“We’re still attached to a table.”
Seven episodes in, and we’re almost done. In seven hours of story, we have been through so much, and I can’t believe that it is just about to wrap up. That being said, how does the second-to-last chapter of Peggy Carter’s story fare? Let’s read on and find out.
The Story So Far
Peggy Carter’s moment of good graces with the SSR came to an abrupt end when Agent Sousa finally exposed her as the blonde-haired double agent from the nightclub incident, causing an organization-wide search for her. What’s more, Russian psychiatrist Dr. Ivchenko revealed his true colors as a Leviathan spy by showcasing his hypnotism. Despite eluding SSR agents initially, Peggy is finally apprehended after a “widow’s kiss” from Dottie, which knocked her out.
Analysis (WARNING: Full Spoilers Ahead!)
The penultimate chapter of this eight-episode tale brought the tension built up from last week’s episode to its highest levels, as the finale next week looms large. And it’s a chapter that continues to fire on all cylinders like those that have come before it, thanks to the fluid writing of Chris Dingess, who also happens to write Image Comics’ critically-acclaimed period horror Manifest Destiny, so he definitely has a lot of experience working on period pieces.
While Peggy has been apprehended by the SSR for running an investigation independent of their manhunt for Howard Stark, she pretty much refuses to let that be her fall from grace, as evidenced by her attitude while being questioned by her colleagues. This comes to a head when she rightfully chews out Agents Sousa and Thompson, plus Chief Dooley for their behavior towards her early on in the episode. As Carter puts it, “You think you know me. But I’ve never been more than what each of you has created. To you, I’m a stray kitten left on your doorstep to be protected. The secretary turned damsel-in-distress. The girl on the pedestal, transformed into some daft whore.” This dressing down of fellow agents is made all the more powerful by the command that series lead Hayley Atwell has in her portrayal as the titular agent. We saw this command in full bloom during the series’ fourth episode, “The Blitzkrieg Button”, when she verbally destroyed Howard Stark for his duplicity, and we see it here once again. We also get to see a heartrending moment (the first of many in this episode) when Peggy ends up having to use the blood sample of Captain Steve Rogers as a bartering tool to get her SSR peers to trust her word regarding Leviathan’s plot.
When explaining her reasoning for keeping Rogers’ blood in her possession, Peggy notes, “I suppose I wanted a second chance at keeping him safe.” While we, the audience, know as a whole that Captain America is still alive somewhere in the arctic (albeit frozen), this is something that Peggy doesn’t have any knowledge of. In her view, the man she considered a friend and that right dance partner is dead, never to be seen again. And now, with no options left to get her interrogators to trust her word, she’s got no choice but to sacrifice that second chance she speaks of to get a second chance of her own to save the world. In a sense, this once again mirrors Cap’s own sacrifice when trying to land that Hydra plan to prevent mass destruction. More and more, the series attempts to show that yes, Peggy does share a lot in common with Cap, certainly bringing a fascinating character study as it relates to Peggy in the midst of all the espionage and action going on.
Meanwhile, the final pieces of the Leviathan plan became all the more clearer when the not-so-good Dr. Ivchenko stole a crate marked “Item 17” from the SSR science lab. And as we saw in the episode’s final moments, it’s an item that could cause mass chaos if it falls into the wrong hands. They say that a hero is only as good as their villains, and it’s become a quite evident that Ivchenko and Dottie (or whatever their true aliases are) fit this description. Their maneuvering thru subterfuge, hypnosis, or just general brutality puts them on par with the hordes of Hydra as “effective” big bads in the MCU. They’re so good at being despicable that you can’t help but definitely cheer the moment when Carter finally puts a stop to their machinations.
This maneuvering ends up striking at the core of the SSR, namely the organization’s guiding conscience, Chief Roger Dooley. Ivchenko works his hypnotic charm to manipulate Dooley into helping him acquire the aforementioned Item 17, and to ultimately bring about a most explosive end for his mind controlled patsy. Ivchenko’s mind trickery comes with utilizing the memories of Dooley’s family against him, in a sense, which just makes it all the more worse and furthers the doctor’s status as a magnificent bastard of a man who isn’t afraid to delve into what makes someone tick to get what he wants. Despite the success on Ivchenko’s part of having the head of the SSR be done away with, he certainly didn’t count on Dooley showing enough sense to prevent the deaths of everyone at the Phone Company. The Chief’s choice of heroic sacrifice via self-defenestration is another moment that tugs at the heart, mainly due to his course of action and his final words towards Peggy, asking her to promise him to find the man responsible for his dire predicament. It may have come at the very moment his life was in mortal jeopardy, but he now sees Peggy as an equal, rather than just some secretary that he feels should be covering the phones.
