"Valediction" is the eight and final episode of the first season of Agent Carter.
Peggy faces the full fury of Leviathan, as Howard Stark makes his return.
Plot[]
Peggy Carter, Daniel Sousa and Jack Thompson go to the movie theater where Dottie unleashed Item 17. They find the bodies of the theater's audience brutally mauled, as if by a monster, but Peggy sees that they killed themselves. Agent Sousa finds the canister of Item 17 on the floor of the theater, and some of the gas is released right into his face. He grabs Thompson and starts strangling him, but Peggy and the officers at the scene manage to pull Sousa off him and knock him out. Peggy takes him back to the SSR's office, where he is handcuffed to a bed. When he wakes up, he is back to his normal self, and apologizes to Peggy for hitting her while he was under the influence of Item 17. Peggy, Sousa, and Thompson wonder what Dr. Ivchenko, who they have discovered is really Johann Fennhoff, has planned when Howard Stark barges in saying the psychologist's goal is to get to him. After they question him on how he got into the office, Howard reveals Item 17, which he calls "Midnight Oil," is a chemical he designed to keep soldiers awake during the night but would instead drive anyone exposed to it into a fit of murderous rage before asphyxiating them. General McGinnis raided Stark's lab during the war and used the chemical against the Russian soldiers at Finnau, something Howard Stark still blames himself for.
Howard Stark and the SSR plan to lure Dr. Fennhoff into a trap by having Howard Stark make a public appearance in New York City. Dr. Fennhoff hears about this over his car radio while Dottie steals a plane to take them back to Russia, and lets her know about that their change of plans. Agent Thompson gives the press conference where he announces all charges against Howard Stark had been dropped. Not long after he lets Howard speak for himself, a shot comes from one of the windows looking down on the press conference. Peggy and Sousa go investigate the shot, and find a rifle connected to a device that would fire the gun automatically after a set amount of time; however, the gun is not aimed directly at the podium, so Peggy realizes the shot was just a distraction. Meanwhile, a hypnotized policeman has grabbed Howard and hands him over to Dr. Fennhoff and Dottie. They take him to his hanger, where Dr. Fennhoff, whose brother was at Finnau, confronts Howard Stark about the carnage his chemical caused. He then hypnotizes Stark into believing he found Captain America's signal and needs to follow it, but really he will be flying one of his planes over Times Square and expose the crowd of people there to celebrate VE Day to Midnight Oil.
But Peggy, Thompson, Sousa and Jarvis realize what Dr. Fennhoff's plan is, and get to the hanger. Peggy goes in alone to confront Dr. Fennhoff and Dottie, while Jarvis will take one of the planes to fly behind Howard and shoot him down if Peggy cannot free him from Dr. Fennhoff's control. Peggy breaks into the control room and points a shotgun at Dr. Fennhoff and Dottie. Although Peggy thinks she has them cornered, Dottie suddenly attacks her, and Dr. Fennhoff takes the opportunity to escape. While the two of them fight through the control room, Dottie taunts Peggy by saying she could be anyone she wanted, and might infiltrate the SSR once she's done with her. However, Agent Carter finishes her off by kicking her out of the window, falling to the hangar floor below. Peggy looks out the window to see Dottie's body lying on the ground before going over to the radio to try and bring Howard Stark back to reality. Elsewhere in the hangar, Dr. Fennhoff knocks Agent Thompson to the floor while his guard is lowered, but Agent Sousa soon finds them. Dr. Fennhoff tries to hypnotize him into shooting Agent Thompson, but Sousa, who is wearing an earpiece to keep him from hearing the psychologist's voice, lets him think the hypnosis is working so he can get close enough to him to take him out without killing him. Meanwhile, Jarvis has caught up to his boss and is ready to shoot him down if necessary. Howard Stark is convinced he is flying over the Arctic towards Steve Rogers' signal, but Peggy gets through to him when she mentions he has to let his death, the death of the only project he considers that better the world go. Stark turns around before the Midnight Oil could be unleashed over New York.
The SSR take Dr. Fennhoff into custody, but Peggy cannot find Dottie's body, meaning she is still alive and had escaped. The next day, Peggy arrives at the SSR office to collect her paycheck, and Thompson and Sousa offer her her job back. Before she can answer them, she is cut off by a senator who gives all of the credit for apprehending Dr. Fennhoff to Agent Thompson. Later that day, Peggy and Angie move into one of Stark's mansions, which he let them live in since they could no longer stay at the Griffith. Once Angie leaves her to explore the house, Jarvis gives Peggy the vial of Steve Rogers' blood. She takes it to one a bridge and pours it out into the water below. Meanwhile, Dr. Fennhoff, who is now fitted with a device that prevents him from speaking, is put in his cell, where he meets his cellmate, Arnim Zola.
Cast[]
- Hayley Atwell as Peggy Carter
- James D'Arcy as Edwin Jarvis
- Chad Michael Murray as Jack Thompson
- Enver Gjokaj as Daniel Sousa
- Lyndsy Fonseca as Angie Martinelli
- Ralph Brown as Johann Fennhoff/Dr. Ivchenko
- Dominic Cooper as Howard Stark
- Bridget Regan as Dottie Underwood
- Walker Roach as Captain America Radio Actor
- Erin Torpey as Betty Carver Radio Actor
- Ralph Garman as Radio Announcer
- DaJuan Johnson as Officer Pike
- Glenn Taranto as Detective Prendergast
- Kevin Ashworth as Agent Fisher
- Patrick Robert Smith as Butch Wallace
- Matt Raimo as Reporter #1
- Ward Roberts as Reporter #2
- John Prosky as Senator Walt Cooper
- Gerald Webb as Gary Tower
- Christopher Poehls as Ground Crewman
- Toby Jones as Arnim Zola
- Alex Daniels as Mechanic
Continuity and References to the Marvel Cinematic Universe[]
- Howard Stark appears.
- Johann Fennhoff returns.
- Stark Industries is mentioned.
- Valkyrie is mentioned.
- Steve Rogers/Captain America is mentioned. Also a vial of his blood appears.
- Captain America's Shield is shown.
- Project Rebirth is mentioned.
- Arnim Zola appears.
Trivia[]
- Valediction is the action of saying farewell.
Gallery[]
Agent Carter Episodes | |
---|---|
Season 1 |
Now is Not the End | Bridge and Tunnel | Time & Tide | The Blitzkrieg Button |
Season 2 |
The Lady in the Lake | A View in the Dark | Better Angels | Smoke & Mirrors |