There have been a couple of BBC shows recently that got plenty of praise, but generally I find myself watching shows I'm many seasons into, rather than dropping into new ones which are probably one-offs anyway; this is how it was with the much-hyped Bodyguard and Killing Eve. Despite this I started Killing Eve and quickly got taken in by the superficial slickness and sense of violent fun that it had. The brisk pace that is has is consistent across all aspects of the show, from the look, the music, the writing, and the performances - it is very well put together.
While it doesn't move much below the surface, it fills that level out well with characters and relationships that we engage with - or at least engage with to the extent that we invest in the show, even if we don't so much in the characters. The performances support this, and there are a lot of strong performances in here. Comer has a lot of fun, which is what her character is all about in this season; lots of wardrobe changes and cool sequences. Oh, on the other hand, has a tougher job as she has to balance the drama and the dark comedy - essentially she has to make us believe in her character and the wider world in which she lives. She does this really well in an excellent performance that enables no end of silliness to have that anchor is something stronger; Comer gets all the hype and press coverage but it is Oh that holds it all together. The supporting cast are strong too, which helps - with Bodnia, Boyd, Haig, and others rounding out the cast. Direction and general presentation is slick and very well packaged, which again is all part of the consistent style and approach of all the other parts too. I noted at the end of the season that the showrunner Waller-Bridge won't be leading for season two, which does make me wonder if it can repeat that consistency again, but we'll see.
It is all fluff to a certain degree, but it is consistently good in what it does, gets it mix of tones just right, and flows well across all of it. Not as important as some would have you believe but certainly very entertaining.
