Black Doves season 1 episode 2 “A Little Black Dove” establishes that Helen and Sam are the real story. We do get a little bit more on the back story of each of them individually. That in itself enriches the story. But my favorite part is how both of their stories come together. There’s love there. And it’s the kind where you trust each other to the point where you don’t bullsh*t each other. Those are the kind of relationships that stand the test of time and an investigation about the murder of Helen’s lover and the entire mess surrounding that.
How Helen Became a Black Dove
With everything that’s going on in Black Doves, I didn’t expect for the show to take the time to explain how Helen got into this. And they didn’t do it in a way where they just dumped a lot of information on us. They drew us in with an interview that you would think she would do well at, but you quickly come to realize there are ghosts chasing her. She was running and whatever happened with her family, it tore her apart to the point where she joined a secret organization of spies that spy on their own people if the price is right.
But the most curious thing about Helen’s past is that when she started this, she was doing it for the thrill of it. She knew what she was getting into. And she still chose to lie, manipulate, and infiltrate her way into a life where she is the wife of a political figure and has two children with him. It’s messy and unexpected. And I love it. Women can and do bad things. At the same time, they also love, build homes, and have children while having a multitude of secrets. It’s giving “we actually know how to write a woman character and not just make it a male character but cast a woman and make her grumpy because that should be enough.”
“A Little Black Dove” once again showed us the duality of being a spy but also being a mother or just a woman. For one, after she popped in her shoulder, Sam was pretty wowed by that. And she shot back with a comment about pushing two humans out of her body. That’s more metal than popping your shoulder back in. Then there’s the scene when she has the assassin tied up in her kitchen. She could threaten him with a multitude of things. And any other movie/show would go straight for a knife. But Helen is not like any other spy. This is her home and if she’s going to kill someone, she’s going to use her knowledge and a life she has built as a mother and woman to kill this man. That’s why she mentions the cheese grater, the peeler, skewers, kettle, and NutriBullet.
MORE: Need a reminder of where we started? Read our review for Black Doves season 1 episode 1!
Teasing Sam’s Past
Unlike Helen, we don’t get the same individual flashbacks to who Sam was before. But we get two essential scenes that set the stage for the mystery of his past. The first one is with his old boss at the pub. He was supposed to kill someone and didn’t. That choice echoed into the future. That’s what led to the second scene that increases the mystery about why Sam left England. When he was standing outside of Michael’s house, that spoke of someone who didn’t want to leave. If anything, he was forced to. That’s why he knows where Michael lives and why he decides to take on this job to kill the young man who is somehow in the middle of this Chinese ambassador mystery. To protect his past.
Before I dive into how much I liked Sam and Helen’s first meeting, I did want to talk about the difference between Sam back in the day and Sam now. Sam in the present is very sassy. But it’s kind of muted. As if he’s controlling himself so he doesn’t lose it. And I didn’t recognize the restraint of his entire being until we saw him back in the day, meeting Helen for the first time. That man was softer while still being a little sh*t. He was also more open to poking fun at Helen in a more straightforward way. This adds to the mystery of what happened to Sam. And when we really find out what happened with Michael, it’s going to break me.
Until then, Sam has truly gotten himself stuck in the middle of something bigger than him and Helen. And I’m hoping that both of them make it out alive by the end of this. Also, more Sam flashbacks, please.
MORE: The reunion of Helen and Sam was everything in Black Doves season 1 episode 1 “To Love Then.”
The Real Story is Between Helen and Sam
In getting to see Helen’s past, I never considered that we would also get to see when Helen and Sam first met. And right off the bat, there was so much chemistry. He sassed her in the most British way possible and she cut right back, her anger a little bit more loose and wild in comparison to the woman we know in the present. But even in that small moment in the car, when it died down and he complimented her on her first job, she knew that he meant it. He wasn’t just trying to placate her and that’s why her response was immediately to thank him. And this push back and respect is the defining start of their relationship.
Present day Helen and Sam haven’t seen each other in a while. But time didn’t matter because in “A Little Black Dove” you see them also having another car scene where she calls him out for being drunk and high. That openness is not something that everyone has. That’s especially true within this profession. You don’t have friends. You have work colleagues. But that’s not what Helen and Sam are. To each other, they’re the people you call when things get nasty and you can’t trust the organization. That’s why Sam came back to help her when Mrs. Reed told him that someone was after her. And I have no doubt in my mind that if Sam came for her, whatever mystery kept him away from England, I bet you Helen came and helped him with the same ferocity he’s helping her now.
Like I mentioned in my season 1 episode 1 review of Black Doves, I don’t care for the overall ambassador’s daughter mystery of it all. It pales in comparison to the beautiful bond that Helen and Sam have. That’s why I think that what’s happening between Helen and Sam is the real love story of Black Doves. Familial love for sure. Love nonetheless. Because if it was maternal love, something that Hollywood thinks is the only important thing for a woman or a mother, we would see the children more often. But they’re never really the focus. Helen and Sam are the focus. And it doesn’t hurt that Keira Knightley and Ben Whishaw have some of the best chemistry between on-screen duos I’ve seen in years.
Black Doves season 1 is now available on Netflix.
What did you think of Black Doves “A Little Black Dove”? Let us know in the comments below!
Need more Black Doves? Read all of our reviews for season 1!
- Black Doves Season 1 Episode 1 Review: ‘To Love Then’
- Black Doves Season 1 Episode 2 Review: ‘A Little Black Dove’
- Black Doves Season 1 Episode 3 Review: ‘The Coming Night’
- Black Doves Season 1 Episode 4 Review: ‘Go Bang Time’
- Black Doves Season 1 Episode 5 Review: ‘The Cost of It All’
- Black Doves Season 1 Episode 6 Review: ‘In the Bleak Midwinter’
