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One of the recurring themes is the gray area between the law and each character’s moral code. Do you think Penny’s husband, John, did the right thing? How about Penny?
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Well, I don’t think I agree with John’s actions and ultimately were they necessary? I think John went overboard in killing Ventham because I really don’t think there was going to be a way to trace the Peter Mercer murder back to Penny, unless it was through the forensics. But as there was no bullet retrieved, only a “gunshot wound to the leg” and Austin (the bone expert) said there was no way to tell if the bullet killed Mercer, I don’t see how the police would trace it to Penny. Plus, Mercer was a soldier so maybe he got the bullet while in the army? So to me, this is a bit of a plot hole that doesn’t hold up to scrutiny. I guess the police would track down that Penny was the last person to see Mercer alive, but they would not have a way of disproving her version of the story – that Mercer ran away and disappeared.
John was essentially protecting Penny’s reputation but that motivation didn’t really make much sense as she was no longer actively a police officer and she was in a coma. Additionally, he doesn’t believe she can hear the people talking to her anymore (so Elizabeth and himself), so there would not be any real legal consequences for her, being that she was at the end of her life. So his actions are confusing to me.
Penny on the other hand. That’s a more interesting and difficult moral dilemma. Within the context of men getting away with violence towards women, and the general misogyny that Penny (and the victim) faced in the police department and society at large, I can see why Penny might be prompted to take justice into her own hands. However, as a police officer Penny was meant to uphold the law, no matter what her personal feelings. Whereas Elizabeth takes the POV that Penny did the wrong thing for the right reasons, Joyce takes the more “Old Testament” approach of an eye for an eye.
I’m not 100% sure that Elizabeth’s opinion is in line with her characterization. For one thing, she’s a spy so she, above anyone else, should understand that there is a big gray area when it comes to justice taken outside the bounds of the law. And why should she be okay with Bogdan killing two criminals but not be okay with Penny doing the same thing? I think I agree with Joyce’s assessment that Elizabeth is more upset with Penny for having kept the secret from her than her killing Mercer.
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