Tuesday Tea: Who's your favorite fictional spy and what's so great about them?

On the page and/or on the screen

Whether disheveled or suave, wholly trustworthy or sketchy, lovably kooky or seriously skeptical, it’s easy to fall hard for a spy on the page and on the screen. Some of my longest on-going (fictional) relationships are with intelligence agents who don’t always do the smart thing, but usually do the right thing, even if it means breaking rules.

Dave says…

Jackson Lamb is my favorite spy because he’s a human disaster wrapped in a trench coat—and somehow still the sharpest mind in the room. He chain-smokes, drinks, farts, and insults everyone around him. And yet? He sees everything. He cuts through bureaucracy, lies, and politics with instinct and a lifetime of hard-won cynicism. Underneath all that grumble, there’s a fiercely loyal leader who will go to the mat for his team—though he’d rather die than admit it. Then there's his mouth, and his one-liners. One of my favorites is, “It’s like explaining Norway to a dog.” That’s Jackson Lamb: rude, brilliant, and unforgettable. I’d follow him anywhere.

Mel says…
I’ve read every installment (24 and counting!) of the Gabriel Allon series by Daniel Silva. When the new title is released each July, I designate my own personal holiday to read it cover to cover as quickly as possible. Gabriel is a master spy, a reluctant assassin, and the world’s foremost art restorer. Yes, it’s over the top, but it’s so much fun to just go with it. The work Gabriel does for the clandestine Israeli organization known simply as ‘the Office’ is a responsibility, rarely his desire. Over the years, he’s become the spiritual and tactical team leader for a group of often-difficult — but lovable and talented — agents who carry their sad backstories with them like broken-in luggage. Their missions take them all over the world, and Daniel Silva always visits the places he sends Gabriel’s team, so the details transport you right there — to Paris, Venice, London, Italy, Tel Avia, and more. (The new one An Inside Job is out on July 15 — just in time for our long flight to the United States!)

When I thought about screen spies I love, of course, Daniel Craig’s James Bond popped up, especially as he is in Skyfall: a little battered, a little humbled, and very angry.

My other choice would have been Jackson Lamb, but Dave already claimed him. So I’m going for a deep cut: Hector DeJean, the wily, disillusioned CIA agent from the show Berlin Station (RIP). Sure, Richard Armitage, might be the handsome one, and the whole cast is fantastic…

… but Rhys Ifans’ Hector is irresistible — a bit unhinged, possibly dangerous, and appealingly tragic:

At the completely opposite end of the spectrum, Melissa McCarthy is awesome in Spy:

Spill the tea: Who's your favorite fictional spy and what's so great about them?