TVSquad

(S01E20) Betty is back and in fine form. The writers have officially ditched all the weak links - Constance, Nico, the warm-hearted version of Wilhelmina. The bitches are out in full force, and the camp is in overdrive. And, oh my god, I think we have a new word in the pop culture vernacular - "faux-mo!" This week was great, but we're clearly just setting up for next week's Medieval meltdown. Who doesn't want to see a bunch of fashionistas plopped down at a RenFaire to dissect the tragedy? But, that's next week, let us focus our attention on Betty as Carrie, hairapy and little orphan tranny.

It's so hard to know where to start with Betty - the comedy or the telenovela. Well, let's just start with how sadly ironic it was to see Igancio sitting across from Kevin Alejandro saying, "...before we start dreaming about a future that's never going to happen..." I kept thinking, "Oh, it's like he's talking about Drive!" You poor thing. That's what you get for signing on to a Tim Minear project, but your character's engaged to Hilda now so you've got, at least, a three or four episode arc coming up. That story was actually played quite nicely. Hilda got to be funny and dramatic and a good mom. If it weren't for Becky Newton, I'd say Ana Ortiz would have run away with this episode.

But, then, there was Amanda, who got to shine like the sexy, fashion-fueled trollop that she is. Amanda's the real mastermind around there. ("No sequins. They remind her about the bad times at 54.") I'd love to see Alexis ditch her assistant and recruit Amanda on to her team. Speaking of Alexis, you could see the plot twist with her Brazilian lover coming from a mile away, but I'm having a hard time feeling sorry for her. It's not easy to emotionally invest in a character who is so cruel to one of our heroes - namely Daniel. We're told repeatedly that Alexis is acting out of pain and that she's profoundly lonely, but when Daniel opens up to her, she proclaims that he's a "pawn" in a game. Whatever, lady. Get some hairapy in Jackson Heights, and you'll be alright.

The bulk of this week's episode belonged to Betty as she worked out what we learned to be one of her nastier character traits - being too tough on people. I love that the writers are brave enough to make Betty kind of a pain in the butt sometimes. Her anti-prom scenario was hilarious. "Classic girl rage." Her teeth. My god, it's a good thing she got those braces. The recreation of Carrie was pretty darn awesome although the other surrealistic moment this week - Henry, Daniel and Christina coming for her like the cast of The Crucible was a little weird. I love the stylistic flourishes on the show, but I'm not sure I need it to go full on McBeal if you know what I mean. The split screens and pratfalls are enough.

And, then, there's Henry. It was nice to see him and Daniel mutually pine over Betty. They have an interesting rapport. Maybe this romance could move in a whole other direction? Alright, maybe not, but seeing Betty and Henry get all excited when they saved the day together was adorable. Pretty soon, they'll be accidentally coming to work in each other's sweater vests. I know I'm supposed to feel bad for Charlie, but I don't. I'm sure the writers will make me pay for that, which I'm not looking forward to.

Other things I'm not looking forward to - reality slapping the Suarez clan in the face again with Igancio's deportation. Technically, we don't know if he's getting deported. This is a soap opera after all. We just know that he's "going back to Mexico." I smell a season finale, and it's smelling a lot like flan.

Wilhelmina Quip of the Week: "Out of the mouths of gays."