#i’m more concerned about how you behave around jodie and her family

[missdontcare-x]

people going off at fans dressing up as villanelle at prima facie i went to watch tom felton in the west end and had a bunch of people in full on wizard costumes and being at a david harbour play was like being at a stranger things con it ain’t hurting no one

[50-percent-winchester-sister]

The Emo Phase Part 2

PART TWO OF THE EMO PHASE

This is so fluffy its killing me!

Prompt: While still being grounded because of you got suspended, you surprise your brothers on Fathers Day

Dean: 26

Sam: 22

Y/N: 15

Word Count: 1,986

  Sam grounded you for two weeks because you got suspended, reasonably grounding, but still, you don't like being grounded. I mean they're your brothers, not your parents. Nonetheless, they raised you since you were 4, that's when your mother took Adam, your twin brother, and abandoned you, so you had to live with Sam, Dean, and your dad, John. John died when you were 7, and since Dean was 18 at the time, he decided to legally 'adopt' you, adoption papers and all.

  Its already been a week since you were grounded and honestly, everything's going better then you thought it would.

I mean, Sam and Dean have been nice to you, you're back talking was kept to a minimum, the teenage angst was cut short since you didn't want to be grounded longer than need be, and Father's Day was tomorrow, so you planned on tomorrow being a good day. You planned everything out. You're their not your dad's, but hey they've been like your dad's since you were 4, so the least you can do is show them you still love and care for them, right?

  You wake up early, 4:30, which is an hour and 30 minutes before Sam goes out to run. You called Jody to bring the good beer that Dean used to drink and to get Sams's favorite coffee beans. You waited outside for Jody when you see her cop car park in the gravel outside the Bunker. "

They'll catch on Y/N, you know that" "Not unless I am subtle about it Jody, you know me, master of getting what I want." Jody laughs a bit, you two hug and she leaves.

You got about 40 minutes before Sam wakes up, perfect. You clean up the bunker, the living room, the kitchen, your room, and the library. you got 10 minutes left, so you start making the coffee and the 'green juice' for Sam, (health freak eugh).

You start making breakfast for the boys when you hear Sams door open, you jump a little, nervous about what he's gonna say.

  "Mornin' Sunshine," you say to Sam with a genuine grin on your face. Usually, Sam says that to you so confused he says "What are you doing up so early?" "Nothin' just woke up early, breakfast before you go?" Sam sits down when you hand him his crappy green juice and a plate of eggs, toast, and sausage. "Thank you?" He says confusingly.

"Oh Dean, I made breakfast, want some?" "Sure?"

You hand him his plate of food and a bottle of the good beer. "How did you get this?"

"Hmm? Oh, I asked Jody to get it, why?" "How did you call her, we took your phone away" "You know we have something called a home phone, right?" you say as you giggle afterward. 10 minutes later Sam goes out for his run and Dean goes to the library to do research.

"What the-" Dean says as he sees the exact books he was going to pull out on the table. "Y/N, get in here!" Dean yells for Y/N in a worrying tone. "Yeah?"

"Did you do this?" You look at the books, smile and say "Oh yeah, I heard you and Sam talking about the case last night, so I decided to help you out." At this point Deans getting concerned, "Why?" "You love asking questions, do you?" You walk away and you hear the bunker door open, Sam's home!

  "Sammy, just in time, look!" You pull something from under the counter, its Kopi luwak, Sams' favorite coffee, it's pretty expensive, but you snatched it at the right time. "Woah Y/N, how did you get that?" "Well I had enough money, Jody just picked it up for me" you nervously says while scratching the back of your neck. "Are you okay Y/N?" "Yeah, why wouldn't I be?" "You aren't yourself today. What? are you trying to get out of being grounded huh?" "Sam that's not why"

you way while laughing, "I just wanted to do something nice for you guys, that's all." Walking away you hear Sam sigh, but in actuality, he is...worried?

Isn't he supposed to be happy? Of all days you would think that. Its 3:45 PM and you had a bright idea, do the laundry, Sam and Dean went out to get lunch so its a perfect plan! You first go into Sams' room, and then to Dean's room to snag up their clothes. The wash and drying machine is in the garage so you head over there.

Once you're done you bring their clean clothes back up to their rooms and you hear the Bunker door open. What a coincidence! you thought.

  "Babe were home" Sam yells for you. You love it when he calls you babe, and when Dean calls you baby girl, you get all happy inside. "Coming!" you run downstairs and into the kitchen. "we got food from Silver Skillet, hope that's okay," says Dean whos putting the food on the counter, "Fine by me." You, Sam and Dean, sit at the kitchen table and just talked about research and the upcoming case that you three will be on in a few days, grounded as it may, Sam or Dean isn't just gonna let you not go hunting, that'll set you off more than anything.

"So, when are we leaving?" You ask and Dean answers with a "Tomorrow morning, it'll be a 10-hour drive so don't get all pissy if we don't stop at a motel." "Dean!" Sam retaliates, "Were getting a motel, it's not like we're just gonna sleep in the Impala" Sam says to both you and Dean.

"It's all cool really if its as easy as we think it is, we can just go there and come right back, 2 days tops, right?" You get up and throw away yours and the boys trash, "Will you guys be here for dinner?" "Yeah, of course, wouldn't miss it," Dean says and you smile, walking away. "Good now that's she's gone, what the hell is she doing Sam?" "I don't know Dean, I mean making breakfast, getting you beer" "Getting you that shitty green shit, getting you that coffee I can't pronounce" "Kopi luwak?" "however the hell you say it, yes" "I mean she also cleaned up the bunker, getting you those books, doing our laundry?"

