Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Review - Episode 22: Beginning of the End
- Thread starter MovieBob
- Start date
I was honestly a little disappointed with the first fight scene in the Peruvian base... May just casually disarms the guy with the Berserker Staff and goes on a rampage? A bit weak.. still kind of cool, but weak. There were so many conveniences in the show that made me roll my eyes like that. Fury showing up just in time, twice. The 'incentive packages' happening to be in the same location as everything else.. way to put all your eggs in one basket guys. Still, I think it was a good send off for the season, and I loved Garrett's final scene.
I think the case for Skye and maybe Raina to be Inhumans grows stronger. And the blue alien guy being a Kree. Someone brought up last week that the insanity part of the GH drug might be because of linking somewhat to the Kree Supreme Intelligence. We know for sure Kree are in the MCU, unless they seriously change Ronan the Accuser's background. Getting linked into a superior telepathic intellect could certainly explain going crazy and feeling an impulse to carve out crazy scientific calculations into whatever surface happens to be near by. It also fits in with the Inhuman angle, since were a Kree science experiment. And finally, the end scene... We know Skye was recovered from a small village in China, and the bodyguard at the end looked like he might have been Chinese. Attilan was located in the Himalayas at some points so... The math makes sense.
I'm also on board with the Koenig brothers being LMDs. It would explain why they use the same speech, word for word. And how they can live in some remote secret base with no other human contact outside the internet for apparently months (years?) at a time without going nuts. It also makes me wonder how many other secret bases and Koenigs there are out there...
I think the case for Skye and maybe Raina to be Inhumans grows stronger. And the blue alien guy being a Kree. Someone brought up last week that the insanity part of the GH drug might be because of linking somewhat to the Kree Supreme Intelligence. We know for sure Kree are in the MCU, unless they seriously change Ronan the Accuser's background. Getting linked into a superior telepathic intellect could certainly explain going crazy and feeling an impulse to carve out crazy scientific calculations into whatever surface happens to be near by. It also fits in with the Inhuman angle, since were a Kree science experiment. And finally, the end scene... We know Skye was recovered from a small village in China, and the bodyguard at the end looked like he might have been Chinese. Attilan was located in the Himalayas at some points so... The math makes sense.
I'm also on board with the Koenig brothers being LMDs. It would explain why they use the same speech, word for word. And how they can live in some remote secret base with no other human contact outside the internet for apparently months (years?) at a time without going nuts. It also makes me wonder how many other secret bases and Koenigs there are out there...
I'm glad you enjoyed it Bob, and I'm glad people are starting to agree that (ironically) since the fall of SHIELD, the show has improved a lot. I'll be looking forward to next season.
Wait... am I the only person who thought Skye's dad was relaxing for an afternoon bath... in blood?
I swear it looked more blood red than "black" to me.
I swear it looked more blood red than "black" to me.
Ward survived. Ah well, I guess Season Two will need its late-season Garrett-type nemesis and I'm sure he's still under contract. A few observations:
-No mention of Abomination. It seemed like they were setting something up between Garrett and Abomo, but with Garrett dead and the assumption that Garrett was H.Y.D.R.A. out of convenience it seems like a dropped plot or possibly a "you can't afford to render 3 seconds of Abomination just being in the room, nevermind him flipping the Bus." Though it's a good enough way to explain how Abomination is out if they decide to have Von Strucker have a Masters of Evil team in Avengers two.
-The writing. Could be alien, could be a circuit diagram. I was kinda hoping for a tie-in to Guardians of the Galaxy, maybe that's it?
-The sad hulk music started playing in my head when Deathlok walked away. I know I'm not alone.
-Garrett getting Buffy vs. Dracula'd was amusing but a little out of place considering Garrett would have been a great candidate for getting tortured for info. Speaking of...
-Where were they taking Ward? SHIELD doesn't really have prisons anymore.
-I think they filmed a lot that was cut from the Coulson/Fury conversation so that they can sprinkle it in dribs and drabs into season 2, it seemed like we were coming in at the end of a long talk.
