Agents of Shield 1x16 & 1x17 Thoughts
Apr. 10th, 2014 10:30 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
iaria1x16 'End of the Beginning'
Overall it was okay but there were a lot of things that annoyed me about this episode.
• I am so glad that May isn't working for Hydra. I was sure it was Fury/Hill she was calling (we'll see) but as the episode went on I was getting worried.
• It seems like the show is going the Ward/Skye route, ugh. So not a fan.
• I like Skye but there was a lot of everyone going 'you're awesome' this ep.
• Wow to Ward killing Nash. That was pretty bad as just Ward killing the Clairvoyant - both as Ward killing a defenseless man and as him eliminating what could be a very important source of information on the bad guys. And then not being at all sorry about doing it. But then you get Coulson's theory that Nash not only wasn't the Clairvoyant but he wasn't even the one speaking to them and now you have Ward pretty much murdering an innocent man. So - wow. Now lets see if this actually gets addressed.
• It was interesting to see Sitwell again considering what happened in The Winter Soldier.
• Fitz's nerves and Skye jumping straight to suspecting May of working for the enemy after discovering her secure line was just weird. Yes, things were tense and Skye suspected a SHIELD traitor but she is one of them so you'd think they'd give her some benefit of the doubt. Coulson even more so considering she's an old friends. I'll give him some leeway considering he came upon her having just shot at Fitz - that looks pretty bad. But he should have been considering the possibility something else was going on.
• I was a little surprised at how Skye wasn't the least bit hesitant when Coulson made her a SHIELD agent. Sure, she loves her team and believe in what they do but she doesn't seem to have that much loyalty/belief in SHIELD itself. I don't know that working for them as an agent would have worked for her. What if they her transferred her?
• Also there was no mention of the SHIELD Academy which seemed a little weird. Wouldn't she have to go for a year or more like everyone else had to?
1x17 'Turn, Turn, Turn'
This was definitely better and the end really has me interested in what's going to happen next.
• Okay, wow. I did not see that coming. Ward is Hydra?! His expression at the end makes me wonder if he's being coerced in some way* but I'm hoping not. There's certainly precedent but I think it'd be a lot more interesting not to do that (which would feel like taking the easy way out, and it's been done so much). Plus it adds so much more weight to have someone on the actual team turn out to be Hydra. Someone we've watched for 17 episodes as a good guy. He can be willingly Hydra and still regret betraying friends. I'm actually really curious to see what happens next, and excited to see the team's reaction, which is not a common feeling for this show.
*I also wondered if perhaps he was playing triple agent but he murdered three SHIELD agents so I rather doubt that.
• I enjoyed the uncertainty of not knowing who was Hydra. It gave the episode some enjoyable tension.
• I was really glad that Hand and Triplett turned out not to be Hydra. It's really too bad that Hand was killed though because I liked her. I wonder if Triplett will be joining the team?
• The Skye/Ward scene was rather eye-rolling for me but that end reveal definitely has me interested in them now.
• I'm enjoying Bill Paxton as Garrett.
• Hand's plan to figure out whether someone was a Hydra agent was really bad. If given the choice to swear allegiance to SHIELD or die you'd think even loyal SHIELD agents would be like 'uh, sure, I'll totally do that' while planning on turning on them as soon as they can. Plus what is Tripett had started shooting people?
• The Coulson/May shake-up was also interesting. She put together the team for Fury to potentially take Coulson down but did it to protect him because she cares for him. Hmm. And now he doesn't really trust her and their friendship is broken but he's forced to relay on her against their enemies. I'm interested in seeing how things play out from here.
• Coulson's refusal to give May any chance at the beginning was annoying. It's like he locked in on to her as being a bad guy and refused to accept anything else. To the point that even though she does tell him she's working for Fury he's still unwilling to believe her. He tells Ward that she is the sleeper not that she might be and keeps her in handcuffs long past the point that it was dumb. Why the hell was Coulson so unwilling to believe her? Mistrust, sure considering the situation but Coulson took it further then the was warranted. Ward does the same thing but - Hydra.
• It especially stuck out when later Coulson realises that Garrett is Hydra and reacts by staring at him in shock, revealing to Garrett that he knows and not once pulling his gun. Uh, WTF?
