Who did Jon actually suspect in TMA season 2?
An age-old fandom joke is to make fun of season 2 Jon for “accusing Tim and Martin of murder” and “he suspected everyone but Not!Sasha.” I’m on a roll from my “did season 1 Jon dismiss statements” series, so now I gotta tackle this one!
My main goal is to point out the times he DID suspect Not!Sasha--and was the only human on the team to do so--but for the hell of it I’m going to keep a tally of how many times he mentions investigating/suspecting each person. I’m also going to note other out-of-place things Jon noticed, some of which were due to Leitner, but definitely played a role in confirming that someone within the archives was being deceptive.
TMA 41 Too Deep - “Elias is a prime suspect, but it could have been any of them.”
TMA 42 Grifter’s Bone - Jon is nervous about Martin’s sudden doting and attentive behavior. He goes through Martin’s poetry and letters.
TMA 44 Tightrope - Jon discovers that someone had been rifling through his desk drawer with the secret tapes. (possibly Leitner)
TMA 45 Blood Bag - Jon looks into Tim’s background and takes photos of his house.
TMA 46 Literary Heights - Jon discovers that someone with a key has been using the trapdoor into the tunnels. Everyone denies it when he asks.
TMA 47 A New Door - Michael tells Jon “they’re lying to you, you know.”
TMA 48 Lost in the Crowd - Jon reveals that he already looked into Sasha’s background and found nothing unusual, but is now conflicted about whether Michael’s warning was genuine or if he was just messing with his head. After Elias confronts him for spying on the others and tells him to stop investigating, Jon doubles down on his suspicion of him.
TMA 49 Butcher’s Window - Jon looks into Elias’s background. (Running tally: mentioned Elias 3 times vs. 1 for everyone else!)
TMA 51 High Pressure - Jon records a conversation with Sasha in Artefact Storage, then finds that she’s been visiting a wax museum every few days during her lunch breaks.
TMA 52 Exceptional Risk - Jon confronts Sasha about her long lunch breaks, learns about the “boyfriend.” (Running tally: 3 for both Elias and Sasha, 1 for the other two!)
TMA 56 Children of the Night - Jon confronts Martin over ‘lying’ to him about Trevor’s death, brings up the letter he found. After learning about his faked CV, this is the last time Jon expresses suspicion over Martin. (I also can’t help but point out the previous few episodes show Jon softening towards Martin, with him inviting himself out to lunch with Martin in TMA 53 and learning the jar of ashes was real in TMA 55. The severity of the confrontation no doubt is influenced by how much he let his guard down and it taking it especially hard since it’s Martin) Grand total for Martin: 2
TMA 57 Personal Space - Jon searches Sasha’s desk. Sasha is now in the lead with 4!! “Suspected everyone but the Not!Them” my ass!!!
TMA 58 Trail Rations - Jon records a conversation between Martin and Tim. He confirms he no longer suspects Martin, but doubles down on his worries about Tim.
TMA 59 Recluse - Jon notices the others avoiding and talking about him (planning the upcoming intervention).
TMA 60 Observer Effect - Everyone confronts Jon over his behavior. After reviewing the doctored CCTV footage (a monthlong process, according to Tim in TMA 65), Jon decides to stop investigating them. “I can’t quite figure out whether this exoneration of my colleagues is more of a relief or a frustration. At the very least, it seems I have been... I have been rather unfair to them.”
Running total so far:
- Sasha: 4
- Elias: 3
- Martin: 2
- Tim: 2
The investigations stop temporarily, before Jon’s suspicion of Sasha is renewed, but it’s fascinating that fandom collectively forgot that Jon looked into Sasha as much as Martin and Tim combined, and mentioned Elias as his primary suspect twice, but somehow concluded “Jon accused Tim and Martin of murder, while ignoring Elias and Sasha!”
TMA 68 Tale of a Field Hospital - Jon notices that Sasha “seemed far too tall” in the tunnels, and that he didn’t recognize her at first.
TMA 76 The Smell of Blood - After Melanie accuses Jon of toying with her about Sasha, Jon turns his full attention towards her. “There’s more than one thing in the files that can trick you. I can’t just ignore it.”
TMA 77 The Kind Mother - Jon learns about the Not!Them, and realizes Sasha has been killed and replaced. “If it’s here, if Sasha… I’m going to find out how to kill it.”
And here we have our final total!!
- Sasha: 7
- Elias: 3
- Martin: 2
- Tim: 2