"Should we be worried, Sammy?"

"Ever since we-" "you" "WE grounded her, there has been less talkback and sass" "Well of fuckin course, you yelling and getting all mad scares her man. but even if, shes been overly nice today." "Is she trying to get ungrounded? ha cause it ain't workin'" "she says she isn't, but I don't know Dean"

"Well, let's see how this rolls out tomorrow and well talk to her okay? don't get a panic attack over something that most likely nothing Sammy"

"Yeah okay," Sam says looking around the cleaned kitchen.

Dean knocks on your door, and you open it with a smile, "Yeah, what?" "Me and Sammy are gonna help out Charlie with whatever, she called us for whatever reason, you need anything while we're gone?" "No I'm good, you two are gonna be back for dinner right?" "wouldn't miss it babygirl" Dean kisses your forehead and Sam comes up and hugs you too "Well be back soon Babe don't worry okay?' "Okay Sam, love you two"

its 6:00 PM and their still and Charlie's. Your getting worried when you decide to text Sam

Babes: you two still at Charlie's?

Sammy Pu: Yeah we are, we'll try to be back for dinner

Babes: Sam?

Sammy Pu: Yes Y/N?

Babes: Be safe okay?

Sam loves it when you worry for them, its cute really. you're growing out of your 'emo phase' so this means everything to him

Sammy Pu: We will, we miss you

Babes: I miss you two too <3

"Were you talking to Y/N, Sam?" Charlie asks, "How is she, she still grounded?" "Yeah I was, she's doing better as Winchesters can get, and yeah she's still grounded, she's got a week left and honestly, she's behaving better than I thought."

"That sucks. sorry for asking you guys here today of all days, you should be spending time with Y/N instead of me. Sam and Dean look at each other confusingly, "Why is that" Dean asks, "Well its fathers day, and me being an idiot took you two from her."

oh...

OH!

That's why you were being annoyingly nice today. Sam quickly turns to Dean a worrying face. "Son of a bitch" Dean commented. "I'm sorry we got to get back to the bunker," Sam says to Charlie while Dean goes to the impala and starts it up. "No it's okay really, no offense taken."

"Dean you're driving a little too fast we-"

"Sam it doesn't fucking matter right now, we promised well be home for dinner and were going to do just that!"

You just finished dinner when you hear the bunker door slam open, worried you grab your gun and when you heard a "Y/N?" that sounded like Sam, you put your gun away. "Sam? Dean? are you two o-" you didn't finish your sentence when Sam runs towards you and gives you the biggest hug you've gotten from him, Dean goes behind you and hugs you too' "-kay? What's going on?"

"Were so sorry we left for so long" Sam says, "At least we made it right?" Dean commented. "Yeah of course, in fact, you two aren't late, you're right on time." Dean scoffs and adds, "No you just made dinner too late, were the late ones" "No arguing, let's just eat," Sam says while walking to the kitchen.

  You, Sam and Dean, sit at the kitchen table and eat in a bit of silence before Sam questions you. "So, when were you gonna tell us?" "Hmm? What, that its fathers day? Never I guess, not a big deal, right?"

"Y/N its a huge deal, I mean come on, you're Y/N, having parents isn't your style" Dean lightly laughs.

"Well," you start to look down at your hands, then back up at your brothers. "Don't think I'm weird."

"Trust me we think that all the time." "Dean! What is it, babe?"

You look down at your hands again, too embarrassed but you start talking.

  "Ever since I was 7 you two have been there for me, It's not every day you hear of a family that only consists of two older brothers and a younger sister and that it, but that's normal for me. Knowing my mom is still alive but not here is normal for me. Dad being....gone is actually normal for me now. You two are the only ones who actually want me around. You two were there for me since I was 4 years old. Dean, you got me interested in drawing and the drums, Sam you got me into the violin and dancing. I was a total bitch to raise, I know and just randomly being the nicest kid on earth was probably stressful. I don't know, I mean.." You look up at them. "You're my brothers I get that, but you guys have been better parents, better fathers than Dad ever was to me I guess, I'm sorry.."

  You looked away when you said 'I'm sorry'. silence took over and you felt like you were going to have a nervous breakdown. You start to get up and walk to your room when "Y/N.." You heard Sam's voice crack, oh god no.

You turn around, your voice cracking too. "Sam, Dean, I-"

Right when you turn around you see Sams puppy dog eyes glisten with tears, hell Deans too. Fuck.

Tears start to prick the sides of your eyes when you walk back towards them. "-I love you guys" You way while embarrassingly, but happily crying.

  "We love you too Y/N" they both said in unison

[boglog]

Soooo I'm gna get mauled here but tumblr's unquestioning praise of Killing Eve as a progressive, prestige show about womanhood and sexuality is... looking like a problem to me.

This is not to shame people who watch the show or even to guilt people out of enjoying it, especially seeing as I've done both, (unabashedly admiring Phoebe Waller Bridge's distinctly quirky humour and Fiona Shaw's deliveries). This is to say, though, that the Killing Eve franchise is something to think more critically about before we give it more praise, more money. We can be critical of media we like, not limit activism to media criticism and not feel that media criticism in some way robs us of something. In my opinion.

