Last night’s episode of Revenge left us once again questioning the motives and loyalties of some of Hampton’s elite. With a few big reveals it was an episode you didn’t want to miss, so let’s dig in!
The episode started with a flashback to Emily and Eli’s foster days. We got a better look at Mrs. Hayward, their foster mother, and learned that even as a child Emily was fond of red markers. Only back then, it was her father’s face that she was crossing out. We saw young Eli and Amanda continue their pact to always stay together, even when Mrs. Hayward was locking them in dungeon-like closets. Yep, this woman should definitely be allowed to have kids.
Cut back to the present, we learned that Eli invited Emily to have a bigger role in the ACF (Amanda Clarke Foundation). Victoria is clearly not happy about this, and Emily gets a surprise as well when she learns that Eli has not only been in touch with their foster mother, but his first order of business as co-chair is to have the ACF sponsor the Hayward House so that the foster home can stay open. This makes Emily question Eli’s motives even further. She wants to know what his end game is. Emily, you are not the only one wondering. He says he’s doing it for her. He vowed to always protect her and even if she forgot what Mrs. H did to them, he didn’t. He’s out for revenge. So, because that is a magic word when it comes to Emily, she says she’s in — but they’re going to do it her way.
Elsewhere, Padma was out in public again telling Nolan that she received proof that her father was still alive. With the stakes higher than ever, Nolan made the choice to hand over the program — but not without some things going on behind the scenes. He enlisted his trusty sidekick Emily, who of course clued in Aiden, and the 3 devised a plan: when Padma got the call to meet The Initiative and make the drop, they’d be ready. The only problem: the drop got moved early and Daniel was having a not-so-secret meeting with Emily in New Haven (turns out, Victoria knew), so she couldn’t make it. So, it was up to Nolan and Aiden to hit the target. But when Padma handed over Carrion and went to the trunk of the van to “see her dad” he wasn’t there, she got thrown in, and Nolan made Aiden miss the hit on Trask. So in summary: The Initiative now has the world’s most ‘deadly computer program’ and Padma and her father’s lives are hanging in the balance. This my friends, is what we call an unsuccessful mission.
Back at the Hayward House, Eli is once again making us suspect of his intentions. After leaving Emily to snoop, which at first I thought he was a great wingman, he had his own private conversation with Mrs. H. He basically said that everyone is falling for his game, and he’ll have the money to her in no time. The catch? He was really playing her. At the press conference held to broadcast the ACF donating money to the Hayward House, instead of praising his foster mother, he aired all her dirty laundry on live TV. He even had the rest of Emily’s foster siblings there as back-up. But what seemed like a flawless execution, actually became flawed when Mrs. H decided to drop a bomb of her own: Eli was the one who set the infamous fire that sent Emily to juvie. Did anyone see that coming?
While all that was happening, Jack was still on his mission to make someone pay for fake Amanda’s death. Luckily for him, Declan decided to be useful this episode and pit-pocketed Trey’s (remember him? he used to steal things for Kenny Ryan) cell phone. Why? So he could get Kenny’s number for Jack. So after a few fake texts, he arranged a meeting. Only it wasn’t Trey who showed up to meet Kenny, it was Jack. Kenny explained that his brother was working solo, but he did have something that Jack could use: Nate recorded all of his meetings with Conrad. Ladies and gentleman, we have more evidence.
The episode ended with the biggest reveal of all. You see part of how Eli was able to initially get Emily on board with his plan, was by showing her a letter from her father from when they were younger. Part of what set her whole plan in motion, was that she thought her dad didn’t care about her. But it turns out, David Clarke was taking lessons from Noah in The Notebook and wrote her a lot letters. I wrote you everyday for a year while in prison! Jokes aside, isn’t it crazy to think of how different her life would have been if she had known back then that her dad did care? She realized there would have been no juvie, no fires, and fake Amanda would still be alive. But despite it all she told Eli what’s done is done. Not really forgiveness, but this is Emily we’re talking about. It helped that she was able to cross Mrs. H off her list with the red sharpie without having to lift a finger. He also told her that he tried to get all the letters back for her, but only got a confession explaining that Mrs. H had sold them. But who would want a bunch of letters from a convicted felon? Somebody who could use that information for, say, a book? Cue Emily making a visit to none other then Mason Treadwell.
At the jail, Emily asked what happened to the rest of letters. He said they burned along with everything else he owned when she burned down his house. +5 for you Mason! But that’s not enough for Emily, she knows he read them he just doesn’t want to budge. So, Emily reminds him that she’s not only his ticket out of there, but the key to his next book as well. So Mason gives her a nice little plot twist: Victoria Grayson has another son.
Some leftovers: Did you trust Eli? Is he gone for good? What do you think happened to Padma? Are you worried Victoria knows about Daniel and Emily? Can you believe she has another son?