S03.E03: Negotiating with Tigers

[aghst]

Quote

Marcus and Shirley face Lamb's wrath. River discovers revenge is a dish best served cold.

Lamb mentions Tiger team and all the agents are “of course” like it’s a common thing for a private security company to run some operation or sting on MI5.

I would think MI5 wouldn’t just let it go, would try to make life difficult for the Tiger team but in this case, it was Judd the asshole Home Secretary who wants to be Prime Minister, who hired Chieftain to “test” MI5.  Even Ingrid Tearney, Diana Taverner’s boss, has to accept Judd’s stunt, order a review of the Park’s security protocols.

You’d think someone gets sent to Slough House because of the breach River pulled off.  That has to be even a bigger humiliation that a slow horse breached the most secure part of the Park.

Duffy gets his shots in at River, trying to provoke him into fighting a senior officer, which would get him fired permanently from the Service.  Lamb gets River out but there’s a wrinkle, Sean Donovan has gone rogue on Chieftain, refuses to release Taverner as planned and in fact takes a Chieftain agent as a second hostage, demanding that MI5 releases the Grey Books, the MI5 dossier on all conspiracy theories to him, if they want him to release the hostages.

Shirley and Marcus break into Sean’s flat, sees a corkboard with all the Grey Books stuff.  But they’re busted for breaking and entering and the cops find a bag of coke on Shirley, prompting Lamb to have the cops tell them that they’re “fucking fired.”

River and Louisa go to Chieftains office where they find that Spider now works for them and had them target Slough House, River in particular.  He’s whooping it up at their expense until he’s ordered to sort out the hostage situation with Donovan, who isn’t cooperating.

In fact he gives Webb a head wound — maybe fatal — and drops Webb’s body in front of the tony restaurant — Anna Livia — where Lamb Is confronting Judd and the Chieftain boss about the cocked up sting operation.

I don’t think Donovan is the conspiracy theory truther type as Roddy Ho believes.  Ho opines that he doesn’t believe the moon landing was real, which prompts a silent look from Lamb.

Instead, Donovan still seems hung up on Alison Dunne (Katherine Waterson) so the Istanbul scene in the season premier seems to have triggered this whole series of events.

 

[7-Zark-7]

Thanks for the thorough coverage, @aghst .

Now, this was an episode!  I was riveted from start to finish.  And I hate to say it, but I thought nothing other than "of course" when Spider (possibly) died. I bet he wasn't even offered Slough House. Just booted from MI5 entirely. What a buffoon.

 

Edited December 6, 2023 by 7-Zark-7

[Xantar]

Couldn’t have happened to a nicer guy!

[SeanBug]

On 12/8/2023 at 2:38 PM, Xantar said:

Couldn’t have happened to a nicer guy!

This season, so far has been the best.  Spider is such a d bag, but I can't believe when he was the one the tiger team was threatening, that River didn't catch on that it was all a ruse. 

I lol'ed when they threw in the Churchill quote, seeing as how Oldman won an Oscar for playing the PM. 

If anyone hasn't seen "Darkest Hour", it's on Netflix and it is worth your time. It's very much a companion piece to "Dunkirk".  

We all think/know the Katherine Waterston character was killed, she didn't commit suicide, right? 

[abbyzenn]

Great episode!  I watched it twice just to be sure I didn't miss anything.

I'd be suprised that Spider is alive - his open eyes looked pretty vacant.  Not sorry to see him go.  Interesting that Donovan dumped him in front of the restuarant.

It seems that Donovan really was into Alison.  Yes I think she was murdered especially since the guy she was meeting took her car.  

This is one show that I would certainly binge.

[aghst]

I guess people who've read the books would know but it sounds like the author would keep the Spider character around for comic relief and as foil for River.

If he's killed off in the books, the show should consider keeping him alive.

He's not a field agent though right, just a glorified secretary for Taverner, though he arranged the Russian meet in season 2 which led to him being ousted from MI5 -- though he was given a choice to go to Slough House, he lands a lucrative job with Chieftain, which is probably going to be blown up because of Sean going rogue on their operation.

But Webb doesn't seem like the MI5 type, as he's bragging about his suits and his shaves to River.  I would hope UK spies are not that unserious.

[pasdetrois]

On 12/6/2023 at 4:12 AM, aghst said:

He’s whooping it up at their expense until he’s ordered to sort out the hostage situation with Donovan, who isn’t cooperating.

That scene was hilarious due to Fox's acting. He was kind of comic relief after all of the violence, tense conversations, kidnapping and so on.

[justmehere]

On 12/10/2023 at 1:04 PM, aghst said:

I guess people who've read the books would know but it sounds like the author would keep the Spider character around for comic relief and as foil for River.

This season has deviated from the book it's based on quite a bit. The first two seasons were pretty close to their books; this one not as much - more like following broad strokes. I'll just say that Spider's part is different than what they're showing. --The books are very good. I highly recommend reading.