‘Carnival Row’ Season 2, Episode 1: Recap And Ending Explained – Where Were Imogen And Agreus?

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In the first season of “Carnival Row,” we saw how Jonah changed his entire approach and state policies after the deaths of Absalom and Piety Breakspear and waged a war against the non-human species with Sophie Longerbane, blaming them for almost everything bad that happened in the city. Rycroft Philostrate and Vignette were not able to escape the city, and the former revealed to the world that he was a hybrid between human and fae. Imogen and Agreus didn’t turn their ship back even after there were clear instructions from the Burgue to do so. They knew that if they came back, they wouldn’t be able to stay together, and Argeus would have to bear severe consequences for assaulting a human, i.e., Imogen’s brother, Ezra Spurnrose. With the stage set for an epic socio-political conflict, let’s see what developments are happening in the first episode of the second season of Carnival Row.”

Spoilers Ahead


Vignette Raids State Supplies

In the very first episode of the series, “Carnival Row,” Season 2, we saw that the Fae races were made to stay in deplorable conditions, as refugees, in the land that they were told would be their safe haven, i.e., the Burgue. They didn’t have access to basic supplies, and there was no one who would listen to their grievances. Vignette was still a part of the Black Raven group, and she had taken up the mantle to fight against the injustice of the oppressive regime. Carnival Row was plagued with a disease that only affected faeries, and due to the lack of medical facilities, the condition of the patients was worsening with every passing day. Afissa, who works in the camps now, said that they were still better off as the disease didn’t affect the Faun species, because had that been the case, the situation would have gone out of hand as there would have been no one to cater to the patients.

Vignette, Phaedra, and Kaine had intel about a train carrying medicines, and they knew that they would have to raid it because, otherwise, the regime wouldn’t hand it over to them. It was a risky job, but things had now come down to survival. Vignette and her friends were able to get on the train and get their hands on the supply. In ideal circumstances, Vignette would have wanted to not leave any kind of trail and conduct their raid quietly, which is why she had told both Phaedra and Kaine that they wouldn’t kill any guards. There was a moment when Phaedra really wanted to kill a guard who had tried to shoot her, but Vignette stopped her from doing so at the last moment. Also, we come to know that these raids were not sanctioned by Dahlia, the head of the Black Raven group, and Vignette was ready to go against her orders as she knew that she couldn’t let the patients die.

While Vignette was conducting the raid, her partner, Rycroft Philostrate, was engaged in hand-to-hand combat in an arena where bets were being placed on the fighters. Rycroft wasn’t interested in the money, but he had asked the turf bookie, Boz Ghaidos, for a special favor in case he won the fight. The favor had something to do with Darius, though what exactly it was, wasn’t revealed. After finishing their respective tasks, Rycroft and Vignette met in the night, and they were grateful that they still lived to see another day. Vignette felt responsible for the Pixies, and she told Rycroft that the medicine she had managed to procure would only last a couple of weeks. She knew that unless and until they found a sustainable solution, they would have to take risks and keep putting themselves in danger.


What Was Rycroft’s Plan? What Was Millworthy Trying To Do?

Balefire Hall was preparing to host the Pact ambassador, and it meant that both the regimes now aimed at ending their own conflicts and joining forces to fight against those who questioned their authority. Jonah Breakspear had taken over the position of Chancellor after his father’s demise, and though he was in a bit of a dilemma regarding their own policies, he had to put on a show in front of the people and make them aware of his anti-critch sentiments. He publicly beheaded the fauns while blaming them for conspiring against his mother and father and being responsible for their deaths. In his conscience, Jonah knew that the steps he was taking wasn’t right. He knew what had killed Absalom and Piety Breakspear, but it was Sophie Longerbane who was forcing him to act a certain way, as she knew that they had to appease the general public. Sophie, on any given day, was more tactical and shrewd compared to Jonah. She was somebody who didn’t mind getting her hands dirty as long as it helped her accomplish her goals. Sophie had heard the whispers, and she knew that the members of her own party were conspiring behind her back. She knew that though they had inherited their seats, they still had to earn the power, and, contrary to Jonah, she was not ready to back down after coming this far.

