Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Review - Episode 16: End of the Beginning

[MovieBob]

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Review - Episode 16: End of the Beginning

This episode ends with some stuff hitting the fan that one can safely assume must be in some way related to other, bigger stuff that hits the fan in Captain America: The Winter Soldier.

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[wiz828]

It's just such a shame that the show is getting so good, while the ratings keep getting worse I think sometime in the future this show will make a great example of how the entertainment-media landscape has changed in the early 21st century. 20 years ago audiences would have had to give this show the time it needed to find its footing and would be much more inclined to keep watching it, nowadays the supply of tv shows is just so overwhelming, especially on cable, audiences will move away after a bad start.

Seriously though, if you have already seen CA:TWS, this episode is even more awesome than it is now.

 

[MatParker116]

It's just such a shame that the show is getting so good, while the ratings keep getting worse I think sometime in the future this show will make a great example of how the entertainment-media landscape has changed in the early 21st century. 20 years ago audiences would have had to give this show the time it needed to find its footing and would be much more inclined to keep watching it, nowadays the supply of tv shows is just so overwhelming, especially on cable, audiences will move away after a bad start.

Seriously though, if you have already seen CA:TWS, this episode is even more awesome than it is now.

Yeah this episode hit a ratings low for the series. A big problem I had with it is you could easily give half the series a miss and you would not be lost when it comes to the big picture. Also some of the characters are just really, really, terrible. (I would not be surprised to see a few killed off)

 

[shadowmagus]

Screw it. That was a great episode and people really need to give this show another chance, but of course I'm in the minority and I'll probably get a bunch of people saying how stupid I am. Well, eat it.

 

[Balmong7]

They already confirmed what the blue skinned creature. If you are curious you can look it up. I don't know how to do a spoiler tag so I can't post it on here.

The more you know.

 

[Absimilliard]

Anyone else notice the mention of Department H? 'Cause that opens up a massive can of worms/plot-points from the comics...

 

[Grimh]

Wait, so I got to see the Captain America movie before pretty much all americans? Neat.
Also yes it is good.

I haven't watched this episode yet as I'll do that on friday, but it sounds good.
Looking forward to it.

 

[Ickabod]

This was easily the best episode to date, and they have been getting better each week. Tell your friends to give it another shot, starting with this episode.

I had a theory on the blue blood, after watching Captain America 1 this week, did you notice that the serum that they gave him was blue... Considering that all other attempts to make a super solider have failed, maybe it's in part because you can't recreate alien blood. Steve Rodgers didn't get all buff from the serum alone, he needed the radiation/special rays? in that chamber in order to activate the serum, Skye and Coleson haven't been exposed to those rays, potentially super soldiers in waiting?

 

[faefrost]

Anyone else notice the mention of Department H? 'Cause that opens up a massive can of worms/plot-points from the comics...

I caught that. although I suspect that it was just a throwaway line, like actually naming Project Pegasus in the pilot episode. (Although it is never directly said, it is implied that the SHIELD facility that gets wiped out by Loki at the beginning of Avengers is Project Pegasus. Which would have explained a lot at the time if they had said it. Including that long spiral tunnel chase that Hill was doing.) I am pretty sure that Alpha Flight would be a tricky thing for the show to use without cutting into Fox's Wolverine territory. Although there are a few characters they could probably get away with. Maybe Puck? (Quick somebody call Peter Dinklage!)

This was by far the best episode of Agents of SHIELD to date. It's like they finally decided to stop trying to make some sort of 80's action show homage (like something from the days of Knightrider) and decided to go full tilt Marvel Universe Jack Bower. We need more like this. And hopefully it's not to late. Did they fire and replace the entire writing staff when we weren't looking? This really was everything we have been wanting of AoS all along. Real known Marvel characters (even kind of looking like they should. Although the non Xray version of Deathlok had a bit too much going on in the way of blinky lighting. He looked like a '92 Honda from the hood circa 2002.) It had conspiracies and twists and betrayals and secrets. It had glimpses at Marvel Universe stuff (I assume that the bus was landed on a seagoing Helicarrier at the beginning? Or at least that is what was implied?). It had direct relations both to the comics and to the movies. It was littered with Easter Eggs and little misdirection. (I swear the guy in the wheelchair was supposed to make us think MODOK.) This was the show we have been asking for.

 

[Kenjitsuka]

Bob, I need clarification... Is Marvel expecting EVERYONE to see Winter Soldier NOW, so before next week's ep of Agents?
Am I going to be punished for not buying expensive theater tickets right away?

Because that was my fear with this show from day 1... :\

 

[CriticalMiss]

This sounds like an episode they should have shown about 10 episodes ago and chopped out some of the crappy 'filler' episodes. Perhaps if Agents of SHIELD had started airing later so that they could get this tie-in with Cap'n 'Murica without taking breaks they would have had better ratings?

