Eve Polastri is the main protagonist of Killing Eve. Eve, 41 years old, is a former MI5 Security Officer and MI6 Agent who investigates the international assassin Villanelle and The Twelve, the organization Villanelle works for. As she gets closer, Eve and Villanelle develop a mutual and romantically charged obsession for one another.
History
Early Life
Eve was born in England and raised in Connecticut by her parents. Eve is of Korean heritage, and speaks the language fluently. From a young age, she had wanted to work for MI6 in tracking down assassins all over the world, and soon developed a somewhat morbid interest in the criminal mind. It was this dark interest that got her to get a degree in criminal psychology, and she ended up working as an MI5 security officer. She always dreamed that she’d be working as a spy in a secret assassin-hunting department for MI5, but really she is just a desk jockey tasked with assigning protection to foreign people of interest during their trips to London.
Investigating Villanelle
In London, Eve Polastri screams in her sleep. Her husband, Niko, wakes her up and Eve tells him it was because she fell asleep on both arms. She has a headache from staying out late the night before and singing karaoke with her co-workers for her boss, Bill's, birthday. Even though it is Saturday, she has to go into work at MI5. At the office, Elena Felton explains to Eve on the way to the meeting that a Russian sex-trafficking politician was murdered in Vienna.
Eve enters the meeting late and sits down next to her boss, Bill Pargrave. Frank Haleton introduces everyone to Carolyn Martens who runs the MI6 Russia Desk. Carolyn informs them of the assassination of Victor Kedrin, a high-profile Russian politician. He was leaving a sushi restaurant near Stephansplatz with his girlfriend, Kasia Molkovska, when his femoral artery was sliced open. The girlfriend fled the scene and was picked up in Hammersmith. Eve and Bill are to provide diplomatic protection for Kasia. Eve tells Carolyn that it was a woman who assassinated Kedrin.
At MI5, Eve finds out from Elena that Kasia is still at Hammersmith station and decides to go visit her. Bill tells her that CCTV revealed it was a man who assassinated Kadrin but he hasn't actually seen the tape. Eve leaves to interview Kasia, who is on drugs and speaking incoherent Polish. The translator is unable to understand her, besides the assassin being a "plank".
Eve visits Niko at his Polish bridge club and recruits him and a Polish teenager, Dom, to listen to the recording of Kasia's babbling about the assassination. They decipher that Kasia is using slang and the assassin was tall, dark, and flat-chested, a "small-breasted psycho." Eve calls Elena at the office and requests information on Margit Polsen and any other active female assassins under the age of 45. Margit's breasts are too large for it to have been her and the other two female assassins (Katrina Voltrinski and Wendi Helmsen) are dead.
Eve is impressed with the murder of Kedrin from a tiny puncture wound and asks Niko how he might kill her. Niko says he might push her down the stairs or flatter her to death. She tells Niko she would paralyze him with saxitoxin and suffocate him in his sleep, chop him up, boil him down, put him in a blender, and then flush him down a restaurant toilet. Later, as they're going to bed, Eve questions whether or not the CCTV recording is real. Niko tells her she should have been a spy.
Eve and Bill share lunch together while Eve tries convincing Bill that Kedrin's assassin was a woman and there is a cover up with the CCTV. Eve has been compiling cases for months, including Greco's murder, that were done by a new and prolific female assassin. Bill tells her to go to the hospital to make sure Kasia is secure and then go home.
Eve takes Dom with her to the hospital and has him pretend to be Kasia's relative. While they are waiting to speak with Kasia, Eve goes to the restroom where the one stall is in use. While she is waiting, she fixes her hair. Villanelle exits a stall dressed as a nurse and second-glances at Eve, captivated, prompting Eve to ask if she is all right. Villanelle walks to the bathroom exit, then turns back and tells Eve (with a perfect English accent) to wear her hair down. While Eve is using the toilet, Bill calls to tell her that there was no CCTV and she needs to keep Kasia safe. Eve returns to the hospital room to find the nurse and the security detail dead, and Kasia's throat slit. She tries to stop the bleeding from Kasia's throat but Kasia dies as Dom returns with snacks.
Bill sits with Eve and tells her she did the right thing. Frank and Carolyn enter and Frank blames Eve for conducting an illegal investigation, manipulating a witness, putting a minor in danger, and failing to protect Kasia. Eve confronts Frank about the assassin being a woman and Frank fires her. Eve and Bill both call Frank a "dick-swab" and Frank fires them both.
Eve is at home watching television with Niko when her doorbell rings. Carolyn invites her to walk to the corner shop where she reveals to Eve that Villanelle has been operating for two years across ten countries. She offers to buy Eve breakfast on Thursday at 9am at the Purple Penguin by Charing Cross, firmly reminding her to not be late.
Eve shows up at the Purple Penguin to meet with Carolyn. They discuss Eve's background: how she was born in the UK but moved to Connecticut when her parents split up and came back when her father died. Carolyn confronts Eve with a folder of documents on female assassins that they found when they were going through Eve's computer after she was fired. Eve explains that she believes there is a female assassin running around who doesn't have a specific signature but has a definite style.
Carolyn takes Eve to a decrepit building where a dingy office has been set up with all of Eve's information on the female assassin. Carolyn has set up an "unofficial-official" investigation that she wants Eve to run secretly. Kenny enters and is introduced to Eve as the person who has been gathering the evidence. Eve is allowed two more people for her team.
Eve invites Bill and Elena to come work with her. She brings them up to speed on the assassinations she believe were done by the same woman. Bill plays contrarian, asking for proof that it is the same person for all the killings and proof that it is a woman. Eve excuses herself to the bathroom and is reminded of the encounter with a nurse in the hospital bathroom before Kasia was killed. Bill has left the office and Eve chases after him as he explains he is still trying to adapt to no longer being the boss. He thinks the assassin is just a lackey and they should be going after the people controlling the assassin. Eve points out that their profile of the female assassin is the only connection they have to the people behind her. She returns to the office and asks Kenny to look up any females worldwide aged 16-45 who have medical or prison records displaying psychopathic traits. Elena leaves to meet Frank for goodbye drinks to see if she can get information on the CCTV of when Kedrin was assassinated.
Bill and Eve meet up with Frank and Elena at the pub. They both apologize for calling Frank a "dick-swab" for firing them before grilling him about the CCTV of Kedrin's murder. Frank laments that none of them ever invited him out for a drink after his wife died before revealing that he made up the CCTV story because he thought it was disrespectful of Bill and Eve to interfere with the investigation. Elena takes Frank out to catch a cab so he can pick up his kids.
At home, Eve lies to Niko about what she's been up to all day since being fired from MI5 before she blurts out that she's now working for MI6.
Trip to Berlin and Bill's Death
Eve intricately describes Villanelle's features to a sketch artist while Bill shoots her an intrigued and almost knowing glance.
Niko cleans off a freshly laid egg from a chicken in their house as Eve wonders whether it is edible. Niko questions her about her new job and Eve explains it is just gathering and analyzing information. She heads to the office talking to Bill on her cell phone about Carla de Mann's deadly asthma attack. She meets up with Bill carrying his baby daughter in front of their office and helps him with his "childcare emergency." Carolyn is in the office waiting for them with Elena and Kenny to let them know that there has been another assassination. Eve thinks that Carolyn is referring to Carla de Mann but Kenny tells her that it was a Chinese colonel, Zhang Wu, who has been killed at a massage parlour specialising in BDSM, by an "agency" worker. The name the assassin gave to the receptionist was "Eve Polastri". Outside, Eve paces as she begs Carolyn to keep her on the team. Carolyn asks her what she wants to do.
Eve has returned to the office and tells Bill he is going with her to Berlin. Bill tells her to take Elena instead but Eve needs Bill because he speaks German and has Berlin contacts. Bill jokes that he is going to die while Eve tells him that it is not likely that Villanelle will still be there.
