Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. is a television show on ABC that takes place in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The show focuses on Agent (or should I say Director) Coulson and his team of S.H.I.E.L.D. agents as they solve mysteries, fight bad guys, and save the world from threats they wont know about. We're on season 2 now, and it's mainly dealing with the fallout from season 1 (spoilers), where Hydra has resurfaced, S.H.I.E.L.D. has fallen, and many of the main characters still dealing with the effects of their fight with John Garret.
I wasn't really a huge fan of season 1. It had a few good episodes here and there, but there were a lot of missteps and failures, mostly at the start and end of the season. However, I gave season 2 the chance to recapture my interest by giving it at least the first three episodes, and now we're only two episodes in, and I really want to talk about it.
I am sure as hell glad I gave it another chance, because those were a really enjoyable 80 minutes. The past two episodes really made me feel like the writers took a step back, reviewed their work, and identified all the weaknesses, storytelling wise, they need to improve upon.
One thing it really improved upon is its utilization. Now, they're actually utilizing their characters and time to a great capacity, or at least, better than last season. I'll start with the time first, because I have lots to say about the characters. The pacing has gotten really better, i.e. there's no filler. The first episode was quick to establish where our characters were at after a few months, introduce new characters, and what's probably going to be the plotline that'll thread these next few episodes together (original 0-8-4 plotline), and after that, it's character interaction and an exciting mission that carried form the first episode to the second. I'm just glad they didn't decide to make "S.H.I.E.L.D. vs Hydra" the main plotline of these first few episodes, because I'm seriously fatigued with that story. I mean, there's some major elements of that in the first two episodes, but I never saw it as the main focus of the episodes. I'm also glad that it looks like it won't be going back to "case of the week" episodes for awhile, because this show has loads of potential, it'd be a shame to see it be wasted on "Let's solve this week's mystery!" types of episodes.
Two episodes in, so... how am I liking the characters? As I said above, I think they're being used better. I still absolutely love Coulson's character, and I think making him Director of the new S.H.I.E.L.D. is an interesting turn for the character, and I'm excited to see it pay off in future episodes. Seeing him grow from that fun and badass (in a way) field agent to the troubled boss/caretaker with responsibilities will be really interesting. As I said, the potential is there, they just need to execute it correctly. I like Coulson's chemistry with Agent May (one of the few bright spots of season 1). I like that they go back and forth on who is the caretaker of who, and that scene towards the end of episode 2... really chilling stuff. The main draw to Skye this season will probably be her relationship with Ward (who is absent from episode 2) and when she realizes her dad is alive (and what is up with his hands??), so I can't wait for that to happen and I'm gushing over the possibilities there. Lance Hunter is definitely a great addition to this merry bunch of agents we got. He's only been in two episodes, and I can tell he's gonna be one of my favorite characters. His dialogue is good and so is his character. I like a wildcard, someone who may or may not ditch the team at any time, someone who can end up backstabbing them for money, who knows what this guy will end up doing. He's a wildcard, but it's evident that he still has honor and is loyal to those people that he trusts, so he's not totally irredeemable. I also really hope they give Agent Trip a bigger role this season, because he made some parts of the last few episodes of last season bearable.
You probably noticed I wasn't mentioning one key character, well... I decided to dedicate a whole paragraph to him (or... them). Oh, FitzSimmons, you're breaking my heart. I think it's worth noting that I wasn't a fan that they kept teasing us that either Fitz/Simmons was going to die. Well, now I'm convinced that keeping both of them alive was a pretty good move for the series. Huge props to Ian DeCaestecker for his performance so far. Fitz is on the edge of a mental breakdown, and to get the audience' sympathy, DeCaestecker's performance isn't the flashy "come on, feel sad for me". It's really subtle in the twitches of his hand, the expressions on his face, and the pauses in between dialogue that really make you sort of feel bad for the guy, that's only sort of... and then they decide to drop this huge (figurative) bomb on us by telling us that Simmons has only been a figment of his imagination these past few months, and she's off joining Hydr-- wait, we don't know that yet. Calm down. Point is, Fitz has been the heart of the past two episodes, and it really, really brought the show up. Just makes you want to jump into the screen and give him a hug.
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| Solid work out session |
The Absorbing Man was pretty much great. They didn't need to give him this whole backstory that would make you sympathize with him, nope, they basically threw him in with all these characters and well, it really worked out for the best, because he came off as a huge obstacle in our agent's way, and that really is all I can ask for from a minor villain. That way of writing minor villains into the story wasn't there in season 1, that's why we spent time with some pretty boring and some unintimidating villains such as Deathlok, Blizzard, Blackout, and... well, a floating ball of goop that was teased to be Graviton but never actually coming to fruition. Anyways, the antagonists that they're setting up (Whitehall and Skye's dad) look to be interesting, so I hope it delivers.
I really enjoyed these past two episodes, and I'm really hoping it continues through to the next episode, which, by the way, looks great. Simmons possibly in Hydra? Sign me up. These next eight episodes are a real make or break it moment for the agents. Let's just hope it turns out well.
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