-I'm thinking the Agent Carter stuff is going to be an intro to Von Strucker and world building for Avengers 2 more than anything else. Hopefully Triplett's grandpa will be on the cast.
-No mention of Abomination. It seemed like they were setting something up between Garrett and Abomo, but with Garrett dead and the assumption that Garrett was H.Y.D.R.A. out of convenience it seems like a dropped plot or possibly a "you can't afford to render 3 seconds of Abomination just being in the room, nevermind him flipping the Bus." Though it's a good enough way to explain how Abomination is out if they decide to have Von Strucker have a Masters of Evil team in Avengers two.
-The writing. Could be alien, could be a circuit diagram. I was kinda hoping for a tie-in to Guardians of the Galaxy, maybe that's it?
-The sad hulk music started playing in my head when Deathlok walked away. I know I'm not alone.
-Garrett getting Buffy vs. Dracula'd was amusing but a little out of place considering Garrett would have been a great candidate for getting tortured for info. Speaking of...
-Where were they taking Ward? SHIELD doesn't really have prisons anymore.
-I think they filmed a lot that was cut from the Coulson/Fury conversation so that they can sprinkle it in dribs and drabs into season 2, it seemed like we were coming in at the end of a long talk.
-I'm thinking the Agent Carter stuff is going to be an intro to Von Strucker and world building for Avengers 2 more than anything else. Hopefully Triplett's grandpa will be on the cast.
Why did Fury resurrect Coulson? Because he can count the number of people he can trust on one hand, and isn't afraid to cut fingers off. But that doesn't mean he won't move heaven and earth if some jumped-up wannabe-god cuts one off without his say-so.
I spit-take-d when I saw Koenig. But then when he said "brother" and stated almost word for word the same phrases about lanyards, yeah, that screamed LMD.
I was surprised, but wasn't incredulous when Fury showed up at Cybertek. Fitz/Simmons got the tracker on the plane, and this is Fury. He has a habit of showing up where you least expect him (see the fact that he was actually listening to the SHIELD emergency beacon). Especially with that line at the end "Nowhere? You know me better than that, I'll be EVERYWHERE."
I laughed when Garrett got vaped. He was violating evil overlord rule #20.
I spit-take-d when I saw Koenig. But then when he said "brother" and stated almost word for word the same phrases about lanyards, yeah, that screamed LMD.
I was surprised, but wasn't incredulous when Fury showed up at Cybertek. Fitz/Simmons got the tracker on the plane, and this is Fury. He has a habit of showing up where you least expect him (see the fact that he was actually listening to the SHIELD emergency beacon). Especially with that line at the end "Nowhere? You know me better than that, I'll be EVERYWHERE."
I laughed when Garrett got vaped. He was violating evil overlord rule #20.
http://www.eviloverlord.com/lists/overlord.html
Same here, I thought he was a follower of Khorne for a second there.WarpedLord said:
For me, the funniest part of the finale was Garrett's very brief rebirth before
Coulson blasts him to atoms.
That and Coulson and Fury just looking at Garrett and going "This guy's a total moron..." as to the old cliché of "You're a madman Garrett!".
I'm pretty much in the same boat with Bob for the finale here, I'm happy with it.
"charges up and beats everyone down so badly she ultimately brings the whole building down on them." ? And then throws the super weapon away for no good reason?
"scribbling "some ideas" onto a pane of glass." <= Pretty sure he asks for "a nail" and then scratches it in the bulletproof glass
"Fitz has activated an old S.H.I.E.L.D. distress signal" <= made me think Fury would come get them in a sub.
"and maybe swim to the surface" <= As a scuba diver I can tell you it's super easy from that depth. The air you breathe is enough to fill your lungs four times at surface level. So you MUST breathe out the entire way up, or your lungs burst. They actually don't do that when we see them rising, so they died. And there is NO way Fitz can go braindead in the short time it takes to get to the surface, even with no air in his lungs.