Niko arrives home early as Eve struggles to get a suitcase down to begin packing for her trip. He reminds her to label her suitcase so that she does not lose another one.
Eve and Bill have arrived in Berlin and take a taxi to the "Hot Medica" building where Villanelle stealthily sits across the street watching. They are greeted by Weber, one of Bill's contacts, who takes them to the murder scene where Zhang was poisoned with carbon monoxide. Jin Yeong from the Chinese government has asked for a second opinion on the autopsy so Eve will have to contact him for a copy of the autopsy report. They leave the building and Eve asks Bill to watch their suitcases while she calls Kenny to see if he can locate Jin's whereabouts from his email address. Kenny sends her Jin's location as she notices that her suitcase has gone missing.
Bill apologizes to Eve for losing her suitcase as they scope out Jin's location. She mentions that Niko will be upset about her losing the green scarf. They approach Jin and ask him about Zhang and the second autopsy, which now says that Zhang died of a heart attack. Jin invites Eve to dinner so they can continue their discussion. After they leave their meeting with Jin, Bill warns Eve that Jin wants to have sex with her. He tells her to get something nice because he will take her out afterwards. Villanelle bumps into Bill on the street and keeps walking.
While Eve tries on outfits for her dinner, she talks on the phone to Elena, asking for intel on Jin. While she tries on a dress, Villanelle keeps a watchful distance. Back at the hotel, Niko video calls her from a dinner party at their house that she had forgotten about. Niko asks her about her new dress and she explains about the dinner with Jin. Bill knocks on the door bringing her a razor.
Eve shaves her armpits as Bill critiques her fashion sense, telling her she needs to remove her bra. They discuss Bill's wild years in Berlin and his open marriage. Bill quizzes her teasingly on whether she is attracted to women, specifically to Villanelle. Bill walks Eve to the train station and spots Villanelle watching Eve as he is leaving. He follows her and stops her from getting on the same train as Eve on the pretext of asking her about the green scarf that she is wearing - the same one that Eve had had in her suitcase. Villanelle plays it off that she got it from her mother and leaves the station with Bill following her.
Eve arrives to her dinner with Jin. He presents her with a gift and withholds information until they've had a glass of wine. Eve becomes frustrated with Jin and finally manages to pry out of him that the Chinese government might be covering up the cause of death because of "sex" but that they did not have Zhang assassinated. He has to drop the investigation but prompts Eve to keep it going.
Jin reveals to Eve that the week before, Zhang had hacked into a Chinese Intelligence agent's account and discovered that the agent had been getting paid millions. That agent is now also dead. Eve finally opens the gift Jin presented her with at the beginning of the meal and discovers that it is a 32GB memory stick. Bill leaves another message for Eve which prompts her to check her voicemail. She leaves Jin to meet up with Bill.
Eve arrives at the club where Bill and Villanelle are and explains to the bouncers that she needs to get in because she is with the British authorities and it is an emergency. Bill spots Villanelle and tries to catch up with her while Eve makes her way along the dance floor looking for him. Villanelle turns around and smiles wolfishly at Bill before heading towards him. Knowing he is now her target, he tries to run away but is trapped in the dancing bodies and Villanelle easily catches him, stabbing him repeatedly with a short blade, before taking off again. Eve struggles to reach Bill as he bleeds out on the dance floor.
Eve and Niko attend Bill's funeral service, seated behind Bill's wife, Keiko, and their baby daughter. Frank goes up to say a few words and Eve is disgusted with his terrible speech. When Bill's daughter begins crying, Eve stands up and hurriedly leaves the service while Frank is still talking. Elena follows Eve outside and they console each other, reiterating that no one is to know the truth of how Bill died. The official story is that he was mugged at a club.
Niko offers Eve stew and wine while Eve sits forlornly on the couch. Niko confronts Eve about Bill's death and how he is worried about her. They briefly fight before Niko informs her that her suitcase has returned from Berlin. She is sitting on the edge of her bed and crying. She gets her suitcase and opens it, discovering it has been repacked with new clothing with the tags still on. She finds a box of "La Villanelle" eau de parfum. The card inside reads "SORRY BABY x." Eve hastily tosses it back into the suitcase and warns Niko to stay out.
The next morning, Eve meets with Elena and Kenny to discuss the suitcase and perfume. She assigns them the task of finding out where the clothes were bought and if there is any DNA or security footage. They head to the office as Eve continues providing instructions but stops when she sees Bill's empty desk. Kenny has gone through the documents Jin Yeong gave Eve at their dinner in Berlin and there are bank statements from the Cayman Islands used to pay off the Chinese double agents that Zhang Wu uncovered. Kenny has noticed a British account number receiving three payments a year of $17,700 that terminates at St. Henry's, a prep school in Sussex.
Eve meets Carolyn at a butcher shop. She tells Carolyn about a work party a year ago where Frank got really drunk and emotional about not being able to afford to send his kids to St. Henry's prep school, revealing he is a double-agent. Kenny tracks Frank down to a village called Bletcham in Buckinghamshire. Eve decides Elena will go with her to Bletcham to do surveillance on Frank.
As Elena drives Eve to Bletcham, Elena tells stories about how Carolyn has saved the world several times going all the way back to the '80s when she stopped an ex-KGB agent from selling plutonium. Kenny calls Eve to let her know that someone called Frank's phone from a landline at the same place his phone is at.
As Elena and Eve arrive in Bletcham, Kenny relays to them that Frank is speeding away. Eve has Elena pull over while she calls Frank. Frank has stopped his car and is hiding in his front seat. He is panicking and Eve tries to calm him down. Eve tells Frank to move toward a visible tower in the distance as she and Elena get back in the car to intercept him. Frank runs toward Eve and Elena as Villanelle shoots at him. Frank makes it to their car as Villanelle approaches, aims her gun at Eve, and shoots.
Confrontation with Villanelle
Eve is in the driver's seat of the car while Elena and Frank cower in the back seat as Villanelle approaches on foot. She fires her gun at Eve but misses. She continues shooting as Eve drives away. Eve stops the car and decides to confront Villanelle. Ignoring the protests of Elena and Frank, she gets out of the car and begins walking toward Villanelle. When Villanelle raises her gun and takes aim, Eve stops walking, placing one hand in the air, the other across her chest. Villanelle aims the gun under her own chin and Eve screams, "no!". Villanelle laughs, kisses her gun flirtatiously and and fires at Eve's feet instead, causing her to duck and flinch. When Eve turns back around, Villanelle is gone.
Elena and Eve take Frank to a diner and question him about the assassination attempt made by Villanelle, Nadia, and Diego. Eve instructs Frank to to leave his kids at his mother-in-law's for a few nights. Frank remembers that one of the girls was named Oksana. Eve contacts Kenny and asks him to look up the name Oksana. He tells Eve that the DNA results on her suitcase came back and Villanelle's DNA is all over it.
Eve and Elena take Frank to a safe house where Max Sanford will be looking after him. Carolyn is at the safe house and Frank starts making excuses before complaining that he is having a panic attack. Carolyn gives him five minutes to change clothes under Max's supervision. Elena brings tea to Eve and Carolyn before heading back to the office. Max tells Carolyn Frank won't come out so Carolyn goes to Frank's room and cradles him in her arms, getting him to talk. Frank reveals that "the Twelve" know everything about Frank, including his deceased wife's cancer treatments. They were willing to pay for her treatments in exchange for Frank telling them the big picture of what is going on at MI5. Frank assumed they were Russian SVR agents and was the one who told them that Eve was still investigating. Frank explains there is a pattern to Villanelle's kills and the plan is to destabilize and cause chaos.
