First of all as a reading teacher of many decades, I love that the title of this weeks episode of Killing Eve, is borrowed from the title of an Eric Carle book. The Hungry Caterpillar has been used by elementary school teachers for almost fifty years. It lends itself well to all sorts of kids activities. If you have a very young kid, I highly recommend it. So let’s get right to this week’s Killing Eve Recap.
Last weeks episode ended with Eve coming face to face with Konstantin Vasiliev. I love Konstantin and am glad that he is back. He’s central figure in all of this. Meanwhile, it is taking me forever to get to this recap.
Am I A Psychopath?
Konstantin and Eve sit down to have a drink. It’s impossible to recap this scene I love all the nuances so much. Basically, Konstantin was put in witness protection by MI6. His daughter thinks he is dead. All Eve cares about is where Villanelle is. Konstantin tries to tell her she does not want to know that. He says Villanelle is like The Hungry Caterpiller. She is a parasite in your brain that eats up all your stuff (like Niko your husband, you dumb bitch!) to make room for her. Then Niko says something that strikes a personal chord. “Don’t make her love you, Hate is managaeble she can handle that. Look what happens to people she loves.” Hell, maybe I am a psychopath. I deal much better with hate. Hate I can handle. Um, moving on…
Villanelle Kills Her First Mark for Raymond
We get our first kill of the episode when Villanelle kills some random guy on her hit list as provided by her new handler Raymond. She grabs his tie as he goes up on an elevator. For the first time I do not think this is a possible method of killing someone. She would not be able to hold it that long. Am I right? Eventually it is her versus a several ton elevator in a tug of war. That was a disappointing kill in many ways.
Niko and Eve’s relationship continues to be strained.
Paddington Is A Real Place? Does It Have a Bear?
Villanelle get a note from Raymond as she checks into the hotel after her kill. It says “STAY IN YOUR ROOM!” Raymond shows up to ask how the kill went. This interrupts her inventory of the semen stains on her bed. There were seven. She tells Raymond that the kill was boring and discreet just like he asked. He informs her they have a new female assassin. She is not on their payroll yet but they want to recruit her. Thus the boring kill. Villanelle is displeased. Especially since she has Eve looking for her. Creepy Raymond gives Villanelle her payment. I can’t wait to see her go clothes shopping.
When Raymond leaves. Villanelle disguises her voice with a British accent and makes “another complaint about one of the teachers” at a local school.” I feel like I should know what this is about. But I don’t.
Villanelle charges a ton of expensive shit to Raymond.
Niko Has A Love Interest?
Meanwhile Eve is at MI6 trying to figure out if Villanelle was the one who killed the guy in the elevator. I’m not sure why this kill is even on the radar of MI6. Something about the Peele corporation with it seems is something like Amazon. Knows everyone’s personal Internet data. Thinks they are above the law.
Suddenly, Villanelle is outside a school watching Niko who is being a bit flirtatious with another woman. I’d forgotten that Niko is a math teacher. So presumably this was the school that Villanelle called. Once again, I am gravely concerned for Niko’s penis.
In the next scene, Eve runs into Niko who is dressed up. Or at least his version of dressed up. For the third year in a row, Eve has forgotten about drinks with the faculty. Niko tells her she better put on something very slutty to make-up for her forgetfulness. She’s better listen. There is a horny schoolteacher coming for her man. Probably more than one. A straight male teacher is much sought after commodity in the education world. Oh he decides to meet her there. Bad idea. We will probably never see her there to mark her territory. Is Niko still her territory?
A Close Encounter
Meanwhile, Villanelle is making a glittery macaroni neckline and throwing on glasses and a hippy dress. I have a feeling this is her school teacher look. It looks like Eve and Villanelle will both be at drinks with the faculty.
Or not. I am finding this episode very hard to follow and am failing miserably with my Killing Eve Recap this week. Did I mention I have really bad facial recognition skills? I believe that it was Raymond who approached Eve for directions and then pretended to remove “a bit of fluff” from her shoulder. Did he put some sort of tracking device on her? Villanelle and Raymond (?) make eye contact and she turns around to go the other way. I’m clueless.
Get More Cats And Prepare To Die Alone
At the faculty party, Jenna the flirtatious school teacher is making her move when Eve walks in. She takes off her coat revealing her sexy dress before breaking up the flirtmance. Jenna seems very close with Niko and Eve is annoyed which is a good sign. Then Jenna says “no one believes the stupid complaints.” Niko brushes off the complaints as a student prank. Eve plans to mark her territory in Niko’s classroom.
