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UGLY BETTY - Aghh! Cliffhanger!

You'd think I'd be used to end-of-season cliffhangers by now, but I still shrieked like an old woman at the TV set when this season of Ugly Betty ended with Betty walking out of her family's home in Queens (which through the magic of CGI was moved to Brooklyn?) with her suitcase in hand.  Was she going to Arizona to marry Henry?  Was she going to Rome with Gio?  Or was she choosing "neither of the above?"

We'll have to wait months - months! - before we find out, and it's killing me.

I'm thinking that Betty probably chose "neither of the above."  I mean, she can't move to Tucson.  It's a lovely town, Tucson, but that would mean the end of the show.  She seems more likely to go to Rome with Gio, but I think this would be moving too fast for her.  Yep, I think she went off to Nepal or something to find herself.

Aside from the cliffhanger, they covered a lot of ground this week.  Hilda got together with Coach, who is married!  Gasp!  Marc and Amanda were back to being Marc and Amanda, which was nice.  The Mode vs Elle softball game was cute, particularly the fear everyone had for Naomi Campbell.  The Lindsey Lohan flashback sequence was funny, although I hate it when people pick on Betty. 

Daniel's little French son was an unexpected but perhaps inevitable development, considering the guy's rampant libido.  I'm not convinced the kid is his, but it was just the opening La Slater needed to edge him out of the top spot at Mode - with Alexis' help.  Man, she threw Daniel under the bus, didn't she?  And after he stuck up for her, too.  Not cool.

Well, I guess we'll have to wait until the fall season starts to get the answers to all the questions this episode posed.  I'm hoping that Betty and Gio take it slow, Henry drops out of the picture, Daniel's paternity test comes up negative, and Alexis gets her comeuppance.  Wili can stay where she is - it wouldn't be a soap opera without a Witch Queen.

--Dave Campbell

UGLY BETTY - La Slater returns

Ahh, that's better.

The status quo returned to normal (somewhat) as Wilhelmina Slater, the diva of deceit, leveraged her way back into a position of control at Mode.  The only people who are happy about this are Marc and Amanda.  Oh, and me.  I'm a big fan of La Slater.  Without her it just wouldn't be Ugly Betty now, would it?  The scene where she triumphantly marched into the Mode offices with Amanda bouncing around in the background like a mean little puppy was brilliant.

 

It was nice to see Hilda score some Coach time, but I'm not 100% sold on this guy.  He seems a little bland for her, doesn't he?  I think Hilda needs somebody as colorful as she is. 

While Hilda was doing well as far as guys go, Betty's coping with the fallout of her break-up with Henry.  Is there a future full of Gio for Betty?  I'd like to think so - the guy's got a big heart, he's charming, he obviously likes her  - Gio's perfect.  Maybe it's something they'll explore next season.  As long as next season keeps Wilhelmina in supreme villainess mode, sign me up.

--Dave Campbell

UGLY BETTY - Fierce!

I almost felt bad for Renee, Wilhelmina's unbalanced pyromaniac sister, on this episode of Ugly Betty.  Driven to uncontrollable paranoia when Wili swapped her anti-psychotic meds with diet pills, Renee became convinced that Betty was her rival for Daniel's affections - and therefore had to be eliminated.

Renee wasn't the only person who thought Betty had the hots for Daniel; she convinced Daniel himself that Betty had a thing for him.  His discomfort around Betty and his mid-meeting dream sequence about Betty were hilarious.   While I almost felt bad for Renee, who I never liked anyway, I really felt bad for Daniel, who sees the woman he thought he loved dragged away to a psychiatric hospital after she nearly incinerates his apartment (with Betty inside it.)  Poor guy.

The highlights of the episode for me were:

Daniel's "rescue" of Betty - He knocks down the door of his apartment to save Betty from the flames and Ms. Firestarter, only to find a disheveled Betty holding a fire extinguisher.  Betty can take care of herself, thank you very much.

Gio and Henry's showdown - Jealous, but slightly less psychotic than Renee, Henry tells Gio to stay away from Betty.  Bluffing, Gio challenges Henry to a fight, and in a panic Henry punches Gio, knocking him to the floor.  I guess Henry can take care of himself, too.

Fierce! - Designer Christian Siriano had a hilarious cameo this week as he shows up at the mode office with an entourage of fierce models (and Amanda in tow).  Renee, in crazy mode, sees the models and yells at Daniel, "Are these your whores?"

"You're making fun of me." - Betty teasingly declares her love for Daniel at the end of the episode and he sheepishly realizes he's dead wrong about her crush on him.

Cattiness, intrigue, romance, jealousy, and ridiculous outfits - a solid episode of Ugly Betty by anyone's standards.

--Dave Campbell

UGLY BETTY - Betty's back!

 

Ugly Betty returned to form this week with another hilarious, well-crafted episode.  Betty’s dreams of an “ultimate birthday extravaganza” were dashed to bits when Henry couldn’t make it to dinner and left Betty alone with a big pot of fondue and a snooty waiter.  Fortunately Gio, sweet Gio, rode to her rescue and gave Betty a carriage ride and even some fireworks.  I’d like to see Betty and Gio together at this point.  What did Gio do to his hair, though?  It looked better when it was longer.

Wilhelmina and her co-schemer Marc were up to their usual chicanery ($5 word!) and plotted to destroy Renee’s relationship with Daniel by swapping her anti-depressant/anti-anxiety pills with fat-blocker pills.  Next week it looks like Renee has a meltdown, literally, with fire and everything.  Will Wilhelmina gain the upper hand in her cold war with Renee?

One question, though:  Wilhelmina mentioned to Marc that Renee was capable of horrible things and said that she’d killed someone.  I’m guessing this was just because she knew somebody was eavesdropping on their conversation with a baby monitor, and not actual reality, right?  And when I say “actual reality” I really mean “heightened Ugly Betty reality.”

It’s nice to have Ugly Betty back.  I'd forgotten how whimsical and funny the show could be.

--Dave Campbell

Ugly Betty

Watch for new Ugly Betty episodes on Thursdays at 8/7c!