TV Review: Killing Eve Ending … And Its Killing Me
We’ve all seen the trailer where Jodie Comer’s Villanelle asks Eve whether she is the actual scorpion in her “scorpion- frog” analogy. If there is one thing all previous seasons showed about the VillanEve dynamic is that V brought out E’s darkness in the same way E brought V’s lightness. They sparked in each other a “transformation” of character that made them wonder who they “really” were or could be. That question nosedives a season that truly rides its potential “plot holes” by the mere fact that we adore these ladies.
I said it last season, “Are we really okay with Eve riding off in to the sunset with a serial killer that leaves babies in trash cans and SHOT HER?!” That was part of the crux for the audience, the show, and its last season finale where our gals looked like they were finally going to ride off to the sunset together. In a way, I was more curious to see how their “love” in full blossom would look like because of al the toxicity and trauma that is Villanelle, even if she is the most charming person to ever rock pink. Surprisingly, the show STILL evades the love between VillanEve and ends with us always wanting more but accepting we’re not going to get it. In essence, what fascinated us about them was whether you can fall for someone that, oddly, makes you hate who you, currently, are. Yet, when we find Eve; she’s not really herself anyway.
Yes, while Villanelle is off LITERALLY trying to repent for her sins and embrace God, Eve is on a security gig while hunting The Twelve. What I thought was going to be the curious, possibly steamy return of Villaneve ends up being an unexplained separation. While, of course, they reunite, you cannot help but feel like the series’ writers are stumped as us as to how this pair “together” would, actually, look. Thus, the final season becomes an odd, nostalgic regurgitation of what always with Eve and Villanelle. Eve has a “mundane” life where she is low-key bitter and tired but has loyal friends and a romantic partner that is “fun” enough. Then, Villanelle appears, emotionally disrupts her with sexual tension and international espionage chaos. Villanelle leaves, appears, leaves, appears, and Eve, the whole, time is trying to figure out whether her attraction to V stems from her own, hidden desire to be chaotic. This is summary of every season,
including the finale.
Admittedly, Comer ABSOLUTELY SHINES as “Good Villanelle” trying to fight her inner inkling to murder anyone whom annoys her. Honestly, Comer is hilarious, precise, and brings on a new layer of vulnerability to Villanelle’ genuine attempt to be “good,” while also sincerely wondering whether she can be or if there is a point. She is the emotional equivalent to a baby learning how to walk while wishing it could stick to crawling. This dynamic is exuberant and when juxtaposed with Eve’s own existentialism is riveting. Yet…. that is every season, and with a plethora of new characters, you can’t help but feel slightly unsatisfied that we never got “Villaneve,” but perhaps that was the point; they were always meant to be a fantasy. The Final Season Airs On AMC Starting Feb 24.