Oh look, Villanelle is back. She is in the stairwell about to have a smoke with Jenna. Perhaps she will kill Jenna just for fun. Jenna admits she has feelings for Niko but he’s married and it sucks. Villanelle knows exactly how she feels. Villanelle gives her all sorts of suggestions on how to woo Niko. When Jenna says that seems a bit manipulative. Villanelle basically tells her she needs to just get more cats and prepare to die alone. It’s hysterical.

Another Apple
Carolyn Martens and Konstantin laugh and drink wine and share old stories in Carolyn’s beautiful dining room. Apparently, MI6 pays well. The conversation takes a turn when Konstanin wants to know where is family is being hidden. She refuses to breech their safety. Konstanin asks what she would do if it was Kenny. She said she would be fine. She’s always been careful not to be to attached to Kenny.
Sexy time with teacher comes to an abrupt halt when Eve finds an apple on his desk. She knows that Villanelle has been there. She punches the fire alarm and evacuates the building. Niko is furious. The one time that she came to support him and his job she makes it about her and her job. He tells her to just go home. He goes back inside with Jenna. Eve materializes out of thin air right behind her. She almost touches her and then turns around and disappears.
Love In An Elevator
The next day at the office, Eve finds a lipstick in her purse she doesn’t recognize. It’s called Love In An Elevator. A reference to this week’s dead guy. She goes to Kenny and demands he give her the address of where Konstantin’s family are. How the hell does this help her in any way. She says she needs leverage. With who? Konstantin? So she gives him the address and he leads her to Villanelle? Yes. That is the plan. But first Konstantin has to do some checking around.
When Villanelle returns to her hotel room in yet another high-end fashion look, she is informed that the hotel has another guest. She takes this news very seriously. She gets on the elevator and opens her switchblade. Meanwhile, Eve receives the address.
GET CAUGHT UP ON SEASON ONE AND SEASON TWO KILLING EVE RECAPS HERE!
Villanelle makes her way down the hallway and then sees Konstantin. He’s the closest thing to a father she has. Our generally emotionless assassin seems to be having some. After a touching scene where she races to hug him, it ends with her saying, “This is a terrible hug.” Konstanin replies, “Then maybe you shouldn’t have shot me.” They banter back and forth. Konstantin tells her that Raymond is the guy they use to put down the assassins who are no longer useful. After more bantering, he asks her to leave with him. She has five minutes before MI6 arrive. She doesn’t believe him. While they are negotiating a potential new partnership, they hear the police outside.
I Get A Notion From The Look In Your Eyes…
Villanelle can see Eve through the peephole. Eve is drawn to the door at the end of the hall. They stand on opposite sides of the door breathing heavily. Eve screams that she is behind that door.
When the bust in, Villanelle and Konstantin have escaped through the window and are long gone. Carolyn is angry. It’s a very calm anger. Eve gets a lecture about what a pain in the ass she is taking up so much of her time that she could spend on better things. Like hobbies. She orders Eve to find The Ghost and wrap the Peele case up. She wants things finished.
Kenny feels like Eve turned on her. He got her the information and now it has all blown up in his face with his mother. She gets the disappointed speech from him. The disappointed speech is always worse than the angry speech.
In the car, Villanelle is jamming to Listen To Your Heart humming way off-key. These two are so cute. Konstantin loves fucking with her. He tells her that Eve is totally focused on The Ghost. She’s forgotten all about her. This is as good a place as any to point out that the soundtrack to this show is just as outstanding at Villanelle’s wardrobe.
The episode ends, for me at least with Eve pulling on the lipstick in the bathroom. There is a blade inside that cuts her lip. And after many days and hours another Killing Eve Recap is in the can.
Well, you and I have both noticed that TV Brits must pay their TV spies very well. I watch British shows and those people always have the greatest places in hyper-expensive London.
I absolutely adore Konstantin and Villanelle’s relationship. They’re precious, as precious as psychopaths can be.
I interpreted Raymond brushing the fluff on Eve’s shoulder as just a means of showing Villanelle that he’s one step ahead of her. The blade in the lipstick freaked me out. I guess it’s Villanelle’s way of marking her territory? Btw, in Paddington Bear, he’s found by the Brown family at Paddington Station so they name him that. I’m reading the series with my youngest.
Love this damn show!!!
Tamara, you should read The Very hungry Pregnant Lady. It’s a spoof on The Hubgry Caterpillar and is fun and funny.