Eve calls Kenny for an update and lets him know about the Twelve. She encourages him to give Elena a call. Back inside the safe house, Carolyn tells Eve that the police have found Diego's body but no one else. Carolyn asks after how Kenny has been since Bill's death because Kenny's own father died a few years ago. Eve promises to keep an eye on him. Eve sits at a bus stop and pokes at a crack in the glass. She stands up and slams her fist against it, shattering the window. Her phone rings and she answers Niko's call, telling him to bring Dom with him. She hurries away from the bus shelter.
The office is empty when Eve gets there. She picks up a baby blanket off Bill's desk when Kenny returns. He tells her she should still talk to Bill even though he is gone because it helps. Kenny has found prison records on a few people named Oksana. Eve stops when she sees a picture of Oksana Astonkova. Kenny tells her that she supposedly died in prison four years ago. She had been imprisoned for having "chopped a man's knob off."
Eve arrives home and unpacks the suitcase, applying some of the perfume Villanelle made for her. She tries on a dress and a pair of shoes, admiring herself in the mirror. She kicks off the shoes and heads to the kitchen to review the files on Oksana and pour more wine. She hears a noise and calls for Niko before checking the front door. When she turns around, Villanelle stands in her hallway and tells her not to run. Eve runs upstairs, locking herself in a bathroom. Villanelle breaks open the door and Eve hilariously defends herself with a toilet wand. Villanelle easily overpowers her and tells her to stop screaming as Eve keeps screaming. She pins Eve into the bathtub and turns on the water to calm her down. She explains that she just wants to have dinner with Eve.
In the kitchen, Eve only has leftover shepherd's pie, which she microwaves for Villanelle. Villanelle helps her change out of her wet dress, complimenting her on her body. Villanelle sits down at the table as Eve gets silverware and slips a knife into her pants, which Villanelle comments on. The microwave dings and Eve brings over the shepherd's pie, removing the knife from her pants before she sits down. Villanelle comments on Niko's mustache as Eve asks her why she is there. Villanelle begins to sob, asking for help and saying she knows what she is but they make her hurt people. Eve calls her bluff and reveals that she knows Villanelle is Oksana; she knows her history and tells her she is a psychopath. She asks who Villanelle works for and Villanelle tells her that if Eve goes high enough up the chain, they probably work for the same people. Eve shows Villanelle her prison file and asks about the castration and why Villanelle killed Bill. She replies it was because he was slowing Eve down. Eve picks up the knife and lunges at Villanelle even as Villanelle warns her not to, and Villanelle quickly has her pinned against the fridge with the knife pointed at her neck. Villanelle sniffs her neck and asks if Eve is wearing her perfume. The door opens as Niko and Dom enter. Eve begs for their lives as Villanelle picks up Eve's phone and asks for her PIN ("1234"). Villanelle takes Eve's phone and dress and says hello and goodbye to Niko and Dom on her way out the door.
Eve rushes over to Carolyn's house, interrupting her at dinner with friends and Kenny, who is, to Eve's surprise, her son. Carolyn takes her and Kenny into another room and Eve explains that Villanelle has her phone, which gives her access to Frank's interview and his location. She also asks for protection for Niko.
Outside the safe house, police in tactical gear move in. Carolyn and Eve listen from a van as they report back they have a male in need of medical assistance. Eve rushes in to find Max still alive but Frank is dead in the bedroom. He is laid out on the bed, wearing Eve's dress, his knob chopped off.
Trip to Russia
In Eve's office, Kenny reports that Nadia was picked up in Bletcham by Russian intelligence and was taken to the same prison Villanelle "died" in three years previously. Eve asks Carolyn if they can go to Moscow to question Nadia. Both Kenny and Elena opt out of the trip.
Eve meets Niko at his bridge hall and catches him smoking. He shows her a newspaper with Frank's murder on the front page, pointing out that he was at Bill's funeral and wants to know how many more people have to die. They get in a screaming match and Eve slaps and shoves him. Niko walks away before stopping and telling her they should forget about the fight and get some dinner. Eve tells him she can't; she has to got to Moscow.
In Moscow, Eve and Carolyn take a taxi as they discuss what the Twelve might want and review Nadia's and Oksana's prison files. Carolyn puts on makeup, prompting Eve to ask about Carolyn's Russian contact, Vladimir Betkin, and how well she knows him. They arrive at the hotel and check into their rooms. Eve calls Niko and gets his voicemail. She hangs up without leaving a message.
At the bar, Carolyn and Eve are having drinks before Vladimir arrives. Carolyn gives Eve advice on her personal life, telling her she shouldn't have one because it is a detriment to the people in her life. Vlad shows up and greets Carolyn before introducing himself to Eve. He has another person joining them: Konstantin. Carolyn greets him with familiarity and they soon fall into retelling old stories. Carolyn eventually gets to the matter of Nadia but Vlad is withholding. She brings up the Russian sleeper agent who was assisting Frank and asks if either of them are investigating Victor Kedrin's murder. Carolyn offers an exchange: for a meeting with Nadia, she will provide them with the information they received from Frank before he was murdered. Eve reveals that Villanelle/Oksana broke into her house to have dinner and thinks Nadia can provide information about her. Vlad capitulates to one interview as long as Konstantin goes with them to the prison. As Eve and Carolyn head to their rooms, Eve tells Carolyn that she doesn't like Konstantin.
Eve, Konstantin, and Carolyn arrive in the interview room. Konstantin leaves them alone, saying it is better if it is just them. Nadia enters on crutches and with a broken arm. Carolyn begins questioning Nadia, offering her release from prison and transport to the UK. Eve asks about Oksana and Nadia reveals that Oksana took her place in their plan to escape the prison. Konstantin walks through the door, interrupting Nadia's story about what happened three years prior. He claims the sound in the other room wasn't working but Nadia refuses to speak further on the escape plan. She mentions the name "Anna" and Konstantin commands her to tell them.
Vladimir meets up with Konstantin, Carolyn, and Eve in a car. Carolyn asks Vladimir to grant immunity and safe passage for Nadia so they can get further information. Vlad wants to know the name of the organization behind the assassinations and Eve tells him it is the Twelve. Vlad still refuses to help and exits the car.
Carolyn and Eve are at the bar, drinking. Eve tells Carolyn that she doesn't like Vlad, either. Carolyn reveals that she and Vlad have an "illicit" history together, however, Vlad still has not forgiven her for a plutonium plot he was framed for when it had been Konstantin who was Carolyn's source. Eve apologizes for not liking either of Carolyn's "boyfriends." After Carolyn heads to bed, Eve calls Kenny to see what he found out about Anna. Kenny tells her that Anna was the wife of the man Villanelle had castrated six years previously. Eve asks Kenny to dig up any information on Konstantin and Carolyn.
Eve meets privately with Vlad on a bridge. She pleads with Vlad to give them Nadia and they will release the sleeper agent who helped Frank. Vlad refuses and starts to walk away. Eve stops him by saying she knows who was the real source for the plutonium plot. Eve calls Kenny, begging for any private information he can find between Konstantin and Carolyn. Kenny calls Eve back that he found letters from Konstantin.
Eve leaves her room at the Hotel Atlasov in Moscow to go to breakfast. She runs into Carolyn returning from being gone all night and wearing the same clothes as the day before. Carolyn tells Eve that Vlad had a change of heart and will be giving them Nadia. Carolyn receives a phone call alerting them that Nadia was murdered. Konstantin joins Eve and Carolyn for breakfast and explains that Nadia was attacked by another inmate, "Natalie." Eve wants to meet "Natalie" but Konstantin laughs and refuses. Konstantin takes his leave, telling them they can stay but they're no longer invited.
As Eve and Carolyn walk the streets of Moscow, Carolyn reveals that Kenny is now in Moscow. They arrive at a shop and are allowed into a backroom where Kenny has set up a temporary office.
