S02.E10: What They Become

[Texasmom1970]

Saying he wanted to have cookies and flowers at their first meeting - gotta love crazy Kyle Maclachlan as Skye's crazy daddy. He is perfectly nuts in his role.

So will Ward be over his creepy Skye infatuation now that she blasted him four times, we can hope. Fitz seemed a little better episode I hope this improvement continues.

[kennyab]

She's still my least favorite female character, but at least now she only holds that place because of how much I love May, Simmons and now Bobbi and not because I think she's just The Worst.

 

They unBritta-ed Skye!

[thuganomics85]

 

Skye definitely should have finished Ward off.  He's a sociopath, I am pretty sure her shooting him 4 times is just going to amp UP his obsession of her.

Yeah, knowing Ward, I can see him somehow reaching a "Shot me four times?  She really love me!" conclusion, after these events.  I kind of hope that happens.  It would be kind of amusing, seeing him continue to talk wistfully about her, while Agent 33 rolls her eyes.  Because, if nothing else, I do like watching Ming Na's annoyed reactions shots.

 

Of course, I hope realizes now that, getting in a relationship with Skye now means you know how to deal with Cal, who is probably up there with Arrow's Malcolm Merlyn as the world's worst overprotective dad.  Which means, I so want that to happen. I would love to see Cal go crazy on Ward..

[sinkwriter]

 

Kyle Maclachlan was awesome and I hope he stays around for a while.  He's hilariously over-the-top and entertaining and I was rooting for him against Coulson.

 

I was rooting for Coulson during the physical fight between them (I like Coulson), but I did root for Cal to be able to kill Whitehall. If anyone deserved that kind of revenge, it was him. I felt so bad for him when Coulson killed Whitehall. And I loved that follow-up humor that broke the tension... "You're... welcome?" LOL.

 

I'm so happy to see Mac might still be saved. I really liked his friendship with Fitz. Maybe the two of them can commiserate and be "damaged" together, and Fitz can help and be there for Mac like Mac has done for Fitz. I think that would be really lovely to see, the continuation of their friendship and a change in the dynamic after what Mac has been through. I wonder if he was conscious "inside" as whatever overtook him had control of his mind and body. That would be terrifying.

[APSimpson]

BTW did you notice how many times they said "copy that" in this episode? I like it, and I'm starting to say it a lot myself. It's really a great form of acknowledgment.

 

Will you take out the garbage?

Copy that.

 

Will you mow the lawn?
Copy that.

 

Change the light bulb?

Copy that.

 

You get the idea. I can thank this show for adding to the stuff I say on a daily basis. 

[Kromm]

ITA. Thank you. From a Canadian viewpoint, your country's obsession with race and racial politics in your entertainment is, at best, odd.

U.S. concerns about race is often a poison pill, it's true. When you don't keep a sharp eye on it, there's inequality, and when you do, there's self-fulfilling prophecy, because the very act of monitoring it so closely creates tension.

That said, there are probably people in your own nation (First Nations, maybe?) who wish Canadian society thought a bit more about race. Because there's no such thing as an integrated society where there aren't racial tensions--the places that try and pretend that's they're "post racial"--are usually ones where the problems are simply stuffed a bit further down (I remember a whole debate a few years ago I had with an Aussie who insisted there's no such thing as racism in Australia--a country which has almost as bad a history of maltreating their natives as the U.S.does, and which for generations had a policy called the "White Australia Policy", and who currently have a boat person policy--the so-called "Pacific Solution"--that makes the U.S.' boat person policy look like a shiny example of justice by comparison).

[Kromm]

Oh, I really, really hope so. I know that Adrienne Palecki is just a quest star technically, but I really like what Bobbie adds to the team, so watching her act all sketchy got me so, so worried. I was actually thinking that she was secretly working for Fury, keeping an eye on the team (and Coulson) because that wouldn't be as bad as her still with Hydra or working for someone else equally evil.

The reason people were upset by her initial intro to the show, you may recall, was even the THOUGHT of Mockingbird being a baddie.  They're not going to undo the work they did to prove to us she wasn't.  But her working for FURY?  That makes sense (and is completely in line with the comic book portrayals of both Bobbi Morse AND Nick Fury).

