Warning: SPOILERS for Killing Eve Season 3, Episode 6 - "End of Game"
By the end of Killing Eve season 3, it's possible that Villanelle (Jodie Comer) could end up in the employ of Carolyn Martens (Fiona Shaw) and MI6. Killing Eve has never been a series that remained static and the third season of the sexy, international spy thriller continues to upend its own paradigm. In fact, with the exception of one violent altercation on a bus in London — which was sealed with a kiss — Killing Eve has kept Villanelle apart from Eve Polastri (Sandra Oh) for the entire third season.
Ever since she shot Eve in Rome at the end of Killing Eve season 2, Villanelle has been unhappily going through the motions as The Twelve's top assassin, trying, in vain, to recapture the joy she once found in her work. Villanelle recognizes that she's unhappy and realized that what she lacks is her own agency within her spy agency; hence, she wanted to become a Keeper and gain power within The Twelve to make decisions for herself. But Villanelle also had deeper, more personal questions she needed answered, which led her back to Mother Russia to meet her family (who she was told were dead and vice versa), including her mother Tatiana (Evgenia Dodina). Tragically, Villanelle found both a reflection and the root cause of her own darkness in her psychopath mother. Villanelle did the unthinkable and murdered not just Tatiana but her family, sparing only her two younger brothers Pytor (Rob Feldman) and Bor'ka (Temi Blaev). Tatiana left Russia even more damaged by the sin she committed.
In Killing Eve season 3, episode 6, "End of Game," Villanelle got the promotion she wanted, which turned out to be a slap in the face: The Twelve indeed made her a Keeper, but she's a Keeper in name only. As The Twelve's representative, Helene (Camille Cottin) explained, they would maintain Villanelle's lavish lifestyle but her only value to them is as an assassin, not as management. Furious, Villanelle cajoled Konstantin (Kim Bodnia) into letting her join his elaborate exit strategy to get himself and his daughter Irina (Yuli Lagodinsky) out of The Twelve's grasp to a new life in Cuba. But, even more crucially, Villanelle botched her latest assignment to murder a high-ranking Romanian politician. While Villanelle did kill him, her target was able to stab Villanelle in her arm and seriously injure her. Villanelle has never made a mistake like this on the job before; her once-unflappable confidence was shaken and her uncharacteristic blunder only reaffirmed to Villanelle that she wants out of her life under The Twelve's thrall — but how can she get out?
Killing Eve season 3 seems to be building towards a big reunion for Eve and Villanelle as its conclusion (a reversal of the duo breaking apart at the end of season 2), but the question is what would the power dynamics be like? Not just for the would-be lovers but also for Carolyn, the third powerful woman in this equation. While Villanelle is flailing, Carolyn uncovered disturbing secrets of her own: before he was murdered, her son Kenny (Sean Delaney) was back-channel communicating with Konstantin, asking the Russian spymaster if he was Kenny's real father. Carolyn was equally disturbed to learn that her daughter Geraldine (Gemma Whelan) also harbors a secret friendship with Konstantin. What Caroyln does not know (yet), however, is that Paul (Steve Pemberton), her new boss at MI6, is part of The Twelve and is running Konstantin out of London.
For her part, Eve has been investigating Kenny's death with the reporters of the Bitter Pill website and she pieced together how Dasha Duzran (Harriet Walter), Villanelle's current handler and original mentor, fits into this entire equation. Eve even confronted Dasha in Barcelona to confirm her suspicions that Villanelle didn't try to murder her husband Niko (Owen McDonnell), who miraculously survived being pitchforked in the neck in Poland. (After all, if Villanelle did try to kill Niko, she'd have succeeded, but Villanelle also knows Niko is untouchable.)
Killing Eve season 3 has let its various plot threads slowly play out, but the tapestry is finally starting to get clear in the final few episodes. So, if Villanelle is going to extricate herself from The Twelve, which has also corrupted MI6 at the highest levels, it's quite possible the solution for the three main women of the saga, Villanelle, Eve, and Carolyn, is to work together (albeit reluctantly) and only for themselves. Thus far, the three female leads have been less effective going about their separate ways, and, oddly, they are likely the only three people they can trust. Villanelle worked with MI6 before in Killing Eve season 2, but perhaps if Eve and Villanelle reunited under Carolyn's umbrella, this powerful trio could finally take control of their destinies together and stand a fighting chance at bringing down The Twelve.
Killing Eve airs Sundays @ 9pm on BBC America.