Agent Carter 1x05
If you thought my primary response to this episode would be intense emotion about Natasha Romanoff, then you were super right. I have been emotionally compromised by Natasha Romanoff.
So, we finally have a canonical Red Room, even if it doesn't yet have that name. (But I can't think why they wouldn't call it that.) It was always logical to assume that the Red Room was part of MCU!Natasha's background, but it was never really canon until now.
And it was just as horrific as I could have hoped for. It should be horrific. Little girls killing each other should never be anything else.
And this is the Red Room in its infancy. They're going to get better at it. (Rec me your favorite fic that deals with Natasha and the Red Room! If I've read one before, I'll read it again.)
Dottie in Peggy's room was so creepy. That last shot of her before she left the room was a perfect blend of acting, lighting, and camera work. Ultimate creepy shot.
Poor Dottie, she just wants to see the Statue of Liberty, but Peggy's being a total hipster. But I love that the first place Peggy told Dottie to go was Brooklyn. Of course.
I loved the shout out to Bletchly Park. I want all the fic dealing with Peggy's service during the war before she met Steve. (There's probably isn't any, huh?)
Peggy and the Howling Commandos was as much fun as I was hoping, even if it was mostly Dum Dum Dugan. Hell, my only issue was her decision not stay with them at the end. Obviously, I didn't think it would actually happen. That would totally derail the plot. But after watching Peggy with the Howling Commandos, who respect her so naturally, it seems such a weird decision to go back to the SSR. Besides the needs of the plot, Peggy may be honestly tired of the front lines. Or it may be her stubbornness. She might not want to retreat from the SSR. She might want to force them to see her as an equal.
Let me tell you, though, if this episode had been the point where the show flipped comic continuity a bird, and had Peggy become a costumed hero named Miss Union Jack, no one would have been here for that more than me.
And this episode was definitely a strong step forward in the SSR agents according Peggy some respect. Honestly, though, I prefer the end of the Agent Carter short film, which has her leaving all her sexist colleagues in the dust. I get why Peggy wants the SSR to acknowledge her. I don't see it as out of character or a bad writing decision. I just think Peggy would be happier if she realized they're not worth all this effort. (Once again, this isn't a criticism of the show. I can want Peggy to be happy without thinking it's a bad writing decision.)
This episode also did more than any other episode to try and humanize Thompson, with, for me, mixed results.
It's important not to treat bigots as inhuman monsters, not because the poor little bigots have feelings too, but because it makes bigotry some horrible other. "He can't be a bigot! He's so nice!" But I'm really not here for being told that I shouldn't judge a bigoted character harshly, because they're so sad, which is initially what I thought the Thompson reveal was all about. When I thought that it was instead just there to lay groundwork for Thompson's freak out so Peggy could rescue him, I was down for it. But the actual story, Thompson killing surrendering Japanese troops in a panic, left me with mixed feelings. On the one hand, it makes sense, and it's interesting that war hero Thompson's big secret is that he has feet of clay. That his machismo and nastiness are his response to knowing that he hasn't earned the respect and adulation he gets. Masculinity in general is a fragile construct, Thompson's masculinity is more so. On the other hand, killing surrendering enemy soldiers is, in my understanding, a war crime. (And either way it's horrible.) Now, of course Thompson didn't kill those soldiers maliciously. He woke up, he panicked, and he started shooting. But then he hid the evidence and lied about it. I'm not saying that therefore no one should feel sympathy for him, but I do think it provides perspective. And then there's his behavior since. The way he set up to embarrass both Sousa and Peggy in the changing room? (As well as provide a reminder to Peggy that she doesn't belong.) Ugh, screw you dude.
Also, I suspect that Thompson and Peggy are going to hook up, and, ugh, do not want. I'm tired of guys who prove their feelings by being assholes. 616!Peggy was tortured by Red Skull, along with Gabe Jones, because she and Gabe had feelings for each other, which the racist Red Skull couldn't stand. They both spit in Red Skull's face, literally. If MCU!Peggy hooks with the guy who demeaned and belittled her because he had a crush on her, I wouldn't exactly consider it a step forward.
Agent Carter continues its habit of giving one or two characters of color a single line. Sigh.
I really liked this episode, over all. Red Room origins and Peggy with the Howling Commandos. I just wish the less fun stuff was better.
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