The SSR runs into a conspiracy that is covering up the truth behind the Zero Matter explosion at Isodyne by the Arena Club, the same group associated with the pin Dottie wanted to steal. The aftermath of the explosion becomes clearer for the two victims at the center, Whitney Frost and Jason Wilkes.
Tropes:
- Artistic License – Gun Safety: One of the guards at the Arena Club is fine with pushing aside newspapers with his gun.
- Beauty Is Never Tarnished: Notably averted: Peggy retains a mark from the strangulation she sustained in her fight with the masked assassin. Sousa observes the superficial wound the next day.
- Berserk Button: When Peggy makes indirect reference to his Dark Secret from the war, Thompson goes into Tranquil Fury mode.
- Biting-the-Hand Humor: The exchange between Peggy and Howard on the Kid Colt set is a pretty obvious knock at the MCU bosses and their reticence in releasing a female-led movie.Howard: You want to play a sassy beer wench?Peggy: I'd rather play the cowboy.Howard: I like it. But I don't think the audience is ready for that yet.Peggy: But they're ready for a movie based on a comic book? Sounds dreadful.
- Call-Forward:
- Jarvis demonstrates a security measure that Howard has installed for the mansion, which is a recording of Jarvis warning that intruders have been detected. Peggy is less than impressed, and he admits that it's temporary, and it won't always be a disembodied voice of himself talking.
- After Howard wonders where his passport is while in his lab, the shot lingers on a stained glass window, the design of which resembles the arc reactor Howard will one day envision and his son Tony will create.
- Peggy spends some time taking out frustrations on a punching bag, just like Steve did in The Avengers.
- On a meta note: Peggy and Howard talk about 1) how it might be too early to have a female star in an action film and 2) how risky it is to produce a film based on comic book stories.
- No Celebrities Were Harmed: Whitney Frost's background is identical to that of Hedy Lamarr. Hedy, however, wasn't evil.
- Cassandra Truth: Thompson doesn't believe Peggy about the newspaper headline she saw in the Arena Club until he sees it himself the next day.
- Casting Couch: More of a "Stopped You From Getting Recast Couch", but the director of Whitney Frost's film makes a heavy-handed pass at her after telling her that he's stopped the studio from replacing her with a younger actress. It ends very badly for him.
- Continuity Nod:
- Peggy rips Thompson badly over his unwillingness to investigate the Isodyne conspiracy, by saying he is too afraid to ruffle feathers over ugly truths and would rather let them get covered up with shiny medals.
- On the Kid Colt movie set, Howard asks Peggy to join in the filming by taking over for Arlene French, who called off work after getting drunk. This is presumably the same woman that beat Angie for the role of Betty Carver in the Captain America radio show. Also, according to the credits, the actor who portray Kid Colt is the same guy who voiced fictional Captain America in the radio show. It seems the guy is quite an actor In-Universe.
- Howard and Jarvis briefly mention fondue.
- Chekhov's Gun:
- Peggy informs Thompson and Daniel about the Arena Club's level of power, based on the newspaper printed for the next day about a senatorial candidate dropping out of the race. She mentions the headline of the paper, but since she couldn't take the paper out with her, Thompson doesn't believe her. The next day, Vernon Masters takes him to the Arena Club to meet Chadwick, and shows him the newspaper, with the headline exactly as Peggy said it would be.
- The back sacrifice throw that Jarvis demonstrated on Peggy in the last episode is used when fighting off the hitman attempting to murder Peggy.
- Cowboy Cop: Whitney Frost recognizes Peggy as this, and realizes that because of this, using the Arena Club's influence to put pressure on her from official channels won't keep her from digging into the club's affairs. She convinces Chadwick to hire a hitman instead.
- Deceased Fall-Guy Gambit: The Arena Club decides to cover up the Isodyne incident by framing the (allegedly) late Jason Wilkes as a Communist spy.
- Dirty Cop: Thompson does some shady stuff to ensure his career in the looming post-SSR world. Though at the same time he does takes Peggy's warnings seriously to the point that he watches the Isodyne film reel about Zero Matter and lies to Masters about it.