At their new office, Eve tries to get the heat to work as she hypothesizes that "Natalie" is actually Villanelle. Kenny volunteers to check CCTV for visitors but Carolyn shuts him down. Eve changes tactics and decides they must find Anna. Carolyn says it is unnecessary and asks Kenny to have Elena fly them back to London since there is nothing left for them in Moscow. Carolyn will remain behind to "tie up" some things. After Carolyn leaves, Eve and Kenny decide to remain in Moscow anyway and Kenny presents Eve with some personal letters of his mother's that he found.
The letters Kenny found are dated from 1977-1978 and are of an explicit nature. Eve is planning to give them to Vlad as proof that he was not the one involved in the plutonium plot but asks Kenny to go through them to see if there might be a code. Kenny also found some old photos, one of which has Konstantin sitting with Carolyn. He provides Anna's address to Eve and she tells him it is okay if he wants to go back to London. He wants to stay and is planning on going through the CCTV cameras at the prison to look for Villanelle.
Eve visits Anna where she works as a language teacher. Eve lets Anna believe Oksana/Villanelle is still dead as she questions Anna on why a secret organization might have recruited Oksana. Anna reveals she has a few letters from Oksana at home. In Anna's apartment, she gives Eve a large box filled with letters and gifts from Oksana. The letters are all written in French, Oksana's favorite language. Eve pries and Anna reveals that she gave Oksana extra time and attention because everyone else was fearful of her. Oksana would give her gifts of expensive perfume and designer clothes but she did not like Anna's husband, Max, and claimed that Anna only loved him for his penis. One night, when Anna came home, there were balloons and a cake and Oksana had castrated and murdered Max. Eve finally reveals that Oksana is not dead and is currently in Moscow. Eve pulls out the old photo of Carolyn and Konstantin and Anna points out Konstantin as the man who told her that Oksana had died.
Anna gives Eve a bag, saying it arrived a month after Oksana had died. Eve opens it and finds an expensive French coat. Unbeknownst to Anna, sewn into the lining of the coat is a passport for "Marta Poslovina" with Villanelle's picture, credit cards, and money. Eve takes the passport and a picture of Oksana and shoves them into her purse before returning the coat to Anna.
Anna brings Eve some cake to take home. Anna asks her to let her know if she finds Oksana so Anna can forgive her before warning Eve that she is Oksana's type. As Eve is leaving, she turns around and asks bluntly if Anna ever had sex with Oksana. Anna says no and slams the door on Eve.
Eve calls Niko and gets his voicemail. She leaves another message for him, asking if she can see him when she comes home tomorrow. She enters their temporary office and joins Kenny to search through the CCTV footage. She speculates on Anna's and Oksana's relationship. Eve spots a prisoner from behind who walks like Villanelle. Kenny finds another angle and they zoom in on Villanelle's face, confirming that Villanelle was in the prison with Nadia. On the CCTV, Villanelle is led into a visitor's room where Carolyn shows up to meet with her.
Eve and Kenny walk through the streets of Moscow. Eve wants to confront Carolyn about meeting with Villanelle in prison but Kenny is scared of Carolyn. They arrive at Carolyn's hotel and Eve convinces the front desk to give her a key to Carolyn's room. Kenny wants to knock first to make sure Carolyn is not in the room. They find Carolyn's room a mess and Konstantin standing with a hair dryer. Carolyn exits from the bathroom and stops short when she sees Eve and Kenny. Eve states that Villanelle is in the prison. Carolyn explains that she escaped, locked Konstantin's wife in a cupboard, and kidnapped his daughter.
At breakfast, Carolyn tries to send Kenny away but he asks why Konstantin's security isn't looking for Villanelle and Irina. Konstantin reveals that the Twelve want him dead. Eve thinks they should go back to Anna's and calls her. Konstantin decides to go with Eve to Anna's and they will bring her back to the hotel. Carolyn sends Kenny to pack up their equipment, threatening to fire him if he refuses, while she is going to visit Vlad to set up protection for Anna.
Konstantin drives Eve to Anna's apartment, already knowing where she lives without Eve giving him the address. Eve asks Konstantin why Villanelle wants to kill him. He replies that if he tells her, he will have to kill her and starts laughing. Eve starts laughing with him, insisting repeatedly that it is okay for him to kill her. She asks if he is part of the Twelve, which causes him to laugh again. Eve thinks Villanelle wants her but Konstantin says she wants him. Eve accidentally opens the glove box, revealing a gun, and Konstantin promptly closes it again.
Konstantin has pulled over the car for a bathroom break. When his back is turned, Eve grabs the gun from the glove box and points it at him. Eve questions him about Villanelle. Konstantin admits he recruited Villanelle for a private organization and claims he has not seen her in years. Konstantin explains that he wants his daughter, the Twelve want him, and Eve wants them so if Eve leads him to his daughter, she will get everyone. Eve's phone rings with Anna's number but it is Villanelle demanding her (fake) passport. Villanelle sets up a meeting at Cafe Radozhny.
Villanelle and Irina are already at Cafe Radozhny when Konstantin and Eve arrive. Irina runs toward her father but Villanelle stops her and takes her hostage, threatening the other patrons in the restaurant if they move. Eve pulls the gun from the glove box on Villanelle. Konstantin offers to go with Villanelle while Eve offers up the cash and passport for Irina. Villanelle calls Eve's bluff because she will not hurt anyone with the gun. Eve sets her gun down. Villanelle, Irina, and Konstantin all tell Eve to throw the passport and money, which Eve does, but the toss falls short. Villanelle has one of the diners bring it the rest of the way to her. Villanelle tells Konstantin that she has to do her job and shoots him in the stomach. Irina jabs Villanelle and manages to get away while Eve picks up her gun and aims it at Villanelle, calling her, "Oksana". Eve asks her to come with her, just the two of them. Villanelle backs away and flees.
At the airport, Carolyn informs Eve and Kenny that Konstantin has died. Eve checks her voicemail and hears a message from Elena that a young man (Sebastian) was found dead at an apartment in Paris with the same chemical in his system that killed Carla De Mann. Elena has uncovered that one of the apartments is paid for by the same account that was paying off Frank. Eve lies to Carolyn and tells her it was Niko on the phone. Carolyn confronts them about giving Vlad her love letters to Konstantin and fires them both. Carolyn and Kenny board the flight to London but Eve takes off in another direction.
Paris
Eve heads to Villanelle's apartment in Paris. She runs into Villanelle's neighbor, Madame Tattevin, who knows Villanelle as "Julie." She mistakes Eve for someone who has been paying her to keep records on Villanelle and invites her in to show her all of Villanelle's comings and goings. Eve gives Madame Tattevin her phone number and asks her to text her when Villanelle returns. Eve leaves Madame Tattevin's apartment and tries to get into Villanelle's. Madame Tattevin offers up a key.
Eve enters the apartment and takes a look around. She opens a wardrobe and finds various uniforms and wigs along with a drawer full of weapons. She opens the fridge, finds it stocked with champagne, and grabs a bottle. In another wardrobe, she discovers designer clothing and her own green scarf. She starts tearing the clothes off their hangers and goes into a rampage, making a mess of the apartment and breaking bottles.
