Episode 1: Pilot

NaVell Lee: 15 years ago, Amanda Clark returns to the Hamptons to right some wrongs in a revengeful way. And now we get to revisit that time all over again with Revisit the Hamptons, a revenge rewatch podcast. I'm Navelle J. Lee, and some of you may know me as the host of The Buzz at Buzzworthy Radio. I was so excited that we get to sit back and re-watch one of my favorite shows that premiered on this day in 2011 on ABC. We're gonna deep dive into the episodes as well as the fashion, the music, the one-liners, you name it. We're also gonna get you guys involved as well, because there's some things I may have missed that I want you to comment on. And we may have some surprises along the way. But let's get into it. Here it is, the pilot episode of Revenge. We begin with episode one, aka the pilot, written by Mike Kelly and directed by Philip Noyce. The official synopsis is as follows. Emily Thorne rents the Southampton home she once shared with her father before he was framed and sets her plan of revenge into motion. So we're starting off with the infamous Fire and Ice party here in the pilot. And certain things that I didn't catch, let alone remember. until watching the first few minutes of this episode. So as we're there, first of all, let's let's talk about the clothes. The fashions with the red and white. It it it really popped, especially for 15 years ago. It was just there was just something about it that was so regal and so elegant about those clothes. And then there was the part where you see the body on the beach. And I did not remember even episodes later on when it was revealed who the body on the beach was, I I forgot that Jack Porter was involved in that scenario somehow. So you're see so when me watching this in the pilot and just seeing him moving the body, I I just immediately could I didn't remember. So that was that was just an interesting take, and I'm going, ⁓ my God, how was he involved in this again? So I'm kind of excited to see that transpire as episodes progress. And right off the bat, Nolan's faces during this entire engagement party. I'm just loving the fact that he's just standing there going, What the hell is this bullshit? You know? It's just it it i I feel like he is really the he's really the star of this episode right now for the first five minutes because it it's just he's kind of just standing there going, What what what are you doing? What are you thinking here? Like why why are we still here? What what's happening in life? So I'm just loving his facial reactions even more so than I did when I first watched it, because I now have a better appreciation of his of his face, his facial expressions with Emily as well as with everyone else in the room. So we get there and Victoria is making her speech and and I remember plainly of the words I approve and how that did not sit with me well when she said those words. And then obviously you see them running to the beach and they're thinking that Daniel is one of a shot. And now we flash back to where Emily is now renting the house in the Hamptons. That she used to be in with her father, where she is about to seek revenge on those that wronged her and her family. We flash back to five months earlier where Emily is now at the house. She is getting ready to purchase it. And she flashes back to when she was a young girl with her father dated. And that that happens after she sees the infinity times infinity symbol outside on the deck. And it just flashes back to her father say how much he loves her infinity times infinity. Now I do have a question about this because maybe this is why I don't remember this so much. Now in the scene where we see David Clark, it's James Tupper. When I saw the trailer for the show, it was Mark Blucas. Now many of you might remember him for playing the role of Riley on Buffy the Vampire Slayer. And that that's how I remember the actor. So I saw the trailer with Mark Blukas in it. And so my question was, was he supposed to be a younger version of David Clark in the show? And it got scrapped somehow. And now it just right off the bat was James Tupper to begin with. So that's my first mission of digging because that that was just sort of interesting for me that I was watching the the trailer and it was Mark, and then all of a sudden I'm now watching the pilot and it is with James. So let me get my red Sharpie on I might have. Do some digging. So we see really the first interaction between Ashley and Emily once she moves into the beach house. And to be quite honest, I would have loved to see the two stick it out and be girlfriends. And I know that Emily was pretty much a friend to none, an enemy to all. But I would have enjoyed seeing her be a girlfriend to to Ashley and have that go throughout the series run. She should have some friends, but I get it, girl. Trust issues. Just saying. We also see the f the first interaction between Nolan and Jack, which was very cold. But I'm also kind of cracking up at Nolan because in this first episode, you really see him trying to what's the word I want to use? He's he's trying to make an effort, but he's just so freaking adorably awkward with Jack. And it it just cracked me