In Agent Carter Season 1, it took Peggy about six episodes to truly get into hot water. Now we’re only on episode 2 of a fresh season but it already feels like we’re getting into the meat of the mystery.
When Jason Wilkes’ (Reggie Austin) laboratory at Isodyne is quarantined, Peggy makes it her business to poke around in other people’s business. Unfortunately for Peggy, Wilkes is unwilling to trust her unless she allows him to get to know her first. Cue: amazing scene where they drink at a bar together and Peggy tells stories of her childhood pranks. These two were made for each other. They both persevere though they’re constantly being belittled, they’re both total badasses, and they’re both classy as hell. It’s difficult to watch any of their scenes without thinking “yay!” at least six times. Obviously Peggy doesn’t need a love interest, but if the show is adamant on giving her one it might as well be Wilkes.
‘A View In The Dark’ also let us see more of the other Season 2 players. For now, Jarvis’ charming wife Ana (Lotte Verbeek) doesn’t seem to serve any particular purpose in the season’s main storyline besides proving that Jarvis does, in fact, have a wife. That’s not to say she isn’t a delight though, because she absolutely is. Hers and Mr Jarvis’ chemistry is undeniable, and completely different to the sense of camaraderie that already exists between Mr Jarvis and Peggy. Ana provides a gateway to a new side of her husband for both Peggy and the audience while being an absolute gem who deserves a storyline of her own.
We also got to know movie star Whitney Frost (Wynn Everett) a bit more, and she’s shaping up to be quite the villain/misunderstood hero. The best thing about her is she’s impossible to read. Like Peggy, she works in a male-dominated environment, and the first time we see her this episode she’s been laid into by her asshole director who can’t stop patronising her and commenting on both her age and her appearance. She seems unsettled by it, but she tries not to let it show even though, later on, it becomes apparent that she’s more than capable of handling herself. Hers and Season 1-Peggy’s similarities are blaringly obvious but will Frost follow the Peggy’s path and become a hero herself, or is the destined to be the new Dottie Underwood?
This episode also finally made introductions to Sousa’s (Enver Gjokaj) new girlfriend Violet (Sarah Bolger), a sweet-as-peaches-and-cream nurse who gets along famously with Peggy as soon as the two meet. Sousa is smitten with her, and she with him. However, the awkwardness that lingered between Sousa and Peggy in the first episode of the season is still there, and it’s more powerful than before. It’s also tonally odd. More often than not, their pained and confused interactions are actually quite uncomfortable to watch. Uncomfortable character relationships work well in some stories, but in contrast to Agent Carter’s usually breezy atmosphere their whole dynamic feels out of place. There’s just no need for it and it needs to die as soon as possible.
Agent Carter Season 2 airs on Thursdays at 9pm on FOX.