[jhlipton]

Skye stabbing Hydra Redshirt with obelisk was creative.

I would have loved to have her throw it to Whitehall -- "Here, catch!" Would he think to duck or would he do the normal thing of putting his hands up... to be stonified!

 

 

Crazy Daddy: WHAT DID YOU DO?

Coulson: ...sorry?

I can't believe we have to wait until March. Agent Carter looks good in the meantime, I guess.

Even better, he said "Your welcome?" (which was a repeat of a previous take-down, I think).

I guess I'm the one who's not excited about fugly WW2 make-up and fugly WW2 costumes and Nazis (ho-hum). I'll be watching Empire, thanks.

 

 

this show shouldn't have to have a quota for black people.

But it looks like they have a quota, and that's the problem. (Also, see the discussion above)

[Kromm]

Okay, if Cal is Calvin Zabo, why again is Skye "Daisy Johnson"?  I mean in the comics there wasn't an issue because she was seemingly raised under that name.  But here, with "Skye" name in the middle, what's the exact sequence here? Are we going to have some nonsense maybe that Cal and the mother weren't married, and the mother was named Johnson?  I doubt it, since they made a point that she was native Chinese.  So are we stuck with Skye being "Daisy Zabo"?  Yuck!

 

Actually, damnit, what ever WAS Skye's last name before this?  She's credited just as "Skye" everywhere.  Last I checked, orrphages (remember she was supposedly left in one) give them out, even if they pick the names out of a hat.  Could she have been "Skye Johnson" all along and they just never said it onscreen?  Damnit, they must have said her supposed surname at SOME point, and "Johnson" is the kind of generic sounding name an orphanage might use.

 

EDIT - Someone pointed out to me elsewhere that Skye's "real name" from the orphanage was explained as "Mary Sue Poots".  So she's either "Daisy Zabo" or "Daisy Poots", and "Johnson" is nowhere to be found.

Edited December 11, 2014 by Kromm

[Miles]

Didn't Sky say at some point (over and over again) that she wanted Ward dead? So either she still secretly likes him or she is incompetent. One option more nausiating than the other. God I wish she would become a better character, but every time I have hope the writers dash it.

Also really lame that Sky looks exactly the same after her "transformation". I hope the reason was that it would have been too much of a hassle to put a main character in heavy makeup every day and not that we can't have anything change our special Sky's angelic looks. *hurl*

Other than that, very good and enjoyable episode. Still don't get why the city would attack Coulson, when he has that special blood and was led to it though. Maybe he has to have held the deviner once?

Btw. do we still have some of the Kree blood lying around? Now that we can just show a plan of the city to patients it doesn't have any downside, does it?

[Sarahastro]

Btw. do we still have some of the Kree blood lying around? Now that we can just show a plan of the city to patients it doesn't have any downside, does it?

I had the same thought. The only Kree we know about was blown up in the Guest House when Coulson and crew broke in. But if they get ahold of another, they can start bringing people back from the dead again! This is why I hate when they bring people back from the dead. If you do it once, you have to have a good explanation for why you can't just bring everyone back to life.

[shapeshifter]

Always take the head shot Skye.

But that would mar his pretty face! Seriously, a non-lethal head shot would have been more pay back for what happened to Fitz. As it is, he goes off with the damaged clone of his former lover. That's got to be weird for him.

[Raja]

Didn't Sky say at some point (over and over again) that she wanted Ward dead? So either she still secretly likes him or she is incompetent. One option more nausiating than the other. God I wish she would become a better character, but every time I have hope the writers dash it.

Or SHIELD handguns seemed to have no problem defeating Hydra body armor until this very moment. I guess May just didn't have teaching time to switch from shooting center of mass to take the head shot.

[shrewd.buddha]

How are they going to keep wedging Ward in?

It seems that TPTB are intent on keeping their core cast around -- unless they announce some major shake-up. But having Ward pop up every episode is going to make the show feel like Road Runner and Coyote -- the villain being a constant thorn in their side that they can never really get rid of ... and eventually start to think of as a frenemy.