I think I mentioned in an earlier recap that the Clairvoyant was probably just someone with access to SHIELD intel, which it seems like it is going to be the case although I still think it would be cool if it is Ultron masquerading as a nobody for whatever reason.

 

[PuckFuppet]

Shit first season, with continued backing in terms of money, might mean the second season will be totally free of any hint of executive meddling.

We can dream.

 

[CatmanStu]

Bob, I need clarification... Is Marvel expecting EVERYONE to see Winter Soldier NOW, so before next week's ep of Agents?
Am I going to be punished for not buying expensive theater tickets right away?

Because that was my fear with this show from day 1... :\

I watched it today for that very reason (on top of other more fanboyish reasons, anyway) and aside from a possible reveal of the Clairvoyant's origin (if I am putting the pieces together correctly) nothing in the film is necessary for following the current AoS storyline.

As far as Cap 2: TWS; all I can say is if you enjoyed Avengers then it is definitely worth the price of admission. I think it is the best Marvel movie to date.

Bring on the Guardians.

 

[rutger5000]

That woman was screaming "I am a traitor" from the very beginning and her early departure also made it pretty clear that she was going to backstab this episode.

 

[Sniper Team 4]

This was the best episode out of the series to me. Finally started getting answers, or at least clearer questions. A lot of the previous episodes felt like they were just wandering around, and that's not what I want from something that's part of a bigger series. I want things to connect, to build, to feel bigger than what the part really is. This episode did that for me.

I am surprised, and terribly disappointed, that no one in the show jumped on the whole speech of, "They're coming." This implies that CENTIPEDE is actually being controlled by something else, because otherwise it would have been "We're coming." You would think that someone in the room would have caught that, but no.

 

[webkilla]

Welp...

*books a ticket for Winter Soldier for tomorow*

 

[008Zulu_v1legacy]

Yeah this episode hit a ratings low for the series. A big problem I had with it is you could easily give half the series a miss and you would not be lost when it comes to the big picture.

Whedon has always had trouble telling a structured story over a protracted period.

I still like the series. It's good, but not great.

 

[TiberiusEsuriens]

Whedon has always had trouble telling a structured story over a protracted period.

I don't really agree with that. I'd say it is the opposite. The number one reason Whedon's shows are so great is because there is an incredibly extensive amount of world building - to the point where he gets to distracted with the little pieces that he forgets to make them go anywhere. Traditionally the first half of a season determines whether a TV show gets picked up for a second, because they would need all the time during the second half of the season to write #2. Whedon puts so much groundwork in that first half so that it can come to fruition in the second, but by that time it's normally too late.

Some of his series, like Dollhouse, are tightly written and would not do well long term, but I'd attribute that more to him coming to terms with how studios overreact to his writing style. Buffy and Angel collectively have 12 seasons, all intertwined in the same universe. He can totally salvage the first half of SHIELD, because as I like to point out, the first 12 episodes seem boring because they are really just groundwork for a few more seasons of content.

 

[Redd the Sock]

This was easily the best episode to date, and they have been getting better each week. Tell your friends to give it another shot, starting with this episode.

Difficulty: "the best episode to date" is a really low bar. It's basically kind of entertaining, but nothing exceptional by overall TV standards: the characters are still running about two standard deviations down from average IQ, so it doesn't work as a spy show, but at least there are some superpower fights in this one.

And for the developments to make any sense, you have to wade through half a season of episodes that are... well, actively, quantitatively, unarguable outright BAD. Whether that kind of time investment is worth it to enjoy something that's maybe almost as good as a generic mindless action flick is a bit debatable.

Additional difficulty: Skye being a blatant Mary Sue without any skills save informed ones sort of gets kicked up to 11 in this episode, which is REALLY grating. The characters literally take five to six two-minute breaks from actually doing anything to sit around in a circle and lecture the audience about how in a special world of special snowflakes, Skye is definitely the specialest snowflake ever to be special. Not only is this a violation of the "show: don't tell" rule, it's also demonstrably untrue-- Skye only being a liability that puts the rest of the team's lives at risk for nothing is a GOOD day for her, and her pattern recognition magic amounts to a search script from a high school compsci homework assignment... and her 'double-blind' idea is actively bad; if the oracle is psychic it won't matter whether the agents know what's up because he'll read it from Skye (Coulson's the only immune one), if it's future-prediction having the agents unprepared won't help, and if it's standard surveillance/network compromise (which it turns out to be) it won't help because all movements/signals are being monitored in general and the bad guy will be handed an advantage. There is literally no forseeable situation in which her protocol doesn't make the situation worse.

(Actually, I think the character of Skye in general is THE problem with this show, pretty much all of its other writing-related difficulties go back to the whole 'we learned to write protagonists from Twilight' bit.)

They laid it on so thick this week I'm now thinking Skye is the clairvoyant. A hacker with access to SHIELD systems being granted more and more access and trust as the series goes on, perfectly placed to gather data and put together bad plans to keep agents confused and unaware of how they're being played. It would be a brilliant turnaround, almost too good for the show.