Dynasty - Season 5, Episode 13

Of all the bars in all the towns in all the world..

"The Avenger"
Original airdate: 1/2/1985

Episode summary: Rock Hudson awakens a desire in Krystle to raise Arabian horses. Alexis attempts to buy Dominique's Denver Carrington shares. Claudia moves out of the mansion.

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Recap: Krystle and Rock Hudson are bickering about the framed photograph (snore) he sent her at the end of the previous episode when Charles pops into the room to alert Rock that his prize mare is in labor, and that he called the vet 'cause it's not going so well. Krystle perks up at that and is all, "Mare..?" then tells Rock she could be of assistance during the delivery, having grown up on a farm and all.  

Over at Carrington manor, Claudia is packing her belongings into several large suitcases when Adam drops by her room and is all, "Wha-at's happening?" She tells him she's moving to the La Mirage, largely 'cause of how dickish Steven is being about him being cuckolded and her not being Danny's bio mom. When Adam points out that Carrington men can be ginormous dickwads and implores her to rethink her decision, she thanks him for being a friend to her, but insists on finishing her packing and moving out of the mansion asap.

Billy Dee Williams bursts into Dominique's La Mirage suite with an armful of gifts. Dominique smilingly says she's very happy he popped in on her...then admits to being extremely bummed out by Blake's refusal to acknowledge her as kin, despite everything she's done for him. When he ask her why she gives a rat's ass about possibly being related to the old goat, she haughtily pronounces, "I am a Carrington by birth!", then clutches her husband in a desperate looking hug. 

Alexis snarls at Dex for suggesting they urge Amanda to go live at Carrington manor for the foreseeable future, so he explains that he'd like some time alone with his blushing bride...and would prefer that the nubile young woman he hit the sheets with a day before their wedding not be in such close proximity to them all the damn time. Amanda chooses that moment to bound into the room unannounced, and Dex shoots Alexis a see? look and irritably says he was just on his way out. Alexis tells Amanda she's soooo happy that the two of them (plus Dex) will be living under the same roof together and hopes that they'll become more than just mother-daughter, meaning friends. Amanda says she's willing to give that a go, but warns that she fully intends to split her time between her and her new bio dad. Alexis rolls her eyes derisively and snarks that Blake isn't even her father - but Amanda says she's no longer buying the nonsense about her getting knocked up by some random ski instructor and firmly says she'll see who she wants, when she wants. Alexis snappishly retorts, "You're a little brat and I'm not going to allow it!" and Amanda snaps back, "Try and stop me!" and flounces out of the room. Alexis glares contemplatively into space for a few seconds before sashaying over to the end table to pick up the phone and place a call to Dominique.

"I'll see who I want, when I want, where I want, and...in the case of my new stepfather, under whose sheets I want!"

"You must have inherited your brattiness from your nameless, faceless ski instructor father."

Back at the Delta Rho ranch, Krystle is soothing the soon-to-be mama mare as she struggles through labor. Rock Hudson wonders aloud if maybe the foal is too big for the birth canal...then reaches behind the horse while the camera pans over to some slippery, real life footage of a foal birth. When the camera pans back to Rock and Krystle, they're beaming in delight at each other, and at the adorable little foal that has just come into the world. 

Billy Dee Williams drops by Blake's office to ask Blake why he refuses to acknowledge Dominique as his half-sister, then points out that he had no problem accepting Amanda as his daughter without much in the way of scientific proof. Blake explains that he was willing to do that 'cause Amanda never demanded anything of him...then says that the most he's willing to do for Dominique is give her a good return on her investment.

Alexis and Dominique are enjoying an extravagant looking lunch at ColbyCo. When Dominique asks her whassup with this unexpected lunch invitation, Alexis says she'd like to make her an offer she can't refuse, then offers to buy all of her Denver Carrington shares for a handsome price. When Dominique asks her why she's interested in doing that, Alexis chides her for questioning her motives...and Dominique counters that she hasn't come this far in life by not questioning everyone's motives at all times. She then tells Alexis she seems waaaay too anxious to buy her shares and isn't inclined to sell them to her on account of she doesn't seem to be any less of a soulless douchewad than Blake. 