"Solid action scene" <= Actually, the part where the missile blows away the 4 Centipides is really badly timed/composited!!!
"ripping out a guy's rib and stabbing him to death with it" <= No super power needed to do that. I thought it was his spinal column, which can't be used for stabbing, but at least demonstrates inhuman strenght
"(the gag: He actually misheard it)" <= The way I heard this scene, it's clearly just a taunt from Fury. Because the phrase is along the lines "Being A PART of something bigger". And the bad guy just wants to eat the whole pie for himself...
"while Skye makes middle manager guy show her what The Incentives Program is" <= They already knew what it was from the start, she just needs to find the kid.
"right before Coulson casually blasts him to atoms" <= this really made it from "shit ending" to "Hell yeah!"
"misshapen and dripping with an oily black slime" <= Really? Huh! I thought it was supposed to be falling apart and all "gory" as far as TV can get.
"but it looks a lot more like a map or schematic than words or numbers" <= The first thing in my mind was a huge sigh: Guardians of the Galaxy reference star-map? Roll eyes time!
Overall I too enjoyed the episode a LOT, despite the tons of nitpicks to make about the details.
CAPTCHA: "Send packing". Hell no, Captcha!
"scribbling "some ideas" onto a pane of glass." <= Pretty sure he asks for "a nail" and then scratches it in the bulletproof glass
"Fitz has activated an old S.H.I.E.L.D. distress signal" <= made me think Fury would come get them in a sub.
"and maybe swim to the surface" <= As a scuba diver I can tell you it's super easy from that depth. The air you breathe is enough to fill your lungs four times at surface level. So you MUST breathe out the entire way up, or your lungs burst. They actually don't do that when we see them rising, so they died. And there is NO way Fitz can go braindead in the short time it takes to get to the surface, even with no air in his lungs.
"Solid action scene" <= Actually, the part where the missile blows away the 4 Centipides is really badly timed/composited!!!
"ripping out a guy's rib and stabbing him to death with it" <= No super power needed to do that. I thought it was his spinal column, which can't be used for stabbing, but at least demonstrates inhuman strenght
"(the gag: He actually misheard it)" <= The way I heard this scene, it's clearly just a taunt from Fury. Because the phrase is along the lines "Being A PART of something bigger". And the bad guy just wants to eat the whole pie for himself...
"while Skye makes middle manager guy show her what The Incentives Program is" <= They already knew what it was from the start, she just needs to find the kid.
"right before Coulson casually blasts him to atoms" <= this really made it from "shit ending" to "Hell yeah!"
"misshapen and dripping with an oily black slime" <= Really? Huh! I thought it was supposed to be falling apart and all "gory" as far as TV can get.
"but it looks a lot more like a map or schematic than words or numbers" <= The first thing in my mind was a huge sigh: Guardians of the Galaxy reference star-map? Roll eyes time!
Overall I too enjoyed the episode a LOT, despite the tons of nitpicks to make about the details.
CAPTCHA: "Send packing". Hell no, Captcha!
"Well, this seems familiar."
"You were never on top."
I lol'ed and my wife actually said "Ha! Suck it."
"You were never on top."
I lol'ed and my wife actually said "Ha! Suck it."
"Compartents are made to be compatible with all S.H.I.E.L.D. aircraft, submarines and spacecraft".
How is no one talking about this one line and its implications? First we're told that S.H.I.E.L.D. had at least one submarine, which begs the question just how big was S.H.I.E.L.D. before it collapsed? I mean I know I've brought up the fact that the Helicarrier from The Avengers up and disappeared without a trace and it didn't seem to phase anyone (until noted otherwise I'm doing with "Department H grabbed it when the organization fell apart"), but it also means that S.W.O.R.D. isn't just part of, a breakaway organization of, or subsidiary organization of S.H.I.E.L.D., but is has SPACESHIPS! Knowing Whedon (who created S.W.O.R.D. in a comic he wrote) does this mean we're going to see them in Guardians of the Galaxy and/or Avengers 3? I sure hope so.
