Twisted - Recap: Trial by Fury

Credit: ABC Family

The episode takes on a procedural quality, playing out like an episode of Law & Order, split down the middle between detective work and courtroom drama. While there is a brief subplot in which Kyle (Sam Robards) continues his investigation into the
Marna company's building permits in an attempt to exonerate Danny, the episode is mostly focused on Danny's potential expulsion. It's an engrossing route for the show to take, particularly when you consider that, despite the focus on the investigation, the episode isn't really about whether Danny will get expelled or not. It's an episode that basically acts as an exploration of friendship, such as questions of trust, what constitutes a genuine bond, the fear of being ostracized and whether you can really consider a friendship a friendship if it can't withstand even the simplest of hardships. Even when dealing with scandalous, over-the-top situations, Twisted still manages to examine aspects of teen life that are relatable, and doing so in a manner that feels authentic.

Credit: ABC Family

Jo (Maddie Hasson) and Lacey (Kylie Bunbury) are still freezing Danny out after he came clean last week about Regina's necklace. Though he tries to win them back, neither girl is in the mood to trust him again. However, Danny's admission in the school is put under review due to having missed school-ordered therapy while working at the Fall Festival, and while Karen (Denise Richards) immediately realizes that this is really about the rumors of Danny poisoning Cole, it looks like Danny is staring expulsion straight in the face. Matters are made worse by the firing of Coach Chandler (Drew Powell) once the school board discovered that he covered for Danny. It's looking grim for Danny until he gets Principal Tang (Rob Yang) to admit that there is a recourse for him: a hearing in front of the school board to determine his admission status. And so we have our story for the episode, as Danny attempts to gather evidence for the hearing with the help of a reluctant Jo, who is convinced to give Danny another chance by, of all people, Tyler (Chris Zylka), who has decided to put the kibosh on his documentary after everything that's happened. For his part, Cole has turned on his former teammate completely, as the soccer team's decision to ostracize Cole over his support of Danny has prompted him to desert his former friend. Even though he possesses footage from Cole's documentary in which he talks about what a great guy Danny is, Danny opts not to use it so as not to put Cole between a rock and a hard place.

Credit: ABC Family

This inevitably leads to the hearing, which is among the more explosive setpieces of the season. Not only do we get Archie (Grey Damon) burying Danny to the school board by talking about what a menace he is, we get Regina's mother, Gloria, (Jessica Tuck) making her hatred towards Danny well-known to everyone, eventually having her vow to have Danny expelled thrown back in her face by the testimony of Tess (Kimberly Quinn). But things quickly escalate when Gloria calls Danny a "serial killer," prompting Karen to defend her son by calling the late Regina a "whore." And that's not even the coup de grace, as Jo takes the stand and tearfully proclaims that while she doesn't trust Danny and may never trust him again, she can't bring herself to pretend he's not an amazing person. She stops just short of admitting to the entire school that she's in love with him, but the message is clear: Jo is invested in Danny above and beyond the confines of friendship.

Credit: ABC Family

The entire trial, including a rousing defense from Cole, who comes clean and admits that Danny really is a great guy, is outstandingly juicy TV. Everyone involved is firing on all cylinders, particularly Maddie Hasson, who really illustrates the untenable conflict brewing inside Jo. She also gets two excellent post-trial scenes: in the first, she tries to pass off her testimony as a lie meant to make Danny look better in front of the school board, although Danny knows what she really meant, and insists that what they have right now is important to him. However, the second post-trial showcase for Maddie Hasson has Jo unknowingly guilt-tripping Lacey, as she reveals that she's in love with Danny, but adds that she would never date him without first discussing it with her. She states that her friendship with Lacey is incredibly important to her, and she doesn't want to do anything to jeopardize that. This scene is key in setting up how awkward and devastating things are about to get...

Credit: ABC FAMILY/Ron Tom

Rico's (Ashton Moio) fellow Mathlete teammate Doug (Ely Henry) is revealed to have been the creeper videotaping Danny and Lacey's makeout session outside the party, and he hasn't exactly kept the video to himself either. After sending it to the chess club, the video goes viral, prompting Lacey to confront him once Rico makes it apparent to her just how much this could hurt Jo. Kylie Bunbury was the secret MVP for much of this episode, as she gets a terrific scene in which she threatens Doug and promises to make his life a living hell unless he deletes the video and prevents it from spreading further. The unfortunate consequence of Lacey's story is that her spot gets blown up just when she's finally learning to not care so much about what her popularity-obsessed friends think. Naturally, this is because they assure her that no matter what she does, they'll always be her friend. But this might not actually be the case, as both Sarita and Phoebe look like they're about to be sick when they finally see the hookup video at the end of the episode. Oh yes, it all comes out, and in woefully dramatic fashion, with an unknown party sending out the video to everyone in school. One would presume the culprit is the retainer-wearing Mathlete whom Rico warned Lacey about crossing, given her sinister smile at the end of the episode, although I don't think we're really meant to care who sent it out. The end result is the same either way, with Lacey's secret coming out in a big way, and the entire school seeing the video one-by-one, ending with Jo, who receives it over her phone and is frozen numb from the shock and heartbreak of it all. And to make matters worse, the verdict comes in, and Principal Tang breaks the news to Danny that he's been expelled. Talk about your rainy Mondays...

Credit: ABC Family

"Poison of Interest" is a shining example of how Twisted simply keeps getting better and better the more it dips into its well of soap opera twists and turns. This is because unlike many shows, Twisted doesn't overindulge the melodrama. It's a fairly even-handed show in how it splits between melodrama and intrigue, along with incisive character studies. Next week is the recap episode, but we're fast-approaching the summer finale, and the show is displaying no signs of slowing down. Count me in for the ride.