Betty Suarez Land
"Betty Suarez Land" is the fourth episode in the third season, the 45th episode overall, of the American dramedy series Ugly Betty, which aired on October 16, 2008. The episode was written by Chris Black and directed by Michael Spiller. The episode is the last appearance of Rebecca Romijn on the series.
| "Betty Suarez Land" | |
|---|---|
| Ugly Betty episode | |
| Episode no. | Season 3 Episode 4 |
| Directed by | Michael Spiller |
| Written by | Chris Black |
| Production code | 304 |
| Original air date | October 16, 2008 |
Plot
The story begins with Betty arriving at the courthouse, but as a diversion: she was there to keep the press from seeing Daniel, who snuck in the side door to see Alexis from her holding cell. As Alexis apologizes to Daniel, she reveals to her brother that he was not the father of Daniel Jr., as Alexis tells her brother the truth about the paternity results, in which she admitted that she also slept with the hand model, resulting in Daniel fighting his sister as the security cameras looks on.
Back at work, Betty asks Hilda about why she still wants to continue seeing Tony. Then her former semi-romantic interest Gio returns and Betty is thrilled. However, Gio is displeased to see Betty as his trip to Rome alone is not as enjoyable as planned. In fact, he tells her he hates her, especially after she turned down his offer to go to Rome and even bans her from both his deli and his life. But Betty won't let a little thing like his anger over being dumped get in the way of their friendship, so she schemes to corner Gio by having him deliver dinner to her apartment, which would set a lot of things in motion for Betty, in which she would acquire a cheese ball (scamorza) after he mentions his favorite brand after returning from Italy.
Daniel learns from his attorney that DJ's grandparents from France have shown up to reclaim custody, now that they know the truth about Alexis being the father. Fearing that DJ will be taken away without explanation, Daniel entrusts DJ to Betty who brings him home to her apartment, adding to more problems for Betty. Later on, when he gets to the apartment, Gio is coerced by Betty to stay and shows both Gio and DJ a scrapbook of her American adventure, but Gio is not convinced and reveals that he loves her and is heartbroken when she turned down his offer for the trip to Rome. But before the two can talk it over, all of a sudden the third problem would show up when Tony's wife stops by Betty's apartment, thinking she's the one [Hilda] having an affair with Tony, and when Daniel calls to warn her about DJ's grandparents coming to claim him, Betty believes it's the grandparents after the woman answers the intercom after DJ accidentally pushes it. So she and Gio take DJ to Coney Island, where Daniel eventually comes to his senses by revealing to Betty and Gio the truth, devastating DJ, who runs away. After Gio finds him, Daniel tells DJ he'll go back to France with them and despite not being his real father, they will always be as close.
As the now-arrested Alexis goes through a roller coaster of legal tribulations, including possibly being tried for attempted murder and being denied bail for attempting to kill Christina and the unborn baby instead of getting a misdemeanor sentence, Claire decides to makes a deal with Wilhelmina, who is of course behind the harsh sentence in an effort to get back at her former ally and buy out her stake in Meade Publications, thanks to her affair with the DA. Wilhelmina then offers Alexis to drop her charges in exchange of her share of the publication. As Alexis discovers Wilhelmina's plans, Alexis turns down Wilhelmina's offer. But Claire, who knows all about Wilhelmina and the DA (since Claire has given money to the DA's campaign) adds an incentive part to the deal that guarantees all charges against Alexis being dropped by splitting all of Alexis' shares of Meade Publications between Daniel and Wilhelmina (even though it will go to the unborn child), thus making them 50-50 partners and co-editors-in-chief of Mode. Claire tells Wilhelmina the importance of family as something she does not understand, much to Willi's chagrin. In the end, Wilhelmina is pleased with the deal, then hints to Marc that when she gets the other half she'll be much closer to ruling Meade Publications.
Finally, Hilda is hopeful that she'll have a happy romantic ending with Tony, when the wife goes to see Hilda at the Suarez home after she left Betty's place and pleads with Hilda to tell Betty, whom she mistakes for Hilda because of the apartment, to back off so she can work on her marriage, after she thought that "Betty" was seeing a "French guy". As poor Hilda sympathizes with the woman, she decides that its time to let Tony go after he tells her he'll tell his wife that the money's on the dresser and he's done with her, and does just that. But Hilda feeling responsible for ending Tony's marriage tells him that it is over and he should go back to his wife.
In the end, Betty and Gio finally got a chance to talk and as Gio left, he told her that they were still friends, while at the Suarez home the family consoled Hilda. There were goodbyes for Alexis, as Daniel and Claire hugged her before heading off to France, where she plans to get to know her son.
Production
This was the fifth episode in the series' run that had a product placement used in its storyline, as Healthy Choice's newest product "Healthy Choice Fresh Mixers" played a part in a scene in which Amanda tells Betty about trying one after she pulled out a drawer full of them.
Casting
This episode marks Rebecca Romijn's last appearance in the series. Also, Ashley Jensen is absent from this episode. The episode also marks the last appearance of the show for Julian De La Celle and Eddie Cibrian.
Trivia
The person that says "previously on Ugly Betty" is Alexis.
Ratings
The episode continued to hold on to its second place showing with a 5.6/9,[1] with 2.6/8 among 18-49s and 8.2 million viewers overall watching.[2][3]
Receptions
The whole episode as well as Gio's return were well received. Zap2it states: "Ahh, Gio's back with a vengeance on Ugly Betty as the grumpy, smart-assed and annoying guy that I first grew to know and love. Yup, that means that abrasive chemistry with Betty is back. The writers are obviously revitalized because there's just a better sense of purpose and fun this season."
Also starring
- Rebecca Romijn as Alexis Meade
- Freddy Rodriguez as Gio Rossi
- Eddie Cibrian as Coach Diaz
- Alec Mapa as Suzuki St. Pierre
- Julian de la Celle as Daniel Jr.
Guest stars
- Barry Bostwick as Roger Adams
- Christian Hoff as D.A. Blackman
- Jacques Pépin as Gerard Chainet
- Nikki James as Marie Chainet.
Music
"Lost" by Coldplay - played at the end of the episode