"Beyond the Gates" Week 14 Review

So Beyond the Gates started the fourteenth week of existence a day late. Why? Monday was Memorial Day. So the show actually aired a rerun for the first time in its short existence. The show has had quite a few preemptions already. The first one was caused by March Madness, which is understandable. After all, it's March Madness. Then there's the preemptions due to UEFA Soccer, and that bugged me a bit, because while BTG was preempted, CBS affiliates were somehow able to air new episodes of The Young and the Restless and The Bold and the Beautiful. Hmmm.

So as a result of the holiday, Week 14 was a four day week that started with this on Tuesday:

May 27

Why is it always the characters we pray that they never even think of reproducing... the ones who are expecting? So the Tuesday episode saw, among other things, Hayley tell Bill that she's pregnant. This is the second time she dropped this bombshell, but the first time was a so-called false alarm. This time, it's legit... maybe. I know this: the announcement came after Hayley went on another hissy fit about how "unfair" she's had it as Bill's second wife. Seriously, Hayley's victim complex has its own victim complex. Blech.

May 28

God bless Dani Dupree. She is the gift that keeps on giving. So Dani learns about Hayley's pregnancy from Chelsea, and immediately, Dani's spidey sense is tingling. Dani senses what we're all thinking: Hayley's not preggers. It's a long game. Hayley feigns pregnancy to keep Bill, then she can "miscarry," shed the crocodile tears, and she's got him pinned. Dani actually confronts Hayley with her suspicions, and honestly, if it were anyone else, I would be really critical of this. However, it's Dani. Dani is one of the few characters who can pull off the "I know what you're up to" speech to someone, and still come out unscathed, smelling like roses. She's that good, I know it.

May 29

Ted Richardson is an idiot. Now, when Leslie did try to force herself in to Ted's place, he did his best to keep her out. She threatened to make a scene; Ted was caught between a rock and a hard place, so he lets her in. That I can somewhat get. Ted does try to get Leslie out as quick as possible... but he does such a piss poor job of it. He lets Leslie get in her head with her mentions of Eva and her "concerns" about their daughter. Seriously, Leslie? You mean the same daughter you dragged into your bullshit, kicked out when she grew a conscience, and tried to throw under the bus for all of your shit? And Ted should have drilled that into Leslie's head, but not only did he not do that, he let Leslie hang around too long.

The result: Leslie acts as if she and Ted were all over each other as Kat arrives, and it leaves Ted having to explain himself in a situation where he's actually innocent for a change. Ted would not survive in a Lifetime movie. Lifetime Movie 101 states that letting a villainess overstay her "welcome" like that is a huge detriment. It fucks with the person's mind and gets them caught in bad situations. With Ted being in a hole that's even deeper than the Colorado Rockies' deficit in the MLB standings, the last thing he should have done was let Leslie linger around as long as she did.

May 30

We could finally see the beginning of the beginning of Leslie's downfall here. So as Eva enters the apartment, she sees Leslie with a very familiar object: the motorcycle helmet. We remember this--all the way back in Week 1. The same helmet that Leslie donned as she ran down Laura. Eva keeps it to herself as Leslie later goes on to demand Eva's key to their apartment, and coldly telling Eva to knock if she arrives. Even Soldier Field in Chicago isn't as cold as Leslie is. But Eva does have an ace in the hole: a spare key, and she enters in the very final scene and gets the helmet. Oh baby!

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So that's Week 14, and Week 15 will take the soap into the month of June! The weather will get hotter, but I sense the business on Beyond the Gates will be absolutely scorching!