Twisted - Recap: Shipping Wars

But while Jo (Maddie Hasson), Rico (Ashton Moio) and even Danny all come across as relatively sincere in their emotions, there's a disconnect between what Lacey says and what she does. While I get the feeling that the writers are doing this intentionally, in order to illustrate the conflict brewing within Lacey, the way it's written makes her come across as the show's most inconsistent character. I tend to like Lacey, for the most part, but she's starting to become even harder to get a hold on than Danny. She's loyal to the memory of Regina (Karynn Moore) while ripping on Jo for defending Danny, yet she's simultaneously sidling up to Regina's mother (Jessica Tuck) as a pretext for delving deeper into the mystery of Regina's necklace. She then shares her findings with Danny, but then immediately says she doesn't want to actually take her findings to the police, for fear that it'll do damage to Regina's memory. It's thoroughly exhausting, and yet...it kind of makes sense, doesn't it?

Credit: ABC Family

I mean, I can complain about these things, like the tonal inconsistency in Lacey's character, but there's a peculiar kind of rationale behind it. The girl is having dreams in which her dead friend's ghost points her towards clues in her murder investigation, for crying out loud. Of course she's going to be a bit frazzled. But her ambivalence towards Danny goes a bit deeper than just a couple of weird dreams. It turns out her lack of consistency around Danny is the result of barely-restrained romantic feelings. This is a really interesting route to take the story, as I'm not sure Danny and Lacey are the pairing most people were expecting, given how heavily the series has focused on Danny and Jo. But the kiss between Danny and Lacey was electric, and represented the best moment of "The Fest and the Furious," an episode that not only throws a wrench into the Lacey/Jo/Danny dynamic, but also fleshes out the division among Green Grove, with parts of the town falling squarely on Team Danny, while the majority is Team Lock His Ass Up. From a strictly qualitative standpoint, there have been episodes that were better. But this was pretty much my favorite Twisted of the season so far.

Credit: ABC Family

Most of the episode revolves around the controversy brewing in town over whether the Mayor (Christopher Cousins) should allow Danny to attend Green Grove's annual Fall Fest. This story is sprinkled with fragments of smaller stories, such as Kyle's (Sam Robards) frustration at his inability to crack the Desai case, Tess's (Kimberly Quinn) kindness towards Danny after witnessing how his mother was ostracized last week, and Rico's growing jealousy and resentment about Danny's constant presence (and they had been bonding so well last week!). These are all interesting subplots in and of themselves, yet the best of these stories centers on Jo, and the development of her connection to Danny. After admitting last week that Danny represents her way of getting back her old life, Jo becomes more invested in getting back to that old life, inviting Danny to be her date to the Fall Fest. Though Danny initially rejects her request after seeing how hostile the town is at the idea of his attendance, Jo is able to change his mind after she shows up on his doorstep in a stunning gown, with a speech about just how much Fall Fest means to her.

Credit: ABC Family

And so Danny gets dressed up and takes her to the big festival, gaining entrance despite the initial objections of Kyle and the Mayor, who relent once Danny suggests that kicking him out will make for a far messier news story than allowing him to stay. And what do you know? He's right! While some of the townsfolk are obviously upset that he's there, things don't ever get out of hand. And, more poignantly, Danny and Jo grow closer, dancing together and reminiscing about better times. Tess is overjoyed to see her daughter happy for the first time in five years, but like Cinderella at the ball, it doesn't last. Danny gets a mysterious text and excuses himself, promising to meet her at the diner later. One would think he was heading off to meet his mother, Karen (Denise Richards), who discovered the necklace last week and has spent this week asking Danny's psychiatrist about what constitutes a psychopath (and becoming terrified once she realizes that the description matches her son to a T). But it turns out Danny is meeting someone else entirely.

Credit: ABC Family

The text is from Lacey, who asks Danny to meet her on the outskirts of the festival, so she can reveal to him her findings. While offering to sort the condolence mail Regina's mother received, Lacey discovered a letter addressed to Regina dated two days before her death. Inside is a note threatening harm unless Regina keeps silent about an unknown secret. Enclosed with the note is hush money -- and lots of it. Lacey isn't sure what any of it means, or if it even relates to the motive for Regina's murder, and for that reason she's hesitant to take the discovery to the police, for fear that it might color the town's perception of the late Regina. Danny, understandably, has trouble understanding Lacey's motives, and boldly states that she must have wanted to get him alone. Lacey feigns offense and storms off, but when Danny tries to apologize, Lacey immediately turns back and locks lips with him. She quickly pulls away, recognizing her impulsiveness, but Danny quickly pulls her back for an even longer kiss. It's an awesome scene that comes far earlier in the season than I would have expected it to. In fact, ABC Family really isn't wasting any time with its romances this summer, at least among its new series, as The Fosters is already teasing the central romance six episodes in. But I can't really argue with the results, as this is the most interesting development of the series so far, and it's rare that I feel that way about the simple introduction of a love triangle. But seriously, way to go, Twisted.

Credit: ABC Family

But the other elements of the episode are just as solid, from Tess magnificently putting Kyle in his place for taking his frustrations about the Desai case out on her, to the late-episode moment where Rico witnesses Karen disposing of the necklace in the lake. These moments contribute to the overall feeling that a noose is slowly tightening around Danny's neck, and that all it's going to take to send Danny back to the slammer is for Kyle to get his hands on that wretched necklace. Though neither Jo, Danny nor Lacey are able to figure out how, exactly, Regina got the necklace (as Kyle doesn't even know who got possession of it after it left the evidence locker all those years ago), the trio resolves to get to the bottom of the mystery of who was blackmailing Regina and why. They all meet at the diner to discuss Lacey's findings, though Danny and Lacey conveniently leave out their tongue-wrestling session. At this point, it's probably for the best. A heartbroken Jo is something nobody wants to see, man. Although I wholeheartedly expect the 'shipping wars to begin in earnest. From a cursory glance at Twitter, it seems more fans are pro-Danny/Lacey than pro-Danny/Jo.

Credit: ABC Family

Though its writing has a tendency to be all over the place, Twisted continues to be one of the most compelling new summer shows in ages, to the point that I'm actively looking forward to Tuesdays. The show is far from perfect, but it's a show that knows what it wants to be, and takes great strides to be the best version of that show it can be. And damned if they're not succeeding. "The Fest and the Furious" may not be the best-written episode of the season, but for sheer drama, it's certainly my favorite so far.