This film really didn't need a romantic subplot. Wanting to free the asset because of some outsider kinship makes sense; jumping into bed with it doesn't. I mean, Giles calls the asset a wild animal like two scenes before he catches them together - that seems to have some unfortunate implications. If you really had to have to romance piece then the asset had to be more a lot more Abe Sapien and way less Creature from the Black Lagoon, I was just never sold on him possessing a human level intelligence and the whole thing just felt creepy.
The Russian spy getting killed didn't make much sense either; when his handler showed up to his apartment he was suspicions enough to grab a knife - yet he seemed to get completely blind sided at the quarry. And I don't think it was ever explained why his handler wanted him killed in the first place, he was never showing having any information indicating the asset wasn't dead, the scientist seemed to be his only source on the asset so there shouldn't be any reason to doubt his story or have him killed. By the end his whole subplot just seemed to exist for Strickland to have a way to get to the docks for the climax.