Beyond the Gates – Weekly Recap 5/19

Beyond the Gates – Weekly Recap 05/19-05/23/25

Dani and Pam are riding high on their winning streak, celebrating like they just hit the lotto. Meanwhile, over at Orphey’s, Joey is in full mob mode, threatening Doug with that simmering menace we’ve come to expect. Across town, Vanessa is on the phone with Nicole, likely spilling tea or trying to stay ten steps ahead. Oh, and because some people never learn, Ashley and Derek are on AGAIN. Insert dramatic eye roll here.

At Orphey’s, Ted meets up with Andre. They have a heart to heart. Eva soon joins and is surprised that it is a birthday lunch that includes a gift. Andre soon leaves father and daughter to catch up.

Meanwhile, Jacob brings Leslie in for questioning. She’s slick as hair grease, completely unbothered, spinning lies like she’s auditioning for a psychodrama. She claims she was just toying with Kat, giving her the answers that she expected. Since Jacob doesn’t have enough to hold her, she walks much to Kat's disappointment.

Later, Leslie meets with Eva and drops yet another bomb—she tells her point blank that she ran Laura off the road. It is all part of her consistent manipulation tactics. She warns Eva that if she talks, she’s an accessory after the fact. Eva folds under the pressure and when Jacob shows up to question her she avoids telling Jacob the truth as Leslie listens in from a nearby booth. Eva has a solid alibi which Jacob is able to confirm.

Later, Tomas comforts Eva. He flirts, shares a little about his past, and draws a comparison between Leslie and his own toxic father. Sweet, right? Well, not so fast—just before that, while defending Eva he practically called Kat a spoiled brat and dismissed her claims that Eva’s an attempted murderer. Soon after he soothes her with his words and kisses. Kat, come on. You’re smarter than this.

Speaking of Kat, she plays the recording for Nicole and Ted. Nicole, our resident psychiatrist, is ready to believe Eva’s guilty. I had to pause for a deep sigh. I get it, Eva is the product of an affair, but it was Ted’s affair. Nicole has worked closely with Eva. Does she really believe she’s capable of attempted murder? Ted, thankfully, isn’t drinking Leslie's Kool-Aid. He’s convinced Leslie is behind it all. The thing is, this is going to blow back on Eva if she doesn’t speak up. I need her to tell the truth. Nicole tells Ted it’s time to handle Leslie and protect their family. Agreed.

Of course Leslie, who doesn’t understand boundaries, pops up at Eva’s hotel room. Eva finally tells her to get out, but instead of making sure she leaves, she walks out before Leslie does, giving her the perfect opportunity to keep the door from locking. Girl. No.

Leslie sneaks back in. Ted arrives and catches her in the act. They argue. She threatens to ruin Eva’s life, and Ted makes it clear: stay away from his family and that includes Eva. He will go to the ends of the earth to protect them. He is done playing nice.

Elsewhere, Anita and Vernon kiss. He offers to stay and be her buffer for dinner with Tracy, but she declines. It becomes clear that Tracy is bitter, jealous, and holding onto years of resentment. She throws shade about Anita “winning the lottery,” but it’s Sharon who really seems like the volcano waiting to erupt. This story has layers, and I am ready for it. There are definitely secrets waiting to surface, about Anita, Vernon, or both.

Meanwhile, Doug is frantically looking for Vanessa at the hospital, only to find her laughing it up at Orphey’s with Joey. He watches Joey wreck his life like it's a sport, and then… just leaves. No fight, no confrontation. Just sad puppy eyes. This one is about to heat up.

As for Ashley and Derek, they’re arguing about an apartment most of us assumed they already shared. Manufactured angst, table for two. Writers, please know that Ashley and Derek remain the weakest link. And while I hated Andre blowing Dani off for Ashley, I at least understood that he felt used. Dani told him she didn’t want anything serious, and he took it to heart, but come on, he should’ve understood why she said it. Free Andre from the boring duo.

Highlights

• Ted and Leslie facing off.

• Jacob and Kat getting closer to the truth.

• Andre and Dani get intimate but then Andre gets let down.

• Pam and Dani

• Nicole going back to work.

Lowlights

• Ashley and Derek taking up every single day of the week excluding Friday.

• Kat the detective with heavy bias. A good detective investigates without bias and prejudice.

• Vanessa trying to check Ted when she is a serial cheater.

• Eva covering for Leslie.

Final Thoughts on Beyond the Gates:

Eva is one tear away from being buried under Leslie's bad decisions. Kat’s judgment is getting annoying. She is focused on Eva because she doesn't like her and she is willing to sacrifice the truth for it. She saw LESLIE in Laura's room. All signs point to Leslie but she wants Eva to be guilty due to her personal vendetta. I’m still not over Nicole jumping to conclusions about Eva. Ted’s finally taking charge, but the clock is ticking. Eva, it’s time to wake up and speak up.

Why is it that Naomi is a Dupree but we get more of Ashley's point of view than we get of her or Chelsea's? Please know that we do not care about Ashley or Derek and it is to the point that I fast forward them or do something else if I am watching live. I am a fan of the show and want it to succeed but the issues I mentioned in a previous recap remain. Let's recap them:

• Lack of continuity - What happened to Jacob's dirty partner? The lawsuit that never was. Chelsea's identity crisis happening mostly offscreen. Filler weeks instead of days. I shouldn't be able to tune out for a full week then come back the following week never having missed a beat or a story.

• Characters lacking backstory or depth - Hayley is miscast. You want her in a big girl story but she has no boss energy. She looks like a child next to Bill and appears as an airhead. I thought and hoped she would be a schemer. Someone who had a motive. Instead she is a Bill cheerleader impressed with jewelry and vacations who lacks her own agency. Boring.

• Drama centered around two storylines involving two Dupree women - The Duprees need a rival family. Every soap has them. I struggle with knowing the direction of the show. Y&R, it is about business,has rival families. GH, started with rivalries but became overrun with the mob and lost the plot. Bold is centered around the beauty industry and often has a rival family. It doesn't do a good job of that anymore but you get the gist. We want drama, love in the afternoon (not limited to Dani and Ashley), we want to invest in stories and have payoff for our investment. It is still early and these things are all very fixable. Please fix them.