When the KGB agent assigned to watch two young Soviet dancers who plan to defect to the USA is murdered, Jessica ends up sheltering them in Cabot Cove, under the nose of Major Karzov and his agents (as well as Sheriff Tupper), as she tries to prove them innocent of murder so they can request asylum.
This episode includes examples of the following tropes:
- Apologetic Attacker: Amos apologizes while arresting Leo Peterson (at Karzov's insistence) for obstructing justice. Leo understands.
- Career-Ending Injury: Leo Peterson/Leonid Petrovich is an ex-dancer who left the stage after a stage light fell on his leg, leaving him with a permanent limp. He decided to defect to the US shortly afterward.
- Chummy Commies: Downplayed. Major Karzof is working for the KGB, a fairly nasty organization, and is implied to have done some awful things in the past. However, he's charming, friendly, adores Jessica and genuinely wants to find out who killed Berensky, particularly if it's the duo of defecting dancers, since that's his job. However, when the dancers are cleared and make it out of Boston he shrugs his shoulders and lets them go. Jessica invites him to spend a bit of time relaxing in Cabot Cove, but he wearily declines as he has a duty to his country.
- Crazy-Prepared: Expecting to have her house searched, Jessica prepared a muffin and left it for Sheriff Tupper, knowing he'd look in the kitchen first. When she asks how he enjoyed it, he's pretty sheepish.
- Feed the Mole: Jessica quickly realizes there's a tap on her phone and uses it throughout the episode to manipulate the agent listening to her into giving false information.
- Frame-Up: Irina killed Berensky knowing that Alexander (and also Natalia, but mostly Alexander), wouldn't be able to defect and leave her life forever if they were murder suspects. She admits to not thinking very clearly at the time.
- Graceful Loser: After Irina is identified as the murderer, Alexander and Natalia immediately flee Cabot Cove, thus completing their plan to defect. Major Karzof, who was tracking them, accepts that he was outplayed and lets them go, and it's clear that he has no intention of pursuing them any further.
- Hidden in Plain Sight: Ethan hides Alexander and Natalia in his town by hiring them on as "new boathands". Jessica is aghast, but he points out that he doesn't exactly have a lot of places to hide them.
- Hitler Ate Sugar: The Rostov ballet performance in Boston attracts protestors who claim it's the embodiment of evil just because it's Russian in origin and thus, in their minds, a symbol of communism and the Soviet Union, even though the ballet itself doesn't say anything about its country of origin or political philosophies. One particularly strident protester, Velma Rodecker, actually makes onto the stage while the dancers are bowing.
- Jaw Drop: Major Karzof is astonished and pleased to realize he's talking to the Jessica Fletcher. He's a big fan.
- Let Off by the Detective: Karzof implies that he let Alexander and Natalia go off and defect after they turned out to be innocent of killing one of his men.
- Locked Out of the Loop: Jessica and Ethan keep the dancers' presence in Cabot Cove secret from Sheriff Tupper, since there's a warrant out for their arrest.
- My Country, Right or Wrong: Major Karzof of the KGB finds the prospect of lengthening his stay in America appealing when Jessica offers to show him around Cabot Cove, but he resists the temptation, knowing he might end up staying and returns to the USSR.
- Not-So-Fake Prop Weapon: The dagger used in the ballet production is real enough to kill Berensky.
- Ominous Knocking: While Jessica is staying on Boston, Karzof knocks on the door of her suite with a series of booming pounds when she doesn't answer his polite knock. He apologetically says it's a habit from his militia days, when some people didn't answer the buzzer. Later when he's knocking on the door to her house looking for the dancers, he doesn't bother with gentle knocks first.
- Reality Has No Subtitles: All the Russian speech in this episode goes untranslated.
- Red Herring: Velma Rodecker, an anti-communist protestor, is set up as a prime suspect In-Universe. She attacked Berensky when he tried to stop her from going on-stage, getting his flesh under her nails (she raked his cheek) and fiber from her sweater stuck in his watchband. Jessica allows Karzof to think Velma did it in order to buy some time, which lasts up until Rodecker gives testimony which seems to implicate Leo Peterson.
- Romance on the Set: In-universe.
- Alexander and Natalia Masurov are married ballet dancers.
- Alexander started an affair with another dancer, Irina, but was planning to leave her.
- Stage Manager Skip Fleming wants to hook up with Irina, but she's confused by his advances and only has eyes for Alexander anyway.
- Screw This, I'm Outta Here: Skip Fleming gets caught up in the intrigue going on, and even gets accused of murder by the actual murderer. Naturally, once he's off the hook, he gets out of Dodge with haste.
- Secret Word: When Jessica asks "Dewey Johnson" if he's from "down east", he demurs and says he's from Maine. This confirms Jessica's suspicions that he's not who he claims he is since "down east" is another word for Maine.
- Yandere: Irina Katsa, former mistress to Alexander Masurov, killed Serge Berensky to stop Alexander and Natalia from being able to seek asylum.
