‘UnREAL’ season 2, episode 5 review: Darius and Ruby’s downfall; Jeremy descends into darkness

Tonight’s episode of “UnREAL” was probably the best of the season, and there were so many reasons why that is.

First and foremost, we had a ton of great stuff when it comes to matters of the morally gray. Not everyone in this world should be terrible, and over the course of the hour tonight we saw both the good and the bad from Rachel. When she realized that Quinn had set in motion a plan to destroy Ruby and Darius’ overnight date, one that was set up thanks to a vote from “America” and then some producer manipulation, she at first tried to stop it since it would mean Ruby’s father ruining their night together. However, eventually she realized that the confrontation would make for great TV, and in turn, she allowed cameras to go in. For that one moment, Quinn had won her over, and she was siding against Coleman, her ideal love interest for most of the season.

From here on, things got all the more complicated since Darius eventually sent Ruby home, feeling he’d never live up to what she wanted him to be. As a result of that, Jay was infuriated that Rachel did this to someone he was so invested in as a producer. All of this material was meaty and well thought-out in a way we haven’t seen this season.

As for the saga of Yael (who we still don’t quite understand), that’s still unclear. We do at least get where Jeremy has been this season, though: In hell. There’s a part of him who loves Rachel, which is probably why he was with her doppelganger. That rage plus alcohol unfortunately led to him doing the most horrific thing he’s done on the show so far in assaulting her following a demotion and when things didn’t go his way. Kudos for the show for not taking his assault any further and having Chet step in; the point was made without having it become almost exploitative.

So Jeremy and Ruby are both seemingly gone now from “Everlasting,” Darius is changing the rules and calling audibles, and Rachel and Coleman have newfound tension. Also, Quinn may have a new billionaire boyfriend. We don’t know where “UnREAL” is going next, but for the time being it’s more compelling than it’s been all season. Grade: A