 

A lot of other shows have had this problem - Heroes, Nikita, Tomorrow People, and Alias come to mind..  When shows fall in love with certain villain characters (or actors) and can't bring themselves to get rid of them, I think it sort of puts the series into a type of category. But for a comic book, the villain that never goes away is pretty much a requirement -- but they don't show up in every issue.

[Sakura12]

Skye's not a cold blooded killer (she apologized for not killing her psycho father she just met). So even if she says she wants to kill him, that doesn't mean she can actually do it. Also like Raja said anyone trained in law enforcement is trained to shoot for the largest center of mass, which is the chest area. 

 

As it is, he goes off with the damaged clone of his former lover. That's got to be weird for him.

 

Being that Ward's crazypants I don't think that'll register much with him.

 

I'm happy that Ming Na will get more to do playing double roles. And for some reason she looks even younger playing Agent 33. Gotta love being Asian and our secret to aging slower than normal. lol

Edited December 11, 2014 by Sakura12

[Raja]

I had the same thought. The only Kree we know about was blown up in the Guest House when Coulson and crew broke in. But if they get ahold of another, they can start bringing people back from the dead again! This is why I hate when they bring people back from the dead. If you do it once, you have to have a good explanation for why you can't just bring everyone back to life.

this is where the integrated universe comes in. SHIELD/Hydra might have limited knowledge but we know from The Avengers and Guardians of the Galaxy that aliens are amongst us and that we are fertile together

[Malbec]

I'm so happy to see Mac might still be saved. I really liked his friendship with Fitz. Maybe the two of them can commiserate and be "damaged" together, and Fitz can help and be there for Mac like Mac has done for Fitz. I think that would be really lovely to see, the continuation of their friendship and a change in the dynamic after what Mac has been through. I wonder if he was conscious "inside" as whatever overtook him had control of his mind and body. That would be terrifying.

 

I am really, really hoping this is where they go with this.  It would be a wonderful reversal for both characters, and the actors have a really nice chemistry and could really pull it off well I think. And also, while I adore Fitzsimmons and I was pleased greatly to see them interacting again in this episode, I think it would be a nice change-up for Fitz. 

 

Mack did seem to have a little bit of himself when he was possessed.  He warned the team to run, and he seemed to hesitate about attacking Fitz.  Poor guy :/

[Raja]

Or maybe Mac is an Inhuman also. Since he was the only one really bugging about the alien blood and Director Coulson it could be the Law and Order twist

[ChelseaNH]

I can see him somehow reaching a "Shot me four times?  She really love me!" conclusion

 

"When I woke alive, I knew she still loved me. Otherwise it would have been the head."

 

Not that Skye is anywhere near as badass as Victoria.  (The Helen Mirren factor would have a little something to do with that.)

[mybabyaidan]

I think in any "normal" circumstance, 4 shots in the chest would almost definitely be fatal.  She had no idea 2-3 of those shots hit that shield thing...(Body armor, ipad??).  I really think she was shooting to kill.

[Traveller519]

I hope we don't have a complete return to Fitz and Simmons being pre-Ward incident following this episode. I was very glad they managed to work together on this one, and there were glimmers of repaired friendship. But they were both far more interesting this season acting on their own, whether it was recovery Fitz working with Mack, or Undercover Jemma and her cozying up to everybody else, and dressing down a bit.

[Jack Kerouac]

I hope we don't have a complete return to Fitz and Simmons being pre-Ward incident following this episode. I was very glad they managed to work together on this one, and there were glimmers of repaired friendship. But they were both far more interesting this season acting on their own, whether it was recovery Fitz working with Mack, or Undercover Jemma and her cozying up to everybody else, and dressing down a bit.

 

I'm really torn about this. I agree that they had more to do so far this season, but I really like them together. I think they both need outside friends. Mac for Fitz and Bobbi for Simmons. Also, they need to get Fitz a girlfriend (Simmons or someone else).

[Sarahastro]

It seems that TPTB are intent on keeping their core cast around -- unless they announce some major shake-up. But having Ward pop up every episode is going to make the show feel like Road Runner and Coyote -- the villain being a constant thorn in their side that they can never really get rid of ... and eventually start to think of as a frenemy.

