"Covert Affairs" Goes to Israel

Those of us who have been watching the USA Network show "Covert Affairs," also sometimes known as "poor man's Alias, but with Piper Perabo playing gorgeous spy Annie Walker and with a hot blind guy working tech," have been delighted by the occasional appearance of Israeli actor Oded Fehr actually playing an Israeli. The delight has continued as Fehr, playing Mossad agent Eyal Lavin, often breaks out into Hebrew when he's impatient, a detail that is doubly delightful because a) the Hebrew is actually correct and well-pronounced (Fehr, after all, is legit Israeli), and b) the impatience with Americans that causes Lavin to mutter almost to himself in his native tongue is authentic and well-known to many of us who have visited Israel over the years.

There have been three appearances by Eyal Lavin so far over the course of the three seasons - the most recent one a few weeks ago, in "This is Not America" (see trailer embedded below), and it was one of the most Israel-centric television episodes I've seen. From the opening sequence, featuring music by Matisyahu, to the use of Hebrew, both with and without subtitles, and even extending to some cultural truths ("when I get voicemail, I hang up" and "everyone's been touched by terror - it's the reality of life in Israel") there's more Israel education in this one episode of this spy show than there is at most Jewish events. (More commentary after the jump.)

 

My favorite moment - which may constitute a spoiler, but really isn't so I'm going ahead with it - was when asked why he suspected a particular person of espionage, Eyal says that it's because the suspect has been taking long walks in the middle of the day. It's odd, explains the Mossad agent, because in Jerusalem, because of the heat, they only take walks at night. It's not the most compelling evidence in the dossier against the suspect, but it feels truthful to those of us who have experienced Middle East heat and culture.

There are some misses - from the overkill of "Annie running against backdrop of Hasidim" to one of the rendez-vous locations, "the cafe on the north side of Zion Square," not even remotely resembling Zion Square (the @covertwriters revealed that the exteriors were shot in Morocco). And the episode doesn't get political about much of anything because it's not about heavy-handed advocacy, it's about advancing the story and the simmering chemistry and trust building between Annie and Eyal. But on the whole, this episode shines as an example of how Israeli culture and Jewish identity can be incorporated to serve a story's narrative.

As I swept Twitter for some chatter about the episode, I found a tweet by CA actor @chrisgorham (who plays aforementioned hot blind CIA operative Auggie) revealing that the reason for the Morocco shoot was because CA is "not allowed to shoot in Israel at the moment :(" (I will have to see if my contacts can shed some light on that.) But kudos to the @covertwriters and @covertaffairs producers in recognizing the electricity of the Eyal and Annie pairing, and in trying to illustrate Eyal's promise that "everything is better in Israel." I hope that some day the cast and crew of Covert Affairs will have a chance to find that out for themselves. And if they need a consultant on their next Jerusalem episode, or a fan-guide to lead them on the ground when they tour Israel, I can probably hook them up. 

 

Comments

[Andrea T]

I watched the first few episodes of Covert Affairs because it's filmed in Toronto, but dropped it. Maybe I'll give it another shot. I've looked Oded Fehr up before - I think when I watched those episodes.

[FYI]

There have been three appearances by Eyal Lavin so far over the course of the three seasons

No, there's been 4 appearances so far.
Once early on in season 1. Twice in season 2. Once in season 3 (and a rumored 5th appearance later in season 3).

[EstherK]

Thanks - I must have missed an episode...

[FYI]

You're welcome.
My favorite episodes of the series are all Eyal Lavine episodes. Wondering if you could post about other Eyal episodes?

[Yisrael Medad]

Thanks for the info which, with a previous post, i upped this blog post.

[Svenska]

Just to update you. I am a longtime and enthusiastic supporter of Oded Fehr. I adore the character of Eyal Lavin in Covert Affairs. I enjoy the chemistry between he and Annie.

I am thrilled that he will have a recurring role in 5 of the last 6 episodes of this season. His episodes are the best ones of the series so far. His new episodes resume on the 16th of October 2012.