Overall it was okay but there were a lot of things that annoyed me about this episode.
• I am so glad that May isn't working for Hydra. I was sure it was Fury/Hill she was calling (we'll see) but as the episode went on I was getting worried.
• It seems like the show is going the Ward/Skye route, ugh. So not a fan.
• I like Skye but there was a lot of everyone going 'you're awesome' this ep.
• Wow to Ward killing Nash. That was pretty bad as just Ward killing the Clairvoyant - both as Ward killing a defenseless man and as him eliminating what could be a very important source of information on the bad guys. And then not being at all sorry about doing it. But then you get Coulson's theory that Nash not only wasn't the Clairvoyant but he wasn't even the one speaking to them and now you have Ward pretty much murdering an innocent man. So - wow. Now lets see if this actually gets addressed.
• It was interesting to see Sitwell again considering what happened in The Winter Soldier.
• Fitz's nerves and Skye jumping straight to suspecting May of working for the enemy after discovering her secure line was just weird. Yes, things were tense and Skye suspected a SHIELD traitor but she is one of them so you'd think they'd give her some benefit of the doubt. Coulson even more so considering she's an old friends. I'll give him some leeway considering he came upon her having just shot at Fitz - that looks pretty bad. But he should have been considering the possibility something else was going on.
• I was a little surprised at how Skye wasn't the least bit hesitant when Coulson made her a SHIELD agent. Sure, she loves her team and believe in what they do but she doesn't seem to have that much loyalty/belief in SHIELD itself. I don't know that working for them as an agent would have worked for her. What if they her transferred her?
• Also there was no mention of the SHIELD Academy which seemed a little weird. Wouldn't she have to go for a year or more like everyone else had to?
1x17 'Turn, Turn, Turn'
This was definitely better and the end really has me interested in what's going to happen next.
• Okay, wow. I did not see that coming. Ward is Hydra?! His expression at the end makes me wonder if he's being coerced in some way* but I'm hoping not. There's certainly precedent but I think it'd be a lot more interesting not to do that (which would feel like taking the easy way out, and it's been done so much). Plus it adds so much more weight to have someone on the actual team turn out to be Hydra. Someone we've watched for 17 episodes as a good guy. He can be willingly Hydra and still regret betraying friends. I'm actually really curious to see what happens next, and excited to see the team's reaction, which is not a common feeling for this show.
*I also wondered if perhaps he was playing triple agent but he murdered three SHIELD agents so I rather doubt that.
• I enjoyed the uncertainty of not knowing who was Hydra. It gave the episode some enjoyable tension.
• I was really glad that Hand and Triplett turned out not to be Hydra. It's really too bad that Hand was killed though because I liked her. I wonder if Triplett will be joining the team?
• The Skye/Ward scene was rather eye-rolling for me but that end reveal definitely has me interested in them now.
• I'm enjoying Bill Paxton as Garrett.
• Hand's plan to figure out whether someone was a Hydra agent was really bad. If given the choice to swear allegiance to SHIELD or die you'd think even loyal SHIELD agents would be like 'uh, sure, I'll totally do that' while planning on turning on them as soon as they can. Plus what is Tripett had started shooting people?
• The Coulson/May shake-up was also interesting. She put together the team for Fury to potentially take Coulson down but did it to protect him because she cares for him. Hmm. And now he doesn't really trust her and their friendship is broken but he's forced to relay on her against their enemies. I'm interested in seeing how things play out from here.
• Coulson's refusal to give May any chance at the beginning was annoying. It's like he locked in on to her as being a bad guy and refused to accept anything else. To the point that even though she does tell him she's working for Fury he's still unwilling to believe her. He tells Ward that she is the sleeper not that she might be and keeps her in handcuffs long past the point that it was dumb. Why the hell was Coulson so unwilling to believe her? Mistrust, sure considering the situation but Coulson took it further then the was warranted. Ward does the same thing but - Hydra.
• It especially stuck out when later Coulson realises that Garrett is Hydra and reacts by staring at him in shock, revealing to Garrett that he knows and not once pulling his gun. Uh, WTF?
