In the ninth and penultimate episode of the second season of Agent Carter, Whitney tries to use Jason to her advantage. Intrigued? Then it’s time for Mark to watch Agent Carter.Â
A Little Song and Dance
I might need some more time to think about the opening musical number. Like much of the humor this season, it’s a tonally jarring sequence that works by itself but feels out of place in the greater story. As serious and emotionally challenging as this episode is, I felt strange about the focus on something so silly. I mean… it’s beautifully filmed1 I don’t know if the actors used their own singing voices, but that would be neat to discover. I have a theory, though, that I didn’t enjoy that sequence as much as I might normally have because it reminded me how much I dislike love triangles. God, they’re the worst! And a show like Agent Carter seems like such a bizarre place to host a love triangle that takes up a huge part of the narrative. I’m glad Peggy gets to have romantic relationships, but like… can’t she have both of them? They’re both right there and she could just be poly or form a triad and then we’d never have to deal with this tired storytelling device again.
That’s how all musical numbers about love triangles should end, FYI.
The Desert
I found it visually fitting that Peggy and Jarvis were wandering through the desert when they had their emotionally-charged conversation about complicity and responsibility. It’s a great addition to the season-long characterization of Jarvis as he is more and more involved with Peggy’s cases, and it helps explain his behavior in the previous episode, too. Which makes me happy to be wrong about the writing for him! Thus, “A Little Song and Dance†acts as the cathartic follow-up to Jasper’s choices in “The Edge of Mystery.†We hear him address why he shot Whitney and why he lied to Ana about her injury. It was desperation and fear, and it’s through the frustration with the situation that this comes out. Which unfortunately means that he takes his anger out on Peggy and levels a nasty insult at her.
Look, the scene is awkward but really satisfying. I got a sense for how close these two had become since the start of this show, which meant that the stakes of their argument were higher than ever before. It’s one of the reasons why they’re so defensive, especially Jarvis. He just wants the best for those he loves, and in a powerless situation, he lashed out at Peggy instead. I’m glad he finally told his wife the truth.
Jack Thompson
And then there’s Jack, who vacillates between being an ally and an ambitious, self-interested jerk every other scene in “A Little Song and Dance.†At this point, I can’t really tell what he wants. Is he always ready to betray and contradict those around him? Is his only concern how he can better himself over everyone else? I had expected him to finally recognize what was at stake here, so I suppose in that sense, his story in this episode was satisfying. The problem is that he jettisoned off in the opposite direction! He identified Masters and Whitney as the major roadblocks to the safety of the country (and the world), and yet he abandons his commitment to justice by attempting to murder Jason, Vernon, and Whitney. To him, it’s the easiest and most obvious solution. He wanted to betray his colleagues, who had done all the work up to this point to take down Whitney Ford, all so he could do it himself.
Of course, we have no idea what Jason’s attack on Whitney means for the story. Will she absorb his Zero Matter or will it be the reverse? Or is there some other variable no one took into account? Is Vernon going to die? Will Jack take over the SSR? HOW IS THERE ONLY ONE EPISODE LEFT. UNFAIR.
The video for “A Little Song and Dance†can be downloaded here for $0.99.
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