By Annemarijn Huizinga
The second season of the compulsive Killing Eve puts you on the edge of your seat with every episode packed full of tension, mystery, and surprise.
Following the critically acclaimed debut season from creator Phoebe Waller-Bridge, the spy thriller had high expectations to live up to. One of the main reasons the first season was so admired was due to its main character, Villannelle (played by Jodie Comer in a breakout performance).
The stone-cold assassin has a flair for the dramatic, knows how to dress, and introduced us to very creative ways to murder someone. The show knew how to capture the audience’s intrigue, and has done so successfully again for its latest season. How? Villanelle now has feelings.
“The only thing that makes you interesting, is me.” – Villanelle says Eve, in season two.
Is it love? Passion? Infatuation? No one really knows, not even herself. Our beloved sociopath is a sucker for attention, and does everything within her power for MI5 agent Eve (portrayed by Sandra Oh) to notice not just her work, but Villanelle herself. This leads to unfamiliar territory for Villanelle: caring about a person, and the inevitable jealousy that comes with this.
Season two wouldn’t be complete without its surprises, which lead writer Emerald Fennell delivers plenty of, as there is a new serial killer on the scene. A character by the name of Ghost: an assassin, who unlike Villanelle, leaves no trace. They are quiet, clean and pass through unnoticed. Eve is now faced with having to track two psychopaths and Villanelle isn’t happy about this.
Audiences have been able to admire Villanelle from a distance for quite a while now. Season one made her out to be untouchable and Eve’s obsessive infatuation with Villanelle drew us in even more.
This time round, we are provided with deeper insight into their complicated relationship, which leaves us more confused than ever as the two struggle to figure out how they truly feel about each other, causing pain and destruction along the way.
After watching the assassin and intelligence agent play their cat and mouse game for months, the two characters now have to deal with a lot more face-to-face interaction. The actors’ amazing on-screen chemistry fully encompasses the characters’ dilemma of having to do their job despite the constant sexual, even romantic tension. This ensures even more ‘oh my god’ moments than in its shocking first season.
Without revealing too much, Villanelle also suddenly finds herself on the other side of the fence, having to be somewhat of a good guy and questioning her priorities. This is where the show’s glorious unpredictability comes into place. You no longer know who the true villain is and who is on whose side. No one is safe.
With a soundtrack to perfectly match every scene, the new season is as unpredictable as Villanelle’s behaviour. It’s full of clever character development that even when you think you finally have someone figured out, Killing Eve proves you wrong.
The stakes are higher than ever, the costumes even more dramatic, and there’s not just one psychopath to look out for anymore…
Killing Eve, now showing every Saturday at 9:15 pm on BBC One with the complete series available to stream on BBC iPlayer.
