Spoiler alert: Do not read on unless you've seen the Sept. 11 episode of "Covert Affairs," entitled "Suffragette City" -- major plotlines are discussed below.
Last week's intense installment of "Covert Affairs" left Annie (Piper Perabo) at death's door, and this week's episode only upped the ante from there. With Annie's loyalty to the CIA in question and her life still hanging in the balance, it was up to her friend Auggie (Christopher Gorham) to clear her name and hunt down the person responsible for shooting her: turncoat Lena Smith (Sarah Clarke). In her comatose state, Annie's subconscious conjured up a number of memorable moments with her trusted confidante, including one long-anticipated kiss on the dance floor that doubtless thrilled fans who have been rooting for the pair to act on all that unresolved sexual tension simmering between them.
Last week, we caught up with Gorham to discuss the shocking events of the last two episodes. The second half of our chat, presented below, focused on the Sept. 11 episode, "Suffragette City," and what the revelations of that hour might mean for Annie and Auggie going forward. Needless to say, there are spoilers for the episode ahead.
Where is Auggie emotionally after Annie’s shooting? Did the possibility of losing her make him reevaluate things between the two of them?
I think so. It’s a two-step process where ... you don’t know what you have until it’s gone is kind of the cliché way to talk about it. But in episode eight ["Glass Spider"] suddenly he’s confronted with the fact that she’s fallen in love with some other guy, and I think for him his reaction surprises him. I’ve said this before, but I think Auggie has been busy, he’s had a lot of stuff on his plate, and a lot of things on his mind, and I don’t think he’s been thinking about Annie as far as starting a relationship or dating. And so I think it surprises him that when she reveals that [about Simon], it surprises him how hard it hits him.
And then the next thing he knows she’s in the hospital, and she might die and it really forces him to confront these emotions that I don’t think he was even aware that were building inside of him. And he has that just heartbreaking scene at her hospital bedside where he really tells her how he feels, and really opens up and we never see him like that. I think it was just a really great moment for him to be able to open up in a way that he almost never does.
That bedside scene was definitely one of the most powerful moments in the episode; how was that for you to film? As you said, you don’t really get the opportunity to open Auggie up in that way very often. He had that very visceral moment after Parker [Devin Kelley] broke up with him, but this felt different.
Yeah, it’s different than with the Parker thing because Parker was such a big emotional reaction, and I think it came out of a place of just desperation. And he thought that it was about saving that relationship, but really it was because he was just falling and he doesn’t know how to stop. And he’s looking for anything to help get his feet back underneath him, and he thought that Parker was that thing.
And I think with Annie, it all just gets boiled down and it just becomes a very simple "I need you." And it’s beautiful; it’s really sweet, so it was great to film actually. You rarely get such simple, emotionally honest moments like that to do, and so it was really great.
Obviously, Annie and Auggie have that amazing moment on the dance floor ...
That’s right. I’m sure the kiss is going to get a lot of attention.
But how much impact do those subconscious interactions have in the real world when Annie wakes up? I noticed that the title for episode 10 is "Let’s Dance" and Auggie has a line in the dream sequence about it not being their song yet, but they’ll dance again in the future. So is that related in some way? Do those things tie together?
No, in episode 10 those loose ends do not get tied up ... At least not yet. Episode 10 is all about chasing down Lena and really kicks us off into our back six episodes. Because I think when episode 10 ends, episode 11 then picks up almost simultaneously from where we leave off at the end of 10. And it’s another one of those moments where Annie is making decisions and then we get to explore the consequences of those.
You got to be the driving force in episode nine, investigating the shooting and taking the lead in proving Annie’s innocence. Are Auggie’s experiences in that episode going to empower him in future episodes? Is he going to be pushing for more field work or taking on more responsibilities aside from the career evolution we've already seen?
He’s not pushing for more field work. It’s funny because the writers and I have lots of conversations about that, because I have really mixed feelings about it, actually. Just because I think he’s realistic about his skills, but also his limitations and so I don’t really feel like he’s at this point going to be pushing to get out in the field more. And I think when it’s appropriate he’ll push, but just in general I don’t think that’s something that he’d do, but he is getting back out into the field. We’re doing a really cool episode for Veteran’s Day where we are working with an organization called Operation Proper Exit. It’s a real thing, and so we are going to have another big episode where Auggie gets out of the office in the back six.
"Covert Affairs" airs Tuesdays at 10 p.m. ET on USA.
What did you think of Annie and Auggie's dream kiss? Are you hoping the pair will get together for real? Weigh in below!