[tw for discussions on sex, rape, pedophilia, violence, death, q slur]

[[more]] <---more --!>

Firstly the generation-wide age gap: Eve's original portrayal in the book is 24, exactly two years Villanelle's senior so the only logical excuse for it be added in the adaptation was bc the crew were desperate for big name actors. And while I love Sandra Oh, it was not worth it to create bizarre sexual tension between a forty year old and a twenty year old. This isn't even the first time Jodie Comer was the on-screen love interest to a middle aged person (see also Dr Foster), which is doubly messed up. Ideally replace Oh with an actor Comer's peer or replace Comer w someone Oh's age. It's not that hard.

Second, the age gap is exasperated by Villanelle's "mental age" which is far below twenty. Honestly the fact that both these problems were added into the adaptation by female actor/writer Phoebe Waller-Bridge makes me wna scream. Book!Villanelle was appropriately mature enough—emotionally, psychologically, intellectually—to warrant her high-ranking status as an assassin. Her behaviour, while still devoid of empathy, manages to be a believable portrayal of an upper-class 20 yr o behaving like a thirty year-old. Phoebe Waller-Bridge (and co)'s reinterpretation has Villanelle being a hyperfeminine, materialist, petty teenager that slowly spirals into impulsive outbursts and a scene where she's crawling around a suburb in a onesie. How do we reconcile Villanelle's lust and her love of violence with this childish persona? How is Eve's attraction to her justified? How do ppl think that's hot? It's comedic shock value flirting with homophobia, pedophilia, and the Born Sexy Yesterday trope. Not to mention the violent little girl trope. Despite all of Luke Jennings' flaws, he at least did not do That and my God is the bar low.

Both book and show heavily overplay Villanelle's sexual promiscuity to the point of being voyeuristic. Villanelle's sociopathy is largely an excuse for her violence, sex life, and lack of empathy to be over-the-top, even comedic, especially in the show adaptation. Villanelle's only true human connection is her infatuation with her language teacher, Anna. Which, rather than explore the show's pedophilic undertones, only serves to justify it via backstory.

The show does handle this way worse though: through Anna's dialogue, we're assured that the attraction was mutual ("She seduced me.") and that they've had sex. Which at the time would be when Oxana (Oksana) was in her late teens as she was still a high school student under Anna's tutelage. In the show, Villanelle murders Anna's husband partially out of revenge and possibly bc she took Anna's joke too literally. Book!Villanelle meanwhile castrates Anna's rapist. The former attempts to draw parallels between Eve and Anna, Nico and Anna's husband, treating the story like a melodramatic Shakespearean love triangle while once more reminding us of Villanelle's immature social skills. Which, again, serves to justify age gap lust. Meanwhile, the book attempts to question Villanelle's warped attempts at human connection via vignettes of violent shock value, it's marginally better than the adaptation but in the overall scheme of things I'm not sure Jennings makes enough commentary on violence against women to warrant this.

Finally sexuality in the franchise is a big question mark. Eve and Villanelle's attraction to each other is explained simply by obsession and lust intermingled with violence. Villanelle and Anna's relationship devolves into much the same in the show. Eve and Nico have a relatively stable yet dispassionate relationship meanwhile Bill is implied to be bisexual with an open marriage, though this is never seen and he's murdered shortly after this confession. A Chinese politician has a hospital fetish and, in the book, a right-wing fascist has a kin/kink for Eva Braun which leads us to a highly disturbing transphobic scene involving an exploding dildo. Notably, Villanelle's on/off frenemy romance with Lara (who is... you know... her age) in the book is cut and replaced Nadia, whom she basically kills as soon as possible.

The relationship between Oxana and Lara is explored more in the book (and it's post-season 1 sequel) though ultimately, Lara dies and Villanelle can't feel remorse let alone love. Both book and show have Villanelle hooking up with various people but the book goes into painstaking detail about her sexual promiscuity being motivated by her desire to manipulate peole. Clearly, Jennings shows that Villanelle's sex life includes all genders yet with little regard for her intimacy and level of attraction for anyone. She is "bisexual" (or "lesbian") only insofar as actual physical sex is concerned. Emotionally, she is attracted to no one. Which let me just say is a capital y Yikes.

And the cherry on top of course is that the show is getting accused of queerbating due to the heavy marketing a nd WLW undertones despite Sandra Oh's denial of any romance btwn her and Jodie Comer's character. 🙄

All of these play heavily into existing homophobic stereotypes. The predatory lesbian. The hypersexual bisexual. The manipulative, hedonistic, childish, lustful qu**rs, who, having foresaken family values to screw anything and everything, are not emotionally mature enough to be first class citizens. From watching the show and reading the book, the writers play with these "dark" themes with little introspection to how these relate historically to LGBT politics, how their use of sociopathy and age gaps has political and sociological significance. There's little real deconstruction or reflection on gender, sexuality, violence etc to be considered satirical and these aspects are largely thrown in for entertainment's sake.

Jennings and Waller-Bridge have both, respectively, made attempts at thematic critiques of wealth and gender. Neither of which in my opinion saw its theme through enough to be satirical. There's something to be said about how PWB converted Jennings' anti-materialist subtext into "empowering" aspects of literally weaponised feminity (i.e. all of Villanelle's weapons are high-end women's products) almost as a critique of cultural dismissal of femininity and it's association with materialism. PWB seemed to want to create a comedic, empoweringly gendered, spy movie but this theme of weaponised femininity nose dives at Villanelle's immaturity not to mention its superficiality. Weaponised femininity directed at whom? The show seems much more fascinated with Villanelle herself than the fact that she's employed by The Twelve, which obscures the importance of who Villanelle is killing, who Villanelle exerts weaponised feminity against and why. Not to mention the concept of the feral, empowered or weaponised woman has always been positively attributed to white women, which to make a long story short is not new or progressive or empowering.