up. I noticed that the way that Gabriel was saying the lines about how You know, after Jack had asked Nolan about him being afraid of the ocean and then just basically going, No, no, I had to work through it with his money. And I'm just I caught myself laughing for five seconds hearing the line. So even that, that was just it's something about the way that Gabe can be a complete and utter scene stealer for just the the five seconds that he's in the scene. It just immediately takes over and it's just great. We then see Lydia Davis and then the Covenant Witches when they're having that meeting at the Grayson Manor. And I I just have to know how in the world did Emily get those pictures of Lydia and Conrad? I mean, seriously, did I miss something to where that she got those photos of Conrad and Lydia somewhere? Might be coming down in the episode. So let's continue. All right, we're getting into the meat of the episode. So now first question, South Fork Inn? Is that a dedication to Dallas? Because if it is, if it was, grade A, Mike Kelly. Grade freaking A. So as the party is getting ready to get off the hook, we see Conrad walking into the South Fork Inn. Emily does see him walk in. And of course, he heads up to the room with Lydia Davis. Now, I caught Emily making eye contact with Becky, who was the waitress at her table. And I'm wondering, because he had Such an affliction to apparently the seafood bisque. Did Emily have something to do with that? You don't see that, but just by the way it looked, you kind of make the assumption that she may have done something to the soup. So I mean, girl's already making her tracks known. So we also get to see the return of Daniel Grayson. So it's throwing me for a loop still hearing Josh Bowman in an regular American accent, because I know that he has an English accent. And you know what's funny? I didn't know that at the time when I watched the show. So when the fo the show first started and I didn't really know much about Josh previous to Revenge at all. So I had no idea that he was English. So when I first I think was it the Revenge panel at Paleyfest? I might have realized it then. I feel like it might have been sooner than that, but I think it might have been around that time where Revenge had a Paley event. For Paley Fest LA in 2012. The whole cast was pretty much there. And when I heard Josh Bowman speak, I was taken aback at the fact that he's Brit. So I had no idea for several months that he wasn't he wasn't from America pretty much. And just hearing that threw me for a complete loop. And now hearing it again in the show with him using an American accent, it's just throwing me for a loop all over again. So It it's just so weird, but I love the fact that these actors are able to perfect the dialects and he does a really good job. There were episodes that we will get into later on during the the rewatch that I do remember that the the Brit slipped and you heard it. But we'll definitely get to that down the road. And it's now starting to come and make sense about why Jack has the boat named Amanda and then the dog named Sammy, because now we're seeing flashbacks where Amanda is walking up to Jack and Sammy the dog. And you're seeing Jack and Amanda as kids. So now we know that there is a history there between Amanda Clark and Jack Porter. And then of course Declan is making his way over to, as one of the waitresses pointed out, the mean girls' table where he first meets Charlotte. And of course, underage, they won alcohol. And Declan wasn't gonna give it to them. But then Declan pretty much just stood there and most likely was gonna give them alcohol. If Charlotte gave him her number. I don't know if that technically works, but you do you, bro. Apparently it must have worked. So I'm not saying for anybody who are bartenders who wants to pick up a girl or a guy, but try not to do that because I don't want the restaurant or bar to lose a liquor license. I'm just throwing it out there. While at the South Fork Inn, Conrad and Ludia are doing the deed, and it seems like Conrad is having a heart attack. Hmm. Lydia, you might be giving Lauren Fenmore a run for her money. For those of my fans and friends who are fans of The Young and Arrestless, you may remember a storyline back in the 90s when Lauren Fenmore at Brad Carlton had sex and she gave him a heart attack. So was Lydia doing the same thing? Of course, it doesn't turn out that way, but it's interesting to note that Victoria knows that Conrad is known to have affairs, and she just goes ahead with it, but just makes sure that he doesn't do it in her presence. And to make her look like a fool. So it's it's interesting to see that relationship in the beginning, knowing that she is aware of such things. So I thought that was pretty I didn't realize that that happened early on. So it's nice to know that that is something that Victoria already had in the back of her head from the jump. So I thought that was pretty I thought that was pretty interesting in in what I rewatched this episode again. All right. So now truth comes out. That Lydia and Conrad did the nasty at the South Fork Inn thanks to Emily so innocently thinking that Conrad was Lydia's