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Covert Affairs Season 2 Episode 12

Uberlin

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AIRED: Nov 08, 2011

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7.3

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Episode Summary

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When Annie attempts to turn a money launderer's wife into a CIA asset, the woman turns the tables by demanding to meet with Arthur. It seems she dated Arthur back when Arthur was stationed in Berlin and she was a Stasi agent, but she mysteriously vanished from his life.

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Fan Episode Reviews (4)

Not as good as the last one, but close!

10

By amazing_race, Aug 22, 2012

I have to comment that I prefer the previous episode over this one, but this episode has its moments too. The latter half of the episode was far better than the beginning. The episode improved as it went on, which is obviously awesome to see!

I enjoyed the endings to the case as well, and an interesting set of developments at home for many of our characters!

Can't wait to see more! Keep it up, Covert Afffairs!moreless
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it was alright

9.0

By keramarie, Jun 22, 2012

This episode was interesting because it involved Arthur's past and the current state of his marriage. Plus it had a pretty awesome chase scene in the end. Arthur was pretty cool in it. I had assumed that he would be more of a jerk, but he was surprisingly kick ass.
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After the disappointing "The Wake-Up Bomb," "UBerlin" is a rather pleasant return to form for Covert Affairs.

8.0

By colten97, Nov 22, 2011

It's pretty much exactly what I expect and consequently want from the show: a totally contrived and in parts poorly-developed but also often entertaining and sometimes arresting bit of junk food TV.

The events of "UBerlin" require Annie to play sidekick to Arthur Campbell. Together, Arthur and Annie run around Berlin trying to make a deal with Elsa, a former Stasi agent that asks to be smuggled out of Germany in exchange for information. This forces Joan to take Arthur's place and in general gives episode writer Erica Shelton an excuse to make Annie's tender relationship issues with her sister Danielle just one of several sub-plots in this week's superior episode.

First, episode director Jonathan Glassner deserves credit where credit is due for giving Berlin a distinct and very believable character without ever really overplaying his hand. The frequent shots of the yellow elevated train, the ubiquitous graffiti, and the outdoor curry wurst stands: This is definitely a tourist's view of Berlin. And that's a good thing, for the most part.

Glassner doesn't conspicuously show us the city as he thinks it looks according to a bright-eyed new-comer like Annie or even how the city looks to someone like Arthur, an American agent that worked in Berlin during the '80s. There's no heavy post-Cold War commentary, nor is there any ditzy commentary about German pilsner or the quality of curry wurst. All of this stuff is just there in the episode's background. I'm especially thankful that there wasn't a music cue from any of David Bowie's Berlin-produced albums after Arthur quotes Bowie early on in "UBerlin." That allusion is cheesy enough. After the Bowie quote was made, I was relieved to see that the Thin White Duke never came up again.

Then again, Shelton's script only selectively follows-through on certain ideas or themes, so maybe what I'm applauding as Glassner's light touch is actually a product of Shelton's poor plotting. But first, let me give Shelton her due for introducing some commendably intelligent plot developments. Joan asks Annie to keep an eye on Arthur while he's in Berlin. This makes sense for a couple of reasons. Firstly, Elsa and Arthur worked together during Arthur's time in Berlin in the '80s, which is why she asked for his help in catching Isaac, a money launderer. It also makes sense given that Joan is shown to be irrationally paranoid and protective when it comes to Arthur and other women. This has been a part of her character since the pilot. So that works out well enough.

This wouldn't be that remarkable if Shelton didn't develop Joan's character arc in an appreciably thoughtful way. While the episode's main spy story arc was perfectly adequate, I was quite pleased to see Joan treated like something other than a smart shrew that exists to reprimand Annie. With Arthur out in the field, Joan has to step in and take his place. Two people try to meet with Arthur, and neither one is especially thrilled at the prospect of having to work with her instead of Arthur. The first is a co-worker that comes back multiple times for reasons that are ultimately only explained later. And the other is Jai, who has always had a quasi-antagonism with Joan going.