When Dex runs into Amanda at the penthouse, she poutishly asks him why he's suddenly OK with her living there...and he stares at her hungrily as he woodenly replies, "I had no choice." Not sure what to make of that retort, Amanda just stares mutely at him in her usual pouty fashion. 

Rock Hudson pours himself and Krystle (who he's now calling Kristie) a glass of champagne to celebrate the birth of the new foal. He gushes about her "gift" for soothing in-labor mares...then says that since they've just experienced something very special, he'd like an explanation as to why she hates him so much. When she tells him it's 'cause of the way he walked out on her sister Iris, Rock explains that he was never in love with Iris 'cause he had eyes for someone else (hint: her name rhymes with Shmystle) ... and that he gently broke it to Iris in a respectful heart-to-heart, after which they never spoke again. He stares quizzically at Krystle and asks her what she thinks he did that was so terrible, but she just breezily says she's satisfied enough with his version of events and no longer hates him. 

"Iris accepted my dumping of her, and then we never ever spoke again."

"In that case, all of the seething hatred I've been directing at you for the past two decades has magically disappeared."

Blake is at the hospital, staring at Kristina through the NICU window. When he asks a nurse if she's seen Krystle yet today, she tells him she hasn't...and Blake stares concernedly into space.

Krystle and Rock Hudson stroll through the Delta Rho stables to look over the pretty horses. He asks her if she's ever considered making a career out of working with horses, and she tells him that being Blake's trophy wife and a new mother leaves her with little spare time. Rock shakes his head disapprovingly and asks her if she really wants to spend her life being a pampered lady of leisure, then tells her she can be anything she wants. Krystle stares pensively into space, mulling over the limitless opportunities her life could be.

Krystle returns home looking rejuvenated from her day at Delta Rho. Blake grumpishly asks her where she's been for the last several hours, so she tells him she's no longer mad at Rock Hudson...and that they delivered a foal together. She excitedly tells him she's thinking seriously of working with Arabians, and Blake scrunches his face confusedly and goes, "Why? They're just show horses." Krystle snaps back, "Like me?", and Blake's like, "Well d'yuh" and curses Rock Hudson for putting such lofty ideas in her head. He condescendingly tells her she has no idea about all the work that is involved with the raising of horses...and she insists she does, then sourly says she has so much she'd like to tell him about her sudden horse fetish, but doesn't feel like she can talk to him about anything.

"I want to devote my life to Arabians, a passion I've had since earlier today."

"I thought we both agreed that you didn't need to have any interests, hobbies, or thoughts of your own."

Steven returns to Carrington manor and runs into a visibly distressed Krystle, and the two head over to a private room to nudge the ill-fated Rock Hudson storyline forward. She tells him that, years ago, Iris swore her to secrecy when she confided in her that Rock Hudson is Sammy Jo's father...and that she just realized today that Rock has no idea he knocked up Iris. She thinks he has a right to know that he's the father of an opportunistic skank, but Steven urges her to keep a strong lid on that explosive news.

Alexis summons Billy Dee Williams to her penthouse and tries to persuade him to convince his wife to sell her her shares of Denver Carrington. Billy Dee Williams asks her if this transaction is mostly about her intense hatred of Blake...and she confirms it is, and poutishly adds that Blake has robbed her of so much. Billy Dee Williams makes it clear that his wife is in charge of her own business affairs, and therefore he won't be bringing up the matter to her...and Alexis glares unhappily into space.

Adam tells Steven that Claudia became so disgruntled by their marital woes that she packed up her stuff and moved to the La Mirage. When he remarks on how said it is for Danny to lose a second mother, Steven's all, "Wha-a-a-a??" and rushes out of the room to verify his wife's sudden departure from Carrington manor. 

