Episode Name: "Jump"
Season 2, Episode 18
Original Airdate: May 22, 2008

Arrivederci, Roma?

In a Word: Betty must choose between Henry and Gio, preferably before that Naomi Campbell fly ball knocks her on the head.

The Action: Betty's youth-perspective article gets published in Hot Flash, albeit heavily rewritten ("Natch!") by Claire, who tells Betty that she plays things too safe, and she should take more chances. That advice comes in handy when Gio asks her to go to Rome with him over the summer.

Daniel is as paranoid as ever about Wilhelmina taking his job, so he's doing that thing where he copes with stress by whining like a little boy. Strange, then, that his actual son isn't nearly that whiny. Because, yes, a little French boy (the son of a model who's recently passed away) shows up at the Mode offices and says Daniel's his dad. Daniel, of course, thinks this is all a trick that Wilhelmina's cooked up, and he tells her it won't work. Which is the anti-genius move of the year, because now Willie has a secret about Daniel that she can exploit, and this one just fell in her lap like a gift from God (Marc makes sure to thank both God and France for this turn of events).

Daniel manages to make it easy for Willie with his dismissive attitude towards the kid, and she and Marc invite him over for dinner and so they can, one assumes, re-apply his eyeliner (the kid's eyes really pop).

Betty tells her family about the trip to Rome, and Ignacio is immediately concerned. How will she pay for this? And where will she sleep -- in Gio's bed? Justin ducks out of this particular thorny conversation, promising he'll get the recap later (he doesn't specifically say "from SOAPnet.com," but you can tell that's what he means). Hilda, for the record, is all for Betty whoring it up with Gio. Not in favor of Betty whoring it up with Gio: Henry, who shows up at Casa Suarez with a ring and a marriage proposal.

After everybody gets a commercial break to process the shock, Betty gets the deets (natch!): Henry wants her to move to Arizona with him, so he can have his baby and his girl at the same time. Betty doesn't give him an answer, but he's going back on Monday, so she had until then. Ignacio, for the record, likes this idea even less than the Rome idea.

The public relations fallout from Daniel's callous behavior (he's been partying it up at Lotus while "Little Orphan Danny" wanders the streets, or so says FashionTV) is severe, and Alexis puts him on a leave of absence, lest they lose a major advertiser.

Hilda, who's been taking things slow with Coach Diaz, tries to get Ignacio to see that Betty's just seizing her chance to be happy, which Hilda knows firsthand can be awfully fleeting. Taking her own advice, then, Hilda decides embark upon the makeout phase of her relationship with the Coach, but he splashes some cold water on that plan when he reveals that he's still married. Hilda, for the record: The official recommendation of this recap is: who cares??

The leave of absence actually gives Daniel the opportunity to act right, as he admits the kid (also named Daniel, but Frenchified so it's pronounced like "Danielle") is his. He and the boy bond over their shared appreciation for "hot chicks," and little Daniel expresses an affinity for baseball.

Wilhelmina, meanwhile, continues to lean on Alexis to "reassign" Daniel, for the good of the magazine.

Ignacio ultimately gives Betty his blessing to choose what's best for her, but before she does, there's softball to be played! Yes, the whole episode has been building up to the big Mode vs. Elle charity softball game, and Betty's been having flashbacks of high school gym class where Mean Girl Kimberly (hello, Lindsay Lohan!) would torment her.

Marc and Amanda take cheerleading duties for the game, and Amanda promises FashionTV that she'll be back with a new single, reality show, or sex tape very soon. After Daniel Jr. recognizes Marc from earlier, Daniel Sr. busts Wilhelmina for staging the Little Orphan Danny footage from earlier. Willie returns serve and says that Alexis has already demoted him as editor-in-chief and named Willie to the position. She also replaces Daniel as Mode's softball pitcher. Lady's throwing some heat, in both cases. Daniel decides to take his son and go home.

Henry shows up at the last minute to join the team, and with Gio already playing, Betty's feeling the pressure. While Willie attempts to deal with Naomi Campbell at the plate, Betty stands in the outfield between her two suitors. When Naomi hits a long pop fly (seems all that phone-throwing has really improved her power game), all three collide in centerfield.

While momentarily knocked out, Betty dreams about her life in Tucson as Henry's wife (lots of blue-corn pancakes and deadlines to meet) and in Rome with Gio (fancy hotels and sightseeing plans). Dream Henry and Dream Gio ultimately converge and demand that Betty make a choice.

A Madonna dance break/montage tells us the following: Mode wins the softball game, and Wilhelmina is the hero. Claire looks on sadly at the ruthless businesswoman Alexis has become. Hilda figures that, married or not, Eddie Cibrian without a shirt on is still Eddie Cibrian without a shirt on, so she meets him on the playground for a little one-on-one. Daniel packs a box and leaves Mode. And Betty packs a bag ... bound for where? Tune in next season!

Our Take: Can't wait for next season, when the show moves to New York City for real, so maybe the final zoom-out shot of Queens won't look so obviously CGI.

Your Take: After pushing Daniel out for Wilhelmina, is Alexis a bad sister or a good businesswoman?

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