But the “psycho lesbian” plotline of last night’s episode of the BBC show, which saw killer Villanelle in a passionate clinch with a woman, was a step too far for some viewers.
Journalist and feminist campaigner Julie Bindel said it was an example of lesbian characters depicted as “coldblooded killers, weirdos… and oversexed maniacs”.
But she added: “Full disclosure: I love the BBC drama Killing Eve.”
Last night’s third episode divided the lesbian community. One said the show was the “gay revolution that the spy genre needs”.
But another said: “I’m disappointed in its decision to link its explicit homoeroticism with psychopathy and mental instability.”
Villanelle, played by Jodie Comer, has an appetite for graphically killing her victims, who die slowly before her eyes as she watches.
Last night a Chinese diplomat was gassed in a specialist sado-masochistic sex clinic.
Villanelle, whose nemesis is British spy Eve, played by Sandra Oh, also pursues sex in a predatory fashion.
Comer, 25, has described her character as “crazy” and screenwriter Phoebe WallerBridge said she was a “psychopathic female assassin”.
“I think what drives Villanelle is her freedom,” said Liverpoolborn Comer.
“She lives in Paris in this amazing apartment and she gets a kick from doing these kills – it excites her and gives her purpose. She does her kills, she gets her money, she spends it on what she likes and she has no one around her to take that from her or tell her what to do. She has very little remorse and she’s cool with that.”
Waller-Bridge said: “This is a really challenging character. Obviously she’s a psychopath, so ‘how do you make people care about a psychopath?’ is the question that kept coming up early on – and the answer is to cast Jodie Comer!”
The show, originally commissioned by BBC America, has now been given the green light for a second series.
