Recap of “The Diplomat” Season 2, Episode 5

The diplomat

Our Lady of the Immaculate Illusion

Season 2

Episode 5

Editor's Rating

4 stars

****

Photo: Netflix

Sharp-eyed television viewers know that the wildest developments usually take place in the penultimate episodes and that relationship changes occur The diplomatis fuel. Even with this understanding, the volume and pace of the changes that occur in “Our Lady of Immaculate Deception” threaten to put the dramatic engine in the red. Strap in and we'll clear this all up.

Where is Margaret Roylin going? There is no immediate danger of bleeding to death, but she should probably go to a hospital, which Roylin immediately rejects as too dangerous. She didn't confess and name names just to watch the scandal come to light, both ruining Trowbridge's career and dividing the UK because she could use a transfusion and perhaps a head CT scan. Eidra doesn't want to take Roylin back to the London hideout, but Trowbridge's refusal to take custody of her until he knows the full extent of the conspiracy within his government ensures that's exactly what happens. Even hours later, after a cocktail hour and dinner during which he was catatonic and spent time writing down everything he remembers from his confrontation with Roylin, Trowbridge's head is barely cooler than it was when he was choking her and screaming, she is a murderer. A reconciliation between the two seems unlikely.

Once Trowbridge finds out that Kate knew more than him every step of the way and suspects that he was involved in the attack on HMS Brave and the subsequent London bombing, he's pretty much done with her too, hurling a barrage of rhetorical bombs in her face: She brought him into the room with Roylin to implicate him in a conspiracy by his own government, believing him to be a mass Murderer when she said he was the quickest thinker she had met since meeting Hal. There's no denying it, and things don't improve when Kate tries to have a quick word with Dennison as he makes his way to the motorcade back to London. His frosty farewell: “You did it quite Enough, Ambassador” – translated from Dennison's “Exceedingly Well-Mannered” dialect into regular English, is the rough equivalent of “Fuck off and die, you stupid and possibly evil witch.” Ouch. Watching him hop into Trowbridge's SUV must feel like pouring a bucket of lemon juice on a lot of full-body paper cuts, and Kate just has to hope things look less terrible the next morning.

There's hardly any time to think about how much easier everything could be after a good night's sleep because – surprise! -Something in Eidra's late-night briefing to Langley about the Roylin situation roused enough idiots in international relations to prompt Grace Penn (Theeeee Allison Janney, finally!), to abandon her originally planned school visit to Bethesda for a short trip across the Atlantic. It is there with the express aim of supporting the British people during this difficult time. Secure! In the early hours of the morning, poor Stuart answers the call announcing the Vice President's arrival and eagerly tries to find out from Billie and Eidra any details that might help him find the right time to take Kate out of one of their meetings Pulling Penn out, but hearing things happening to him over and over again stuns and worries him. The CIA and the US Embassy were “in the loop”? “Up on” sort of thing The wire? As in a phone call? A literal sting operation?! What else doesn't he know? Trowbridge is in the clear? Great, but now it’s his turn to tell Eidra, “It looks like I’m not the problem anymore.” What the hell are you doing?”

Kate, for her part, is ready to brief the vice president, but is also the most nervous we've seen lately – as she and Hal approached Winfield after disembarking from Marine Two, they caught a glimpse of Penn from the lawn , and even then from a distance it was clear from her body language that she knew Kate was shortlisted for her job, and she knew that Kate knew that she knew. After a few awkward stops, they find their rhythm and each has the opportunity to be impressed and curious about the other. Penn finds it interesting that everyone calls Kate when they want to pass on information and seems unconvinced by Kate's explanation that she benefits from closeness and good teamwork. Kate is amazed at Penn's understanding of the potentially disastrous long-term consequences for all of European democracy if Scotland successfully secedes from the United Kingdom

