The concept that Hollywood isn’t interested in Women of a Certain Age is so well-known that America’s Dad Tom Hanks can make a joke about it on Saturday Night Live, but Killing Eve has quietly been making a case for three years now that it’s a mistake not to pay attention to them. At this point, it’s gotten a bit ridiculous how many men Carolyn knew in the ’80s who have gone on to become major players in her present-day work, but on some level it makes sense. This is where Carolyn ended up—why wouldn’t the rest of her cohort be in similar places?
Some of them end up in worse places than others, of course, including the squirrelly accountant who tries to get Konstantin to help him before being taken out in short order by Villanelle. But the overall notion that Carolyn both a) “had a great time in the ‘80s,” as Eve puts it and b) is able to use those connections for her own benefit now is exactly the sort of thing that a male spy would do. Except in this case it’s Carolyn, a 60-something female spy. The thing is, this makes perfect sense. Of course Carolyn used sex as an escape and also a method of connection. This is what spies do all the time (at least in pop culture. Sorry to all the real spies out there who spend all day reading paperwork or something), and the show’s casual assumption that Carolyn would continue to reap the benefits of those days despite no longer being Villanelle’s age is one of its more charming creative decisions. Killing Eve has always had a lot of fun with putting women in positions usually occupied by men, so Carolyn’s track record shouldn’t surprise too much. The femme fatale role that Villanelle occupies is perhaps the one most usually held by a woman, but the show is careful to tip that on its head, too—see the boxy suit she wears for her big reunion with Eve, her general indifference to men, or even more unusually, the concept that she almost never needs a rescue from our weary hero.
The downside to the focus on Carolyn, as fun as she is, is that Eve has been somewhat sidelined of late. Eve and Villanelle have yet another dramatic reunion, but somehow it’s one of the less important things that happen in the episode, and there’s a general sense that she’s drifting a bit these days. That was their first kiss, but it’s so defiantly unsexual that it leaves open the question of whether Eve does it because she wants to kiss Villanelle, or because she wants to mess with Villanelle. Which is rather par for the course for her, and one of the show’s strong points—Eve always seems to waffle between an actual attraction to Villanelle and a fierce desire to be her.
But the lack of focus on Eve is one of a few elements that make this episode feel a bit diffuse. Eve is hanging out at the Bitter Pill offices now, but it’s unclear if their work is supposed to turn into an article, or if this is all a way to avenge Kenny’s murder. His death is somehow supposed to be spurring on a more active investigation of the Twelve than we’ve previously had, but the fitful focus on a massive criminal conspiracy has long made it hard to get too invested in it. With Villanelle as the star attraction, her bosses have rarely generated much interest. The many deaths we’ve seen across three seasons have often meant very little in the plot, so it’s going to take more than a little work to suddenly give them depth and significance. Should we now wonder why Villanelle killed that pianist? Or the guy at the party in the last episode? Are these important figures in some larger war among the rich and powerful, or is there no link between each individual one? Does Villanelle know who they are? Does she care? She wants to be more important in the organization, but does she even know what it does?
It does seem plausible that she’ll lose some interest in that promotion now that the more tantalizing connection with Eve is back on the table. And it is entirely too likely that her bosses know that. Why else send Villanelle to a place she’ll only wreak havoc?
Stray observations
- Not to nitpick Villanelle’s work, as she is clearly the expert here, but could you really throw a knife that small hard enough to pierce the back of a skull? Does Villanelle moonlight as Major League pitcher?
- More identifiable: Villanelle’s inability to come up with the perfect message to record for Eve. Those things are a trap; no one can come up with a good message.
- The tension around a maybe-assassination attempt on Carolyn feels real enough, but it’s a little odd that Eve is so completely convinced that Carolyn is Villanelle’s target. How could she possibly be the only candidate in London? They know almost nothing about the Twelve’s organization, and Carolyn would have been a potential target for her whole career.
- Villanelle really gets Konstantin for once with the bed surprise, but I was very thrown by his bedtime ritual. Is this really how people go to bed? Doesn’t everyone sit in bed for a minute reading or something? He gets in bed and goes to sleep immediately like a Stardew Valley farmer.
- I am so confused about what Konstantin’s deal is at this point. Who ordered him to stay in London? How was he simultaneously willing to help Kruger but unaware that the Twelve would take him out for losing six million euros?
- Oh good, Eve is texting Nico. That relationship should be abandoned like all the office plants right now.
