When "Begin the Begin" started, I wracked my brain to remember what had happened at the end of the last season. I know I watched every episode, knew generally who Ben was, but I couldn't remember any specifics about the last episode or what precipitated the dramatic opening scene. After reading my review of the first season finale, I vaguely remember what happened. The point being, the serialized parts of Covert Affairs don't really work, and the rest of the episode backs this up.
While the episode tries its hardest to play up Annie's personal life with Ben being safe, the whole package doesn't quite work. Ben is still in two modes, either in love with Annie or super-cryptic, making him seem very inhuman. That portion of the show is completely detached from Annie and Auggie, which is by far the more enjoyable part of the episode. But with all the Ben, Joan, and Arthur stuff, the plot is paper thin, explained in a flurry of activity before culminating in a car chase.
At the end of the episode, Ben goes missing again and Annie is left to pine for him. But does anyone care?
Score: 8.0/10
