Kyle’s Thoughts

Agent Carter dropped the bulk of last week’s silliness—it was too slap stick last episode—and focused on Whitney Frost. That wasn’t the only thing the show did well. It took Frost, a highlight of this season, and teamed her up with one of the strongest elements of last season, Dottie (the current Black Widow) Underwood. Hijinks ensued and there was plenty of action and intrigue.

Frost became the new leader of the secret organization. It was only a matter of time before she ditched her two-timing husband and ruled the group with an iron fist. The change may have taken place quickly but it was believable. Since Agent Carter took the time to develop Frost as a character, the actions she took this week weren’t out of character.

We haven’t seen Dottie since the season opener, but she dived right into “Life of the Party.” Sure, there were a few hokey scenes when she tried to escape, and Peggy and her crew subdued her, but those were short-lived and maintained the show’s light-hearted tone. The exchanges Dottie had with Jarvis, or as she calls him Jeeves, were priceless, and she added a needed shot of adrenaline.

I’m still not on board with Agent Carter’s love triangle, or love rhombus. Sousa’s fiancée dumped him, I suppose, and now, Dr. Wilkes has an idea that Sousa and Peggy might be more than colleagues. It’s obvious Peggy and Sousa care for each other, and while I like it when a man and woman can be friends without it leading to romance, the show wanted these two to be a couple, so these artificial obstacles are annoying.

One point of annoyance that I’m glad to see gone is the overuse of a woman in a man’s world. It’s still there—how could it not?—but Agent Carter has used a more gentle hand when showing us the uphill battle its heroine has to face. This isn’t always the case, but “Life of the Party” did a nice job of suggesting that Peggy isn’t afforded the same privileges.

“Life of the Party” also took big strides toward developing Doctor Strange’s background. The whole premise of this season is based on the darkforce and those who can manipulate it. The darkforce is also known as zero matter, and since Frost is attuned to zero matter/the darkforce, I wonder if she’ll play a role in the upcoming movie. Marvel continues to do a nice job of integrating its cinematic and TV universes, and I like the tact they’ve taken with Agent Carter: let the television show set up the film.