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So Villanelle definitely did not kill Kenny, as she was not in the country at the time. And it seems that since he was uninjured before he hit the ground he was lured up to the roof by someone he thought was friendly (Konstantin? His sister?)I loved Eve cautioning the guys at the paper that if she told him what Kenny was working on it would put them in danger. “Then don’t tell us.” “There’s this group called The Twelve…”The fight on the bus was amazing. I love that Eve was wildly attacking her and Villanelle easily and playfully fended her off until Eve distracted her with the kiss (and then somehow Eve executed a headbutt so ineptly that it hurt HER more). I loved Villanelle’s smile afterward, obviously it didn’t go quite like she planned, which is what really made her happy. Well other than the kiss
The fact that the bus wasn’t stopped immediately and they weren’t thrown out by the driver, made that fight scene lose credibility for me. I’ve seen this in real life (more than once) and it’s what would happen. Period. So I kept wondering if it was a dream or something.
I suppose, but even in real life if you are as hot as Jodie Comer you get away with a lot
It didn’t seem like the bus stopped at all, which made me wonder how Villanelle got off.
It did stop. Right in that moment when Eve is getting up from the floor. But because it’s a double-decker bus, it takes a moment for Villanelle to leave it.
hahah well I’m not a Londoner but … I have heard several stories of crazier stuff in Philly. And seen my share here. I think it’s meant to be a bit satirical but god knows it could be real.
Not always. There was the example last year of the female couple in London being harassed on the bus and then beaten up. This went on for awhile apparently. There was a warning before the eps started (in my area anyway) that said ‘in light of recent events, some scenes may be disturbing to viewers.’
I’ve been on a few buses in the UK where everybody would be trying to pretend nothing was happening and just ignore it.Although my favourite story, from back in the 80s, was a couple taken to court for having sex in a far-from-empty train carriage. Apparently they were just gradually getting friskier, but felt emboldened by everybody avoiding eye contact, and were able to consummate the relationship without anybody saying anything. But when one of them lit up a post-coital cigarette, one of the other passengers tutted and told them it was a non-smoking carriage.
That was double-decker bus, the driver didn’t see them.
That tugged at me, too, but I also don’t believe nobody in that outdoor square saw Dasha putting the baby in the garbage bin (at least out of the corner of their eye, at least realizing it after the fact, etc). In a way these things are just presented as parody, so I just go ahead and ignore even the idea of disbelief.
Considering that the follow up to Eve texting Nico was her discovering that he checked out of the clinic and disappeared with out leaving a note for her I’m guessing that they are in fact done.I was worried for Carolyn for a bit but considering that they made it abundantly obvious that the accountant guy was fucked that I wasn’t too convinced that Villanelle was after her. Also Carolyn spotted Villanelle during their stake out so why didn’t she take more precautions after they grabbed the guy?I do like how unbothered Konstantin is by Villanelle that once the surprise wore off he just immediately went “Oh it’s you, I’m going back to bed.”
Considering that the follow up to Eve texting Nico was her discovering that he checked out of the clinic and disappeared with out leaving a note for her I’m guessing that they are in fact done.Except that he was in the preview for next week’s episode, so he’s going to get wrapped up in things again somehow.
It’s not the most reliable source in the world, but on the Killing Eve Wikipedia page, good old Niko (Owen McDonnell) is now listed as a “reoccurring” character instead of a “main” one. I’m hopeful Niko comes down with a bad case of total irrelevance for the rest of the season.
Putting. The baby. In. The trash.This ep was an improvement for me. Though I do agree with the review about Eve being in the background. Her husband checking out of the hospital was significant enough to warrant more material for her.
I really liked the bit just before when she was playing with the baby. The entire scene beginning to end was great.
That scene was hilarious & almost had to be improvised, I loved Villanelle chastizing the baby for crying as that wasn’t what she wanted her to do
Underrated, but also awesome and hilarious was the opening scene of Villanelle and the maid/nanny, when Villanelle was scaring her by pointing that thing at the maid, then at the baby, maid, baby, maid, baby…“You really like that baby, huh? It’s not even yours”. (I love when I laugh at things that normally I shouldn’t laugh, but this show…)
That gave me flashbacks to that MI6 traitor guy pleading with Villanelle for his life.“Please! I have children!”“I don’t want your children.”
Gives us a bit of an insight into Dasha. I think we know Villanelle well enough by now that her taking the baby on a whim isn’t surprising, but Dasha being so annoyed by it being there that she dumps it in a trash can is a solid character beat.
