Mistresses - Mistaken Identity - Review: "Sexy Stranger Danger"

4.02 - "Mistaken Identity"

Directed by Chris Misiano

Written by Jessica Lieberman and Molly Margraf

Reviewed by Gavin Hetherington

Harry’s sister Kate surprise visits Harry and Joss and exposes problems she is having with her fiancé. Meanwhile, Joss struggles with celebrating her engagement with Harry. April gets an exciting opportunity to apply for a painting fellowship, while Marc has success joining a band. Karen struggles with her new role being known as a “sexpert,” and she gets closer with the male “manny” Robert.

EPISODE GUIDE

Season 4 Episode Guide

4.01 - "The New Girls" (May 30, 2016) - Advance Preview
4.02 - "Mistaken Identity" (June 6, 2016)
4.03 - "Under Pressure" (June 20, 2016)
4.04 - "Blurred Lines" (June 27, 2016)
4.05 - "Lean In" (July 4, 2016)
4.06 - "What Happens in Vegas" (July 11, 2016)
4.07 - "TBA" (July 18, 2016)
4.08 - "TBA" (July 25, 2016)

Check out my other Mistresses reviews:

• 
  
  Season 2 Episode Guide
  2.01 - "Rebuild" (June 2, 2014)
  2.02 - "Boundaries" (June 9, 2014)
  2.03 - "Open House" (June 16, 2014)
  2.04 - "Friends With Benefits" (June 23, 2014)
  2.05 - "Playing With Fire" (June 30, 2014)
  2.06 - "What Do You Really Want" (July 7, 2014)
  2.07 - "Why Do Fools Fall In Love?" (July 14, 2014)
  2.08 - "An Affair to Surrender" (July 21, 2014)
  2.09 - "Coming Clean" (August 4, 2014)
  2.10 - "Charades" (August 11, 2014)
  2.11 - "Choices" (August 18, 2014)
  2.12 - "Surprise" (August 25, 2014)
  2.13 - "'Til Death Do Us Apart" (September 1, 2014)

• 
  
  Season 3 Episode Guide
  3.01 - "Gone Girl" (June 18, 2015)
  3.02 - "I'll Be Watching You" (June 18, 2015)
  3.03 - "Odd Couples" (June 25, 2015)
  3.04 - "Into the Woods" (July 2, 2015)
  3.05 - "Threesomes" (July 9, 2015)
  3.06 - "Love Is an Open Door" (July 16, 2015)
  3.07 - "The Best Laid Plans" (July 23, 2015)
  3.08 - "Murder She Wrote" (July 30, 2015)
  3.09 - "Unreliable Witness" (August 6, 2015)
  3.10 - "What Could Have Been" (August 13, 2015)
  3.11 - "Guilt By Association" (August 20, 2015)
  3.12 - "Reasonable Doubt" (August 27, 2015)
  3.13 - "Goodbye Girl" (September 3, 2015)

'MISTAKEN IDENTITY' REVIEW

"Yeah but it's a classy sex store, they sell books and flavoured condoms."

Well that was quick, Karen! Let's not even beat around the bush a little and see where things go - let's just jump straight into the Karen part of the episode like how she has jumped into bed with the Manny only 2 episodes in! While I am so glad she is taking her agent's advice and is fully stepping up to the "sex-pert" role, I'm not really digging this Manny situation right now. Maybe it's too soon? Maybe I'm just not the biggest fan of this new character just yet? I mean, I think he's fine, but this is probably a storyline I could have done without. I did love her article though, and to echo the words of the others, she looked smokin' hot and gorgeous. The agent, Barbara, is also slowly starting to be more likeable to me. I try not to get attached to characters again this year as I don't want a repeat of Calista (whom I ended up loving but that story did not end well). Karen's objections to the article were rather hilarious too, and her excuse that "I went to medical school" was a classic.

"Am I on fleek?"

April's story didn't end as 'successfully' as Karen's, which was a huge shame for her. It was a bit of a mixed bag this episode for the Mapril dynamic - I love Marc with all my heart and I think he's amazing, and I loved that he tried so hard to be there for April, but it was extremely annoying that he called April while she was off trying to pursue her dream so he could instead focus on his. I mean, I know it was important but he could have tried a whole bunch of people before trying April. Points deducted for that one Marc, but he makes it up with his usual charm and his heavenly arms. I felt extremely bad for April when the women told her she didn't have "it" to successfully get the fellowship. I could feel my own heart break in two for her. While I quite liked the painting too, I bet she could have done better if she had of just dug deeper. It was a little unfair to blame Marc the way she did, but I'm glad they could make up at the end and he could realise his mistake. He could have at least remembered she was having an interview! Points for Lucy though, who is a completely changed character from last year when she was hating her mother's guts.

"You're the one marrying your ex-sister-in-law, and last I checked there is nothing normal about that."

Josslyn had a bit of work on her hands in this episode too. I was really excited to hear that Kate was coming back to the show after a guest appearance a few years back, and I knew it would cause a bit of trouble. I just didn't expect her to want to have an affair for one night before tying the knot. The way she spoke made it sound so serious, but I kind of had to laugh at the bizarre nature of it. It was funny to see how Joss reacted and ended up trying to help her a bit. Harry was rather angry about the whole thing, but it all worked out, especially since she reveals that Brian cheated on her. I felt so bad for her actually, and I could see how much she was hurt by it, and then I could understand what she was doing. I'm really happy to see that she will be sticking around for a bit longer too. She had no filter when telling Joss and Harry how she really felt about the whole weirdness of the engagement to their sibling-in-law. We were all thinking it.

"I want every single person on this table to know how much I frickin' love you okay?"

That dinner was all sorts of awkward! I was expecting a ton of arguments to happen, but most of it was brewing under the surface. There was tension between April and Marc, Joss and Harry, Joss and Kate, Kate and Harry - which leaves Karen, who offers photos of Vivian, much to everyone's sighs (I laughed out loud here). What was great about it though, was that Joss faced it head on and acknowledged how weird it was that she was marrying Harry. The speech she made was really touching and I think it shut all her haters up - yes it's weird, yes it's not ideal, yes it all came about wrong, but they love each other, and it's so clear that they do. Also, very important note, but Joss mentioned that Savi was there for some of the trial?! There's hope, people, there's hope, even if Joss did say they still aren't on the best of terms, it means they've had contact and Savi was actually there. Really hoping she makes an appearance this season, even if it is just a one-off (but hopefully more).

EPISODE VERDICT

An instalment that I found a touch more interesting than the premiere, to be honest. I still enjoy this show so much, even when they don't go all out in an episode, but there was enough here to give it substance. I loved Kate's return, I loved the sex-pert story for Karen, I loved the dinner - so much to highlight. I can see this season going from strength to strength and I hope it continues.

What did you think of 'Mistaken Identity'? Let me know your thoughts of the episode in the comments and be sure to watch the next episode when it airs on ABC next Monday, June 20th!

About the Author - Gavin Hetherington

Award-winning author of the 'Abyssal Sanctuary' series. Gavin joined SpoilerTV in August 2014 and reviews 2 Broke Girls, Devious Maids, Mistresses, Pretty Little Liars, Salem, Scream Queens and Sleepy Hollow. Gavin will write previews for Empire and Shadowhunters, and backs-up Once Upon a Time, Reign, Scandal and Supergirl. Gavin also writes special anniversary articles, most recently for Charmed. You can contact him at gavin@spoilertv.com.

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