Revenge Recap: The Return of the Red Marker

This week’s Revenge was a classic. Not only did it focus on the takedown, but it dished out trust issues galore (some more literal than others), fed us a shocking reveal and gave our hellcats umpteen excuses to bare their claws. Let’s review.

TRUST ME | Victoria’s prenup may be null and void, but Conrad won’t let her anywhere near Grayson Global, divesting all of her stock in the company. With a little nudge from her lawyer, Victoria discovers that if Daniel regains access to his trust, they can combine their shares and take over. So, Daniel convinces Conrad to reactivate his trust… but there’s a catch: The money is his, but the shares stay locked up until he turns 30 or gets married. To Victoria’s dismay, Daniel suggests the latter, taking it as a sign that he should propose to Emily… two months after he met her. We spied a hint of maternal instinct when Victoria put Daniel’s future before her own, not wanting him to rush into marriage as uncertainly as she had with his father. Then again, her lawyer points out that the clause doesn’t specify a successful marriage, and we know from the first episode that Victoria does eventually give some sort of blessing. But as a back-up plan, she also sends lapdog Ashley to tell BFF Emily about Daniel’s wedding-ring trust amendment, claiming she “would want to know if my boyfriend’s motives were pure before he becomes my fiancé.”

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TARGET ACQUIRED | Emily’s latest target is Mason Treadwell (guest star Roger Bart, late of Desperate Housewives). Mason, back when he used to be Leo Treadwell, was a journalist covering Flight 197 who was hired to tell the true story of David Clarke. Leo was set to help rescue David — even making a promise to that effect to a young Amanda Clarke — until he met Queen Victoria. After he made what he refers to as “a deal with the devil,” his book “might as well been written by the Graysons,” Emily says. It is also revealed that Emily had a bit of a pyro streak — she apparently burned down her foster family’s home and later, after reading “the truth” in Mason’s tell-all, torched her last photo of her dad.

HOUSE CALL | After posing as a fan of the book and using Nolan’s billionaire status to spark Mason’s interest, Emily gets herself and her pal an invite to the writer’s home. If she wasn’t already scheming when she arrived, Mason’s tour practically created a plan for her. Not only does he write everything on a 1920s typewriter – no autosave there – but he also keeps only one copy of his latest memoir, insisting there should be no copies of work until it’s complete. Handily, said work is conveniently left in plain sight in his office, as is a glass case full of all of the one-on-one recordings he used to write the David Clarke memoir. The cherry on top? He would be reinterviewing Amanda Clarke, thereby allowing Emily to use their encounter to her advantage.

THE PUPPETMASTER | Mason, thinking Amanda harmless, assures Victoria that he is “sure the girl is just here to get some closure.” Victoria responds, “The question is, how far will she go to get it?” Oh, if only she knew. During the interview, Emily talks Fauxmanda through every question (although she doesn’t quite need the coaching). Fauxmanda is very convincing as she outs Mason as a fraud and accuses him of taking the Graysons’ bribe. Nolan quips, “She’s good,” especially when Emily prompts her to stand up and “get in his face,” in turn threatening him and setting the wheels in motion for Mason to blow the lid off the whole conspiracy.

THE PLAN | At Mason’s memoir reading, it would appear that he is about to admit his wrongdoing. But Victoria’s threats cause him to chicken out at the last minute. While Nolan is livid about this (Quote of the night: “Spineless, seersucking dilettante. I haven’t been this disappointed since Phantom Menace!”), it turns out it’s all part of Emily’s plan. Knowing that Victoria had too much power over Mason, she asks Nolan to assist her, capitalizing on Mason’s obsession with penning the billionaire’s biography. While Emily refuses to tell Nolan the details of her plan, she smugly states, “You’ll know it when you see it.”

PLAYING WITH FIRE | As soon as Nolan and Mason leave, Emily arrives, clad in her classic all-black ensemble. She raids the place, pocketing Mason’s entire collection of interview footage before lighting one of Mason’s cigarettes – with Fauxmanda’s lighter, effectively framing her for the crime (especially after the angry interview earlier) – and setting it down on the only copy of his manuscript. As she walks out, the house quickly goes up in flames, exploding behind her. This isn’t the best part, though — the best part is Mason’s reaction. As he cries and screams, pounding his fists into the lawn, Nolan’s two snarky, proud words sum the night up perfectly: “Bad girl.”

WHO’S YOUR DADDY? | While watching footage from Mason’s interviews with her father, Emily discovers what we’ve all been speculating: Charlotte is her half sister. (Executive producer Mike Kelley told us the answer was coming!) Of course, we are left with only a close-up, shocked look on Emily’s face, as she’s unsure of what it means for her future or, more importantly, what it means to her plot to destroy the Graysons.

OTHER NOTES | Declan and Charlotte visit her future prep school and brace themselves for their separation; Nolan tries learning how to shoot a gun with Emily and Daniel (and who knew? Daniel is surprisingly a good shot); Fauxmanda goes all Coyote Ugly at the Stowaway, causing a disagreement with Jack that ends with him deciding to let loose and take her to Atlantic City.

Revenge fans, what did you think of last night’s episode? Were you shocked when Emily discovered Charlotte was her sister? Did you see that fire coming from a mile away? And what are you hoping to see next?