I'm not too puritanical to understand the use of taboo themes in satire. This is not satire. KE's appeal seems to be the sexualisation of its deuteragonists at the expense of nuanced conversations about sex, violence, and gender. PWB was way more fixated on comedy than I think she should have been, and both creators rely most on shock value than anything else in how they construct what they believe be the most entertaining and well-structured narrative. There's little evidence that they regard the responsibility they have in portraying bisexual women in positions of power, in age gap relationships or as violent characters in a political espionage thriller. This is not satire this is a very eclectic comedy with clumsy homophobic caricatures at best.

Lastly, there are essays on why leftist fixation on "representation" is a symptom of our digital hyperreality and at best will never truly address material problems faced by real people. Big ass metas on tumblr is not necessarily activism and as I'm sure you know the revolution will not be televised. But should show runners and co be rewarded for so called groundbreaking dark comedy that in fact seems to support harmful stereotypes? And goddamnit am I tired of people unironically romanticising Villanelle and Eve. Thank you for listening to my TEDtalk.

[daughters-and-winsisters]

Huntress- Part 20: It’s Cold

Sam x Daughter!Reader, takes place in S12 E20 so warning: SPOILERS

Part one Part two Part three Part four Part five Part Six Part Seven Part Eight Part Nine Part Ten Part Eleven Part Twelve Part Thirteen Part Fourteen Part Fifteen Part Sixteen Part Seventeen Part Eighteen Part Nineteen

 “So that Super Mario power up thing last night, what was that?” Uncle Dean asked. He was pacing the room as he tried to grasp a hold of what had happened. When you passed out thankfully you also woke before them so no questions were asked. “I mean,” Uncle Dean continued when no one answered, “I don’t know who that was, but it sure as hell wasn’t Cas. What was it he said? That he had faith in Lucifer Junior? What the hell is that supposed to mean?” You shared an unsure look with your Dad. “I don’t know.” You shrugged. “Look,” your Dad sighed, “this doesn’t make any sense to me either, Dean. I mean I guess we just have to think like him.” “I don’t know how anymore, Sam.” Dean threw his hands up in the air with frustration. The three of you fell silent in thought, turning your attention to your Dad as he unwrapped the colt. It was in pieces, singed and burnt and by the looks of things never to be used again. “Can you fix it?” Uncle Dean asked. To your surprise, Dad gave a little nod, “Maybe.”

Just then a vibration cut off whatever Uncle Dean was going to retort with. “It’s not me.” Dad said, feeling his pockets to double check. Without even looking at his phone, Uncle Dean shrugged, “Not me.” “Not me, either.” You added, looking around the room. You got up and headed towards where the noise was coming from. Under a few books scattered on the side table lay a silver grey phone, buzzing against their spines and pages. You held it up in question. “Must be one of Moms.” Your Dad said to his brother. You didn’t want to answer it so you just held it out for them to take. Dad took it from you, “Hello?...Uh Alicia, hey…” he put it on loud speaker and you all leaned in, Alicia was one of the Hunters at that guys funeral a few weeks ago. “Hey so uh our Mom went on a Hunt a few days ago and she usually contacts us by now. We’re a little worried so we thought-“ “Woah,” Her brother interrupted, “no we didn’t.” “-Okay, I thought that maybe you guys could help.” “You’re over reacting! Mom’s fine.” The brother continued to object. Dad cleared his throat, “Hey uh why don’t you text us your address. We’ll come and help.”

“What the hell are you doing?” Uncle Dean said the moment Dad hung up. For once, you had to agree with him, the spawn of Satan was probably the priority for now. “Yeah, Dad, we should probably find Cas…” “Jodie has people looking. There’s not really much we can do so we might as well help Alicia.” He had a point so you nodded, not wanting an argument. Only, you couldn’t help but worry. All these pains you kept getting were getting worse and worse very day…what if something happened whilst on a hunt? You knew you probably should have told Dad, but you knew they had worse things to worry about. Besides, you were handling it. An overprotective parent is almost worse than an under-protective one.

You all parted ways to pack your things and get ready for the trip out, however you noticed Uncle Dean was hanging back. When your Dad turned the corner to his room you crept back and saw Uncle Dean hold his phone to his ear: “Hey Mom, uh I just wanted to tell you that me and Sam are heading out to help those Witch twins, Max and Alicia, if you can help that’d be great, but uh…I get that the Brits have sorta got your work covered. Maybe just at least…call me back?”, his voice broke just a little and you found your shoulders dropping in sympathy, “It’s just some stuff…it’d be good to talk to you.” He hung up and you hurried back to your room, grabbing supplies and stuffing them in a bag.

Your head swayed a little, making you stumble and shoot your hand out for the desk to steady yourself. “No…not now…” You hissed at nothing, staying still as thought that would help whatever this was go away. Thankfully, it didn’t come to anything.

“Hey guys.” Dad called out at the twins who were staring off into the distance. You smiled at their dramatic stance and how happy your Dad was to be working with other hunters. But, glancing over to Uncle Dean, you could see the hurt in his eyes and you knew Mary hadn’t called back. “What have we got?” Uncle Dean asked bluntly. You tore your eyes away from him and tied your hair back from the wind. Wrapping the hair-tie around your pony tail, you felt it. Just for a split second, not even that. A little blackout in your mind where your body felt like it was about to shut down. It wasn’t long enough even for you to react, but it was just long enough that you noticed it. Alicia explained that their Mum was hunting a Borrower Witch, the ones that have their power because of a deal.

