AGENTS OF SHIELD Season 3 Episode 5: Plenty of Otherworldly Questions



This particular post was a bit difficult for me to write because I usually write about all the separate threads that go on in an episode and what they might mean for the overall story of the season. But this episode was different. From the lack of a title screen to nearly the entire episode being about only a few characters, “4722 Hours” was certainly out of the norm for AGENTS OF SHIELD.

Last week I said I hoped that the entire episode wouldn’t be about Simmons’ time on the planet. Well, I was clearly wrong, but after watching the episode and thinking on it... I really didn’t mind. Elizabeth Henstridge was amazing and carried the whole episode with ease. I was really quite impressed. Of all the characters on AGENTS OF SHIELD, none have come further than Fitz and Simmons and this episode showcased this perfectly.

Unfortunately, we didn’t really learn all that much about the planet itself. We learned that there is barely any sun and that the planet as mood swings which coincide with some creature that’s been hunting anyone who steps onto the planet. But we didn’t really learn anything else. Considering we spent so much time on there it would have been nice to get some a little more info.

The biggest thing we learned was why Gemma wanted to go back to the planet. It turned out she wasn’t alone. There was an astronaut there from 2001. He was part of a crew of four, who had been whittled down to just him over the course of fourteen years. It was interesting to learn NASA had originally owned the monolith before it fell into SHIELD hands.

We also got little hints at the people who had been there before. The stuff Gemma found from the English soldier was a nice touch. It was also what kicked off their possible escape route.

The biggest problem this episode suffered from was predictability. It was clear the plan to reach the portal wouldn’t work and sending the bottle couldn’t work either. Though if the portal went off at some point during her stay, it makes me wonder why Fitz and crew hadn’t noticed it beforehand.

The romance blooming between Simmons and Will was also easy to see coming, too. That said, it didn’t feel unearned by either of the characters. One can only hold off isolation for so long. Though I can only imagine Fitz’s devastation when learning the woman he risked Hell for has fallen in love with someone else. Despite that, he was still willing to help her find a way to get Will back.

Still, I have to wonder what all of this has to do with the larger scheme of things. Will the alien also find a way back through the portal? Does the planet have to do with the Inhumans since the monolith is an artifact of theirs? I’m just hoping that we’ll soon see how Simmons storyline ties into the season’s arc instead of just being a character arc.

Written by Peter Freeman, AGENTS OF SHIELD Beat Writer