Runyan Millworthy still believed that he could bring about a change in Jonah’s perspective if he was able to bring him to the Row and make him witness the plight of the dwellers there. He was persistently asking Jonah to visit the camps at least once under the pretext that the soldiers’ morale needed a boost. But Jonah was dealing with a lot of self-conflicting thoughts, and he was not in the state of mind to make any visits.

Runyan Millworthy went to meet Rycroft, and that’s when he learned about the latter’s secret plan to stir up the parliament and cause an uproar among the masses. Rycroft intended to make public that he was the son of Absalom Breakspear and the half-brother of the current Chancellor, Jonah Breakspear, making him eligible for the position of Chancellor. Runyan advised him otherwise and said that he would sign his own doom by doing that, and the people would never accept a half-blood to be the head of the state. But seeing Rycroft’s stubbornness, Runyan realized that he was not going to back down, so he advised him to do it in front of the right audience if he wanted to leave an impression. That’s when it struck Runyan that the ambassador of The Pact was going to be there in the capital city the next day, and there would be a state banquet organized in his honor. Runyan told him that if he was sure about it and was ready to take the risk, then this was the perfect time to make that information public. Rycroft wouldn’t have ever thought of divulging the information about who his father was, but he knew that Jonah would never alter his policies as long as Sophie was by his side, and so he had to take matters into his own hands in order to change things for the better.


Season 2, Episode 1: Ending Explained Where Were Imogen And Agreus?

Rycroft Philostrate was called by Berwick to examine the officer who was killed during the train robbery, as they were not able to get any breakthrough in the matter, and their investigation had come to a halt. But it was a strange thing, as we had seen at the beginning of episode 1 of “Carnival Row” Season 2, how Vignette had told her companions not to kill any soldiers. It could have been possible that the guard had been killed by someone else, and the blame was being put on Black Raven on purpose. Berwick still had a lot of respect for his senior, and he always told him that it was only because of him that he had learned the tricks of the trade. The other officers, especially Sergeant Dombey, were not very happy to find Rycroft inside their territory. Things became a bit heated up after Dombey assaulted Rycroft and asked him to leave immediately. Rycroft wanted to teach him a lesson, but he knew that it was not the right time to do so, as he didn’t want matters to be aggravated.

Throughout the first episode of “Carnival Row” Season 2, we saw that Tourmaline Larou was getting visions where she saw Haruspex Tsimani. Tourmaline was petrified, and at one point in time, it felt like she became possessed by some supernatural power, and she ended up killing a cat with her bare hands.

Imogen and Agreus were still on the run, as the former was too scared to stop on the land because she feared that her brother would find and kill her. Agreus argued with her that they couldn’t stay in the sea for all their lives, and at some point, they would have to start leading a normal life. But Imogen’s nightmares haunted her, and she didn’t want to face reality. Agreus loved her, and he knew that they could build a home together where he could provide Imogen with a much better lifestyle. She asked Agreus to give her some more time before they made that decision, and he agreed to keep sailing a little longer. Towards the end of the first episode, we saw an airship hovering over them, and before they knew it, it started dropping bombs. The sailors guessed that it could be a dreadnought belonging to the Pact, but Agreus didn’t understand what it was doing so far away from land.

Who did the spaceship belong to, and why was it after Agreus and Imogen? This is something that we will get to know in the second episode of “Carnival Row” Season 2. The power dynamics and the lives of the people were changing, and it was just a matter of time before the republic of Burgue experienced utter chaos. In the upcoming episodes of “Carnival Row” Season 2, we will witness if the state of the non-human species gets any better and if Vignette, Rycroft, and others are able to bring about a change in the scheme of things.


See More: ‘Carnival Row’ Season 2, Episode 2: Recap And Ending Explained – Was Rycroft Able To Reveal His True Identity?


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Sushrut Gopesh
Sushrut Gopesh
I came to Mumbai to bring characters to life. I like to dwell in the cinematic world and ponder over philosophical thoughts. I believe in the kind of cinema that not necessarily makes you laugh or cry but moves something inside you.

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