The sound of the door opening sends Eve to the weapons drawer where she grabs a gun. She comes out to find Villanelle standing in front of the ransacked wardrobe. She threatens to kill Villanelle but Villanelle again calls her bluff. They sit down across from each other, Villanelle at the vanity and Eve on the edge of the bed. Eve admits that she thinks about Villanelle all the time and wants to know everything about her. Villanelle admits that she masturbates about Eve. Eve lies down on the bed, exclaiming, "God, I'm tired." Villanelle picks up the gun and lies down next to Eve on the bed. Eve asks if she is going to kill her and Villanelle promises she won't before setting the gun on the floor. They turn on their sides and face each other. Eve admits she has never done anything like this before. Villanelle says she knows what she is doing and moves closer, stopping when she feels a blade poking into her stomach. Villanelle still does not believe Eve can do it. Eve says she can and stabs her before rolling Villanelle onto her back and straddling her. Villanelle begs her not to pull the blade out but Eve does so and Villanelle begins to bleed all over the place. Villanelle is shocked, exclaiming "I really liked you!". This makes Eve panic and second guess about what she has done. She runs to the kitchen for a towel and Villanelle starts shooting at her. When Eve finally makes it back to the bedroom, Madame Tattevin stand there, informing Eve that Villanelle has left.
When season 2 begins, we see Eve seconds after planting a knife through Villanelle’s guts. Eve leaves Villanelle’s apartment down the stairs narrowly avoiding a group of Russian speaking people who are dressed as EMTs, who shoot Madame Tattevin. After this she makes her way to Gare du Nord. She is at the security before realising the knife is still in her pocket. When she realises she tells train line security “I had a bad oyster”. After tell the security guard this she rushes to the toilet. When in the toilet she wraps the knife in toilet paper and disposes of the knife by putting the knife in a tampon bin. When she returns she goes outside to the bar, where she runs into a unnamed woman who thinks she is injecting herself when in fact she is continually stabbing herself with a pen. The unnamed woman states that she understands that Eve is an addict and she has been in her position. Eve response to this statement by simply laughing this off, this offends the woman, causing her to walk out. Back in London, Eve’s phone rings incessantly as she tries with zero success to pretend that everything is normal; Niko comes home to find her chopping vegetables for a roast chicken she’s forgotten to put in the oven.
In London, Eve meets Carolyn. She doesn’t tell her everything about the stabbing, but she does offer an opinion on Villanelle’s apartment calling it “Chic as shit” and gets her job back. Carolyn tells Eve that the note Nadia wrote in the last season was “Alister Peel” [sic]. Peel has been dead for two months, the victim of an ordinary pulmonary embolism — but in light of the Nadia note, Carolyn has had him exhumed, identifying a needle mark between his toes. Eve posits that the reclusive Peel was likely killed by Villanelle during his weekly pedicure. Eve has no choice but to get back in the game… which is secretly what she wants. Summed up neatly by Carolyn: “There’s no need to play the reluctant ingenue with me. Save it for your husband”.
Back in her house she tells Niko about how she got her job, because Niko understands how much Eve’s work means to her. And he knows she’ll keep doing it; all he asks is that she tell him what’s going on. She starts by confessing… that she ordered a ton of new and extremely expensive windows for their home.
Chasing the Ghost
Eve’s storyline this episode begins with a Bing search. Still on the hunt for stab victims in France that may or may not be Villanelle, her search is cut short by Niko. While she has finally opened up and told him a decent amount about her work — Alister Peel's death, her lingering grief about Bill — she’s still not ready to come clean about her connection to a certain Russian assassin.
Luckily, however, her new job is all about just that. She has been hired back as an “outside expert” on female assassins, along with Kenny from her previous team. New members include Jess and Hugo Turner , the latter of whom is convinced Eve and Kenny are having an affair due to their whispered conversations.
However, their whispered conversations are actually about the fact that Eve stabbed Villanelle, meaning she’s withholding information from an investigation that she’s working on. On the bright side, Eve points out, now so is Kenny.
After giving a recap of what her previous team dug up, which was just as much for the viewers as it was for Hugo and Jess, Eve shows her hand a little, drifting off into thought about the murderer. For good reason, though, because Villanelle has been thinking about her. That night, during another stab wound search, Eve comes across a news item about the murder of Gabriel, last episode’s hospital patient. In the crime scene photos, Eve sees the boy is holding an apple with a bite taken out of it — just like the apple another Eve takes a bite out of in the Bible. This is clearly a message from Villanelle, and the hunt is back on.
But not the hunt Eve thought. Upon investigating Peele’s death further, Eve realises it was too simple — an injected air bubble under the toe that went undetected? Villanelle likes to make a splash. An interview with Peele’s two children confirms it: They don’t recognise Villanelle as a possible woman who could have come in contact with their father, so that must mean there’s a new female serial killer on the loose.
This new specimen, according to Eve, is Villanelle’s opposite: A middle-aged immigrant who goes undetected. But this doesn’t mean Villanelle is out of the picture, especially because Carolyn (Fiona Shaw) has received a recording of Villanelle’s cries for Eve Polastri on the phone. They trace it to Julian’s house, but when they arrive, Villanelle is gone — or, just gone. As Villanelle’s car drives away, it passes Eve on the street.
Eve has adjusted to seeing a man she previously believed to be dead as well anyone can be expected to — with a drink. Over some hard alcohol, Konstantin explains that MI6 is protecting his family, but that his family believe him to be dead when Villanelle shot him. He also warns Eve that she’d do well to move on from Villanelle, likening the assassin to a parasite. Instead, he suggests, Eve should make Villanelle hate her... because we've all seen what happens to people Villanelle loves.
Speaking of love, or something like it, Eve prepares Niko breakfast, only to jet out before the morning sex he tries to instigate can come to fruition. Eve’s busy with a new murder: Greg Richardson. He died via strangulation, catching his tie in a set of elevator doors. Eve sees right through that — but is it too discreet to be Villanelle's handiwork? When Eve gets home, she earns yet another strike with Niko: she has forgotten, as she has for the past two years, that his school is hosting drinks for the teachers that night. Quickly, she gussies up in the sexiest outfit she can find and meets him at the school.
Once there, however, Eve approaches Niko chatting with another teacher named Gemma. Gemma gets suspiciously flustered by Eve's arrival, and compliments her a little too much. She even jokes that the other teachers started to doubt Niko had an “astronaut” wife after all. Gemma also lets slip something Niko had been keeping private: the school has been receiving complaints about Niko from an anonymous student, but he waves them off as prank calls.
The moment Gemma leaves, Eve calls out her behavior, telling Niko she definitely has a crush on him, which he denies. Eve still decides to seduce him. She asks to see his classroom and, once there, pretends all of his math-related material is somehow extremely sexy. As they kiss, Eve gets distracted by something: a single apple sitting on his desk. While Niko insists it’s just an apple, Eve freaks out, remembering the apple that Villanelle left for her in Gabriel’s crime scene photos. She pulls the fire alarm and all the partygoers flood out of the building.
Once outside, Eve frantically searches the crowd for the face she knows must be lurking somewhere, but sees nothing. At this point, Niko has had enough. It’s the first time Eve has shown up to support him, he points out, and yet she somehow managed to make it about herself. He sends her home, saying she obviously doesn’t want to be there, and re-enters the school with Gemma.
The next day, Eve finds a mysterious lipstick in her purse. The name of the shade? “Love in an Elevator”. This basically confirms that Villanelle that not only did the Greg Richardson murder, but also that she’s in London, close enough to slip something into Eve’s bag. Eve relays all this to Kenny, and asks Kenny to get information that she can use as leverage with Niko. Specifically, she asks Kenny to find the location of Konstantin’s family — something Carolyn previously told Konstantin she would never tell him — so she can exchange it for information about Villanelle. Kenny is hesitant, but Eve gets harsh, reminding Kenny that he works for her.
Kenny pulls through, and Eve brings the information to Konstantin. After some investigating, Konstantin is able to get Eve the address of Villanelle's hotel. However, when Eve arrives at said hotel, the room is empty. Her anger is quickly replaced by a funny feeling pulling her to the room down the hall, where Villanelle is waiting behind the door. By the time MI6 kicks it down, however, Villanelle has escaped.