The diplomat has always been good at playing with the audience's story through its actors, and adding Allison Janney to the cast has kicked that aspect of the series into higher gear. I can't imagine Kate Wyler as anything other than a distant cousin of Elizabeth Jennings, Keri Russell's Soviet super-spy The Americansand it's fun to think about all the guys Rufus Sewell has played over the years and then learn that his Hal Wyler is so loyal to Kate that he literally can't muster it for any other woman. Now we get to see Allison Janney draw on her years as an actress The West WingCJ Cregg ensures that Grace Penn immediately exudes both authority and warmth. Whether we should trust any of these sense memories is an open question; I hate roller coasters, but I'm having a wonderful time not knowing whether my years of accumulated associations with the characters Russell and Janney have played before will be confirmed or invalidated as their characters' storylines unfold.

With this in mind, the transition that Penn takes Trowbridge through in her and Kate's meeting with him and Dennison is both unsettling and compelling. Kate goes into staff-in-the-room mode, sitting quietly and saying little as she watches the woman in whose shoes she is supposed to follow in Trowbridge's soft feathers, asserting and claiming a supportive role that he back then didn't know he needed them Lay the groundwork for simply not publishing details of the Lenkof affair and wait to see how it blossoms. Kate has described certain aspects of her relationship with Hal as magical; It's like watching a guy who loves practicing card tricks discover the genius of Ricky Jay.

I don't think it's a good thing that the UK remains united on the basis of a swept-under-the-rug conspiracy and mass murder (brave, I know), but Kate, Grace and Trowbridge all seem happy with it. The only person who leaves this meeting unsatisfied and distraught is Austin Dennison. He says goodbye to Winfield, disgusted with Kate, and coolly states that Roylin should not look forward to government protection. According to him, she can keep her doors locked at home if she is so worried about her safety. Will we see her alive again? Who knows!

I thought it was possible that Dennison was too good for politics, but maybe he's not such a cinnamon roll after all. On the other hand, Kate seems to have immediately shifted from her seemingly principled insistence on justice for the fallen to a pragmatic (or is it cynical? Potato, poTAHto) stance on maintaining the status quo. If I were at Dennison and learned that my supposed ally was no longer in my corner, I would probably waver too and have a few pithy words for her. I'm also very curious to see how Dennison's current alliance with Trowbridge will develop. Trowbridge's decision not to relinquish his premiership is stopping Dennison from progressing in government, and is Trowbridge's commitment to anyone really rock solid?

The rest of the episode is peppered with scenes I've been waiting for all season: Penn and Kate tackle the imagery and demands of being a female vice president, and the two have a heart-to-heart after dinner Whiskeys, meanwhile, Kate decides to help Penn fight for the remainder of her term. I know I'm not the only one excited about these developments, because the two-minute sneak peek that appeared on YouTube last week is from the moment likely outgoing Vice President Grace Penn gave her likely successor a not unkind, but no gives unsettling doubts and thorough criticism of her appearance from top to bottom. The hair that looks like she's styled it with an electrified fork, suggesting she's never heard of dry shampoo, the paper clip holding her pants, all of it is subject to harsh yet far tamer scrutiny than that , what Kate would expect an audience unfamiliar with her playing to be.

More importantly, all of these interactions with Penn result in Kate finding herself completely on the vice president's side. Trowbridge is allowed to remain in office, and so is this brilliant, capable woman. Solidarity, yay! There's only one thing Hal has to force Kate into the mattress to hear: Roylin may have hired the Lenkov Group, but the idea came from Grace Penn.

• Blink and you'll miss it. Trowbridge refers to bomber Leonard Stendig as “a toad in Brioni,” a perfect insult that also immediately conjures up an image of the Italian menswear brand’s most famous current customer.

• Do the Presidential and Vice Presidential Secret Service officials always travel with a blood cooler in case of a transfusion emergency? Is it type specific? Is it the Chief Protector's own blood, taken and preserved for this purpose? Does everyone just refer to it as “The Blood”?