Hostile Takeover

Hostile Takeover is the tenth episode of the second season of the television series Runaways.
==Synopsis==
Leslie starts dismantling the cult she helped create, but Frank has other plans. AWOL uses Livvie as bait to confront the Runaways. The teens must protect Gert & Old Lace, who are sick, and AWOL's team storms the Hostel. Victor doesn't feel like himself.
==Plot==
Following her abduction by AWOL, Livvie is taken to the Black Box where AWOL brutally interrogates her, threatening to hurt Tamar and Xerxes Davis if she does not reveal where the Runaways are hiding. Livvie attempts to resist for a while, but the terror of having her family hurt forces her to reveal the location of the Hostel and she agrees to lead the strike team there.
As it happens, the situation has already turned critical in the Hostel, as both Gert Yorkes and Old Lace feel incredibly ill, leaving the Runaways puzzled about what to do. The Runaways are then alerted of the strike team's arrival, but Nico Minoru manages to activate a camouflage spell in time with the Staff of One. Despite this, AWOL spots a camera on the ground, thus confirming the presence of the Runaways.
The Runaways attempt to negotiate with AWOL, who wants to reclaim the footage where he can be seen shooting at Livvie. Alex Wilder, who refuses to let Livvie in danger, decides to go and confront AWOL alone, but his teammates know that he would instantly get killed and have Molly Hernandez stop him. Wilder thus returns to his senses, and begins to devise a new plan to improve the odds against the strike team.
Following Wilder's instructions, Chase Stein is able to get Gert and Old Lace out of the Hostel while Wilder lures AWOL into a trap, drawing him alone inside the Hostel, where he is tied up to a chair. He is interrogated by the Runaways, but Wilder once again loses his temper and threatens to kill him with the Fistigons until Karolina Dean forces him to calm down. Still, Wilder insists that they cannot walk out of the situation without getting their hands dirty. Moreover, the Runaways run out of time as Minoru struggles to keep the spell protecting them active, and admits that the power of the Staff is too great for her.
Left with no other option, Wilder decides to let the strike team enter as the Runaways wait for them behind a barricade. Minoru faints during the confrontation, causing the teenagers to be cornered, but she eventually regains consciousness and channels energy from the Dark Dimension, casting a powerful spell which causes the entire strike team to vanish, thus saving the Runaways and Livvie. Livvie then tells Wilder that she has to leave him to protect her family.
Janet Stein reviews the weapons her husband Victor and Robert Minoru have been designing, and voices her concern that the Runaways might get hurt. However, she is surprised as Victor acts incredibly nice towards her, leading to both of them having sex in the lab. Janet is unaware that Victor is actually possessed by the Magistrate, who is later visited by his daughter, who controls Tina Minoru's body: the Gibborim have actually survived the Battle at the PRIDE Construction Site, and are trying to regroup.
Chase takes Gert to her parents Dale and Stacey as he does not know where else to go. They are all unaware that Stacey is actually possessed by the Magistrate's Wife, who orchestrated Old Lace's poisoning to force the Runaways to return home. Shocked by the actions of who he believes to be Stacey, Dale sides with Chase and they are eventually able to save both Gert and Old Lace, although Chase and Gert remain captive in the Yorkes Residence's basement.
Meanwhile, Frank Dean discovers his wife Leslie's plan of shutting down the Church of Gibborim now that Jonah is seemingly gone. Frank categorically opposes this choice as he has finally found a true purpose in the Church. Leslie is later confronted by Aura and Frances, who Frank has won to his cause, and they claim that Leslie will never be able to put an end to the Church. Vaughn Kaye is later ordered to bring Leslie to a reindoctrination session performed by Frank, Aura and Frances, although he is visibly distraught by this.
==Cast==
Main Cast:
*Rhenzy Feliz as Alex Wilder
*Lyrica Okano as Nico Minoru
*Virginia Gardner as Karolina Dean
*Ariela Barer as Gert Yorkes
*Gregg Sulkin as Chase Stein
*Allegra Acosta as Molly Hernandez
*Angel Parker as Catherine Wilder (credit only)
*Ryan Sands as Geoffrey Wilder (credit only)
*Annie Wersching as Leslie Dean
*Kip Pardue as Frank Dean
*Ever Carradine as Janet Stein
*James Marsters as Victor Stein / Magistrate
*Brigid Brannagh as Stacey Yorkes / Magistrate's Wife
*Kevin Weisman as Dale Yorkes
*Brittany Ishibashi as Magistrate's Daughter
*James Yaegashi as Robert Minoru (credit only)
*Julian McMahon as Jonah (credit only)
Guest Stars:
*Ozioma Akagha as Tamar
*Ajiona Alexus as Livvie
*Cody Mayo as Vaughn Kaye
*Myles Bullock as Anthony Wall/AWOL
*Heather Olt as Frances
*Pat Lentz as Aura
*Steve O'Young as Mitch
*Morgan Benoit as Vic (uncredited)
*Unknown Actor as Jay (uncredited)
*Unknown Actor as Xerxes Davis (uncredited)
==Appearances==
===Locations===
*Los Angeles, California
**Black Box
**Nana B's Residence
**Hostel
**Church of Gibborim Executive Office
**Stein Mansion
**Yorkes Residence
** (mentioned)
===Events===
*Kidnapping of Livvie
*Siege of the Hostel
*Ambush at the Simply Blossom (mentioned)
*Battle at the PRIDE Construction Site (mentioned)
===Items===
*Fistigons
*Staff of One
*WizCam
*Church of Gibborim Bracelet
*Subsonic Wave Generator
*Book of Gibborim
*My First Book of Gibborim
*Gibbor-Yum Cookbook
*Bulletproof Vest
*Inhibitor Pods (design)
*Anti-Gravity Device (design)
*Multidirectional Tranquilizer Dart (design)
*Healing Algorithm (mentioned)
*Fortnite (mentioned)
===Vehicles===
*Runaways' Rolls-Royce
*Magistrate's Ship (mentioned)
===Sentient Species===
*Humans
*Gibborim
===Creatures===
*Deinonychus
**Old Lace
===Organizations===
*Runaways
*PRIDE
*Church of Gibborim
*Wizard
*Nemo
*Synnergy
*Los Angeles Police Department
===Mentioned===
*David Ellerh
*Flores
*Alphona
*Robert Minoru
*Tina Minoru
*Darius Davis
==Music==
Song title 	Artist	Location(s)
Pretend (feat. Robot Koch)	MARKS 	
*Gert Yorkes kisses Chase Stein for saving her and Old Lace, then tries to convince him to go help their friends. Livvie asks Alex Wilder what Nico Minoru did to AWOL and his men, then tells him she can't stay. Frank Dean forces Leslie Dean into reconditioning.
==References==
==External Links==
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Category:Runaways (TV series) Episodes