“Dean, sweet car.” Max whistled at Baby and you shared a look with Alicia. “Come on man, I’ll give you the tour.” Uncle Dean smirked before they headed towards the Impala. “He’s in some serious denial.” You noted. “He’s always been that way, thinks he knows Mom best,” Alicia sighed, wrapping her arms around her jacket to stop it flapping in the wind, “they’re both naturally magic so I guess it’s normal.” “You’re not?” You asked. “No, magics just a load of noise to me. It’s their thing, you know?” “I had a similar deal growing up,” your Dad began, “Dean and our Dad had that sort of bond thing going on with hunts.” “What about Mary?” “She get’s a case and she just sort of…disappears.” Dad admitted with a shrug. “What about you?” Alicia asked you. The way her eyebrows raised and her mouth hid a curious smile told you she actually wanted to know. “I don’t really have a set pattern. I’ll do whatever’s easiest. Work alone, work with Dad, work with ten, fifteen, three hundred people. Whatever’s easiest.” You said. You hadn’t really thought about it before…you were trained for everything. To be adaptable above all. “That’s smart.” Alicia nodded. “Come on,” Dad put an arm on her shoulder, “let’s go find your Mom.”

“Max…Alicia, what are you two doing here?” The five of you had entered the building where their Mum’s car was outside. Expecting a fight or at least some arguing, it was safe to say you were all a little taken back that their Mum was just…fine? “Mom!” Alicia ran over to her and threw her arms around her, “I’ve been texting and calling you all this time!” “I’m sorry sweetie my phones been charging.” “Mom,” Max cleared his throat and took a step forward, “this is the Winchesters. Did you know Alicia called them because she was that worried about you?” “You know,” You said quietly, “it’s not a weakness to show a little consideration.” You weren’t trying to be mean, but you wanted to make it clear to Alicia she was okay to be worrying. In the world of Hunting everything was worth worrying about. Embarrassed, and perhaps shocked, Max shrugged, “Yeah, I know.” “I like this one,” the Mother smirked at you, “you must be Y/N.” You nodded. “Well, come on in everyone. I have wine.”

At the table, Tasha, their Mum, opened the wine bottle and handed it to your Dad. You watched her turn around and fumble about before sitting down opposite you. You were a little concerned as she didn’t quite seem to be behaving normally, but in all fairness,  you’d never met a Witch family that hadn’t wanted you dead before. You were sandwiched between your Dad and Uncle on the sofa, looking between everyone and waiting for them to talk or something. “I would’ve had the food from that vegan place delivered, but they don’t do that-“ “That’s okay,” your Dad stood up way too fast and something told you he’d been racking his brain for an excuse to leave this whole time, “I’ll get it. Dean, drink. YN, come on.” You glanced up at your Dad before patting Uncle Dean on the shoulder, shooting him a smirk when no one else was looking. “Good luck.” You mumbled to him and he shot you a sarcastic smile in response.

Dean glanced at his phone: no new messages. With a sigh, a hand through his hair and an adjustment to his posture, he turned his attention back to the family. Tasha sat down next to him, “You expecting a phone call?” She asked. It wasn’t nosy, but rather a display of concern. “Guess not,” Dean smiled, turning to face her, he then nodded towards the twins, “I gotta say you did a bang-up job with those two.” Tasha laughed dismissively, “I did the best I could with Max and Alicia.” “I see how you are with them,” Dean gripped his wine glass, “they’re happy.” “Alicia said you grew up in the life?” Tasha said questioningly. “Yeah. My Dad raised me and Sam.” “And your Mother?” Her head titled. “It’s uh, it’s complicated.” “Family always is…and what about Y/N? Did you bring her up to hunt?” “Uh…yeah that’s pretty complicated as well. We haven’t known her all that long. A little over a year, is all. Her Mom raised her in England. Raised her to Hunt…hell, she’s good at it. Better than I was at her age.” Tasha looked at Dean, she had that motherly look, “You don’t seem happy?” Dean looked between her and the carpet, placed his wine glass down and spent a good few seconds opening and closing his mouth…”Well…” he found the words carefully, “I just wonder if Sam would’ve done things differently.” “There’s no use focusing on the could haves of life,” Tasha smiled at her children from across the room, “she’s a good kid, Dean.” “We didn’t exactly raise her, though. I mean she knew everything already. We haven’t taught her anything. It just doesn’t feel right.” “I think you’ve taught her more than you notice.” She smiled, gripping his shoulder and heading over to her kids. Dean sat back twiddling his thumbs and thinking it through.

“Uncle Dean’s in his element.” You commented, getting out of the car. Dad shot you a frown so you elaborated, “Wine? Chit chat? Waiting on vegan foods. I’ve never seen him so happy.” Dad laughed, “Yeah, you’re right.” The restaurant was surprisingly busy, but then again it was the only vegan one in town. You stood just a little behind your Dad as he took the food. You glanced around at everyone, they were all talking loudly and drinking loudly and every bit of cutlery and crockery was loud. Everything was loud. Loud. Too loud. The cacophony of human interaction filled your ears over the muffled sounds of the white noise piercing over the top. You felt yourself sway a little when the pain struck again. It shot over the noise, over the smells and the sights and was all that filled your mind for just a few seconds. It was enough to make you wince, throw your hand up to your head and almost lose your balance in the process. And then, it was gone. “Sweetheart,” the southern twang of the cashier sounded normal again, “you alright?” You looked up, taking your hand away from your head, “Yeah,” you then blinked a little in attempt to balance reality back up, “just something in my eye.” “Arighty then.” She smiled sweetly, but her tone said she didn’t believe you. You didn’t’ dare look at your Dad who’s stare you could feel on you like a hawk. To your surprise, he didn’t say anything.