What I like most about Joan and Jai's brief but notable meeting is that it unobtrusively affects the spy plot du jour. At one point, Arthur needs $3 million to trick Isaac into thinking he's defecting from the U.S. and wants to launder some money. Annie tells Joan this, and she understandably balks, saying that the C.I.A. doesn't have that kind of money. Arthur apparently anticipated that response and tells Annie to remind Joan of a mission in Santorini. This is the same mission that Jai just name-dropped when he came by Arthur's office and found Joan sitting at Arthur's desk. The Santorini funds are apparently unavailable, according to Jai, a plot point that only makes sense during the mission. I like that that interaction actually means something and is set up in one scene only to pay off in a later one. Clever, clever.

And yet in spite of how appreciably nuanced some aspects of "UBerlin" are, the follow-through for other parts is predictably lame. Peter Gallagher is plenty good, but the dialogue he's stuck with is mostly unremarkable. Worse still, the car chase scene that serves as the episode's big set piece is pretty drab and frustratingly over-edited to death. Hearing two black sedans rev their engines every couple of seconds and watching unfocused, split-second close-ups of Gallagher at the wheel of one those black sedans is really pretty irritating.

I'm also a little irritated, though not really frustrated, by the way that Danielle and Annie's problems, like Joan's request for Annie to follow Arthur or the subplot where we discover that both Annie and Arthur have been followed throughout most of the episode, aren't developed in anything but contrived ways. They all stop and start conveniently and wrap up whenever Shelton had time to fit them in. This is presumably the price one pays for a somewhat ambitious episode, one where multiple characters are given equal face time.

That's a trade-off I can live with, though Augie's story arc was especially weak. Seeing him go out with Parker, the sister of a recently deceased agent, at a sports bar and then later follow-up with her seemed like a pretty perfunctory use of Chris Gorham's character. That time would have been better spent developing Joan, Annie, or Arthur's respective stories. Still, within the realm of expectations I have for Covert Affairs, tonight's episode was a pretty decent one.moreless
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6.0

By thefanof, Nov 22, 2011

Peter Gallagher is one of the bigger stars on this show, but while I wanted more of Arthur in season 1, him becoming a full-time character in season 2 and this episode especially, has been less than ideal. I could care less about his ex-marital problems and I could care less about his missions. I mean come on, that car chase scene was so fake and so poorly choreographed, it looked like something from a 1993 film.

Sorry Covert Affairs, but I was not impressed by your performance tonight.moreless
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Cast & Crew: STARS

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Piper Perabo	Annie Walker
Christopher Gorham	Auggie Anderson
Anne Dudek	Danielle Brooks
Kari Matchett	Joan Campbell
Peter Gallagher	Arthur Campbell
Sendhil Ramamurthy	Jai Wilcox

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Cast & Crew: RECURRING AND GUESTS

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Urs Remond	Isaak Von Hagen	Guest Star
Nina Kronjager	Elsa Von Hagen	Guest Star
Jason Michaels	Miles	Guest Star
Devin Kelley	Parker Rowland	Recurring Role

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Episode Photos

Piper Perabo and Peter Gallagher in Cove...

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Piper Perabo in Covert Affairs from the ...

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Peter Gallagher in Covert Affairs from t...

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Piper Perabo and Peter Gallagher in Cove...

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NOTES (7)
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- International Episode Titles:
  Czech Republic: Berlín (Berlin)
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- Original International Air Dates:
  United Kingdom: April 9, 2012 on Really
  Czech Republic: July 27, 2012 on Prima COOL
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- Featured Music:
  "Can You Save Me" by Apple Trees and Tangerines (main title theme)
  "23 Minutes In Brussels" by Luna (Arthur reviewing case files on plane and then at the bar)
  "Searching For A Heart" by Rebecca Pidgeon (Auggie and Parker make out, Annie delivers chocolate chip pancakes to Danielle for the girls)
  "The Annexation of Puerto Rico" by Pepper Rabbit (bar scene when Auggie meets Parker)
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- Filmed in Toronto, Ontario, Canada
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- Filmed with a 1.78:1 aspect ratio.
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- Parts of this episode were shot on location in Berlin, Germany.
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- Special billing was given to Peter Gallagher (and) for this episode.
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