In the end, while the bad guys are now moving forward with their master plan, they’ve got a now-united SSR to deal with, who are now all looking to bring their formerly-unseen foe to justice in order to avenge their fallen chief. In any case, we’ve got the set up for a truly wild and exciting finish to this story. Now, it’s just the matter of whether they stick the landing. But, given the quality of recent episodes, I certainly have no doubt that they will stick that landing, so to speak.
Grade: 9.0/10
Quick Hits
- In the opening, we see Dr. Ivchenko reading a book entitled The Tragic Life of Dr. Faustus. A hint towards who he’s supposed to represent in the MCU?
- While we’re discussing that opening flashback, the name of the soldier Ivchenko was helping? Private Ovechkin. The hockey fan in me smiled.
- I believe that this is one of a select few of shows that can make trying to break out of an inescapable room a bit of a humorous endeavor. As Thompson surmises when coming to see a smashed mirror, plus Peggy and Jarvis attached to a table, “What the hell is going on here?”
- Once again, Peggy’s friend Angie is absent from the episode, but given the dark, plot-heavy nature of the story this week, her lack of presence isn’t an issue here.
- The true effects of Item 17 are ones that should be familiar to Captain America fans… and fans of the recently-released Kingsman: the Secret Service.
- Thompson’s turn from over-the-top sexist co-worker to okay-ish decent guy is on that fascinates, and we’ll touch upon that next week when we disseminate the series as a whole.
- The show’s appropriate use of commercial break cuts continued here when Jarvis showed up at the SSR base with his (forged) confession from Howard Stark, followed by an apropos “Hold, please” from one of the switchboard operators.
- And speaking of the above, Jarvis’ forgery skills are about on the same level as his attempts to impersonate an American accent.
- A vest that’s an armored heat source and a gas that causes everyone to go into a violent rage? Peggy’s declaration of “Damn you, Howard” could have never been more appropriate.
- Fantasy Warfare: How would Dottie fair against the modern-day Black Widow? Or Agent Melinda May for that matter.
- The F is For Freedom (one of the fake movie posters glimpsed in the final scene) sounds like the name of one of the movies Cap would star in during his days as USO mascot.
Next Week
It’s the end. The end, my only friend: the end. Get ready.
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Before I sign off for the week, I just thought I’d share this letter I wrote, directed to the producers, directors, writers, actors, and other assorted staff who help made Agent Carter a wonderful watch.
To A Very Wonderful Production Crew,
It has been a real pleasure to not only watch, but to also write about this world you have created for the past seven weeks or so. Agent Carter has been nothing short of excellent and engaging, with nary a dull moment dragging things down. Everything has been on point with this miniseries: from the set design and general behind-the-scenes that helped create the setting, to the brilliant group of actors gathered in order to bring 1940s New York to life, it has all been great from start to (near) finish.
The ratings have never been lights-out, but that has certainly never been to any detriment to the quality of the show itself. There has always been a certain level of love and care that has gone into the production of Agent Carter, and it’s one that is greatly appreciated. That being said, it would be a real shame if we only got this one eight-episode season to enjoy this story you have all created. I don’t want this to be the last I hear of Peggy, Jarvis, Angie, Sousa… hell, even Thompson, too. We need to see more of their story, because it is a damn good one, and I have you all to thank for that.
As a media viewer who believes in equal representation, I am eternally thankful for a television program that showcases a female character in the lead role, one that is fully realized and quite believable in her status within this story. While some might say that the sexism displayed by certain characters was heavy-handed and a bit too in-your-face, I feel that it could help enlighten and inform audiences of the realities women faced in 1940s America. For that, I am appreciative of these efforts taken to help somewhat educate along with using these tropes to help strengthen the character of Peggy Carter as one we can all proudly root for, no matter our gender. I also want to extend my kudos on helping to make characters like Chief Dooley and Agent Thompson become more than just caricatures of workplace sexism by finding opportunities to explore their characters beyond the initial over-the-top sexism seen early on. Hell, you managed to make the death of a chauvinistic a-hole agent into on that we could empathize with. That takes skill and effort. On that tangent, I do hope that the show does get a second season to further showcase diversity in full display.
If, on the odd chance you actually do read this letter, I hope everyone in the production crew along with the management at ABC see this (along with the many fan letters that have been sent), please share this proof of how there are people have greatly appreciated all of this you have done.
To Michele, Tara, Stephen, Christopher, Louis, Hayley, James, Chad Michael, Enver, Lyndsy, Shea, Bridget, and everyone else who helped make Agent Carter a winning experiment…. Thank you. You all deserve a round of applause and all the kudos in the world for taking us on this eight-episode adventure that helped make Tuesday nights in January and February ones to look forward to. Thank you for your hard efforts and let’s hope for more adventures of the past in the future.
With warm regards,
Marc Quill