“Hey, Y/N,” he pointed to a MISSING poster on the door, “isn’t that that guy we saw?” “It says he’s been missing a month?” You read, taking it off the window and folding it up for your pocket. “Okay, come on, Bug. Let’s go.” He took you arm and you were half dragged to the car.

You, your Dad and your Uncle Dean crept down towards the door where the man had come from. It was a sort of hatch, closed by a padlock which your Dad was busy picking. Clicking your torch on, you stepped next to Uncle Dean and prepared yourself for whatever might be inside. All three of you made the same mistake when it opened. You leaned forward to have a look. The stench of rotting bodies and sewage and anything else revolting was overbearing. “You first.” Uncle Dean coughed at his brother. “No way,” Dad winced, “you.” You watched them go back and forth and sighed, “Move.”. The steps were uneven and the smell did nothing but worsen as you neared the base. “Be careful.” Dad warned, but couldn’t take it as he soon followed you down.

The three of you stood back to back, torches outwards and guns at the ready, but it was soon clear no one was about. No one alive, anyway. Leaving them to the corpses at the side, you neared a table curiously where a body lay under a white sheet. It didn’t smell as bad which told you it was fresh. Your Dad looked up and watched as you carefully took the sheet away, revealing the face. It was her. There was no doubt about it. “Dad…” You said quietly, unaware he was already looking. He came over to you and put an arm on your shoulder, “I know…her hearts been ripped out…” “This is everybody in the house.” You added, shining your torch over the faces. “Okay so who the hell were we just talking to?” Uncle Dean asked the air.

Footsteps sounded and three guns cocked, your Dad taking a step in front of you. “Hey,” said a voice, you shifted your feet so you could see who it was, “I saw the light. You guys find some trouble to get into?” It was Max. Oh God. “Nah, no no-“ Dad stuttered, putting his hand on Max’s chest to stop him from going any further. Max locked eyes with yours and frowned at your fearful expression. He barged through Dad and Uncle Dean, coming to a halt in front of the body. “I was just…I don’t…no…”

You backed away and stood next to your Dad, your eyes not leaving her body. Tears began to fall from Max’ eyes as he knelt down next to the body. You felt awful for him, knowing all too well what it was like to find your Mother dead and alone, cold. You looked away, turning to leave and went back up the steps. It was cold out, but at least the smell didn’t follow. You clutched your jacket round you opened up your phone. It was strange that Mick had stopped calling you, even though you’d asked him to you never thought he would. He was your step-Dad after all. To him that meant family. But not to you and certainly not to Max. “Y/N, hey. You alright, bug?” Dad asked, hopping up the steps and taking a stance at your side. “Yeah…” You nodded blankly, putting your phone back away and shivering a little. “You sure?” He pushed. “I don’t know…it just- “, but before you could start explaining Max ran past, Uncle Dean following afterwards. “Max!” Uncle Dean shouted, racing after, “A little help?!” He then called back to you and your Dad, who then raced after him. He was no doubt expecting you to do the same, but you were stuck in place.

You couldn’t stop thinking about everything that had happened to you. The death of your sister, your Mum and then suddenly finding your Dad…it seemed unreal. Part of you expected to wake up and find out that this was all a dream. That’s why you needed to call Mick. As irritated with yourself as you were, he was the only consistent person in your life who’d been there from day one. He wasn’t exactly a good step-Dad, but neither was he a bad one. He was just confused. Not meant for the Men of Letters, really. Your finger hovered over the call button, before pressing down. To your surprise and disappointment, he didn’t pick up. It rang and rang, but no one picked up. “This is Mick Davis, leave a message.” You didn’t have anything to say so you let in run silent for a few seconds before hanging up.

The cold night air became more and more unbearable, making you shiver. Then, out of the blue, one more sharp pain hit. It was much worse than any of the ones before. It was loud and quiet. It was heavy and light. It was dense and airy. It was too much. Harsh voices whispered through your bones and hovered around your eardrums and it all became too much. You collapsed to the hard ground, clutching your head as though if you held it hard enough everything would go back to normal. Your eyes drooped and the sound subsided along with consciousness.

You woke up running. Sprinting, even. Racing through the forest, your heart beat so fast you thought it was going to stop all together. Like an idiot, you looked back. You looked back to see nothing chasing you…nothing at all? But when your head turned to face the direction you were running you skidded to a halt. There it was. The Hell Hound. It pounced on you, it’s sharp ravenous claws slicing through your skin. You screamed in agony, flailing your limbs abut helplessly as it tore into you. The pain was all you could sense. It was the smell and the taste and the sound. All pain. And then nothing.

“Brooks how are you supposed to outrun a real Hellhound when you can’t even outrun one that’s half the speed?” Mr K tutted, taking the replicators off your body and face. They were pain replicators, used to put Hunters in a simulation where everything was very much real. “Sorry…” You managed, out of breath and still able to feel the aftermath of the Hound. “Wait here.” He ordered, leaving the room. You waited a few seconds before following quietly after, peering round the corner of the corridor to eavesdrop:

“Well,” Ketch began, “they still don’t’ seem to be having any affect on her.” “That’s impossible. These injections are designed to rework you into a cold killing machine.” You felt your body tense…so that’s what they’d been jabbing you with? “Well she’s just as irritatingly Y/N as always. We might have to try her Mother, see if it’s genetics or just her.” “Rebecca doesn’t need them. She follows the rules just fine.” “Does she?” Ketch snapped, “Because I happen to be aware of just how many monsters she leaves unharmed. She’s as disobedient as her daughter is. Get me those shots.” “Yes sir.”