- Everyone Has Standards: Howard Stark might be an opportunistic lech who takes pride in using his influence and wealth to do great things, but he absolutely refused to accept Arena Club's membership offer due to its racist and misogynistic tones. When he goes in with his harem of girls to buy time for Peggy, he wastes no time expressing his hatred of the place, and outright tells the manager that he's never coming back to it.
- Exact Words: Peggy stops by Whitney Frost's dressing room and Frost asks her if she knew Wilkes was a Communist. Peggy replies that she saw "no such indications," letting Frost believe Wilkes fooled her when she still believes he wasn't a spy at all.
- Failure Gambit: Howard fully expects the Kid Colt movie to bomb, so he can write off the loss for tax purposes.
- Forgot Flanders Could Do That: Peggy and Howard are surprised that Daniel understands some of the chemicals and processes behind developing photos. He points out that the name "Strategic Scientific Reserve" implies that its personnel are scientifically minded, including the field agents.
- Futureshadowing: After fighting off a hitman sent to kill Peggy, Edwin Jarvis installs a 40s-style security system that announces to any intruder that they are trespassing on the premises. Jarvis is quick to clarify that it's a work-in-progress:Jarvis: It's a temporary measure. I have no desire of spending the rest of time as a disembodied voice.
- He-Man Woman Hater: The Arena Club has a "No Women Allowed" policy. Howard Stark is more than willing to break it.
- Hidden Depths: Daniel discovers that Whitney Frost is the stage name for Agnes Cully, a brilliant scientist that contributed to Allied efforts in coded message transmissions.
- It Will Never Catch On: Movies based on comic books? Who'd want to watch those?
- Jerkass Has a Point: Thompson makes some less than savory calls to try and stop Peggy's investigation, but he has only Peggy's word that the Arena Club, made up of some of the most powerful men in the country, are committing conspiracy as she lacks evidence. He also accurately accuses her of taking the entire thing too personally out of guilt from (as far as anybody knows) getting Jason Wilkes killed.
- Laser-Guided Karma: Just as the director of Whitney's movie starts getting a little too into their embrace, her Zero Energy powers unintentionally manifest and devour him alive.
- Must Have Caffeine: Howard Stark keeps muttering "coffee" while trying to stay awake and restore Jason Wilkes.
- Mythology Gag: A golden mask is visible on the wall of Whitney Frost's dressing room, alluding to her comic book identity, Madame Masque.
- Names to Run Away from Really Fast: The assassin sent to kill Peggy is named Mr. Hunt. Real subtle there.
- Oh, Crap!: When Jack sees the paper headline, he sees that Peggy was right about the Arena Club, and that he's unwillingly made himself their stooge.
- Noodle Incident: While being told that even Eleanor Roosevelt was turned away from the threshold of the Arena Club, Howard dryly quips, "Well, I've seen Ellie's threshold; you made the right decision."
- Only Mostly Dead: Jason Wilkes is revealed to still exist, but as an intangible ghost-like form. Howard is able to develop a compound that can be sprayed over him to render him visible and with enough mass to speak.
- Orgy of Evidence: Planted to frame Wilkes as a spy. Peggy doubts the evidence because it was much too easy to find, but Thompson decides to accept it as genuine and closes the case over her and Daniel's objections.
- Recursive Canon: Just like Captain America, the Kid Colt comic exists in the MCU, where it's based on a real person.
- Refuge in Audacity: Howard sneaks Peggy into the men's only Arena Club by openly bringing a dozen women into the club, allowing Peggy to slip away in the confusion.
- Self-Deprecation: Peggy scoffs at the idea of making a movie based on a comic book.
- Shout-Out: Howard departs for Brazil to consult with his former mentor, an Abner Brody. Abner Ravenwood was Indy's former mentor and Marion's father, Marcus Brody was Indy's absent-minded colleague.
- Take That!: The snooty butler at the Arena Club assures Howard that their members are drawn from the Ivy League, mentioning Harvard, Princeton and Yale, then adds: "Last month, we even admitted a member from Brown, heaven help us."
- Wounded Gazelle Gambit: Being an actress, it's not hard for Whitney to fake a show of tears to get her husband to sic an assassin on Peggy.
