Suspense Is One of "Killing Eve’s" Superpowers

As any connoisseur of fine television knows by now Sandra Oh plays Eve Polastri MI5 officer turned MI6 agent who was tasked with tracking a prolific and flamboyant assassin named Villanelle played by Jodie Comer amp160As their amp8220relationshipamp8221 progressed they became increasingly obsessed with each other both professionally and personally usually to the detriment of their respective amp8220careersamp8221 amp160In Season Oneamp8217s shocking finale Eve had finally found and impetuously traveled to Villanelleamp8217s Paris apartment amp160Shortly after Villanelle arrived and after a seemingly sincere heart to heart Eve stabbed her in the abdomen while her guard was down amp160Eve then ran to find rags and upon her return Villanelle was goneRight out of the gate this season there was a superimpressive long take a la Birdman or Children of Men amp160Starting a literal 30 seconds after the last moment of last seasonamp8217s cliffhanger the amp8220one shotamp8221 followed a confused and terrified Eve coming out of Villanelleamp8217s apartment and making her way down a winding staircase amp160From the stairs she noticed some suspicious looking types in French EMT uniforms entering the building and quickly doubled back amp160The camera left her instead following the supposed EMTs as they ascended the stairs After they passed Eve emerged from her lastminute hideaway and continued descending just in time for both her and the camera to glance up and catch the amp8220EMTsamp8221 shooting Villanelleamp8217s geriatric neighbor in the face amp160Even more terrified Eve quickly and quietly pushed on making her way out of the building just in time for a call from her superior Carolyn the fierce Fiona ShawThis take its smooth camera movements carefully planned angles and perfect timing did not go unnoticed amp160Neither did the lack of any score during that entire sequence amp160The sceneamp8217s level of intensity was ratcheted up by the sound of Eveamp8217s shoes and accelerated breathing echoing in the empty hallway amp160There was no need for musical cues or even lines because the visual cues and limited third person view of the situation as it unfolded were more than enough to convey its ratchet up the tensionamp160 Even without the context of the previous season the vibe of impending danger was very clearly conveyed as Eve was obviously in distress see headline aboveAnother interesting aspect of this new season is the position we now find Villanelle in amp160Last season she was a force to be reckoned with which made sense because sheamp8217s usually the most dangerous person in any room amp160This season however more oft than not we find her in a place of vulnerability amp160She starts the season wounded even though her interest in Eve is now peaking amp160For her Eve stabbing her is an indication of how strongly she feels for her which feels like reciprocation amp160That stab wound puts her in many precarious situations in the first couple of episodes which made me root for her amp160Sheamp8217s the bad guy obviously and I imagine whateveramp8217s going on between her and Eve wonamp8217t play out well for either of them but when the chips are down for Villanelle I often find myself hoping she makes it throughNow Villanelleamp8217s assumption that Eve loves her would seem pretty far from the truth if it werenamp8217t for the fact that Eveamp8217s acting so strangeamp160 Sheamp8217s operating less and less from a place of logic and more so from a place of just wanting to find Villanelle amp160In the first episode of Season Two her jittery behavior gives an implied exaddict the impression that she is herself struggling with addiction amp160Eve laughs this off because sheamp8217s not a amp8220junkieamp8221 at least not for drugs amp160There are also multiple moments where one is referred as amp8220your girlfriendamp8221 to the other which feels like a cheeky nod from the writers to the fansIt shouldnamp8217t even need to be said but Jodie Comeramp8217s performance as Villanelle the sociopathic killer with a love of high fashion a propensity to show off and a level of maturity rivaling that of a child is everything amp160Her sense of humor combined with the lack of value she places on human life are an immensely entertaining watch amp160Itamp8217s all about nuance amp160The same can be said for Ohamp8217s dramatic abilities which when combined with Comeramp8217s build the foundation of this entire series amp160See Ohamp8217s tub scene in Episode 1 Season 2 amp160This is even more impressive when you consider that to date they have spent 90 percent of the series apartThe separation between Eve and Villanelle alone is suspensebuilding by its very nature amp160The irony of it all especially as evidenced in more recent episodes is built right into the fact that Villanelle has no idea Eve is reciprocating her feelings a bit amp160When frantically trying to leave Eve a voicemail at MI6 she exclaims amp8220Eve Polastri you piece of shitamp8221 which is misinterpreted as aggression aimed at Eve and not the annoying robooperator on the phoneIn Eveamp8217s most recent episode Villanelle mails Eve a postcard with a hint pointing to her most recent stylized murder but itamp8217s intercepted by the evercalculating Carolyn amp160This was such a telling move because Carolyn is tasked with accomplishing certain goals and Eveamp8217s talents need to be directed towards those efforts even if she has to be reined in from time to time to get it done amp160Itamp8217s starting to feel like Eve and Villanelle arenamp8217t all that differentMy favorite aspect of Killing Eve this season besides everything is obviously its ability to maintain the same level of intrigue it established during the last amp160There are even more secrets plot twists and amp8220oh shtamp8221 moments than the last time around and since itamp8217s already been greenlit for a third season itamp8217s pretty much guaranteed that weamp8217ll get even more amp160Weamp8217re four episodes in at this point and all I know is that waiting to see what happens next in Killing Eve is killing meClick the social buttons above or below to share this content with your friends and colleaguesThe opinions and points of view expressed in this content are exclusively the views of the author andor subjects and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet Inc management or associated writersamp160

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Suspense Is One of "Killing Eve’s" Superpowers

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Ainsley Andrade

FEMA and the Ad Council Encourage AANHPI Communities to Enhance Disaster Preparedness in New PSAs - Ad Council InSites

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Suspense Is One of "Killing Eve’s" Superpowers

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Ainsley Andrade

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