I do hate shows/movies that shame an audience later for enjoying what they were set up to enjoy previously. I REALLY hate that; it's like, filmmakers, you don't get to have your cake and eat it too, and like, do you hate your audience or what? I felt like Grosse Point Blank, as otherwise great a movie as that was, did that A LOT, making the violence humorous, then shaming the audience for finding it funny instead of horrific. But I just didn't get a feeling of that from this ep. It may be partly that I was spoiled and knew what was going to happen, but it did seem fairly clear early on that something wasn't right about it, what with her saying "Now isn't this nicer?" and peppering him with questions just as she had been before. That is to say, even if the sex had been real, it seemed immediately clear she was still just using him, so thank heaven it was but imaginary.

But jeez, I hardly know how they could undress Jared and put him in a sex scene and not have it REEEALLY sexy, so I don't blame the show for that. I THANK Show (and heaven) for that. ;-> Speaking seriously, though, that might have been partly Jared's choice, wanting it to be hot and not realizing how disturbing it could come off to viewers in context.

Excellent point about its being merely a plot device to give Dean more time alone with Mary first.