beauty and the Beast, Gabe was the bad guy. Point blank. It wasn’t until Vincent went rogue and Gabe ensconced the whole protective vibe that he started to gain some credence with Cat and her friends, and earn himself some fan support.
Even though it was always a long shot, his romance with Cat added a certain amount of credibility to his transformation from selfish to selfless. Their breakup has left him emotionally fragile, and Reynolds jumped at the opportunity to capitalize on this weakness. With Gabe’s reach and Reynolds influence, this could mean real trouble for everyone.
It’s not until the end of the episode that we get a real peek at the extremes that Muirfield’s former clients are willing to take, but kidnapping Cat is definitely a bold move. If Reynolds is behind it, the way her captor’s treat her should be the biggest tell. Obviously this is all a ploy to draw Vincent out, just like setting him up was a way to lower his chances of being able to hide with his face plastered across the news.
And, even in the midst of crisis, Beauty and the Beast still managed to throw a little something into this fast-paced episode to give fans a reason to cheer. Tess (Nina Lisandrello) and JT (Austin Basis) have moved from one night stand to full-fledged couple. This wasn’t the highlight of the episode, but it reinforced the human element of the show which is often overshadowed by more beast-related drama.
Beauty and the Beast didn’t waste a second of this episode getting bogged down with the details. Although there are still a lot of questions hanging in the air, the writers clearly were working under the philosophy of ‘give it all we’ve got,’ and it paid off. “Beast is the New Black” rewarded fans for their patience with an intense forty-two minutes of television drama.