An Ode To Emily and Victoria (& A Season Finale For The Ages)

I didn't really like Revenge at first. Yes, I kept watching it, but I wasn't utterly hooked the way I was with, say, Scandal. That gotta-watch-it feeling just wasn't there. But, for some reason, I never mustered the courage to relegate Revenge to my Netflix graveyard of half-watched shows I just couldn't stick with (R.I.P., Orange Is The New Black — yes, really).

Earlier on, I noticed that I had a huge gripe with all of the seemingly superfluous characters who came and went, dropping like flies. Among them: fake Amanda Clarke, Victoria's other son Patrick, and Daniel's love interest, Sara. The list goes on. It was like a revolving door of characters who stretched the plot too thin and summarily exited stage right. But, somewhere in the third season — I can't put my finger on exactly where — the show simply got a lot better. The reason: Emily Thorne and Victoria Grayson.

The tension between the two, of course, has been mounting since day one. But, now that Victoria knows Emily's real identity -- as well as her plan for revenge -- their storyline has become a nail-biter. How will Victoria expose her, and when will she do it? How far will she go to take down Emily, and vice versa? And, geez, how many more people are going to die in the crossfire?

The season three finale, which aired last Sunday, cemented my love for the two characters and their no-holds-barred, to-the-bitter-end mentalities toward each other. Victoria strangling Aiden and placing his dead body on Emily's couch was her boldest move yet -- a simultaneously morbid and entirely sad moment. But, then Emily gets her poetic justice by committing Victoria to a mental institution (coming full circle since Victoria committed Emily's mother, Kara, decades before). Ah, the beauty of a satisfying season finale, and a terrific cliffhanger to lead into the next. Thanks to Emily and Victoria, you better believe I'll be tuning in for season four.

As for how David Clarke's arguably off-the-deep-end return might play into Emily and Victoria's dynamic? Well, that's a whole 'nother can of worms.