The Agency Episode 2 recap revisited: Coyote’s disappearance puts every operation at risk

The Agency Episode 2 is called The Wooden Duck.

It premiered on November 29, 2024. The episode was released on Paramount+ with Showtime with Episode 1. It also aired on Showtime cable on December 1, 2024. The episode is about 50 minutes long.

The Agency Episode 2 follows CIA agent Martian, played by Michael Fassbender. He faces a big problem with an asset named Alexei Orekhov. Alexei panics after another agent, Coyote, goes missing. He threatens to expose secret operations.

Dr. Blake arrives from Langley. She runs psych evaluations. Martian and station chief Henry, played by Jeffrey Wright, test her. Martian uses a special method called the “wooden duck” on Orekhov. He does this to test Orekhov’s loyalty. At the same time, Martian has doubts about his lover, Samia.

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The Agency Episode 2 recap — The Wooden Duck

The Agency Episode 2 opens in Ukraine. Dr. Charlie Remy keeps treating patients as a doctor. This is part of Operation Felix. His cover is still safe for now. This is confirmed by a secret coded signal with his team. Everything looks calm. But quiet tension is still there.

The story then moves to London. Paul Lewis, called Martian, spends the night with Samia Zahir at a hotel. She is his former lover. Even after their time together, Martian feels uneasy. He sees three missed calls on Samia’s encrypted phone. While she gets ready to leave, he secretly checks her phone. He finds nothing he can track.

His surveillance team even wonders if Samia is a paid companion. After she leaves, Martian destroys the hotel receipt. He goes back to work. He is clearly conflicted and uneasy.

Meanwhile, in The Agency Episode 2, at CIA headquarters, Dr. Rachel Blake arrives from Langley. She begins required mental health checks for the team. At the same time, Martian briefs Henry Ogletree, Owen, and Blair. They talk about Agent Coyote. Coyote went missing after a DUI arrest in Belarus. He was said to be sober in jail. Then he disappeared. This makes the team fear his cover was blown.

Coyote knew secrets about many long-term undercover missions. Now the agency fears that classified information in many countries could be exposed. Alerts are sent out to field agents. This scares Alexei Orekhov. He manages trucking routes for Russian mercenaries. When he hears about Coyote, he panics and tries to run.

Martian suggests using Alexei as a “wooden duck.” This is a test to see if he has turned traitor. At first, Henry is unsure. But Dr. Blake says Alexei is a major security risk. After that, Henry agrees to the plan.

Before the plan can fully work, Alexei runs to the airport in The Agency Episode 2. He tries to leave the country. His flight is routed through Minsk and Istanbul. The CIA rushes to stop him. Owen tries to quietly intercept him, but fails. Blair then takes over.

Men pretending to be Russian agents grab Alexei from a taxi. They take him away for questioning. However, Alexei does not know the truth. He is actually taken to a secret CIA site in London.

Alexei is tied to a chair. He is questioned in Russian. The pressure is mental and physical. This is all directed by Martian. During questioning, Alexei reveals dangerous information. He talks about medical supply drops. They are linked to clinics in Ukraine. This puts Charlie’s team in serious danger.

A secret abort signal reaches Charlie in Ukraine. Charlie and his team are disguised as doctors. They pack up fast and try to escape quickly. Their escape is blocked by a Russian checkpoint, where a gunfight breaks out. In the end, Charlie and his team escape alive in The Agency Episode 2.

Back in London, Martian takes over the questioning himself. He wears a ski mask and faces Alexei directly. He begins to list names of supposed Russian spies. But the names are a trick. They are taken from the book War and Peace. Alexei answers them as if they are real agents. This shows he does not know real Russian intelligence, and proves he is not a double agent.

The wooden duck test works. Alexei is squeezed hard. But he never truly “quacks.”

Elsewhere in The Agency Episode 2, the rookie agent Dani, now called Daniela, begins a new life. Her old identity is fully erased. This is her first deep-cover mission. She trains under Martian’s watch. She also trains with Naomi’s help. She will pose as a Spanish academic.

Her job is to gain the trust of Professor Reza Mortazevi. She must earn a job at Tehran’s Institute of Geophysics. From there, she will secretly gather information on Iran’s nuclear staff. The mission is very serious. It is clear there is no turning back.

Meanwhile, Martian keeps investigating Samia on his own. On paper, her visa looks valid. She is listed as a student at the Royal College. But deeper checks show problems. She has not gone to class since the first day. Her phone is still fully encrypted.

Martian meets a black-market contact in secret. This is outside official CIA rules. He searches for more information about Samia. Later, he warns the man to never work so openly again.

On records, Samia looks real. In real life, she feels like a ghost. She exists on paper. But she is missing in truth.

The Agency Episode 2 with a dark future scene. Martian lies in a hospital bed. He is connected to a drip. He speaks in a voiceover. He says hope can be dangerous in the spy world. This final image strongly hints at terrible consequences ahead.