Also Bob, we know the Blue Alien is a Kree Pureblood, they didn't sat it on screen but one of the actors let it slip.
On a side note: me and my friends laughed so hard after Garrets' death we didn't even know what Coulson said.
How is no one talking about this one line and its implications? First we're told that S.H.I.E.L.D. had at least one submarine, which begs the question just how big was S.H.I.E.L.D. before it collapsed? I mean I know I've brought up the fact that the Helicarrier from The Avengers up and disappeared without a trace and it didn't seem to phase anyone (until noted otherwise I'm doing with "Department H grabbed it when the organization fell apart"), but it also means that S.W.O.R.D. isn't just part of, a breakaway organization of, or subsidiary organization of S.H.I.E.L.D., but is has SPACESHIPS! Knowing Whedon (who created S.W.O.R.D. in a comic he wrote) does this mean we're going to see them in Guardians of the Galaxy and/or Avengers 3? I sure hope so.
Also Bob, we know the Blue Alien is a Kree Pureblood, they didn't sat it on screen but one of the actors let it slip.
On a side note: me and my friends laughed so hard after Garrets' death we didn't even know what Coulson said.
Been waiting for this all day. I liked the finale. I knew Nick would be there but I didn't realize how long he was sticking around or that he would actually help save the day. I kind of thought he'd pop in for a revelatory scene or show up and say something that might set the stage for season 2. Not save Fitz/Simmons, save Coulson, and then proceed to exchange witty banter with Coulson. Still now that Coulson is the Director of S.H.E.I.L.D. they can't keep him off the big screen for much longer. We'll more than likely have to wait until phase 3 but I bet he'll show up Captain America 3 being that Cap has the closest ties to S.H.E.I.L.D. out of all the Avengers and he is the resident Cap fanboy. When he does make it back to the big screen I really do hope he brings the crew with him in some capacity. I've grown to like the whole lot of them. Even Skye even if she is a Mary Sue to some degree. I mean come on let there be mind control in the movie if they all show up in a Marvel movie. The world needs to see Black Widow vs. The Calvary.
Incidentally if that is an original thing from the show and not the comics Melinda May should be put in the comics and her super hero identity should be The Calvary.
Incidentally if that is an original thing from the show and not the comics Melinda May should be put in the comics and her super hero identity should be The Calvary.
Bob, I know the show acknowledged that Skye was a bit of a Sue (Mary Sue Poots. Har har har.), but to me, it's just not enough. I just feel like this show keeps dragging me along with the mystery when half the time it kept telling me how awesome Skye was. I know you said Phil might be a bit of a Sue, but I can actually see it: admist all the agency conspiracy and cover-up, he comes out with a sense of honor and integrity. Half the show, we spend so much time speculating Skye's origins and to only have more mysteries after mysteries, I'm just sort of exhausted.
Also, why is it such a big deal for Patton Oswalt to be around? I like him too, don't get me wrong, but it's less likely that Marvel contracted him and more likely someone said, "Hey, Patton Oswalt's probably at the next lot down doing narration for the Goldbergs, go see if he's interested.)
Other than that, I enjoyed the ride. I liked that Ward stayed evil and was sad to see Fitz go, and really wished that Simmons had kissed him on the mouth, but other than that, I was satisfied.
Also, why is it such a big deal for Patton Oswalt to be around? I like him too, don't get me wrong, but it's less likely that Marvel contracted him and more likely someone said, "Hey, Patton Oswalt's probably at the next lot down doing narration for the Goldbergs, go see if he's interested.)
Other than that, I enjoyed the ride. I liked that Ward stayed evil and was sad to see Fitz go, and really wished that Simmons had kissed him on the mouth, but other than that, I was satisfied.
A couple of semi random thoughts. I liked this episode. In fact I enjoyed it, in spite of the flaws. And I think they gave away a few minor things for the future.
1. Coulson and Fury's argument over his Ressurection."that was supposed to be used to Ressurect an Avenger" "Yes". In one simple exchange Fury just told Coulson that he was as much an Avenger as Black Widow, Hawkeye etc. he was a fallen Avenger who was resurrected. It will be interesting to see if this shows back up in Age of Ultron.