Is that suitable for a very hungry pregnant person? I ask because my sister is reaching that part of the third trimester where you just want it to be over. She’s so sick of drs referring to her as having a “geriatric pregnancy”, she’s 36, and Id like to cheer her up.
I love this show!!
Konstantin is trying to warn Eve to stop with her obsessiveness with Villanelle but of course Eve doesn’t listen. The knife in the lipstick should be a 2nd warning to send Eve running but nope, she’s still all in. This game of cat and mouse will have an interesting ending
This show is so refreshingly good and interesting. I love Carolyn. Droll. Quite something to to hear her say how she has not allowed herself to become too attached to her son. i love that Constantine is back. I thought maybe Raymond was taking Eve’s hair for the DNA to plant it somewhere or something along those lines ones.
And Eve is the worst wife ever. Niko should’ve left her ass a long time ago. Their marriage is awful because of her. I hope he bangs that other woman.
I savor this show and your recaps. There are so many subtleties, nuances, layers and leitmotifs to this show and your recaps do it justice. I recorded (again) all of the Season 1 episodes so I can read your recaps before rewatching them. The fashion … I am not surprised there are many sites dedicated to the fashion, but I wish that there would be a “Fashion Extra” every week. Eve’s look compared to teacher Jenna’s reminds me of the Sex In the City episode when Carrie compares Big’s Natasha to Hubble’s girl.
I watch a lot of true crime TV and have seen several forensic medical people say it takes a FULL FIVE MINUTES to strangle a person. The elevator kill is bogus; neither five minutes nor enough pressure to break his neck.
I love Konstantin’s laugh.
Didn’t we all learn through GoT that lipstick is dangerous? As soon as I saw the lipstick, I knew Eve was in trouble.
Back in um, THE DAY, I went to a gun show with a boyfriend and it was kind of boring. But I did buy a lipstick. It was just like that with a little knife inside. Only there was no lipstick. I think I was doing my senior year/freshman year together at that time. My brain was no where near completely formed and I should probably have been under adult supervision that didn’t include gun show guy at that time. I was convinced I was going to defend myself from all criminals with that lipstick and a heavy brass bar/numchucky kind of thing that was a key chain. I sort of miss being that dumb.
There you were, practicing the “stay sexy, don’t get murdered” thing. Ahead of the times.
Well, I was definately far from wise at that point. But I WAS sexy. And didn’t know it. And wish I could do it all over again knowing now what I knew then. But, that’s life. 🙂
Thanks for the recap. I just love everything about this show. I think having different writers in S2 didn’t change how good it is. In fact, I think I am liking it even more. Probably because I know the characters more now.
I am gullible I guess, b’c I thought that man just strangled to death in the elevator.
Happy Konstantine is back. I want to know more about Carolyn.
Viillanelle is such a funny, stylish psychopath assassin. She’s a tell it like it is, straight to the point, and sometimes child-like, especially with Konstantine.
Eve’s husband is like a non existed husband to me, b’c Eve makes it that way. She never thinks of him. She tries, but that marriage is over. I’m also afraid for his dick too. Eve should be too and just be rid of him.
I guess I’m gullible too because I believed the elevator death too. I’ve seen videos of dogs getting their leashes stuck in elevator doors and they were dragged and strangled like that guy was. They were traumatizing but, because of them I really didn’t think twice about that.
I mean that was just my opinion of that method of death. I’ve never tried to kill anyone in an elevator by holding a tie, but I feel like it might rip even if I had the strength of ten elephants to hold on to it.
Oooh I never even thought about it ripping. That’s a good point.
Eve stabbed Villanelle. Villanelle cut Eve’s lip. They have now both drawn blood and both are obsessively besotted with each other.
I feel like Season Two of Killing Even is going to build to a crescendo and then slam down into the biggest mess because Villanelle is an insane artiste and Eve is a sloppy, but great investigator.
I cannot wait.
I’m going to try and sneak this comment in. An apology is in order for my behavior from this point on. I’ve been keeping up with Killing Eve since Day 1 by reading TTs recaps. Fortunately (unfortunately), I happened to catch the last 20 minutes of The Hungry Caterpillar today. I. Am. Now. Hooked. I promise not to “Imposter” too much over Killing Eve.
Over.
You need to watch from season one on demand. And I CANNOT BELIEVE YOU HAVEN’T BEEN WATCHING! YOU ARE SMARTER THAN THIS!
Over.
I agree that the writing might have even gotten better. Carolyn in particular is fantastic – I don’t like to get angry because I find it makes me sleepy. Brilliant.