Part Twenty One: Realignment 

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Family affairs: Everyone learns they can’t go home again in Killing Eve S3

After being shot and left for dead by Villanelle, Eve (Sandra Oh) is now working in the kitchen of a Korean restaurant.

BBC America

She’s trying to patch up her marriage to Niko (Owen McDonnell), who is recovering from PTSD.

BBC America

Villanelle (Jodie Comer) on her wedding day, to a wealthy heiress in Spain.

BBC America

Villanelle’s former mentor, Dasha (Harriet Walter) shows up unannounced.

BBC America

Villanelle and Dasha have some issues to work through.

BBC America

Meanwhile, Eve’s former boss Carolyn (Fiona Shaw) isn’t in good favor at MI6.

BBC America

Another MI6 supervisor, Paul (Steve Pemberton) is vying for control of the division.

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Carolyn finds an ally in MI6 agent Mo Jafari (Raj Bajaj).

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Carolyn’s son, Kenny (Sean Delaney) has left MI6 and is now an investigative journalist with The Bitter Pill.

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Eve finds her own ally in Kenny’s new boss, Jamie (Danny Sapani)

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Yeah, Konstantin (Kim Bodnia) is still around, with his own agenda.

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Villanelle is less than pleased when Konstantin comes to call.

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Villanelle’s latest kill takes a page from Dasha’s old playbook.

BBC America

Villanelle wants to be a Keeper with The Twelve.

BBC America

Villanelle tracks down Eve during a London visit.

BBC America

A violent fight leads to a passionate kiss.

BBC America

Killing Eve burst onto the scene in 2018 to rave reviews, as viewers and critics alike were enthralled by the sexually charged cat-and-mouse game playing out between MI6 agent Eve (Sandra Oh) and expert assassin Villanelle (Jodie Comer). Alas, while S2 had some powerful moments, overall it lacked the same taut, addictive focus. But the series came back strong for its third season, fleshing out the story in some fresh, fascinating ways. Small wonder it’s already been renewed for a fourth season.

(A couple of major spoilers below for first six episodes of S3—we’ll give you a heads-up when we get there—but no major reveals for the final two episodes.)

As S3 opened, we learned that Eve survived being shot by Villanelle in the S2 finale (duh). She is keeping a low profile, working in the kitchen of a dumpling eatery in London, and living on a shocking amount of junk food in her dismal flat. Her long-suffering math teacher husband Niko (Owen McDonnell) also survived his encounter with Villanelle in S2 (although his fellow teacher, Gemma, did not). He is now an in-patient being treated for PTSD, and unreceptive to Eve’s efforts to reconnect.

Meanwhile, Villanelle is marrying a wealthy heiress, but her plans for a life of semi-retired luxury are upended by the appearance of Dasha (Harriet Walter), her former mentor from Russia. She gets sucked back into working for the shadowy organization known as the Twelve in exchange for a promotion to “Keeper” (aka upper management).

Eve’s former supervisor, Carolyn (Fiona Shaw), is out of favor at MI6, with an irritating rival named Paul (Steve Pemberton) challenging her former dominance over her division. Carolyn’s estranged son, Kenny (Sean Delaney), has left MI6 and is working as an investigative journalist for an outlet called The Bitter Pill, while her former Russian paramour, Konstantin (Kim Bodnia), is plotting to flee the country with his now-teenaged daughter, Irina (Yuli Lagodinsky).  

In my review of the first S3 episode, I noted that the series faced a major challenge in its third installment, as viewers have come to expect shocking twists, thereby making it harder to achieve that element of surprise. “I trust that the writers and new showrunner Suzanne Heathcote have plenty of exciting twists and suspenseful moments in store for us [in S3],” I concluded. “But at some point, the basic premise—already wearing a bit thin—will run out of steam altogether. And then the real question becomes, where does the series go from there?”

Well, I’m pleased to report that S3 successfully met that challenge, mostly by changing the focus a bit. Keeping Eve and Villanelle (mostly) apart was a good creative strategy, even more so now that we’ve moved well beyond the “who’s the predator, who’s the prey” dynamic of S1. This third season is really about family, as every major character must grapple with the high personal cost of their decisions thus far.

(Warning: major spoilers begin below this gallery!)

Villanelle has that magic touch with children.

Gemma Whelan plays Carolyn’s daughter (and Kenny’s sister) Geraldine, who tries to repair her relationship with her mother.

BBC America

You may remember Konstantin’s strong-willed daughter, Irina (Yuli Lagodinsky) from S1.

BBC America

Niko moves back to Poland and his roots.

BBC America

Villanelle does a favor for Konstantin in exchange for information about her biological family.

BBC America

Meanwhile, Dasha has her sights set on Niko.

BBC America

Eve witnesses the attack.

BBC America

Niko survives, but rejects Eve.

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Eve confronts Dasha about the attack on Niko.

BBC America

Villanelle looks over family pictures with her brother Pyotr (Rob Feldman).

BBC America

She bonds with half-brother Bor’ka (Temirlan Blaev), who is obsessed with Elton John, at the local Harvest Festival.

BBC America

Her mother, Tatiana (Evgenia Dodina), insists she leave: “Do not bring your darkness into this house.”

BBC America

Villanelle’s revenge.