2. Skye's father - while I still think he and she are Inhumans, there was something else going on there. In China a heavily tattooed Cihese brute is guarding him. He appears to an elderly man with long white hair pulled back in a classical Asian style with his hands and forearms wrapped in cloth, possibly bloody bandages. Now let's look at this from the opposite view. This is a SHIELD show. We have spent the past season mainly building up to Hydra and involved with their independent technology spin off Centipede, which is essentially AIM by another name. So Hydra and an AIM equivalent? What are the other big SHIELD related foes? The name Yellow Claw comes to mind. And SHIELD and the Avengers getting dragged into conflict with him by protecting a runaway child or harem bride of his is a fairly recurrent theme.
3. Patton Oswalt is brilliant! The show runners just solved the LMD conundrum in one simple bit of comic throw away. LMD's are a common SHIELD thing from the comics, and Iron Man named them in the Avengers movie. But they really are too much of a cheesy cop out to use in the show or a movie. They are too obvious a get out of jail free card."he didn't die, it was his LMD". It is annoying in the comics and would be unbearable in this show. But in one fell swoop they just introduced them and made them a useless bit of comedy frippery. "Yeah, they're life model decoys. We tried to make synthetic Shield soldiers, but all we got out of it was Patton Oswalt. They are leftovers from Phineous Horton's old work. Never worth the cost. We use them as caretaker valets at the super secret safe houses. They can't do much else".
4. Raina - now she is more and more the big interesting mystery. I am almost wandering if they are developing her as a female take on the High Evolutionary?
5. Much as the Marvel Cinematic Universe (and the Ultimate Comic one) sort of ties back to Project Rebirth and the Super Soldier Serum, I think this show and where it goes from here will tie back to the Kree and connections both classic and re imagined, to them.
1. Coulson and Fury's argument over his Ressurection."that was supposed to be used to Ressurect an Avenger" "Yes". In one simple exchange Fury just told Coulson that he was as much an Avenger as Black Widow, Hawkeye etc. he was a fallen Avenger who was resurrected. It will be interesting to see if this shows back up in Age of Ultron.
2. Skye's father - while I still think he and she are Inhumans, there was something else going on there. In China a heavily tattooed Cihese brute is guarding him. He appears to an elderly man with long white hair pulled back in a classical Asian style with his hands and forearms wrapped in cloth, possibly bloody bandages. Now let's look at this from the opposite view. This is a SHIELD show. We have spent the past season mainly building up to Hydra and involved with their independent technology spin off Centipede, which is essentially AIM by another name. So Hydra and an AIM equivalent? What are the other big SHIELD related foes? The name Yellow Claw comes to mind. And SHIELD and the Avengers getting dragged into conflict with him by protecting a runaway child or harem bride of his is a fairly recurrent theme.
3. Patton Oswalt is brilliant! The show runners just solved the LMD conundrum in one simple bit of comic throw away. LMD's are a common SHIELD thing from the comics, and Iron Man named them in the Avengers movie. But they really are too much of a cheesy cop out to use in the show or a movie. They are too obvious a get out of jail free card."he didn't die, it was his LMD". It is annoying in the comics and would be unbearable in this show. But in one fell swoop they just introduced them and made them a useless bit of comedy frippery. "Yeah, they're life model decoys. We tried to make synthetic Shield soldiers, but all we got out of it was Patton Oswalt. They are leftovers from Phineous Horton's old work. Never worth the cost. We use them as caretaker valets at the super secret safe houses. They can't do much else".
4. Raina - now she is more and more the big interesting mystery. I am almost wandering if they are developing her as a female take on the High Evolutionary?
5. Much as the Marvel Cinematic Universe (and the Ultimate Comic one) sort of ties back to Project Rebirth and the Super Soldier Serum, I think this show and where it goes from here will tie back to the Kree and connections both classic and re imagined, to them.