Couple: Alicia Huberman and T. R. Devlin
From: Alfred Hitchcock's Notorious
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The fantastic Anakin-and-Padmé-centric Clone Wars episode "Senate Spy," the fourth episode of season 2, is a direct homage to the Alfred Hitchcock romantic thriller Notorious (which I highly recommend viewing, especially if you enjoyed the episode). The general plot and several specific scenes in the episode very closely parallel the film.

Padmé voice actress Catherine Taber said of the episode: "These slow-burn political 'battles' are really driving the whole war effort. Dave [Filoni] actually had me watch Notorious before we started working on 'Senate Spy.' He wanted me to see the way the pressure builds - especially when love is involved."

Sublimating love in the name of a higher duty - and all the perceived conflicts and betrayals that accompany it - is an ongoing theme with Anakin and Padmé, and is also the central focus of Notorious. While Padmé's past is not as wild as Alicia's, her romantic history with Rush Clovis - and willingness to put aside her feelings for the sake of a mission - is still enough to unsettle Anakin. Anakin himself is not unlike Devlin in that he's quick to make assumptions, feel hurt, and lash out when he feels betrayed. He also shows no hesitation in exacting very personal justice, such as leaving the traitor directly responsible for harming the woman he loves to a likely ugly fate. (If only Clovis had suffered the same fate...)

Alicia is the American daughter of a convicted Nazi spy, and Devlin is the government agent sent to recruit her to infiltrate a group of suspected Nazis in Rio de Janeiro. The attraction between them is almost immediate, and not long after arriving in Rio, they embark on what Alicia calls a "very strange love affair." The affair, which would naturally be considered a conflict of interest, goes unknown to Devlin's superiors or anyone else. A romantic dinner together is interrupted when Devlin is called away to receive the details of their assignment. He's no longer comfortable with sending Alicia into danger and - to the surprise of his superiors - is quick to downplay her abilities, saying she's not qualified to handle a dangerous mission like this. He's further stunned to learn the man leading the Nazi cell - Alex Sebastian - was once in love with Alicia, and that she's to get as close to him as possible. Devlin, already uneasy about the colorful past Alicia has led, makes a few hurtful comments about it to her when he advises her of the mission.

Partly out of duty, partly out of her own hurt at Devlin's mistrust, Alicia agrees to get close to Sebastian, who it turns out is still very much in love with her. Seeing them together deeply hurts Devlin, something that does not go unnoticed by Sebastian. To seal her cover she agrees to marry Sebastian, to Devlin's increasing discontent, a discontent he takes out verbally on Alicia. She uses her access to Sebastian's home to find proof of his suspected activities, at one point stealing a key to the wine cellar where the evidence lies - and, as Padmé did with Clovis, suddenly embraces Sebastian to hide that it's in her hand.

Devlin breaks into the cellar with her, and though they attempt to cover their tracks, Sebastian soon realizes he's married to a spy. He frets that when his associates discover this they will kill him, so his mother suggests poisoning Alicia. Devlin realizes something is wrong when Alicia misses an appointed rendezvous, and goes to the Sebastian house. He finds Alicia in bed, near unconscious from the poison. Faced with her possible imminent death, his love for her finally overcomes his misgivings over her past, apologizing and declaring his love for her. Sebastian finds them, and Devlin decides that he's simply going to carry Alicia in his arms down the stairs and out of the house, knowing that Sebastian's associates are also in the house. Sure enough, they see, and - much to Sebastian's increasing anxiety - quickly become suspicious. Devlin puts Alicia in his car to go to the hospital, but when Sebastian tries to get in with them, Devlin locks him out, shortly telling him "sorry, no room." Despite Sebastian's pleading, he's left behind, and the final scene of the movie is his associates ominously telling him they wish to "talk" with him.