This was a bit of a strange episode for AGENTS OF SHIELD. Much like 'Watchdogs' before this, they kind of broke format and took on a more serious approach to things. If nothing else, this episode asked “is our future set in stone?”
It’s always interesting to see how shows deal with time travel differently. Each one has its own rules and the writers have to be very careful about establishing and then following them. For example, on THE FLASH, time is something that can be changed. Barry Allen has changed the future a number of times by returning to the past and doing what he can to prevent tragedy. On Doctor Who, there are no rules, and time is constantly in flux and can be changed; except when it can’t be.
On AGENTS OF SHIELD, they decided to go with the theory that the future is always set. Everyone is on a predetermined path and there is no getting around it. Try and hard as you might, but time will find a way to get what it wants. Or so we think. Because this week we dealt with an Inhuman who gives everyone he touches visions of their future, mostly leading to the death of someone.
But the visions are up for interpretation. Daisy thought Coulson was there to shoot her, or that Lincoln was killed because he had blood all over his face. But neither of these were exactly true, so it gives the writers some wiggle room with what Daisy saw at the very end of the episode. We were given another glimpse, or rather the same glimpse, of the scene set in space where a SHIELD agent is in a ship (the quinjet?) and blows up.
Are we supposed to assume that’s Daisy? Or that she’s on the ship with whomever is going to die, watching them explode as she escapes? It felt a little gimmicky to show us the exact same clip, because it doesn’t really add anything to the mystery. We didn’t get any new questions or any answers to what’s going on. We’ve only got two months or so of episodes left, so we need to start ramping up the end of the story.
As is, the entire 'Watchdog' storyline was put on hold for this episode. It doesn’t seem like we’re picking it up next week either, so I have to wonder what direction the rest of the season is going to take. Are we focusing exclusively on Hive for the rest of the season? I’d be okay with that as long as there is some explanation as to why the Watchdogs are being left alone for the moment.
Speaking of Hive, the man himself finally left that god forsaken chamber and went above ground. His mission? To show Gideon what true power felt like. It was interesting that they went to the same company that helped create Coulson’s new hand, and perhaps that was intentional, thematically speaking. Hive still has the hand and retains the memories of Grant Ward, so perhaps he feels compelled to avenge Ward in some way.
Either way, it was nice to see him actually do something. Using his powers to give us what was probably the goriest scene in the show’s history was a nice touch. I just wish I knew what his ultimate goal was. He just seems to be meandering, giving off speeches about fear and power like some odd Voldemort knockoff (the costume doesn’t help). But the fact that Coulson and company know he’s back is a nice touch. It finally brings our characters up to speed with the audience and that means things can start moving forward.
My only gripe with this whole episode was the Andrew / Lash stuff. It was like the writers felt like they couldn’t think of a good enough reason to keep May from going on the mission, so they had Andrew appear out of nowhere. It kind of negated all the effort May and Simmons put into finding him last week and the earlier scenes this week. Why do any of that if you were just going to have to him show up on their front door? It felt lazy.
Because Andrew had been done for so long, the emotional stuff between him and May didn’t really land either. It felt a little boring, like we were going through the motions. I think that’s because we never really got to know them as a couple. We were introduced to Andrew after he and May had separated and never really got to see them happy. So the crumbling of their relationship didn’t exactly land.
The idea that Lash is now driven by some prophetic reasoning makes me think he’ll be used in the fight against Hive or something like that. It’s a bit much, considering none of this was a part of his character to begin with. But for now it’s best to take a wait and see approach.
Written by Peter Freeman, TV & Animation Writer -- Click here to read Peter's posts
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