Netflix Assassin Psychological Thriller Series Starts With Perfect First Season

Killing Eve revolves around British intelligence investigator Eve Polastri (Sandra Oh) who is tasked with finding a psychopathic assassin named Villanelle (Jodie Comer). As Eve closes in on Villanelle, the pair unexpectedly become obsessed with each other, leading to a complex and dangerous game of cat and mouse filled with a strange kind of mutual admiration.

In Season 1, viewers are introduced to a disillusioned Eve who is bored with her role in MI5. After handling an investigation poorly, she is fired. But her love for assassins sees Eve find undercover work with MI6, who are searching for ruthless international assassin Villanelle and The Twelve organization she works for. Their eventual obsession leads them astray from their missions.

Killing Eve Season 2 sees Eve and Villanelle continue their odd relationship. Separately, Eve works to solve murders orchestrated by The Twelve, while Villanelle continues to kill for them. But when a new killer is thrown into the mix, The Twelve and MI6 shift their focus.

Season 3 begins six months after the events of a mission in Rome. Traumatized by almost dying at the hands of Villanelle, Eve resigns from MI6, opting for a quiet life instead. Meanwhile, Villanelle is forced to find new means of income after she stops working as a killer for The Twelve.

Their new status quo is squashed when Villanelle runs into her former Twelve trainer, and Eve loses someone close to her.

Killing Eve Season 4 sees Eve seeking revenge on The Twelve, while Villanelle desperately wants to change her ways. Despite making compromises, the duo clashes over their personal missions and different outlooks on life. However, they do find common ground on one very specific goal, which makes for a thrilling series finale.

Killing Eve debuted on BBC America in April 2018 and concluded with Season 4 in April 2022. The first three seasons of the show were praised by critics and currently hold impressive Rotten Tomato scores of 96, 92, and 80 percent, respectively. The fourth season received a negative response, with a dreary 53 percent on the review aggregator site.

Viewers were unhappy with the final episode of Killing Eve Season 4 and criticized the show for what some deemed to be queer baiting. Critics felt that the ending was rushed and lacked closure, while the series, in its entirety, failed to deliver a proper conclusion regarding the obsession between Eve and Villanelle that had been central to the story.

Despite the backlash, Killing Eve broke weekly rating records and earned multiple awards. Its list of accolades includes the British Academy Television Award for Best Drama Series. Sandra Oh won a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Television Series (Drama), and Jodie Comer took home a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series.