Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Replaces Plot with Fight Sequences
- Thread starter MovieBob
- Start date
I thought it was a fun episode. Gave a lot to the May/Coulson shippers out there. Plus, I got a little 'Dancing with the Stars' vibe from it.
I love AoS, but this episode was weak. Still, I was still into it. The fight was awesome (loved that they used slow motion on that ridiculous move towards the end), and the first half played on my Leverage nostalgia. And I'm glad they gave a psuedo-science explanation for the mask from Winter Soldier.
I liked this episode, if only for the fight scenes and the dynamic of Coulson and May. The "I can't believe I am the only one seeing this" line sold me on it.
It is kind of hard for a universe that features several ways of shapeshifting, impersonation and mind control as relatively commonplace not to have a lot of red herrings being thrown around all the time. Between this episode and the previous one, anything that we try to presume about the next chapter can be easily turned down by "it was a clone", "it was mindcontrol", "it was acting", to the point it reminds me of the golden age comic book misleading covers (I guess that is the point)...
It is kind of hard for a universe that features several ways of shapeshifting, impersonation and mind control as relatively commonplace not to have a lot of red herrings being thrown around all the time. Between this episode and the previous one, anything that we try to presume about the next chapter can be easily turned down by "it was a clone", "it was mindcontrol", "it was acting", to the point it reminds me of the golden age comic book misleading covers (I guess that is the point)...
Personally, I loved it. Agents isn't the kind of show that will be plot all the time. Filler episodes happen and that's not necessarily a bad thing since they usually have a good amount of character development that you wouldn't see in the high drama moments.
In fact, the only Joss Whedon show I can think of that this statement doesn't apply to is Dollhouse (if I recall correctly). Most likely because it only had 13 episode seasons.
This episode delivered everything I wanted out of it. May and Coulson buddy copping/spying around. They have a great dynamic and it's fun to see them together in a more light-hearted setting than usual.
In fact, the only Joss Whedon show I can think of that this statement doesn't apply to is Dollhouse (if I recall correctly). Most likely because it only had 13 episode seasons.
This episode delivered everything I wanted out of it. May and Coulson buddy copping/spying around. They have a great dynamic and it's fun to see them together in a more light-hearted setting than usual.
The action was cool, but wow, the dialogue Coulson and May delivered when they were undercover was painful. It sounded incredibly fake. I'm not sure if this is the actors' acting or showing that the characters suck at acting. Judging from how impressed everyone on the plane was, I'm guessing it's the former.
I think it's a good idea to have an episode that's mostly action every once in a while, so long as they don't waste most of the seasons special effects budget on it. Sometimes you need a plot heavy episode, other times you need an action heavy one.
Pretty weak but fun episode, but still it was way over the incredibly low bar some of the first seasons episodes set.
I really laughed when Fitz talks to Simmons when the others are bonding or sth and he won't join them at the beginning, and he says an innocuous word, but his accent turns it into a dirty word unintentionally.
Talbot HYRDA, that piqued my interest, but... meh, it was not to be.
Seems like they only had one fancy facemask for the both of them...
The lamest was when HYDRA bursts into the hotel room with their machineguns, see the balcony door open and immediately... just STAND DOWN? No one even caring about walking towards the doors, let alone look up/down for the fugitives? Great work ethic there, stormtroopers!!!
The best was the unexpected table-headslam, sweet move!!!
Talbot HYRDA, that piqued my interest, but... meh, it was not to be.
Seems like they only had one fancy facemask for the both of them...
The lamest was when HYDRA bursts into the hotel room with their machineguns, see the balcony door open and immediately... just STAND DOWN? No one even caring about walking towards the doors, let alone look up/down for the fugitives? Great work ethic there, stormtroopers!!!
The best was the unexpected table-headslam, sweet move!!!
I liked the episode. I really only had two things that bugged me.
The first was that May took so long to beat 33. May is the second-best hand-to-hand fighter in S.H.I.E.L.D after Black Widow. The fight was fun to watch and all, but with May's skill, it should not have lasted that long. Jumping off from that, how was the HYDRA guy able to get up so quickly after she escaped? I'm pretty sure May would have put that man in a coma, but after she jumps out into the hall, he comes running out seconds later.
My other thing is that no one seems to realize what Coulson has done: He just told 33 that he is the Director. The very thing that HYDRA was trying to find out earlier in the episode. I was at least expecting 33 to report that operation was a total loss when she gave that information.
Is Mockingbird the girl we saw in the preview who is after Simmons? Because she seemed like she was loyal to HYDRA there, but the article that was linked made it clear that she's S.H.I.E.L.D. I take it she's working undercover or something? Guess we'll have to wait and see.
Also, I think HYDRA just made a very bad enemy by messing with Flower Girl. At least, I hope they did, because I want to see HYDRA taken down, but if those com signals were any indication, Coulson's organization is not going to be able to do it because they're too small.
