FFS, Eve! In episode three of the final Killing Eve season, it becomes more apparent that Eve is just attracted to evil. The first two episodes revealed how Villanelle is trying to be less psychopathic. In this episode, Villanelle turns to therapy. Church didn’t work out, after all.
Nothing is good enough for Eve because she doesn’t want “good.” Villanelle isn’t trying to impress a woman who’s uninterested. Eve was very interested in previous seasons because Villanelle was prideful of her murderous reputation. She wasn’t analyzing her evil, she was merely acting on impulse and assassin’s orders.
The episode starts with Villanelle appearing in Eve’s hotel room asking for help. Eve denies the request. Despite the pair working together during the past on personal kill-jobs, Eve can’t extend the personal relationship to when Villanelle needs emotional support.
The ultimate betrayal in this episode is when Eve notifies the police of Villanelle’s whereabouts when she’s at therapy. Sure, she held the therapist hostage. Okay, let’s be clear: I’m not suggesting society should tolerate casual murder. Villanelle has murdered people for questioning her character. That shouldn’t be encouraged. Clearly. But Eve only wants to call in the enforcements when Villanelle is the most self-aware she’s been? Why is that?
As the police raid the therapist’s house, looking for Villanelle, Eve says “I should have done this when we first met.” Do what? Let enforcements know Villanelle’s whereabouts? But you were attracted to her “bad side,” Eve! That’s why it’s taken four seasons, getting Villanelle to trust you, making her think the connection is reciprocated, waiting until she shows a little self-awareness and conviction to do better before you call the cops? Okay, queen.
To rub salt in the wound–and prove that she’s just into evil, not Villanelle as a whole person–Eve then calls Hélène and flirts with her, saying she owes Eve dessert! Villanelle didn’t call the cops on Villanelle because she’s evil. She calls them because Villanelle’s trying not to be evil. Eve’s attention is on a new “villain,” one I suspect is more dangerous than Villanelle, so Villanelle’s in the dog house. Forgotten.
There was a parallel between Villanelle and Hélène in this episode, to show just how similar they are – just how much they are Eve’s “type.” While Villanelle is in therapy, after asking if she’s naturally psychopathic, her therapist hostage explains that she’s probably not innately a psychopath if she’s showing a willingness to change. If she doesn’t like appearing like a psychopath. He then tries to wrap up the “session.” She threatens him and asked if he just said that so they could be on their merry way.
Meanwhile, Hélène is grooming a killer for The Twelve. Is Hélène the leader? Anyway, Pam, the prospect assassin, is dealing with her misogynistic, abusive brother, who she works for in the family Mortician business. She approaches Hélène, telling her she wants the assassin’s induction process to speed up because of her home life. Hélène says Pam’s not ready yet. When Pam kills her brother and notifies Hélène, Hélène accuses her of only killing the brother so she can fast-track the beginning of her murderous career.
While Hélène and Villanelle’s suspicions are similar, that people are attempting to manipulate them to get what they want, Villanelle’s is more rational. Of course, the therapist is trying to end a “session” when he’s being taken hostage by a psychopath. Of course, he’s going to say what she wants to hear. But Pam didn’t just kill her brother to be a member of The Twelve; she had a good, rational reason. Hélène can only understand other people’s actions with relation to how they affect, ‘manipulate’, her life.
From the trailer, we know Villanelle and Eve spend more time together after Villanelle’s current imprisonment. Will she be incited to accept the evil as “natural” now that the woman she trusted has betrayed her for trying to change? Villanelle’s love for Eve inspired her to be “good,” but Eve’s masochism means she’s not attracted to “good.” Why else would she now be chasing Hélène, with the same wooing techniques she seduced Villanelle?
Villanelle’s introspection this season reminds me of Joan Ferguson in Wentworth. Villanelle’s only just entertained the idea that her psychopathy might be constructed by a poor upbringing and The Twelve’s grooming of her. Perhaps the introspection was due to Eve’s silence; she assumed their relationship issues were due to the “bad” in Villanelle. Villanelle didn’t see how Eve wants her to be evil before. She didn’t see how Eve fell out of lust with her the more rational and reasonable she became. Will Villanelle perform evil to get the girl? Or will she realize that she deserves better than that?
Alternative, has Eve been a fickle twist on the Femme Fatale? Was she always intended to be the distraction to undo these killers? Is that why she’s done with Villanelle, now she’s locked her up, and is moving onto Hélène?