Steven storms over to La Mirage and orders Claudia to pack up her clothes and return with him to the mansion. When she refuses, he grabs her and snarls, "I'm tired of being pushed away. It's time you started acting like my wife!" to which Claudia growls, "Don't you come near me" and tells him to prove his ambiguous manhood with someone else. Steven suddenly looks discombobulated at the realization that he was about to sexually assault his wife-beard, then stumbles toward the door.

"How about a little marital rape, Carrington style?"

"It would be just as vomit-inducing as when Blake did it to Krystle in Season 1."

Billy Dee Williams suggests to Dominique that she spill the beans about being Blake's half-sister to The Chronicle - but Dominique shrugs and says she's not yet sure how far the writers plan to develop this boring-as-fuck subplot.

Steven heads to the nearest bar to drown his sorrows. Luke Fuller, who just happens to be in the bar at that very moment, makes a beeline over and seats himself next to him. Steven tells him he's having marital problems...and when he drunkenly orders the bartender to pour him another one, Luke offers to take him to his place and get him sobered up (sans hanky panky) before depositing him at Carrington manor.

Dr. Harris tells Krystle that Kristina should be able to come home soon...then shifts the conversation to her private marital issues (!) and says it's obvious that she and Blake are going through a rough patch - and that that's something no baby can solve. He urges Krystle to get more out of life than just staring at her sickly preemie through a glass window - interesting advice from a NICU doctor, LOL - and find something that feeds her soul. Like raising horses, for example.

Everyone gathers at the La Mirage for a swanky shindig honoring Rock Hudson's sizable donation to the hospital. Blake ambles over to Rock and asks him whassup with squandering an opportunity to make money off of the sale of Allegre, then demands to know what he's up to - but when Krystle suddenly walks over, Blake mutters, "Now's not the best time for this conversation" and lumbers off. Rock makes a beeline over to Dex and tells him they have to talk, but Dex is like, "No can do" and hastily crosses the room. A confused Alexis asks Rock to explain what that brief interaction was all about, but Rock says, "I don't think I could" and spacily wanders off. That was an oddly pointless series of interactions.

Jeff and Nicole sneak into Claudia's office to crack open the safe, which Nicole believes contains Peter's half of the treasure map. She squeals happily when they find the map in an envelop that has the name Peter scrawled on it...in Fallon's handwriting, uninterestingly enough. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it's 'Next stop: Bolivia' for these two dullards.

As Blake drones on to the other partygoers about something or other, Krystle gets bored and glances across the room at Rock Hudson, who smiles at her and walks over to invite her to dance. A few seconds later, Alexis remarks to Blake how attractive Rock is and then asks him if he'd like to dance...and Blake says he could probably stand about a minute and a half of dancing with her before hastily passing her off to Dex. 

Later, Krystle finds Blake drinking at the bar with a sour expression on his wrinkly mug. She asks him whassup with him acting like a jealous husband, and he snidely asks her if he has any reason to be, then demands to know why she spent so many hours at Delta Rho the other day. She tells him again that she and Rock Hudson delivered a foal together, and that the miracle of life provoked thoughts of her lifelong [yet never before expressed] dream of raising Arabians. Blake dismissively calls her naive before being summoned to Claudia's office for a private one-on-one with Dominique. 

Dominique informs Blake that she's suing him for misappropriation of funds after learning that he used part of her investment money to pay his mortgage. Oops. Claudia pokes her head into the room to inform Blake that he has an emergency phone call from Gerard, who breaks the news to Blake that his father has just suffered a near fatal heart attack. Dominique refers to Old Man Carrington as "our father" and insists on flying to Sumatra with Blake.

Krystle tells Rock Hudson she's pretty pumped about pursuing her "lifelong" dream of raising and training Arabian horses. He says he can help her, one step at a time...and she perks up at that and says, "Then teach me."

​Riveting.

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