Sitting with Carolyn after the incident, it’s clear Konstantin betrayed them. He took the details of his family’s location and Villanelle, leaving MI6 with nothing. Carolyn is furious, telling Eve to never go behind her back again. Kenny is also furious, feeling like Eve took advantage of him.
Back at home, Eve decides to use the lipstick Villanelle left in her bag, but her lip gets cut by what turns out to be a knife hidden in the tube. Rather than feel fear, Eve feels... horny? She wears the cut like a badge of honor.
Eve has discovered something suspicious about Alister Peel. His godson died of a heart attack, the CEO of his company died ten months ago, his ex-girlfriend died six months ago ... people in his orbit are dropping like flies and they no longer seem like accidents. Eve and Jess decide to learn more about the company they're dealing with by setting up a meeting with Alister's son Aaron Peel.
Aaron is not very chatty. When the women ask about the sale of the company, he summons a lawyer who refuses to answer any questions. As tensions rise, Aaron says that his company owns more information and data than the Pentagon and MI6 combined. The Secret Service are obsolete, he claims. Perhaps that true but they are onto something. After a mysterious clip of a cleaning woman entering another woman's home, we learn Allister Peel's secretary has been found dead. It appears to be a heart attack, but at this point Eve knows better. The Ghost is still at it.
Eve's problems at work are mirrored at home, when she arrives to find Niko and their new security guard Jordan at the dinner table. Niko isn't thrilled to have a security guard show up unannounced, while Eve is growing frustrated with Niko's inability to understand the realities of her job. But all Niko's upset about, really, is losing the kind, nurturing Eve he fell in love with. This person is different, and he wants the old one back. But the old Eve can't come to the phone right now — and she can't go to Amsterdam, either. Carolyn intercepted a postcard to Eve from Villanelle that revealed her whereabouts, but sends Jess instead to investigate a recent murder in the city.
Eve has her own murder to focus on. Kenny receives the details of the secretary's murder, and informs the gang that she died via a nerve agent in her moustache bleach. The bleach also contained an inhalation aesthetic so the death would be painless — unusual for an assassin. As Eve has Kenny search their database for women in the medical profession against a list of cleaners in Peele's building, she and Hugo jet out for a quick dinner that almost ends in a kiss, but does end with Eve admitting she likes watching Villanelle, and being watched by her.
Their conversation is interrupted by a text from Kenny, who has found a match for "the ghost". The next day, Eve approaches the suspect as she's dropping her kids off at school, tricking her into thinking she has dropped a ten pound note before taking her to be interrogated. As Eve waits for her to arrive for questioning, she checks herself out in the mirror and finds herself primping — she has to look good for this new assassin, after all.
Working with Villanelle and Marriage Crisis
Their interrogation of the Ghost isn't working, and Eve's been spoiled by the excitement of Villanelle. She attempts to break through to her newest killer, and ends up asking if she's ever heard of a fellow female assassin by the name of Villanelle or Oksana. Now that is something the Ghost will talk about, because it turns out Villanelle has a moniker of her own in the serial killer community: the demon with no face.
Eve learns from Jess's trip to Amsterdam that Villanelle has gone freelance, and thinks putting Villanelle and the Ghost in the same room will help them get to the bottom of what's happening. To do that, Eve puts out out a hit — on herself. Now that will get Villanelle's attention.
Eve is attracting some attention of her own, but not for a good reason. Jess points out that Eve never does any of her paperwork, something Carolyn has turned a blind eye to because she doesn't want a paper trail of Eve's unorthodox methods. The team is arranged to sit through a presentation about psychopathy. Eve considers it a waste of time, believing she can negate some of the statements, especially about how to control a psychopath, which is something she's about to attempt by introducing Villanelle to the Ghost.
Turns out, the presentation was ordered by Carolyn to psychologically evaluate Eve, particularly with how Eve reacted to images of gore (barely flinched) compared to an image of Villanelle (she was transfixed). The presenter's (Martin’s) professional opinion is that Eve is too close to her subject.
Back home, Eve learns Niko has to go to Oxford for a few days to help out with a spelling bee — perfect news for Eve, who needs the house empty for a while to carry out her "grand" Villanelle plan (turns out, Niko's absence is another Carolyn scheme). Eve and Niko's chat is interrupted by a delivery, which end up being flowers from Villanelle in anticipation of Eve's funeral. This turns Eve on, and she ushers Niko upstairs to have sex.
The next day is the big day, which requires Eve to wear a bulletproof vest. The only person who isn't going along with the scheme is Kenny, who has soured on Eve due to her increasingly erratic behavior. When he tries to encourage her to come clean about stabbing Villanelle, Eve informs him she'll be re-assigning him to a new project.
But Eve has changed, and even she's starting to notice. When she's waiting for a train, a man pushes past her, and we watch her come moments away from toppling him onto the track in front the oncoming train. At the very last moment, she pulls back.
Once home, Eve decides to remove her bulletproof vest, then our two protagonists finally reunite. Dressed as if for a funeral, Villanelle arrives at the house ready to kill her victim. Eve asks her to take her shoes off. The two banter, having to make up for four episodes of absence, and mainly talk coyly about their fears the other had forgotten them. Neither apologises to the other for what went down in France.
Finally, Eve comes clean and says she took out the hit on herself, but Villanelle says she must do what she's been ordered to do. She hands Eve "arsenic" pills, and Eve takes them, thinking she was calling Villanelle on her bluff. Villanelle begins freaking out, saying she didn't think Eve would actually take the pills, and Eve runs to the sink to stick her fingers down her throat as Villanelle stars laughing, admitting that the pills aren’t poison. Eve is then pinned to the counter with a knife and asked if she’ll give Villanelle everything she wants. Eve replies, “Yes.”
Eve takes Villanelle to the Ghost, who has been taken out into the forest and put into a metal shed. Eve gives her one last chance to talk, to reveal for whom she is working and why she killed Allister Peel, but she stays silent. So finally, she brings out the big guns. We don't see what Villanelle does to the Ghost, only that it works: Allister Peel's son took out the hit on his father.
Niko comes home to give things with Eve one last shot, even playing into her fantasy of fear and danger — only to feel like shit on the other side. The next morning, after a night of sex (presumably involving power kinks), Eve is elated, but Niko decides he's had enough. It's not about the sex, but the fact that Eve never told him she stabbed Villanelle. He realises he will never be the person she really wants and leaves despite her protests.
Eve is at a hookah breakfast with Carolyn, because Carolyn is tired of eggs. She's more interested in Aaron Peel, who we learned last week took out the hit on his own father, and is clearly up to something. He's wary of press, and keenly aware of surveillance. Their only hope to get close to him is to infiltrate an upcoming conference in Rome — and Eve and Jess have a plan. While neither of them can get close to Aaron given that they have already met, Villanelle can get close to the only relationship he has in his life: with his sister, Amber Peel. They hire Villanelle - not for killing, but instead for her keen ability to assume different characters and looks. For this mission, she's a pink-haired jobless New Yorker named Billie with as many philosophy degrees as she has DUIs, so she's going to "coincidentally" cross paths with Amber in AA. To pull this off, Carolyn explains in a meeting with Eve and Villanelle, they have to be totally analogue. Aaron will be recording and spying on everything, even when it may not seem like he's watching. As Carolyn emphasises the importance of never breaking character, Villanelle realises that she is the real boss — something that makes her immediately attractive to Villanelle. Don't worry, she still has a soft spot for Eve, teasing her throughout the meeting and reminding her to "be professional" as they browse the tech they'll be using.