husband. I mean sheer upset and embarrassment that Emily must have felt having mistakenly thought that Conrad Grayson was Lydia's husband. I mean the the the sheer gall. Well, who's to say that it wasn't really deserved? But I will say that it was it was definitely interesting to see how cold Victoria can be when she felt she's done raw. And she does it in such a way where she has a wonderful smile on her face. If if looks can kill, then Victoria's smile is definitely at the top of the list. I feel bad for Jack though, but you know, having to find out that that the bar is gonna have to be put up for foreclosure at the end of the month and he's probably now thinking about Nolan's offer to buy the Amanda in order to save the stowaway. So having Jack suffer with that pride, he has to pretty much let that sink in. He he now has to, he has to realize in order for the stowaway to survive, he's going to have to set aside his his feelings for Nolan. And if I'm not mistaken, it's not just Stolan, it's anybody who has money. He feels this way of anger and resentment toward Because he didn't grow up with that. And seeing other people either being born into it or having it is just not something that he he likes, no matter who the person is, even if they were nice to him. It's just something that he full blown resents. And I believe we find out more about that as the series progresses. So we we will get to see more of the behind the scenes with Jack, but I I think that was probably one of the more interesting arcs. Is just to to find out exactly why he feels the way he does when it comes to people without any ⁓ without any money, or I I should say in the reverse for him, on how he feels with people with money compared to him being without it. We're at the final act, everybody. So as we gear up towards the end of the pilot, we now see exactly what one happened to Conrad when he had his little attack. And two, we also find out that Victoria also really had. More of a hand in David's demise than Conrad did. And now we get to see the real first full interaction between Nolan and Emily Thorne. And it wasn't as pleasant as we probably would have thought it would have been. So even going back to when they first met when Amanda was first released from prison, that also wasn't as warm and cozy as we would have expected it to be. So it's just interesting how. As I mentioned earlier, how she's an enemy to all and a friend to none. In spite of what Nolan was able to give to her about her father, Emily still said she would have taken Nolan down if she had to. So this, as she says at the end, this is about revenge for her. That there was nothing else, there was nothing else in it for her but revenge. I will say that watching Emily and Daniel's interaction, there's a part of me that always wondered. Does she really actually care for him? Does she actually like him at all? And the reason I asked that is because that he doesn't really know much about Amanda Clark's history, especially when it came to when it came to David. He was told about David Clark from from his parents. And again, you'll we'll definitely get into that as the show progresses. But it's just I'm just kind of curious because that that chemistry really really was off the charts between the two of them. And of course, as we know, I wonder why. But I do think that there was at points she may have cared for him. And I could have been reading that wrong too when I first watched it. But that's what I thought initially. And I don't know. I don't know. When I re-watch this, I'm gonna have to pay closer attention to see if that was the case between the two of them. And of course it ends where Victoria just Spies on Emily Thorne and she's placing a call to try to dig up some dirt on our our heroine. Well in a s I mean, she is a heroine to us, obviously, but you know. She's flawed. So she's a flawed heroine. It's fine. It's fine. It's fine. But I'm excited to get into the rest of the season. But first, let's take a look at some of the fashions from the pilot. Now, as you all know, when it started with the beginning scene at the Labor Day fire and ice party, everybody was in red and white. thought ⁓ the outfits really, really looked tailored. It look it looked sleek. It definitely looked like something that you would find at a beach party. So for me, I thought that those outfits were very sleek and they were formal where they also could have been casual. So I like those outfits. Now let's look at the outfit that we first see Nolan in as they flashed back to five months prior to that when he visits Jack onto The Amanda, or he was asking to buy the boat. You're seeing the the pants. And the first thing I said was, I actually said this to him on the show. He was on one of my ⁓ episodes when it first came on. I think this was maybe his second appearance on the show. And I said that these clothes look like they came out of the class of Old Navy. He had to check me, though, on the show, and he said, Nolan is not shopping at Old Navy. I had to laugh because He he did cash me on that one. I mean, let's be real. I I get it. Nolan would not shop at Old Navy. He has money. He doesn't need to be going there.
