'Grimm' recap: 'The Kiss'

Roiz as Renard, courtesy NBC
BY MELISSA HARKNESS

Opening quote: “If a man of pure heart were to fall in love with her, that would bring her back to life.” Remember this.

While I'm all for plot development, there was a distinct lack of Monroe here in this Grimm. Monroe makes everything better, right? Right? Well, there was a distinct lack of Monroe in this episode - which made me like this one a little less. Just saying.

We open with last week's Monster-of-the-Week, the Mauvais Dentes (don't ask me to say it) attempting to viciously murder our beloved Grimm, Nick. Nick's not doing too badly, but Momma Burkhardt jumps into the fray, and Mr. Dentes dies.

Important facts from the fight: Nick fired his gun and missed, then dropped said gun under some machinery. Also, Mom took a roll of money out of the dead guy's pocket. I guess being a Grimm doesn't pay very well. Meanwhile, Nick's Wesen sidekicks, Monroe and Rosalee, have finished Juliette's memory loss-stopping potion, which is quickly going bad. There is much pacing outside the hospital waiting for Nick, who finally shows up after spending all that quality time with Mom.

Grimm and gang head into the hospital to save the sleeping Juliette. Sadly, the medical staff doesn't really appreciate boyfriend's trying to administer drugs to comatose patients. Stalling for time, Monroe tries to intimidate a doctor, but ultimately is not nearly as scary as Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio's Momma Burkhardt. Nick successfully administers six drops of potion into each of Juliette's cold black ensorcelled eyes and everyone happily departs having saved what was left of Juliette's brain (thanks for nothing, Aunt Marie's trailer)

Unfortunately, Nick gets called to a crime scene and asks Monroe to take Mom home. Monroe nervously agrees one one condition, everyone stays alive. So Monroe, Rosalee, and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio pack into Monroe's little VW bug and off they go. Incidentally, Momma Burkhardt's name is Kelly, but no one ever actually calls her that. Monroe is clearly uncomfortable, but being Monroe, he tries to make small talk. Momma Burkhardt is not really into small talk.

Nick and Hank meet up with the awesome Sargent Wu (you remember the guy who was eating his couch last season) at the crime scene. Captain Renard shows up, as well-dressed as ever, and they tour the crime scene. It turns out this crime scene is The Crime Scene. You know, the one where the Grimm Family killed the Mauvais Dentes after he killed the FBI agents from the last episode. Remember that shot Nick fired during the fight? Sgt. Wu finds the casing, and while everyone is moving off to the next body, Nick conveniently scoops up his missing gun. Since we have dead FBI agents from the last episode, we need more FBI guys STAT - and here they come.

Naturally, they take over the crime scene, and Nick and Hank leave. The FBI guys find the dead agent's phone and redial the last number she called, which of course, was Nick. The moron answers the phone. Really? Hello, caller I.D. The FBI guy hangs up with a calculating look on his face. Next we find Nick beside some sort of waterway looking very pasty. He chunks his gun into the water. Reality check: If I were to hypothetically to dispose of a weapon, I think I would put it a little further out into the water. Wouldn't you?



Back at Nick's house the VW has arrived and Monroe carefully extracts everyone from the little car. This is where it gets emotional, folks. Monroe and Rosalee are all "We like Nick, he likes us." I swear I heard a little purple dinosaur's theme song. Just me? Okay. Anyway, there were hugs people. Hugs. Well, one hug. Rosalee very bravely marches up to Momma Burkhardt and hugs her. This hug is sort of returned. Aww, the brave little fox is breaking down species barriers with hugs.

Apparently the FBI guys have finished at the crime scene and show up at the police station asking lots of questions, like "Hey Nick, where's your gun?" Interestingly enough, Captain Renard is defending Nick who agrees to give them a DNA sample. Because he has nothing to hide. Hank is feeling a little left out. Upon leaving the station Hank very touchingly tells Nick, "I trust you; don't hang me out to dry." Poor Hank, he's been through a lot. Dating a hexenbeast will really take it out of you.

Nick arrives home after a long night in Aunt Marie's trailer to find the FBI watching his house and his mother doing crunches on the living room floor. He seems to take this in stride. I, on the other hand, would have been quite traumatized. They concoct a clever plan of Nick going back to work, while Mom goes to interrogate Adaline's hexenbeast mother, Catherine.

Catherine has since called Renard and told him to come pick up the potion that will wake Juliette. She seems quite smug as she hands the Purification Process over, gleefully telling Renard he will have to take it himself.

"The person who wakes her has to be pure of heart. It's challenging to find someone like that nowadays, so we have to do it chemically."

She implies that because our dear Captain Renard is less than human, it will hurt a great deal. His only response, "What are these lumps?" He leaves with his jar of lumpy white potion to presumably purify himself.

Momma Burkhardt is doing what she does best: Lurking outside Catherine's house. After creeping about, she enters the house and confronts Catherine, demanding to know what Adaline did to Juliette. At this point, Catherine cottons to the fact that this Grimm is Nick's mother and they throw down. It's an ugly fight that predictable ends in another dead monster. But before Catherine dies she imparts some knowledge. Juliette can only be awakened by royalty. Conveniently enough, there is a Prince in Portland - one who is charming, handsome, and a bastard. We all know she speaks of Captain Renard, but alas Momma Burkhardt doesn't have a clue.

During all this throwing down and murder, Nick gets arrested by the FBI. They try to bully him into revealing something, but he plays innocent so well. He does learn that they found a hair at the crime scene that matched him closely enough to be a relative. Hi Mom! Lacking evidence, he is soon released. He and Hank meet up in the lobby and head off to yet another crime scene. Of course, it's Catherine's house. Are we detecting a pattern here?

Nick returns home to find his mother resting up after her recent exertions. She tells him that her "talk" with Catherine didn't go very well, and that they can't wake Juliette up. Ultimately, they decide it's time for Mom to hit the road. She will take the coins with her and destroy them. As one last bonding experience, she asks Nick to take her to the bus station. With a goofy grin, he agrees. She seems genuine when she tells him not to leave the people that he loves. He smiles, they hug, and off she goes - until she's out of sight. She then breaks into a car and, hopefully, drives away. Nick heads off to the hospital to check on his beloved Sleeping Beauty, Juliette.

Now, during all this, Captain Renard has been putting his time to good use. He stares in the mirror and seems to have his inner monster slipping out just a little. He gets a grip on himself, downs the lumpy white potion and walks away. Once the potion kicks in, he screams in agony and rips his shirt off. There was shirt ripping. We don't get a lot of shirt ripping on this show, so this is memorable.

Captain Renard, aka Prince Charming, purges his flaws out in little puffs of black smoke and briefly passes out. He wakes up and trots off to the hospital. He sneaks in, kisses the sleeping Juliette and silently slips away. Juliette miraculously opens her eyes much to the astonishment of the medical professionals present. Nick exits the elevator, barely missing Renard, and rushes to Juliette's side. He is so happy to see her awake he practically glows. He kisses her and kneels beside her bed.

"Who are you?" she asks. Poor Nick. We can only hope this will give Juliette a chance to get a personality.

The next episode of Grimm, "Bad Moon Rising," airs Monday, Aug. 27, 10 p.m. ET