Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D. is finally starting to show more internal continuity, and there was actually a pretty engaging set of moments at the end… just in time for the show to go off the air for a month. Coulson, your timing can be terrible.
This episode brings a lot of plot threads together: Centipede rescues some guy we saw in a stinger a few episodes back, who turns out to be a mildly fussy military strategist who we know is a Bad Man because he’s in jail. The episode glosses over why he’s in jail, precisely: See under Man, Bad. His job is apparently both to help Centipede get ahead of S.H.I.E.L.D. and to figure out who they need for “Phase Three” of their super-soldier project.
In response, Coulson brings in Mike Peterson, who you might remember as Not-Luke Cage from the pilot. Peterson has, apparently, got the Centipede McGuffin permanently grafted to his arm, so S.H.I.E.L.D. is training him for field work. He’s also got some issues from going on a rampage and nearly exploding. After a fight with Centipede’s super soldiers, and yes, we actually see some meaningful superpowers in this episode, Mike’s son Ace is used as a bargaining chip.
Turns out, in the end, that Centipede wants Coulson. Specifically, they want to know what happened to him after he died and came back to life. Aaaaaand then the episode ends.
There are a few frustrations here, like the fact that this episode is full of holes. Our heroes blunder into an obvious trap revealed when one of the bad guys moronically doesn’t set his cell phone to vibrate. You also have to wonder why they’re screwing around with night-night guns and rebar when they know they’re raiding a supersoldier facility. And, for that matter, why Peterson doesn’t lay the whole thing out for the team instead of betraying them and trying to improvise in the finale.
All that said, this is the first episode that genuinely makes me curious for the next one. The show comes back to sate that curiosity January 7th.
Some more thoughts:
- Ward and May are becoming more entertaining as a couple, although May actually has a point. Even if Ward’s comeback was funnier.
- Everybody seems to take a level in badass early next year, if the promo they ran was any indication.
- Not to harp on the plot holes, but why didn’t they just blow up the facility? If there were no life signs, and it was an abandoned warehouse in Oakland, it’s not like it’d be a problem.
- I seriously doubt Mike Peterson is dead for good.
- OK, one more plot hole: S.H.I.E.L.D. agents do no recon? Whatsoever? Centipede had a helicopter handy, for crying out loud!
Any thoughts? Let us know in the comments!