It was just the right amount of random/bizzare/cruel/funny that is hard to nail just right. The scene instantly became about what’s going on in the background, as more and more people freak out. I loved it.
I think for me the most memorable part was Eve’s smirk/giggle as she walked awy from Carolyn’s aide. “Do you know what happens to people protected by MI6? It’s not…good.” Something about what Sandra Oh did there just struck me.
That was a great line delivery by Sandra Oh. She is so good.Should we just call Carolyn’s aide, “new Kenny”?
Nenny?
Diet Kenny
Grade “A”, lolI’m sorry, but that was awesome. Couple of times I hold my breath because I couldn’t believe in what was happening and I legit thought for a sec they killed Carolyn. Well played. Also, the fact that the bus scene played almost entirely without words just added to the tension. It was everything I wanted and more.
I disagree about Eve, I don’t feel like she is in background at all. Actually, this seasons has my fave Eve, one that is very close to the full version of herself where she doesn’t give a f….., where she takes what hers, where she knows how to say “no” and I love to see it.
It really was grade A, it was the episode I’ve been waiting for all season. Amazing moments for Eve, Carolyn and especially Villanelle. Also, AMC should be applauded for NOT spoiling any of the big scenes in last week’s promo.
I’m with you and while you have to suspend disbelief far too often on Killing Eve, Suzanne Heathcote has given every lesbian and bisexual woman I know on Twitter and Tumblr a collective heart attack last night.
From what I remember of Season 2, isn’t Carolyn a suspected member of The Twelve? Or did that get resolved somewhere? If not, why in the hell would Eve go to Carolyn for *anything*, much less assassinations involving The Twelve?
Uh…because Carolyn had a son named Kenny who got whacked by The Twelve and was Eve’s last friend in the world? Is that reason enough?
I’ve been wondering about Carolyn’s connection to The Twelve too. If it got resolved, I completely missed it.
Place-setting is what I was thinking of, but to me, that implies known characters getting together to set the table — perform a boring activity that nonetheless links them and reaffirms they should be together (and an activity you would expect a certain amount of characters to show up for). Not a bunch of rando new guys running into the cast to set up plot points. I kinda felt like 20 mins were wasted. But I applaud the big gestures elsewhere — the baby, although I would prefer it make V double-down on domestic dreams with Eve; seems more true to her to” want want want” than to engage in self-reflection . A kiss, boldly put in episode 3! That’s genius. Carolyn had me fuming as a target … don’t want to spoil but yes I was upset.I honestly think the show would’ve been funnier if it had just gone to America (like AbFab, lol) and had Villanelle kill/stalk Eve’s family while doing other tasks with say, a final showdown in Alaska. It needs to be a little absurd, not luxurious (killing fancy Spanish people over and over). V is too in her comfort zone with the villa.I did think mid-way “this is an entirely new show” but remembered … it literally is. This is what we tune in for. I’m okay with it, just needs an infusion of wit, whimsy and speed, pls.
I really appreciated the show undercutting its traditional “draw out the Eve-Villanelle meeting and play it up as a huge, sexy moment” play. Eve’s on a bus, then Villanelle is there. Genuinely caught me by surprise.
It took me a little while to understand that it was actually happening rather than a bit of day dreaming on Eve’s part.
“… it’s a little odd that Eve is so completely convinced that Carolyn is Villanelle’s target.”Actually it makes perfect sense. Kenny was looking into the 12, made some connections between some accounts, and then was killed because of that.
Eve and Carolyn are working together to figure out what got Kenny killed. Eve had quit MI6 and only has Carolyn as her last contact there. Carolyn has been forced to take a leave, and stay away from the case, but is still using her connections and MI6 resources in the investigation.Now Villanelle shows up but says Eve isn’t her target. It does make sense that Eve would then assume it’s Carolyn. If they were willing to kill Kenny, then why would they have a problem killing someone following in his footsteps? And killing Carolyn makes more sense than killing Eve, because removing her takes away Eve’s last connection to MI6. Eve couldn’t run this investigation on her own without Carolyn’s help.And Konstantin’s deal is that he works for the 12, not the other way around. He might have been willing to help Kruger out based on their previous history, but the bosses had other ideas. And they don’t have to run things by Konstantin. You could see by his reaction to Villanelle mentioning killing an accountant that he was surprised. And he’s got to be worried about whether the bosses know he met with Kruger. And that maybe he’s under suspicion now.
