The following contains spoilers for Killing Eve Season 4, Episode 6, “Oh Goodie, I’m the Winner,” which aired Sunday, April 3 on BBC America.
One of the most intriguing aspects of Killing Eve’s fourth and final season is how fans have treated to the actual creation of an assassin. Usually, the show focused on the finished product, but with Pam (played by Anjana Vasan), the show is detailing meticulously how Konstantin shapes these killers from scratch. Manipulation has been a part of what the handlers must do, removing humanity and reprogramming people like Pam, who has become worse than Villanelle.
This process has gone on through most of Season 4, with Pam clearly struggling to become cold and bitter like Villanelle and the others Konstantin turned into femme fatales. But she knows this is the life she signed up for, leaving her quietly battling a crisis of conscience. Pam eventually accepted the conditioning in a frightening way before embarking on her first ‘official’ kill, and while the act was sloppy, it’s something Konstantin would be proud of.
Konstantin had doubted Pam ever since Hélène asked him to train her. It was obvious Hélène needed a new Villanelle, especially after her tryst with Eve wasn’t giving her the information she needed to kill off the Twelve. Pam became a protégé because they all she had a rage in her that could become a tremendous instrument — and she’d listen to orders, unlike her predecessor, who was wounded by an arrow just to teach Eve a lesson.
But when he took Pam to a skating rink, Konstantin tried a different approach with his new agent, allowing Pam to feel like a young woman should. It seemed like he was making up for his own mistakes as a father and as a mentor to Villanelle. Some of their warm interactions came off like he was seeking karma and redemption, perhaps even hinting to Pam to walk away from this path. But of course, that wasn’t the truth of the situation.
Pam remained in the program, eager to find new purpose. She felt that she’d be sent after criminals and not innocent people (akin to Villanelle’s Cuban vigilante campaign), but that notion got tested again when Konstantin had her hunt sandwich seller Fernanda on the pier. He was adamant that Fernanda had a checkered past, which resulted in a reluctant Pam ambushing Fernanda in an alley and sticking her with a syringe full of poison.
It might have been a victory on the job, but Pam lost part of her soul. She could easily murder people like her abusive brother or other fiends, but targeting Fernanda and others she didn’t know for sure were guilty has weighed on her mind. That’s what Konstantin warned her about, and Pam had earlier seen first-hand how being an assassin takes a toll on people after patching up Villanelle earlier on. But despite the red flags, she persevered and left Konstantin impressed by her skills again.
Pam knows trust, honor and family are all concepts that will eventually be devoured. But nonetheless she’s hopeful she won’t become a monster, despite all the blatant evidence that indicates this job isn’t for her. This naivete has left fans wondering if Pam will indeed stick to the life of an assassin or pursue a potential romance with Darren… should she survive the end of the series.
All four seasons of Killing Eve are available on BBC America and AMC+.
