"Beyond the Gates" Week 18 Review

So I'm late with this recap, but this time, it's only partially my fault. Most of the blame is on CBS, and as much as I want to say why this early in the story, I'll wait a bit for that, and all I'll say for now is that your wait won't be as long as CBS' for sure. But anyway, it was the final full week in June (June 23-27), the Cup was awarded, the NBA Champions were crowned, and, but Beyond the Gates remained hot.

So here's what took place in the final full week of June:

June 23

June 23 is a memorable date for WWE fans: it was on that day in 2003 that Kane was unmasked after failing to defeat Triple H. And it's fitting that I say that because the bit-by-bit unmasking of Martin's past continued on with this confrontation with Kenneth, whose racism continued to be displayed without any subtlety. You know, every fiber of my being wanted Martin to beat the bejesus out of that clown, but I knew he wouldn't. Martin's a high road guy. So it all boiled down to money with Kenneth, and he was demanding a payday for his silence, because of course he was.

June 24

Look at this (mostly) rogues gallery that gathered together in the tail end of June 24's episode! The group that came together in this quest for Martin included Vernon, Bill, Ted, and even Joey, among a few others! I'm a huge fan of Legends of Tomorrow, and seeing that group gave me a LoT vibe. In that show, a group of random supers band together for a greater good, but they weren't all heroic. It was a mix of white-meat babyfaces, anti-hero babyfaces, and a few heels. Same (mostly) applied here, but it was mostly rogues, gypsies, tramps, and thieves (and that's just Ted), with Vernon as the only truly heroic piece on this wild board.

June 25

Elsewhere, June 25 saw another wrinkle in the whole Hayley pregnancy angle, with Dani emphasizing the word "angle." So Hayley suffered some issues and ended up hospitalized, and we would see Ashley (in all her uselessness) actually berate Dani for even suggesting that Hayley's pregnancy was fake. Of course, that made how that episode ended even that much sweeter. All was fine with Hayley, but Ashley learns that Hayley never asked for an ultrasound. Hmmmm. I wonder why. The look on Ashley's face when she realized how stupid she was to question Dani was priceless.

June 26

June 26 is always a special day for me, as on that day, it was the anniversary of the Colorado Avalanche's 3rd Stanley Cup Championship. Also on that day, we saw Day 1 of the attempt (if you will) for some semblance of harmony between Kat and Eva. Both girls have their flaws, though I still lean more towards Eva than Kat, because Kat has been way too arrogant for my taste in recent weeks. Despite this, I actually do hope that we do see Eva and Kat truly get along. I'm dead serious. The devout optimist in me just can't help but want this to happen. And in the crazy world of soaps, anything's possible.

June 27

You know, a funny and strange thing happened during that week: I actually kinda liked Bill. Not a whole lot, but enough. Funny how a serious stroke can make someone even quasi-likable, but that's what happened with Bill, at least for that week. The meeting with Dani saw Bill act something close to human, actually taking responsibility for how things ended, and on the June 27 episode, we see Bill handle his business with Kenneth, basically telling him to get out of dodge or face consequences. Bill, I'll give it to him, handled his business for sure.

Now, on to why I'm so late with this. For some reason, CBS decided to preempt Beyond the Gates for a whole week after this! Yeah. So from June 30 to July 4, CBS reran the entire first week of shows. A lot of viewers raged at this, and some are wondering if this is racially motivated. I always thought that soaps were "no days off," unless March Madness hit CBS. Yet BTG had been preempted four separate times after March Madness, and in every one of those four times, CBS still found some way to have new episodes of The Young and the Restless and The Bold and the Beautiful. Every. Single. Time.

Even so, I did mean to write this a few days earlier than I did. CBS better not pull this crap again. Or, if they're going to preempt BTG, preempt all of the daytime stuff! And yes, that includes my beloved Price is Right, too. They have to be fair. Either preempt all or preempt none. Don't be biased.

With that, Beyond the Gates returns on Monday, July 7, and I'm amped to see what the upcoming week will bring!