Gabriel Mann: there and like my boots and like my dirty sweats and whatever and ⁓ you know hat pulled down over my head and then I go in and sort of put all this stuff on and I come out and I know it's gonna be a great up when everybody starts laughing if they see me. ⁓ so I'm like I'm thinking we're good. but ⁓ you know and and he hey no harm no foul on old navy but I'm just saying ⁓ no one's not trying to wear old baby. No one is no one is definitely wearing the finest. I mean, but you know, he would pick the weirdest piece of that designer. You know, it's sort of like if if there is like a a a pink striped jacket or some lazy ass pants to be put on, that's what he'll pick out. And so you know, it it it's just it's it's it's always a good time. It's always a good time, like when we start doing things for each new episode, especially it's like, ⁓ okay, what party are w do we have in New Hamptons this week? Great, fourth of July, red, white, and blue? What do you think?
NaVell Lee: But I said that because some of the fashions look like it came out of an old Navy catalog. So it's just the the the pants, the pink pants, and I think it looked like fish on them. But, you know, that that was just a very interesting choice. But as we know, Nolan does make choices when it comes to fashion. And he's not one that is afraid to stand out. So that that is definitely something that I love about the character. He's not afraid to be himself, no matter if it's his personality, his quirks, or his clothes. So that was definitely one I wanted to call out. And then the Memorial Day party. Now that I loved Emily's dress. I just love the way that it looked with the off the shoulder. It was like it was just a nice white dress and it was just so sleek, you know, and it just works so well with how she looked overall with the hair and everything. I I I think that was honestly My favorite look out of the entire episode was that particular outfit was from her. Now, if you have any any fashions that I may have missed that you also like that you want to comment on, or even those choices that I made just now, send us an email at buzzworthyradio at gmail.com. Let us know your thoughts. But before we wrap up, I also need to introduce the segment that we call Victoria's One Liners. We really didn't have a one liner in the pilot, except for one, I felt. that stood out. And that was in the beginning when Charlotte comes home from a night out and the thing that she says to Conrad is, Remind me to get her a cat bell. I think that was the only one that kind of stood out as far as the Victoria liners that you normally would repeat in a conversation. I think that maybe the second one that came close to it is just the one where she realizes again that Conrad had an affair At the South Fork Inn and she just grabs his face and just says, Don't do it again. So I think maybe that would be the runner up. But honestly, the cat bell line is probably the one that stands out. But that's gonna do it for us for the first episode of the Revenge Rewatch podcast. I'm Nabelle J. Lee, and we will be here every week on the day when the episodes originally aired. So because we started this on the 15th anniversary of the series premiere. We're going to follow the dates of when each episode airs. So we're going to be back next Monday with the second episode of the first season, which is called Trust. And again, if you have any questions, if you have any comments, any suggestions that you want to relay to the show, anything that you even wanna, if there was anything that I missed from the episode that I rewatched that you also wanna point out, again, here is our email that you can submit everything to buzzworthyradio at gmail.com. We'll see you guys next Monday. Until next time, remember that the past never stays buried. Tune in every Monday on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, iHeartRadio. Watch your back.