But Eve has bigger problems to worry about, mainly that Niko isn't answering her texts, and, as Villanelle unhelpfully points out when she plops herself across from Eve at a coffee shop, it's going to take a little more than a blowjob to fix this. But Villanelle doesn't want Eve to fix this, because Niko is too nice and normal for her. “You will never understand how much harder it is to be nice and normal and decent than it is to be like you", Eve tells Villanelle. "Like us, you mean", Villanelle shoots back. Eve attempts to make contact with Niko, who is staying at his coworker Gemma's house while they figure out their marriage. Eve has brought him some of his belongings, but when Gemma invites her in, things shortly go off the rails. In pursuit of the bathroom, Eve takes a turn into Gemma's bedroom, where she breaks her music box and messes up her clothing drawer, prompting both her and Niko to come into the room. Even though Niko says Gemma is just a friend and he's staying on the sofa bed, Eve won't apologise, and tells Gemma, "I hope you like the missionary position" on her way out of the room. Luckily, she can throw herself head first into the dinner between Villanelle, Amber, and Aaron, where not only is Villanelle bugged, but she has an earpiece through which Eve can help get her out of binds. Binds like, let's say, Villanelle not reading any of the research and therefore being unable to answer basic questions about philosophy, or accidentally revealing that she knows more about Aaron than she should, or being caught snooping by Aaron's trick bookcase. Villanelle ignores the earpiece, at one point stuffing it into her food and eating it.
As Villanelle explains to a world-weary Eve that she's scored the date with Aaron, her two dates from the night before leave in succession, which does not improve Eve's mood. Nonetheless, things are progressing. Eve sent a bunch of worried voicemails to Villanelle wondering how the lunch went. She has reason to be nervous. Carolyn gives her very strict orders to keep Villanelle, an actual psychopath, under control. The mission is simple: find out what Aaron is selling, and to whom. Hugo will accompany Eve to Rome to help surveil, they'll smuggle a microphone in fake contraceptive pills for Villanelle, and remember — the safe word is "gentlemen". Everything seems set until Kenny grabs Eve on her way out to issue a warning: Don't go to Rome. This advice comes after something he learned on his new assignment, but he's cut off by Carolyn before he can explain more. Eve is also looking for answers — namely, how do you control a psychopath? Eve decides to take a trip to Broadmoor, to meet with the psychiatrist from earlier, Martin, who gave the presentation on psychopathy. His conclusion is that Eve is too emotionally involved with the situation, and it was doomed to fail the second she tried to control Villanelle. He advises she doesn’t go through with the operation, as he told Carolyn before. Eve says she’ll heed his warning, but ultimately doesn’t, and travels to Rome.
Trip to Rome
When Eve and Hugo arrive in Rome, Eve sets up the equipment in Hugo’s room and awaits to hear from Villanelle, but doesn’t, saying, “If she isn’t wearing it [she’s] gonna kill her.” To be safe, Eve finds Villanelle and Aaron in a restaurant and slips Villanelle the backup mic in a bread roll while Aaron takes a call. It's clever, but later Aaron still is able to see that Villanelle was up to something when her back was turned to his cameras. The important thing is, however, the mic is now on and the mission is in full swing. The only problem? Villanelle is wearing a belt over her dress, and Aaron doesn't approve. He demands she take off the accessory, because why do anything if it isn't perfect. He then informs her that she'll be sitting in on dinner, and demands her to be bored during the entirety of the conversation. That's difficult, however, because it's the conversation MI6 has been waiting for - the discussion of selling the weapon he possesses - and it's conducted entirely in Russian, which Aaron doesn't know she understands. Even the buyers themselves don't know what the weapon is, but that didn't stop them from showing up the meeting. Aaron refuses to reveal specifics without purchase, but he aggressively makes his point by giving each buyer a full rundown of their personal lives, including things they didn't even know. He learned it all through data, and if they buy the weapon, they'll be able to type in anyone's name — be it a wife, a minister, a prime minister — and know exactly as much information. This is good news for the MI6, but they might have another problem: Villanelle and Aaron seem to be connecting a little too well. Later that night, he approaches "Billie" about her lack of digital footprint, calling her a "void" — just like him. She's the only person in the world he knows nothing about, which must be what makes her so interesting. If Eve was getting jealous, Villanelle certainly made it up to her. In bed, she talks directly to Eve, knowing the agent is listening to everything she says on the mic. It becomes sexual, prompting Eve to approach Hugo in bed for sex — with Villanelle in her ear the entire time.
The next morning, Villanelle wakes up with a grin on her face. She tells Eve "Good Morning" through the mic and asks if she slept well. Eve smiles widely. Hugo greets Eve and her smile fades. He tells her he was surprised about what she did. She doesn't want to talk about it. He does. Instead, she tells him to get them coffee and sits down at the monitors. She takes out the earpiece as she says there should be more buyers today. Hugo sarcastically thanks Eve for the "threesome" before leaving.
[tba - "You're Mine" onwards]
Rebuilding Her Life
Eve was found bleeding out by tourists. She was taken to a hospital in Rome and later repatriated to the United Kingdom. After she was discharged, she found her life and marriage had fallen apart. Niko had checked into rehab after his traumatic experience with Villanelle. Eve sold the house and moved to a small apartment in New Malden. She got a kitchen job in a Korean restaurant owned by a friend of her aunt's.
Personality
She was fiercely ambitious growing up, but mainly to impress her father, who she adored. Always fascinated by women in crime, she excelled in her degree in criminal psychology. When her father died her momentum slightly slowed; she wasn't sure who she was trying to impress anymore. Her father's memorial brought her back to the UK where she met Niko and never really left. Eve started at MI5 and spends her work assessing risk, yet has spent a life absent from any kind of it.
Eve is slightly disappointed in her world as it is now. She’s a little rough around the edges. She has a short temper and can be occasionally gross. When shit's not exciting, Eve just gets a bit lazy. Struggling to find meaning in her work, Eve's ennui is beginning to get the better of her. She doesn't have a drug dependence problem or an unhappy domestic situation. Her husband Niko really is great. He loves Eve. So why can't she shake a creeping sense of dissatisfaction?
Underneath her air of "a woman content with her lot in life" is a woman looking for trouble. To combat her boredom, Eve has secretly been tracking a new female assassin. Eve wants it all, the action, the blood, the rule-breaking and the femme-fatales. But she's beginning to realize her secret passion for the gloriously awful may be nothing but a fantasy. Until one day, her fantasy crosses her path. [1]
Relationships
Villanelle
The two women becoming mutually obsessed, sharing what has been called a "crackling chemistry between bitter enemies and would-be lovers".[2] Agent Polastri tracks the "utterly unforgivable" assassin Villanelle across Europe, not as hero and villain but as "two broken women whose flaws bind them together in a twisted pas de deux".[3] As many times as tragedy seems to crack the foundation of their relationship, the two can never seem to stay away from the other. Eve is entirely more reckless when it comes to Villanelle, often making decisions on a whim without thinking of the consequences. In the finale of season 1, Eve decides at the last minute not to head back to London with Carolyn and Kenny, instead traveling to Paris to follow a lead on Villanelle's whereabouts. The two end up having a moment in Villanelle's apartment, which ends with Eve holding a knife to Villanelle's stomach. Spurred on by Villanelle's taunting "You can't", Eve actually does stab her - regretting it immediately afterwards, and attempting to help before Villanelle escapes. Eve, deep down, seems to have a desire to protect Villanelle- even before they knew each other, Eve was intent on proving that Villanelle "wanted a way out" of The Twelve's employment. When they have their second face-to-face, after Eve gets out of the car to confront Villanelle, she is horrified when Villanelle places her gun under her chin, and attempts to stop her by yelling out to her. At this point, Eve is intrigued by Villanelle in a morbid fascination-type way, and in turn, cares about her wellbeing.