BBC America

Eve still clings to the futile hope that she can fix her marriage, unable to see just how damaged and shattered Niko has become after all she’s put him through by exposing him to the risks inherent in her job. Those risks are only heightened when Villanelle discovers she’s still alive and her obsession with Eve rekindles anew. But our favorite assassin is also confronting her own past in Dasha—the woman who turned her into the “perfect killing machine” and then betrayed her—and in a sudden desire to seek out the mother who abandoned her to an orphanage as a child.

Carolyn suffers a devastating loss when Kenny (allegedly) commits suicide by jumping off the roof of his office building at the end of the first episode. She’s a woman who has spent a lifetime suppressing any genuine emotion, who must now deal with her estranged  touchy-feely daughter, Geraldine (Gemma Whelan), seeking to bond in their shared grief. Konstantin is trying to keep his daughter safe, only to realize she has her own inner darkness, exacerbated by his constant absence, the nature of his work, and Villanelle’s pernicious influence.

As always, all the performances are spectacular. Most of the attention has a focused on Oh and Comer, and rightly so. Villanelle is just as outrageously unpredictable and charming (in a deadly psychopath way) as ever, with even more spectacularly outré outfits. You never want to take your eyes off her; no wonder Eve remains obsessed.

But the supporting cast is every bit as strong, particularly Shaw and Bodnia, who quite possibly has the richest, most expressive laugh on TV these days. Among the new faces for S3, Harriet Walter is a sheer delight as Dasha, a chain-smoking, raspy-voiced former Olympic gymnast turned brutal assassin for the Twelve (and trainer of the the next generation of brutal female assassins). Game of Thrones fans will recognize Whelan from her days playing Yara Greyjoy, and she is given ample opportunity here to display her impressive range as an actress. And I loved seeing Lagodinsky return as Konstantin’s precocious, sarcastic, tough-minded daughter Irina.

The plotting is much tighter than last season—especially the final two episodes, as Eve pursues Villanelle by following the bodies piling up along the way—and while Villanelle’s kills don’t quite measure up to the macabre creativity she employed in the first two seasons, the S3 writers manage to pull off one very good twist. Concerned that Villanelle is once again behaving erratically because of her Eve obsession, the Twelve asks Dasha to intervene. Dasha decides to drive a wedge between the two women by killing Niko and framing Villanelle—making sure that Eve arrives at the Polish farm where he’s been working just in time to see it happen.

Eve tracks down Villanelle.

BBC America

Konstantin has plans to flee with Irina.

BBC America

Villanelle is a bad influence on Irina.

BBC America

Hélène (Camille Cottin) is a member of The Twelve.

BBC America

Villanelle does not hug.

BBC America

Yet another assignment, this time with fellow assassin Rhian (Alexandra Roach).

BBC America

Tensions are rising between Villanelle and Dasha.

BBC America

A hit at a golf resort in Aberdeen.

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Eve finds Dasha.

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Konstantin collapses at a train station.

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Paul might have his own plan in place.

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Carolyn faces off with Villanelle.

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Eve finds Villanelle.

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The happy couple, together again.

BBC America

It’s genuinely shocking in a way that Kenny’s death, while tragic, is not, thanks to some very clever editing. Unfortunately, the writers then blinked: Niko barely survives, although he (understandably) severs ties completely with Eve when she comes to see him in the hospital. I love the character, but it does undercut the power of the attack. I guess the writers are keeping their S4 options open where Eve and Niko are concerned.

By far the best single episode is “Are You From Pinner,” in which Villanelle visits her hometown in Russia and reconnects with her biological family, especially her brother Pyotr (Rob Feldman) and her coldly distant mother, Tatiana (Evgenia Dodina). Comer’s social awkwardness and discomfort with even small affections contrast sharply with the loud and boisterously enthusiastic family members. She tries to join in on a post-dinner singalong to Elton John’s “Crocodile Rock,” to comic effect, and watching her intensely compete in the dung-flinging competition at the local Harvest Festival—and her euphoria when she wins—is both hilarious and strangely touching.

Villanelle is trying so very hard to belong, even briefly bonding with her young half-brother Bor’ka (Temirlan Blaev), but she is far too damaged. And it is inevitable that the equally damaged Tatiana will reject her, telling her to leave and not bring her “darkness” into their house. Of course, Villanelle takes her revenge.

Killing Eve is based on Luke Jennings’ 2018 thriller Codename Villanelle, a compilation of four e-book novellas he published from 2014-2016. He published a sequel in 2019, Killing Eve: No Tomorrow, but despite Eve’s prominence in that title, Villanelle was clearly conceived as the central figure. So maybe it’s not surprising that we spend far more time on her backstory and family of origin issues than on Eve’s in S3, which makes Eve’s own journey back to Villanelle over the course of the season less impactful in comparison. The first two seasons did a better job balancing the focus between the two.

But that’s a minor quibble with an otherwise excellent season. These two women are clearly damaged in similar ways, with a shared social and emotional awkwardness, and morbid/violent bent. It’s just that Villanelle’s tendencies were encouraged and exploited via extreme physical and mental abuse, while Eve managed to channel her darker tendencies into her government work, and found some semblance of a family with Niko—at least until Villanelle burst into her life. But we still have little idea what Eve’s own early family life was like, or how it shaped her.

Here’s hoping that will be a major angle of exploration for S4, when Laura Neal replaces Heathcote as showrunner. Delving into how Eve and Villanelle have shaped and changed each other over three seasons would be another promising narrative vein to mine. Perhaps these two women can eventually find the families they have lost with each other, in their own uniquely twisted way.

  Listing image by BBC America

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