Agent Carter, “SNAFU,” was written by Chris Dingess and directed by Vincent Misiano. Dingess has also written for Being Human, Reaper, Men in Trees, and Medium. Misiano also worked on Medium, and his long list of credits include Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., The Blacklist, and Arrow. In the penultimate episode of the season, the situation becomes dire and Dooley (Shea Whigham) dies a hero’s death. Hayley Atwell (Peggy Carter) and Whigham are both terrific in the episode. I found it funny – and given filming and release schedules completely coincidental – that this episode and the movie The Kingsmen share a climactic scene!
The episode begins with a flashback to 1943 and a demonstration of the power of Ivchenko’s (Ralph Brown) technique. What chance does anyone have against a technique that can make a man ignore having his own leg cut off? We see Whigham resist even as he also desperately wants to be back with his family. He tries to tell Ivchenko to get away from the window even while under his influence. He gets him into the lab, but he doesn’t want to give him the case. He even tells Loretta (Sarah Bloom) that he screwed up and that he let a man walk out of the office. He knows he should feel ashamed and afraid, but he can’t feel anything – until Thompson (Chad Michael Murray) pounding on his door wakes him up.
Whigham is terrific as he runs a gauntlet of emotions in this episode. We see him as the determined director, the loving husband and father, and finally a hero. I’m really sad to see his character go as he was one of the people I was most excited about being on the show in the first place. When he finally comes to himself, he’s quick to warn everyone not to let Ivchenko talk to them because he got in his head. When the scientists and Jarvis (James D’Arcy) are out of options, Dooley doesn’t hesitate to take matters into his own hands. He takes Thompson’s gun to hold them all at bay – and so he can shoot out the window. He tells Thompson to apologize to his wife, but he charges Carter with the more important mission: “Promise me you’ll get the son of a bitch that did this.” When she says she will, his last words are “Thata girl” before he jumps out the window and explodes. This final scene is Whigham’s best. It had been pretty clear that Whigham was starting to realize just how good an agent Carter was, but this last command proves she had gained his respect.
It’s ironic that Carter is only acknowledged and accepted by her own agency after she’s been thrown out of it. Carter is well aware that she’s nothing more than a stereotype to the men in the office. Sousa (Enver Gjokaj) accuses her of being manipulated by Stark, and I loved her double entendre reply: “Howard Stark has never scrambled my mind or any other part of me.” When Jarvis shows up with Stark’s “confession,” Carter is quick to surmise how she’s been portrayed in it. Jarvis at least looks embarrassed because he knows the portrayal of her is the exact opposite of what she is, but he also knows that that is what the men at the SSR will believe: “I suppose the confession portrays me as ‘a patsy’? A doe-eyed idiot succumbed to the charms of America’s mustachioed Casanova?” Their attitudes toward women are exactly what make Dottie (Bridget Regan) the perfect spy.
Under interrogation by Dooley, Carter throws the truth back at all of them: “You think you know me, but I’ve never been more than what each of you has created. To you, I’m a stray kitten left on your doorstep to be protected. The secretary turned damsel in distress, the girl on the pedestal turned into some daft whore.” The first is directed at Dooley, but shots of Thompson and then Dooley, both looking thoughtful and a little guilty confirm who thinks what of her. It’s a nicely shot scene and Atwell is terrific in the indignation I’ve been feeling for her all season! Later when she does finally confess, Sousa wants to know why she never came to one of them for help. She tells him, “I conducted my own operation because no one listens to me. I got away with it because no one looks at me.”
Carter convinces both Sousa and Thompson because she gives up Steve’s blood. This is actually nicely symbolic. She’d kept it as a last attempt to keep him safe, reminding us of how guilty she feels about his death. When Dooley tells her she’s fired, she cleans out her desk, and Jarvis notes she has no personal effects – just a file and 2 notebooks, and the file belongs to the SSR. She was pretty determined not to put down roots at the SSR, not to grow close to these men she works with.
Yet, that’s not who she is. She doesn’t have to be in love with them to feel a sense of duty or comradery. It’s why she’s so angry and a tiny bit hurt when Sousa suggests she had anything to do with Krzeminski’s (Kyle Bornheimer) death. If it means saving the men of the SSR from Leviathan, she’s now willing to sacrifice Steve’s blood. Again, Atwell is outstanding in this scene as Carter explains what’s in the ball and what it means and why she kept it.
Jarvis, once again proves both delightful and invaluable. We see quite clearly that all the “operators” at the phone company are actually in on what’s going on – and are armed! – when he shows up with Stark’s confession. He’s hilarious as he admits to Carter that his plan isn’t very good because he “panicked.” I also loved the scene in which both Jarvis and Carter decode Ivchenko’s message and Carter is surprised he knows Morse code. Jarvis replies, “Your surprise wounds me!” He doesn’t like being underestimated any more than she does!
I loved the exchange between Jarvis and Carter as they try to escape from the interrogation room. I loved that they manage to break the glass before they realize they’re still chained to the table. I almost wish that Thompson hadn’t shown up and they could have gotten loose only to run about chained together! While Jarvis is able to help them with the armor vest that leads to Dooley’s death, he can’t help them with what item #17 does. Clearly, Stark himself is going to have to put in an appearance to help stop Leviathan!
I have to admit that I was underwhelmed by the fight scene between Sousa and Dottie because of how it was shot – too many cuts and close ups. Given his other credits, I would have expected better from Misiano. However, for the climactic scene in the movie theatre, those cuts and close ups worked well to reinforce the chaos and claustrophobia. I did adore how Dottie got down the stairs and away, however! Regan is terrific in this role and it’s fun to watch her turn her various personas on and off. I’m hoping everyone also knows that she plays a character with a shady past on Jane the Virgin too and is terrific in that show as well.
Things are really heating up – literally, much to Dooley’s dismay – heading into the finale.
Agent Carter, like its sister show
Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., took time to establish characters in the early episodes. That deliberate pace may have cost the show in terms of viewership, but I think it paid off in this episode particularly. However, I do feel a bit like we are now rushing to the finish line. I’ll have more to say about my impressions of the entire series after the finale. For now, what did you think of this episode? Are you sad to see Dooley go? Without having filed any paperwork on Carter’s dismissal, is she still an Agent of the SSR? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below!
About the Author - Lisa Macklem
I do interviews and write articles for the site in addition to reviewing a number of shows, including Supernatural, Arrow, Agents of Shield, The Walking Dead, Game of Thrones, Forever, Defiance, Bitten, Glee, and a few others! Highlights of this past year include covering San Diego Comic Con as press and a set visit to Bitten. When I'm not writing about television shows, I'm often writing about entertainment and media law in my capacity as a legal scholar. I also work in theatre when the opportunity arises. I'm an avid runner and rider, currently training in dressage.