Lisa, like a doctor or a soldier, being a spy is exhausting work. You can get into a cycle of going full out and then sleeping when you can.
I’m glad to see most others here agreeing me with that this was definitely an A grade episode. The show has been a bit predictable in terms of the Eve/Villanelle interaction. I was really surprised to see Villanelle show up on the bus and thought it might be a dream sequence for a bit! These two just can’t quit each other! However it is back to being a power struggle and it worked for me whereas them working together last season didn’t quite.I’m also loving that Carolyn is pretty much the star right now. Fiona Shaw is awesome and I agree with this article that the casual reference to her as using sex to build her contacts in the last is great. However, the good guys team is a bit slim right now. No Kenny, no Bill, no Elena, no awful Hugo. Carolyn’s new flunky hasn’t really established himself yet and the Bitter Pill crew seem there just for Eve to have her own team. Not sure why they would want to be involved with her at all.Still, lots of the trademark Killing Eve black humour, Villanelle’s at her most unpredictable and mercurial, cool Carolyn. I’d agree with the review that Eve is a little sidelined. Still, at least Nico seems gone :)Good episode and I hope the quality is maintained.
It’s a sign of show’s confidence when a scene that for many would be crucial and final scene of the episode is somewhere in the middle. And when you think the show is done with you, they are putting another heart-stopping scene with Villanelle and Carolyn. And theeen, they somehow manage to delivery two great scenes (Villanelle& Konstantin, Eve&Teddy Bear) that closed the chapter on emotional, character drivel level.
Yes, this episode was better than anything served up in season 2 I thought.I think this episode was good at pulling us the audience and Eve into the fantasy of not only Villanelle but also of Carolyn. And then quickly popping that bubble and realizing that fantasy they are living can be very lonely, only for us and Eve to be pulled in once again.
The Stardew Valley farmer reference made me laugh. I wonder if Konstantin is more important than we think he is. That was my thought today.
Only Villanelle could pull off that horrible suit…and make kidnapping a baby sweet.
Should we now wonder why Villanelle killed that pianist?They actually paid that off in the background, when Villanelle was back at her hotel room watching TV. During the TV news story about the “bin baby” being reunited with its father. Something about the mother being some manner of protester / critic / revolutionary….don’t remember exactly, but they at least gave the killing some narrative sense.Did not expect Dasha to be so outwardly-forgiving about V’s “management” training going so spectacularly poor.MVP of the episode was Jodie Comer’s facial expression while walking through the stuffed animal store. So wonderfully put-off by the entire scene.
“This place is psychopathic.” Coming from V, that’s saying something.
Kudos to Oh for apparently being quite cool with the other leads upstaging her in her own production. Villanelle and Carolyn are making the show at this point. The sooner they jettison Eve’s backstories the better (sorry Nico). That is time better spent developing this “Twelve” thing, which is somehow driving the plot without actually existing in the story, unless it just continues to be an overarching MacGuffin by design.
And OMG, those baby scenes- darkly hysterical.
Yeah, I’m okay with a little less Eve. She’s the least interesting character… for now.
I basically sleep like Konstantin. I do not read in bed. I go to my bed to sleep, and then I sleep.
That kiss was . . . not good. I believe a fairly wide swath of the Kinsey spectrum could work up a little enthusiasm for kissing Jodie Comer.
I thought this one was a delight. Hell, if it was just the baby scenes alone, it would have been an A+, but we also got a random bus fight and Carolyn in a bathtub. I’m into it.After a somewhat boring Villanelle plotline last week, this one was perfect. Her scene in the perfumery was amazing.
The whole “Roman centurion” story for her scent was perfect.
The guy’s baffled response to her story was hilarious. “So . . more woody, then?”
Any Fiona Shaw is great. Fiona Shaw dictating orders from her bath tub is fantastic.I’m becoming increasingly suspicious of her daughter. She’s just always hanging around, and it feels like she’s subtly infantilising Carolyn. Plus, she doesn’t seem especially upset about Kenny. Maybe I’m jumping at shadows, but I think there’s more going on there.
Not to nitpick Villanelle’s work, as she is clearly the expert here, but could you really throw a knife that small hard enough to pierce the back of a skull?Not to nitpick you, but that was a sharpened tuning fork. Which makes it even more ridiculous that she’s able to throw it and stick the landing. Twice. Due to its odd shape, even if Villanelle was an expert at throwing knives she would’ve still had to practice for weeks to be able to do this so flawlessly.