'Feed the Beast' Recap: 'Tabula Rasa'

​Written by John Edward Betancourt

THIS IS THE EMERGENCY SPOILER ALERT SYSTEM...YOU ARE ADVISED TO READ AT YOUR OWN RISK...

At the end of last week's episode of Feed the Beast, things certainly looked bleak. A shootout with the Tooth Fairy outside Thirio seemingly shut down any chance of success for the restaurant and the resultant tension building between Tommy and Dion over the possibility that Dion slept with Rie made it seem like this week, disaster was about to strike and strike hard.  

Yet, as is often the case with this show, it decided to sneak its way into a different direction and well...perhaps Thirio will be okay after all. But getting the restaurant kicking was no easy task and how they got the phone ringing once again is what matters because 'Tabula Rasa' featured something that the characters had yet to do on this show. Rather than continue to be pushed around by life and all the difficulty it has to offer, Tommy and Dion took a stand last night; doing their best to confront any and all fears and road blocks and after weeks of seeing them brood and fuss over the uncontrollable, this was quite the refreshing change. 

In fact, the charge to make things happen was led by Tommy this week; who saw a grand opportunity to get Thirio some positive press by making Dion apologize to an old chef he pissed off ages ago, Dante DiPaolo. The reason for forcing Dion to make things right was simple, Dante had transitioned from working in the kitchen to working on a popular blog and well, a lovely review from this man would do wonders for the business...but Dante's answer to their request we will get to in a moment because seriously...Tommy was a man transformed this episode. He was handling every loose end in style this week and well...it's about freaking time. He has been a shell of a man for so long it was absolutely wondrous to see him take a stand and control of his life and it turns out he managed to influence others along the way. 

Believe it or not, even Dion followed in Tommy's footsteps, finally digging his heels in with the Tooth Fairy when the powerful mobster came calling to reclaim his precious cocaine. Dion was honest and bold and it led to an interesting moment where Patrick didn't outright murder Dion, instead offering him a chance to pay off his debts as the Chef of a brand new, Tooth Fairy owned restaurant on the waterfront. It's an offer that Dion decides to put some thought into, but hey, if he hadn't been bold with Patrick, none of this ever would have happened and if he hadn't gone with Tommy to see Dante...well the former chef turned blogger who initially turned down their offer to review the restaurant never would have shown up at Thirio, asking for a meal with revenge on his mind before having a change of heart thanks to the food and firing off a glowing critique on the web to get the phones ringing off the hook with reservations.

Yes, it seemed as though the crisis at hand was averted and all would be well...that is until Dion was called out accidentally by Dante in a grand lie to Tommy. It turns out that despite saying he didn't sleep with Rie at the start of the episode, he most certainly did and let's be honest...things will never be the same between these two best friends, and that term will certainly be a loose description of their relationship going forward. Not to mention, there's other trouble brewing on the horizon since our intrepid Detective wants the Tooth Fairy dead following the message his daughter discovered and the constant harassment T.J. is taking at school is clearly coming to a head. But, in the meantime, at least we can bask in the glory of one positive episode that showed off what these two men are truly capable of, because we've been pulling for them week in and week out. Until next time.

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