State of Affairs Season 1 Episode 2 Review: Secrets and Lies

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It was a night of sacrifice on State of Affairs Season 1 Episode 2

One hundred miles below the Bering Sea on a Russian submarine, we met tonight's hero (or spy - more on that later).

Nightfall kills two men, barricades himself on the submarine and reaches out to the CIA. We learn that Nightfall is an asset, and he informs Charlie that the Russians have obtained extremely classified information that could pose a serious threat to national security. 

From the second we learned of what the information they had could do, I knew saving Nightfall's life was a losing battle. Still, for a good part of the episode Charlie worked to find a way to rescue him. It wasn't until the President pulled Charlie aside and told her she needed her to have Nightfall sink the submarine that Charlie really accepted what had to be done.  

The truth, Charleston, is what we determine it to be. And it lies not in the facts, but in the telling.

President Payton Constance

The President's words resonated strongly with Charlie, who framed a story to Nightfall to help ensure he would go through with the President's mission to sink the submarine.

It was heartbreaking to watch Nightfall relay his final message to his daughter Sabina through Charlie. As the tears rolled down Charlie's eyes, they also rolled down mine. It was a powerful, emotional and gut wrenching moment of television that will be staying with me for a while. 

Those final words and moments of his life were tragic and left me feeling like Nightfall truly did do something heroic for the United States. 

Which brings us to the question of the night – was he a hero or just a spy? As Charlie drank away the pain of the day, she said he was just a spy. Do his actions as a CIA asset nullify his hero status? Even in his final moments he was killing others in order to protect the U.S. Was his killing justified?

Did Charlie react so strongly because in some ways, she is just like Nightfall? While she may not be personally killing people, her secrets are starting to eat away at her and I don't think it will be long until we see Charlie start to unravel. 

For me, I left feeling like Nightfall was a hero. He served directly at the leisure of the President, carrying out a mission that will ultimately protect many U.S. lives. RIP, Nightfall. 

Meanwhile, President Payton chose a new CIA Director after Skinner was fired. Raymond Navaro comes from the other side of the political fence and is buddy buddy with Lucas Newsome. We found out Lucas was brought in specifically to work with Navaro. Hmm...there is a lot more to this story. 

We also had the chance to meet Constance Payton's husband. Charlie, Constance and Constance's husband shared a meal as they discussed their wishes. They all want answers and justice and Charlie promised she would get them the answers they were looking for and bring those responsible for Aaron's death to justice. 

We don't know much about Charlie's family, although we did learn her father was also a part of the CIA. I'm sure her back story will come into play as the season goes on, and I'm looking forward to seeing where Charleston Tucker came from. It is great that Charlie has Constance to lean on, although I fear once her secrets are revealed, she may not. 

In one of the more shocking moments of the night, Charlie received another text message from the mysterious person sending them. The photo was a shot of Nick, Fatah and Charlie. We learned that Fatah was indeed a CIA asset. Another piece of the puzzle fell into place, but so many are left jumbled. 

Tonight's episode took on an entirely different tone from the series premiere, and I am finding myself getting more hooked into the storylines. I'm invested in Charleston Tucker (although I'm still not sold on her name) and still trying to wrap my brain around how someone can actually have her job. 

Are you trying to piece together the clues of what really happened between Nick and Charlie? Don't forget you can watch State of Affairs online, and dig deeper. 

So was Nightfall a hero or a spy? Did the President make the right decision in asking Charlie to have the submarine sunk?

Join the discussion below and share your comments. 

Secrets and Lies Review

Editor Rating: 4.5 / 5.0
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User Rating:

Rating: 3.2 / 5.0 (41 Votes)

Krystal Sondel is a staff writer for TV Fanatic. Follow her on Twitter.

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State of Affairs Season 1 Episode 2 Quotes

This is a five alarm. There's a photo. A photo no one else should have.

Charlie

I guess I hope to not lose that feeling that he's near me. That he's still here. It's comforting. So, I guess that's my wish.

Charlie