When Villanelle is to go undercover in Rome during the Aaron Peel mission, Eve openly expresses her worry about Villanelle's safety- telling Martin, the psychopath expert brought in by Carolyn, that she "wants [Villanelle] to be safe," and that she can't take care of herself alone. He has her admit that she spends "most of [the day]" thinking about her, and that Villanelle has caused her to act recklessly, and do things she normally wouldn't. Later, while Villanelle is actually on the mission, Eve paces back and forth back home, repeatedly calling Villanelle and leaving voicemails to make sure she's okay and that everything is going to plan. Although she sometimes appears visibly embarrassed by leaving these messages, she ends up calling her 9 times and leaving 3 voicemails, proving her concern for Villanelle overrules a lot of things. Eve actually ends up killing Raymond for Villanelle, to save her life, in the Season 2 finale. As much as they are on opposite self-proclaimed sides, Eve does not want Villanelle to die. She is spurred on to kill Raymond by Villanelle's pleas, and although she is in shock afterwards, she seems to agree at that time to run away with Villanelle. Eve becomes confused, and then furious, after she finds out Villanelle had a gun on her person the whole time, and could have killed Raymond instead. Still reeling from the shock of the murder, Eve proclaims that she is "going home", displaying a newfound resentment towards Villanelle. Despite this, she seems genuinely more upset than angry in their last exchange before Villanelle shoots her. She refuses Villanelle's claim that they love each other, and tears up after Villanelle becomes visibly upset and confused at Eve's reaction.
Villanelle and Eve kiss on a bus in s3 when Eve is travelling and Villanelle finds her. Fearing for her life, Eve kisses her to disarm her and then headbutts her before Villanelle gets off the bus and watches on with a smile as it drives away. Later, the two meet up at a tea dance room and talk before dancing, talking about their future. They later end up on Tower Bridge where Eve expresses how Villanelle has changed her, and how she likes it. Villanelle worries that she’s ruined Eve’s life, but Eve doesn’t feel the same. Villanelle tells Eve that they should turn away from each other, walk away, and never look back, however they both turn and stare at each other with a smile before the season ends.
Villanelle begins to send Eve invitations to her baptism at a church, which Eve is quick to rip up and throw away. Villanelle is upset by the fact Eve didn’t show up and goes to find her. Eve slaps her. After murdering two people, Villanelle goes to Eve for help, and Eve gives her the cold shoulder asking her to leave. She later finds out Villanelle has gone to her therapist, and finds her at his house. There, Eve gets Villanelle arrested. The ultimate betrayal. Due to Hélène having a vendetta against both Eve and Villanelle, she gets Gunn to shoot Villanelle with an arrow, leading to Eve holding the shot Villanelle in her arms. Villanelle wants nothing to do with Eve; betrayed. She kills Helene and Eve gets a kick out of it.
When Eve realises she needs Villanelle’s help, she goes to Gunn’s island to find her. The two escape from a blinded Gunn on a boat. They go to a rest house with another couple, where Villanelle touches Eve’s bullet scar. This leads to a healing of their relationship, and they steal a caravan, sharing food, laughing, playing songs, etc. When out of the camper van, Villanelle kisses Eve’s cheek and Eve pulls her in for a real kiss. They then have implied sex in the van. After breaking into The Twelve’s secret meeting on a boat, Villanelle kisses Eve again and the two seperate. Once The Twelve are dead, Villanelle finds Eve outside and they hug, before Villanelle is shot. The two jump off the boat, as bullets keep pouring down on them. Eve watches as Villanelle gets multiple bullet wounds, swimming up to her in desperation, but she is out of reach. Her Villanelle is dead.
Eve tries to touch her hand, but Villanelle’s corpse is pushed away in the water. Eve comes up for air, screaming as it cuts to Carolyn Martens saying “jolly good”, as she was the one who ordered the hit on Villanelle. Villanellle is gone and Eve is left screaming in the Thames in the shadow of Tower Bridge, her subsequent fate unknown.
Marriage
Eve has been married to Niko Polastri for years. She loved him and had been treated well by him but the boredom that drew her dangerously close to Villanelle had put a strain on their marriage. At one point, Eve implies that she has been unfaithful to Niko by continuing to indulge in her obsession with Villanelle. Niko was also unfaithful after basically participating in an affair with Gemma. He was later injured by Dasha Duzran, under The Twelve's orders to permanently sever the relationship between Eve and Villanelle. They are currently separated and Niko told her in the hospital (via whiteboard as he was intubated) to "PISS OFF FOREVER".
Friendships
Throughout the series, Eve makes what could be considered "friends" with the people she works with. Often, the people Eve befriends end up getting killed or leaving the picture in one way or another. She doesn't have any friends outside of work, other than briefly consulting with Dominik, who plays bridge with Niko, using him to see Kasia Molkovska in the hospital.
It's assumed that Elena and Bill are Eve's oldest friends, as she is used to friendly banter with them from the beginning of the series. Unfortunately, Bill is killed early on and Elena leaves not long after, in fear of her own safety. Kenny remains a friend to Eve for a while, until he dies under suspicious circumstances after he got too close to exposing The Twelve. When Eve joins Operation Manderley, she befriends Hugo, and goes out with him to a fast food place one night on his request.
Professional
Career
Notes and Trivia
- She knows a few Polish phrases that she picked up from Niko, including "Get your arse into bed."
- Eve is sapphic
- She wears a lot of turtlenecks
Gallery
Memorable Quotes
"God, it’s amazing how efficient things are when you’re a dick to people?"
"I'm going to find the thing you care about the most, and I am going to kill it."
"When I try and think of my future, I just... see your face over and over again."
"I think about you all the time. I think about what you're wearing, and what you're doing, and who you're doing it with. I think about what friends you have. I think about what you eat before you work, and what shampoo you use, and what happened in your family. I think about your eyes, and your mouth, and what you feel when you kill someone. I think about what you have for breakfast, I just... want to know everything."
"Who says I want to be happy?"
”You wanna hear about her tits?"
"We'd never make it that long. We'd consume each other before we got old."
"I don't care if that's true, seriously. If it tastes this good, grind up an orphan and fry it in crack."
(On killing Dasha)
Villanelle: Then I guess we both did. Isn't that romantic?
Eve: You know the only people who would think that are?
Villanelle (warily): Who?
Eve: Us.
Appearances
| Killing Eve: Season One | ||||||||||
| "Nice Face": | "I'll Deal with Him Later": | "Don't I Know You?": | "Sorry Baby": | |||||||
| Appears | Appears | Appears | Appears | |||||||
| "I Have a Thing About Bathrooms": | "Take Me to the Hole!": | "I Don't Want to Be Free": | "God, I'm Tired": | |||||||
| Appears | Appears | Appears | Appears | |||||||
| Killing Eve: Season Two | ||||||||||
| "Do You Know How to Dispose of a Body?": | "Nice and Neat": | "The Hungry Caterpillar": | "Desperate Times": | |||||||
| Appears | Appears | Appears | Appears | |||||||
| "Smell Ya Later": | "I Hope You Like Missionary!": | "Wide Awake": | "You're Mine": | |||||||
| Appears | Appears | Appears | Appears | |||||||
| Killing Eve: Season Three | ||||||||||
| "Slowly Slowly Catchy Monkey": | "Management Sucks": | "Meetings Have Biscuits": | "Still Got It": | |||||||
| Appears | Appears | Appears | Appears | |||||||
| "Are You From Pinner?": | "End of Game": | "Beautiful Monster": | "Are You Leading or Am I?": | |||||||
| Absent | Appears | Appears | Appears | |||||||
| Killing Eve: Season Four | ||||||||||
| "Just Dunk Me": | "Don't Get Eaten": | "A Rainbow in Beige Boots": | "It's Agony and I'm Ravenous": | |||||||
| Appears | Appears | Appears | Appears | |||||||
| "Don't Get Attached": | "Oh Goodie, I'm The Winner": | "Making Dead Things Look Nice": | "Hello, Losers": | |||||||
| Appears | Appears | Appears | Appears | |||||||