The first was that May took so long to beat 33. May is the second-best hand-to-hand fighter in S.H.I.E.L.D after Black Widow. The fight was fun to watch and all, but with May's skill, it should not have lasted that long. Jumping off from that, how was the HYDRA guy able to get up so quickly after she escaped? I'm pretty sure May would have put that man in a coma, but after she jumps out into the hall, he comes running out seconds later.
My other thing is that no one seems to realize what Coulson has done: He just told 33 that he is the Director. The very thing that HYDRA was trying to find out earlier in the episode. I was at least expecting 33 to report that operation was a total loss when she gave that information.
Is Mockingbird the girl we saw in the preview who is after Simmons? Because she seemed like she was loyal to HYDRA there, but the article that was linked made it clear that she's S.H.I.E.L.D. I take it she's working undercover or something? Guess we'll have to wait and see.
Also, I think HYDRA just made a very bad enemy by messing with Flower Girl. At least, I hope they did, because I want to see HYDRA taken down, but if those com signals were any indication, Coulson's organization is not going to be able to do it because they're too small.
The show's got some camp to it. Kinda have to go with the occasional logic holes. After all, if Coulson had an Icer on him, why didn't he just shoot Agent 33 right after the Hydra guy ran by so that both May and Coulson could chase him down? Cuz the fight is the whole point of the episode. Some other gaps in logic in this episode alone, but it's not worth fixating on them. This show ALWAYS has some sort of gap in logic.Sniper Team 4 said:
Think you're the second person I've seen mention that. Did I miss something? I thought that Hydra already knew the Coulson was behind the SHIELD remnants. Didn't they mention at the end of the previous episode something along the lines of, "Coulson and his band are becoming an annoyance, we will have to deal with them?"Sniper Team 4 said:
Even if they didn't know, what's the big deal? Coulson's director. How does that change anything for Hydra? More troubling is that Coulson told Agent 33 that something was wrong with him: something bad enough that he wants May to take him down and become director if he becomes a problem. THAT'S info that they may not have had and that could hurt SHIELD. But they didn't bring it up. Maybe next episode? Assuming Agent 33 is alive. I don't know how dangerous those wires were but that was a pretty nasty burn scar on her face, which is, y'know, right next to her brain.
OT: I thought it was a fun episode. But I'm not sure if you could say that it doesn't move the plot forward. This show is very good at giving some purpose to each episode. Season 1, that episode with the electro alien virus where Ward jumped out of a plane to save Simmons? Turns out to be a deliberate stratagem to gain the team's trust. That episode where Ward and Fitz find that sonic cannon thingy? Turns out that SHIELD uses that tech to disable the Bus at the beginning of the Hydra uprising, AND they bring it back to defeat Creel in this season. I'm not sure if there's been a single episode that hasn't had a consequence in a later episode. Except for maybe that one with the teleporting guy. Anyways, I regard it as part of the show's fun: see what bits and pieces from earlier episodes fit into later ones, even if it takes most of a season to see it.
I completely disagree. The episode did not progress the story. But it did further flesh out what is happening with Colson and where his thoughts are, and just how close Mai and him are. But the Fitz story was cathartic. His character has been struggling to bond or connect to the team. He has been struggling to even be a member of the team, to feel worth while. It was contrived, but it was good.
I have to agree with this. Even if they had just been coercing Raina, that could potentially come back to hurt them in a big way. The lady is devious and a smooth operator. I have no doubt she could turn things about so that it ends up costing HYDRA more than they ever would have guessed, but since this is all about the obelisk, it consequently involves Skye's dad, who seems like no one to trifle with.Sniper Team 4 said:
I really like his characterization, I was very pissed when they made him a Hydra Lackey. I'm glad it was misdirection.revjor said:
Gotta agree. Evil Agent Dale Cooper is clearly something of an unknown to pretty much all the other players in the show. I look forward to whenever he makes his play, because I get the feeling it'll blindside pretty much everyone.Furbyz said:
Disappointed to know I was right in predicting this would be fluff, but I liked the alone time with Coulson and May. Glad to know I'm not the only one pissed to think Talbot was just another Hydra agent. Also, at the risk of sounding prudish, did anyone else think Ming-na being stripped to her skivvies to fight another Ming-na in a sparkly cocktail dress a little...pervy?
I rather enjoyed the episode. It was silly, fun, and full of cheap action thrills (slow-mo martial arts, sparks flying from electronics). The episode did introduce the effects of the alien writing on physical objects, which could be interesting, but I'll agree that the episode as a whole was pretty empty on plot. I'm perfectly happy with that. I couldn't enjoy the new Battlestar Galactica because the show was all-serious all the time. I'm all for dark and gritty movies. Being in a dark place (narratively) for 3 hours is fine. I just don't enjoy it for 3 months+ at at time.
I hope they keep these episodes peppered throughout the series, both for me and as jumping on points for people who haven't been watching the entire series.
I hope they keep these episodes peppered throughout the series, both for me and as jumping on points for people who haven't been watching the entire series.