Warning: The following information is classified. Spoilers are ahead for Agent Carter: “Life of the Party” and “Monsters.”

You didn’t think we’d seen the last of Dottie Underwood, did you? Peggy’s most formidable opponent came back in two back to back episodes of Agent Carter, “Life of the Party” and “Monster” Wilkes desperately needed more Zero Matter, and Peggy had the opportunity to get a sample from Whitney at a fundraising event for Calvin’s campaign. Since she wouldn’t have been allowed through the door, she got desperate. I wasn’t sure if they could come up with a convincing reason to bring Dottie back into the picture given how completely untrustworthy she is, but they sold me. But, I never believed for a second Peggy’s extensive precautionary measures would be enough to keep Dottie in check.

The initial interaction between Peggy and Dottie was exquisite. Hayley Atwell and Bridget Regan can throw barbs at each other with unparalleled precision, and it’s all the more wonderful because of who the characters are and what they went through last season. Whitney is a huge threat, to be sure, but no one’s like Dottie.

Dottie was paired with a bespectacled Jarvis for the fundraiser. They might quite the glamorous couple. This is a good time to say I’m rather enamored of the gadget aspect they’ve introduced this season. It’s clear Howard’s been tinkering, but his inventions have been used smartly and not too much. Secondly, Jarvis was terribly excited to be given more responsibilities and to be thrown into the thick of it. Did he learn nothing from last week’s outing? Peggy made her recovery brief in order to get back to business, but she could have died. The weight of the danger inherent to the work should have been weighing on Jarvis’ shoulders the same way it was on Ana’s.

By the way, mad respect for Peggy to wearing clothes and something that wasn’t a moo-moo even though she was punctured with rebar. Being impeccably put together after a grave injury is so Peggy.

It’s about time we saw Ana again. She continued to show how remarkable she is both by helping Wilkes in the lab and later making him a celebratory meal. She’s unflinchingly kind. However, her delay in appearing again combined with her sudden concern for her husband made her a prime target for some sort of mishap. It’s important for Jarvis to learn Peggy’s job can have consequences, and as we saw, Peggy being hurt didn’t have same sort of impact as Ana getting caught up in his extracurricular activities. My heart broke for both of them.

I jumped ahead a bit so let’s go back. Calvin’s fundraiser set the scene for plenty of Jarvis hilarity with Dottie, and an uncomfortable encounter with Jack. Vernon was there, purring in Jack’s ear like a cat and Jack listened. Vernon tried to manipulate Sousa later in the episode, and you could see Vernon didn’t know how to interact with someone who didn’t care about power. I’m already rooting for Whitney to exert her control in Vernon’s general direction.

And oh, Whitney. Despite her flaws, she did seem to love Calvin and to desire a bright future for them. His betrayal hit her hard, but after a flash of temper and a frightening display of her abilities, she rolled up her sleeves and went to work. She said, “I’m tired of this bullshit.” in every way except for actually speaking it. Wynn Everett has such poise and gives Whitney an air of royalty becoming a queen–which is what she is in a horrifying yet impressive way.

Whitney’s actions brought about something we haven’t seen before: she made Dottie afraid. Dottie is the sort to cause nightmares. She’s made of steel forged in the Red Room. The sight of her eyes widening while she watched Whitney destroy most of the Arena Club was chilling as was the expression on her face when Whitney tortured her later. I don’t love the idea of Dottie being out on the streets, but I don’t blame for her getting out of dodge as soon as she had the chance.

Wilkes is now under Whitney’s control which can’t mean anything positive. She totally pulled a Cloud City Darth Vader by asking him to join her in discovering and harnessing the power of Zero Matter rather than treating it as a disease in need of a cure. Wilkes is a good person as far as we know, but he also has a scientific mind. I can see a situation in which he’s curious about the abilities of Zero Matter and would treat his proximity to Whitney as a time to learn.

A couple more random thoughts: Sousa managed to look worse than Peggy after she’d been run through with rebar. That poor guy. The conversation Jarvis and Peggy had about her suitors was so sweet. Jarvis had no judgment, just the concern of a dear friend. But PS: I hope she picks Sousa. And finally, it was great when a lady told Jack, “You should smile more.”

Favorite quotes:

• “Do I look like I’m okay?” – Whitney Frost
• “Every detail matters in both art and science.” – Ana Jarvis
• “This is my surprised face.” – Dottie Underwood

Did you foresee something bad happening to Ana? What do you think about Calvin double-crossing Whitney? Share your opinions with me in the comments.

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IMAGES: ABC