Agent Carter Season 2 Episode 1 Recap (SPOILERS)

After Season 1 was met with critical acclaim, the second season of Agent Carter was highly anticipated and it didn’t disappoint.

Opening in similar fashion to the opening episode of the previous season, a busy New York street, coming into view we see a familiar outfit, that of what we think is Peggy.

This is not the case as we enter a bank, which now being held up by said character, who turns out to be season 1’s big bad, Dotty Underwood, a Russian spy who was a product of the Black Widow project, asking for the key box 143.

Entering the vault, we learn that she was expected, as our Heroine SSR Agent Carter is waiting for her, as well as her new boss, Chief Jack Thompson.

After fight between the two ladies, Underwood is arrested (after Carter knocks her out with a bag of coins).

Moving to Los Angeles, we find out the year is now 1947 (season 1 was in 1946), we find Agent Souza is now based in the City of Angeles and is on the scene of a suspected murder linked to a serial killer that had dumped his victims in the same lake that the body was found in. It’s the hottest day of the year and the lake is frozen over, as the victim is frozen in a block of ice. It is here we meet Detective Andrew Henry

Back in New York, Peggy is interrogating Dotty, showing her what was found in box 143, a pin lapel. While the interrogation is happening, Thompson takes a phone call from Souza in Los Angeles, confirming that Souza is now Chief of the SSR on the West Coast. Due to the Division is fairly new, just 6 months old, they are in need are in need of some help from the original team back in NYC.

At first Thompson is reluctant to help, until he gets the idea to send Peggy. Without telling Souza his idea, he says he will send someone. He pulls Peggy out of the interrogation and orders her to go to LA, despite her protests that she needs to continue pressing Dotty.

When Peggy arrives in LA, an old friend, Edwin Jarvis, is awaiting her, where we also meet a new member of the Stark family, Bernard the flamingo.

On the way to dropping off Peggy at her destination, Jarvis explains that LA is a foreign concept to someone like Peggy.

He drops her off at the Auerbach Theatrical School, Peggy enters to find two tap dancers auditioning for Rose, former telephone exchange operator at the SSR.

She enters the SSR offices to find a surprised Souza, who doesn’t know it was Peggy that Thompson has sent. It also points to the fact that a romantic relationship was starting to develop between the two prior to Souza moving to LA, with Carter claim to have called him multiple times since he moved but had no response from him.

Detective Henry now joins them, with all the files on the serial killer case, but Peggy has put 2 and 2 together and wonders whether it’s the killer or whether the frozen lake has something to do with it.

They visit the medical team, who have been examining, or trying to, the body, but explains the the body is frozen through, but that it had all the signatures of the Lady of the Lake Killer, but couldn’t tell if the body was frozen in the lake or whether the lake froze because of the body. He turns out the lights to show that the body is actually glowing.

SSR lab technician Samberly, who complains about being under-appreciated, but explains this was likely caused by a particle accelerator, and there is only one in California, that belongs to Isodyne Energy.

Peggy, Souza and Jarvis pay them a visit, with Peggy infiltrating the building by excusing herself to the ladies rooms.When Peggy enters she bumps into a scientist asking her if she wants to be ‘thunderstruck’. We find this is actually his test to make the perfect wine.

He identifies the body as Jane Scott, a particle physicist who is rumoured to have a close relationship with the owner of Isodyne Energy, Calvin Chadwick. It is at this point the receptionist finds Peggy and kicks her out. The scientist indtroduces himself formally to Peggy as Dr. Jason Wilkes and give her his number, introducing him as a love rival to Souza, for Peggy.

Detective Henry is loath to go after Chadwick as he is running for Senate, but Peggy and Souza decide otherwise.

Jarvis then takes Peggy back to the Stark residence, where Bernard is walking free in the grounds. It is here we finally meet the much talked about Mrs Jarvis, Ana. Completely different to Edwin’s personality, she kisses him passionately and then sends him on his way, she has picked outfits out for Peggy to wear while she is under cover at the race track, where they will find Chadwick.

Peggy and Jarvis arrive at the track, where Chadwick and his wife, the actress Whitney Frost, are. They approach the couple, with Jarvis occupying Frost with talk of a role in a film at Stark Pictures, while Peggy talks up Chadwick’s bid for Senate, before mentioning her friend, Jane Scott. At this Chadwick bulks, as Peggy introduces herself as an SSR agent. She explains that Jane is dead, before Chadwick says he will co-operate if she gets the correct clearance.

They return to the office to explain what they had found, then head to see whether the autopsy had been complete, but find the Doctor also frozen and smashes into pieces.

Back to New York, Thompson has continued to interrogate Dotty, but finds she has been leading him, after unlocking her cuffs, she flips the table and pins Thompson to the floor with it, only being saved by his fellow agents.

Jarvis has brought Wilkes in, who says he has to test samples to see what has caused this. Meanwhile as Henry tries to drink from the water fountain, the water freezes.

The autopsy says that she died from radiation poisoning and that it was made to look like the Lady in the Lake killer. They decipher that it must have been Henry that cause the death.

Henry takes Wilkes hostage and drives off with him after knocking Jarvis out.

Meanwhile, Thompson is once again pushing Dotty, who will hand over the details they need as long as she is only sent to prison. Bursting in on the scene is the FBI,led by Vernon Masters, and cart Dotty off.

Carter, Souza and Jarvis have followed Henry and find is car frozen, Peggy leaves Jarvis behind to watch the car and instruct the police when they arrive while her and Souza they to find the pair.

They find them, Henry explaining that he didn’t kill Jane, but was paid to clean up after someone. He made it look like the serial killer as he lost all his resources and wanted to solve the case. Shots are fired and Wilkes escapes, running straight into Peggy, who tells him to hide.

Henry gets a jump on Souza but due to what has happened his gun is frozen. They tell him they can help but he says they won’t let them. An officer shots and Henry shatters into pieces.

Thompson and Masters are sharing a drink,we learn that they are family friends, with Masters getting Thompson his role at the SSR after he left the Forces. He also warns Thompson that the SSR was a wartime agency and that they are no longer at war, offering him a role elsewhere.

Peggy talks to Wilkes apologising for putting in harms way, wondering if he is contaminated, but he confirms that it would have to be through blood rather than touch. He asks her out but she says no.

Back in the office, we learn the case is staying open, so Peggy will be staying in California. She asks Souza to go for a drink but he turns her down. She stays in the office, while he leaves and meets another woman outside. Jarvis also waiting for Peggy down below the window.

We end on a bit of a revelation, Wilkes staring at a containment unit holding a black mass, that might be recognisable to fans of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.