‘Killing Eve’ Recap: ‘You’re Mine’

Written by John Edward Betancourt 

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Over the course of our lives, we ask ourselves a great many questions. For instance, when we’re young, we ponder upon what kind of career we are going to choose and what the structure of our life is going to look like and once those all important questions are answered, new ones populate our minds, ones that are more, philosophical in nature. For once we’ve established ourselves and our future, we tend to reflect inward and wonder what kind of person we are, and what exactly we stand for in this world and really, this process of self-discovery, and the two questions that I just posed are on my mind today, simply because the season two finale of Killing Eve, ‘You’re Mine’, focused heavily on those queries since Eve Polastri was forced to find the answers to them in the most harrowing of fashion.

Because the mission to corner Aaron Peel basically ended in disaster since everything that could go wrong here, did go wrong. For not only did Villanelle discover that Peel is a murderer and was hosting her former handler at his Rome estate, prompting her to say the safe word, more of the Twelve’s lackeys came calling for Eve and Hugo, an act that left Hugo wounded and on his own as Eve went to save Villanelle and while all of that alone is bad in its own right, nothing compares to the disaster in question. Since a face to face reveal of the fact that MI6 had its eyes on Peel by way of Eve, prompted Villanelle to blow her cover and quickly put down Mister Peel in violent and twisted fashion, violating their orders and leaving them on the run without an idea of what was coming next and that…is when Eve was forced to face herself and answer those all-important questions.  

For a return to the hotel to get her hands on the recordings of Peel brought about an impromptu meeting with Caroyln, wherein she revealed that this was the long game after all. Peel’s death was always an inevitability and the boss played Eve in order to get bring everyone to this point, and well…being faced with the fact that she and Villanelle were manipulated to achieve a bigger goal for MI6, was more than she could bear. And she quickly came to realize that this is not the kind of person she is, she’s not about deception and manipulation, she’s about honesty and transparency and seeing what MI6 and in turn Carolyn are all about, prompted her to turn her back on this business and surprisingly, her decision sure didn’t matter in the slightest to Carolyn and that really shouldn’t come as much of a surprise, since hey…she got what she wanted in the end. 

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But the self-discovery for Eve didn’t end there. Because now that she was removed from a life of spy work, she turned her attention to the only real anchor she’s had for some time now and her timing on returning to Villanelle couldn’t have been better, for Oksana’s arrival at the hotel, led to a brutal showdown with Raymond, wherein Villanelle was able to motivate Eve to do the impossible and kill Raymond to finally prove a point that our favorite assassin has believed from the get-go in that, she and Eve are one in the same. But shortly after Eve saved Villanelle by chopping Raymond into bits and pieces, Eve came to realize that her obsession was in essence manipulating her too and was working to mold her into something twisted and that, did not go over well either. Because murder and mayhem is never what Eve wanted, she wanted justice and honor in her actions and Villanelle’s machinations only helped to reinforce her moral code and she abandoned Oksana as well, but not before the pain from rejection, prompted the skilled assassin to point a gun at Eve and pull the trigger, leaving our beloved Eve collapsed on the ground, with her fate hanging in the balance.
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So, yeah, that’s how this one ends, in bleak and powerful fashion, and there’s a lot of unpack in this one, but before we reflect a little longer on that shocking ending, let’s talk about the good and really highlight the incredible nature of Eve’s journey in this particular tale. Because in reality, she’s been lost for a long time and has worked hard to figure out what she wants out of life and what she’s all about and this season’s highs and lows for her finally allowed for her to realize the good person that she really is, and how she should engender that good in just about everything she does, and well, what a phenomenal arc for her to go upon this season. Because growth is what we all crave for our favorite characters and to see it play out here is supremely satisfying indeed and it also makes that ending, all the more devastating when all is said and done.   

Because…we just don’t know if Eve is okay. Did the bullet put her down for good? Or is she lying there bleeding out with a bad wound? And for that matter, if she is okay, what comes next for her? Does she return home and leave the spy life behind, or does she dig deep and use that newfound sense of morality to go after Carolyn and the Twelve, and Villanelle for that matter, for all their treachery and the trouble they’ve caused? Sadly though, we will have to wait until season three to have those particular questions answered and the desire for knowledge when it comes to Eve’s fate, is the true beauty and power of this finale. Because it would be a crying shame to see her journey truly end mere moments after she came to realize what she is all about. But regardless of how that stunning ending is resolved, I have faith that the series will continue to wow us, for Killing Eve has once again proven itself to be one of the boldest spy dramas out there and it really doesn’t get much bolder than this ending wise, and once again, I’ll be counting down the minutes until season three arrives, so I can see where this stunning story is headed. Until next year.   

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