Beyond the Gates Recap for December 3, 2025: Soap Cupid worked on Ted and Shanice and Joey tried to protect Vanessa

Here's what went down Wednesday, December 3, 2025 on Beyond the Gates when Eva avoided a home run, June wasn't miraculously cured, and the Mayor of Orphey Gene's went up against the Mayor of Lakeview Casino.

What happened on Beyond the Gates

On Beyond the Gates, Vernon hoped that Martin's campaign manager, Shonda, wouldn't get bent out of shape from him coming on board to advise his grandson. Martin cited Vernon's impact on history as the reason he was needed and went over the issues he wanted to run on – the congressman argued that they were bread-and-butter issues, but Vernon deemed them perfunctory and pressed that voters wouldn't get excited about them if Martin couldn't.

Martin was surprised to learn that Vernon had created social media accounts and was keeping up through them; Vernon felt that Martin's constituents should see glimpses of Martin's everyday life online to humanize his campaign. Martin wasn't opposed, but he didn't want Tyrell and Samantha involved, especially since Chelsea had been stalked through her socials and subsequently kidnapped. Vernon conceded the point but sensed that the grass-roots efforts Martin had made to fuel his first campaign weren't going to work against his likely new opponent.

Talk turned to how Joey had attempted to make a campaign contribution. Vernon was glad to hear that Martin had refused Joey's check and said that it had taken courage for Martin to tell Joey he couldn't be bought. When Vernon expressed regret over having brought Joey into their lives to help handle the fallout from the hate crime “Kenneth” and his brother had committed against Martin and Vernon, Martin praised his grandfather for protecting him and securing his family's future.

At Orphey Gene's, June couldn't stop raving over the Richardson-Smiths' Thanksgiving meal, but Tyrell was so salty with June and Samantha that Smitty had to reprimand him. Samantha saw waitress June nearly dropping a plate and rushed to help her; June fretted that if she didn't keep up with her boss' expectations and lost her job, she'd also lose her health care. Taking that to mean that June might not be well, Samantha learned that June's lungs hadn't been the same since her heart problems and bout with pneumonia. The teen wondered why June hadn't stayed on top of any burgeoning issues before they'd gotten worse, but June explained that the current system didn't allow for unhoused people to have regular check-ups – plus, on the streets, survival tended to be more important than seeing to minor illnesses, even if they could become major later.

Across the diner, Smitty got Tyrell to admit that he was acting out because of the possibility of losing Jessica, should she be accepted to college in California. Seeing that Tyrell hadn't told Jessica how he felt about her, despite their short romance thus far, Smitty admitted that he didn't have experience with women but did know they appreciated men allowing themselves to be honest and vulnerable. Tyrell worried that confessing his feelings could push Jessica away; Smitty noted that doing so had just as much potential to bring them closer.

Martin joined his family, who sided with Vernon about the politician needing to have a presence online. Then, Samantha suggested, based on her conversation with June, that Martin open a free clinic. Both Martin and Smitty concurred that a clinic wouldn't be a simple undertaking and challenged Samantha and Tyrell to help them find ways around the red tape. Samantha wanted to stay behind and help June when the others were ready to leave; she was told that she was still grounded and that she wasn't to contact Nathan. Yet, her first second alone, Samantha grabbed a landline phone and left a message for someone to meet her.

Vanessa arrived at the casino with kisses for Joey, who had sneaked out early so Vanessa's Fairmont Crest neighbors wouldn't see his car in her driveway. The realtor didn't care what others in the community thought, but, in spite of Vanessa's protests, Joey was certain that Vanessa's kids weren't ready to hear about their relationship. Vanessa was offended that Joey didn't seem to want to acknowledge her in public and suggested that he remedy that by being her date to WinterFest.

When Joey turned her down, Vanessa said that they could arrive separately and happen to run into each other, but Joey insisted that wouldn't solve the problem of them being seen together. Vanessa accused Joey of being ashamed of her; Joey countered that Vanessa had class, unlike him, since those doors had never been open to him. As Vanessa kept pushing for Joey to attend WinterFest with her, Joey reminded her that one false move could give away the fact that they were engaging in money laundering, which could land them in jail. Vanessa called that a crafty excuse and stalked out – nearly running into Vernon on the way. Vernon was stunned to see her; Vanessa grinned that she was merely discussing a new venture with her business partner.

Vanessa went to the country club and sulked over a drink. When Diego stopped by, Vanessa wondered if he would escort her to WinterFest, but he had other plans, which made her pout even more. Meanwhile, Vernon talked to Joey about trying to donate to Martin's campaign and sneered that Joey enjoyed having an influential family beholden to him. Though Vernon did respect Joey to a degree, he demanded that the casino owner steer clear of Martin's political career, to which Joey instantly agreed. However, Joey observed that he and Vernon weren't that dissimilar, and he advised Vernon to look in a mirror the next time he tried looking down his nose at him.

Eva met Izaiah for a casual date, on which the flirtation became heavy. Izaiah told Eva about his first days working at Banneker University, and how he'd been a menace when he was younger; it was only because someone had shown up for him that he had decided to get into a career where he could do the same for other troubled kids. When Izaiah brainstormed ideas for a second date, Eva smirked that she was “slightly interested,” leading to Izaiah saying he hoped they could eventually get past the joking and the masks. Eva just didn't want Izaiah to waste her time...or break her heart.

At the hospital, Shanice barely kept her cool with a grumpy caller, then ran headlong into Ted, dropping an armful of files. When Ted bent with Shanice to help her retrieve the documents, their hands touched. Not acknowledging the charged moment, Shanice and Ted laughed over the doctor who still insisted on keeping paper files – it had been “1985 since1985” for the man in question, Ted went on.

After boarding the hospital elevator, Ted was in the middle of telling Shanice that he was “stuck” covering for the absent Carlton when the lift stalled. Shanice said that Ted had jinxed things by using the word “stuck,” calling the temperamental elevator “cursed.” Ted made things worse by trying to fix it; he called Eva to let her know he was trapped and that she'd need to reschedule some of his appointments for him.

Izaiah was bummed that Eva was going to have to leave to talk to a hard-to-reach doctor, but Eva noticed that he perked up when she was able to call in a favor to have someone else run the errand. Eva, while intrigued, hesitated when Izaiah suggested that they continue their date at his place. She confessed that she was into him, but also that she wanted to “lead with her head” after her last “situationship” imploded. Izaiah listened as Eva said she felt like they might be at the beginning of something real; when she didn't want to rush and asked if he was willing to take “the scenic route,” his response was, “Hell, yeah.”

Caught between floors, Ted got panicky, so Shanice told him to “quit being so extra.” Ted playfully ruled Shanice superstitious and encouraged her to tell him about herself. Shanice revealed that she had two brothers and two sisters; while her parents were still together, she had never been married herself. The physical therapist wasn't afraid of anything – except birds. Ted and Shanice recalled how Alfred Hitchcock's movie The Birds had done its psychological damage, and Dr. Richardson remarked that, for all the years he and Shanice had worked together at the hospital, they had never had such a deep conversation.

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The doors finally opened and Shanice and Ted were grateful to be free – but, as they went their own ways, something seemed to linger between them.

Beyond the Gates airs weekdays on CBS and streams on Paramount Plus.

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