 

A lot of other shows have had this problem - Heroes, Nikita, Tomorrow People, and Alias come to mind..  When shows fall in love with certain villain characters (or actors) and can't bring themselves to get rid of them, I think it sort of puts the series into a type of category. But for a comic book, the villain that never goes away is pretty much a requirement -- but they don't show up in every issue.

 

These writers seem to love their villains, and so do I, but they really need to trim them down. Right now we have Ward, Agent 33, Bakshi (unclear if he's dead or in a coma or what, but it looked to me like he was still alive), Skye Daddy, and Raina, plus Hydra is still out there as an amorphous evil that will probably be spawning another bad guy. And now they've introduced No Eyes Guy, who I'm assuming will be another villain. How are they going to keep working them all in?

[Kromm]

And now they've introduced No Eyes Guy, who I'm assuming will be another villain. How are they going to keep working them all in?

The best guess of who that guy is that I've seen: (warning: if it's even in the neighborhood, the details seem VERY spoilery about what the character might be doing here) -- http://comicbook.com/2014/12/10/agents-of-s-h-i-e-l-d-is-the-character-in-the-midseason-finales-/

[redfish]

Regardless of what happened to Tripp, I think its bull that the interwebs are all crying foul for, to paraphrase, killing a black guy. This country's obsession with race is a disease and I don't want it infecting my favorite show. I like(d) Tripp, but this show shouldn't have to have a quota for black people nor should they be prevented from killing a character because of race.

 

ITA. Thank you. From a Canadian viewpoint, your country's obsession with race and racial politics in your entertainment is, at best, odd.

 

I think it's all a matter of perspective. Everyone comes into things with their experiences. The "minorities are expendable" trope is something that has historically existed on tv and in films (and arguably in real life). There is nothing wrong with pointing that out and if you think you see it on a show you like.  Entertainment doesn't exist on an island, away from the rest of society.  "Obsession with race" ?

 

Also to consider that for the second year in a row since their last mid-season finale last year, another black guy was used as a sacrifice. Before Mike Peterson became Deathlok he seemed to be aiming towards being an agent with some supersoldier-like abilities only to be taken away (not in a good way IMO) and make it looked at first like he was killed. So. . . Yeah I agree I think it's a bit of a big deal too.

Edited December 11, 2014 by redfish

[jhlipton]

A lot of other shows have had this problem - Heroes

 

Oh, god, Skyler.  He was done the first season, but nooooooooooooooo, they had to keep bringing him back.  Gah.

[Sandman]

It seems like he might have enhanced strength (or maybe Coulson is just easy to beat up)

 

Ha-haa! [/Nelson Muntz]

 

Judging by the gory smears that were all that was left behind of his victims in one of Crazy Cal's earlier appearances, I was prepared to believe that his strength is beyond human norms -- it seemed, if not precisely on the Hulk's level, more than one scalpel-wielding psycho doc ought to be able to manage on his own, no matter how wrong they get his daughter's name.

Edited December 12, 2014 by Sandman

[JayKay]

Of course, I hope realizes now that, getting in a relationship with Skye now means you know how to deal with Cal, who is probably up there with Arrow's Malcolm Merlyn as the world's worst overprotective dad. Which means, I so want that to happen. I would love to see Cal go crazy on Ward..

That would be great. I was hoping that Simmons would get to meet Cal and sic him on Ward. She'd be so down for giving him a laundry list of everything that Ward has done to Skye. Oh well.

[Jeezaloo]

I really think she was shooting to kill.

Yeah, me too. I just don't think she wanted him to die particularly quickly, considering what a lethal monster Ward is. I'm sure her own gut shots are still fresh in her mind, and maybe she was returning the favor to HYDRA or its nearest reasonable facsimile.

 

I also got the impression Skye wasn't all that concerned with exactly where the bullets ended up, as long as she put enough holes in Ward to get the job done. She had more important things to do than wait around to see how long it would take him to die.

 

But yeah, a head shot would've been more efficient. Skye's still a little green as an agent and she's letting her pursuit of her father cloud her priorities. Seems pretty in-character to me. Also seems like there'll be an ugly lesson for Skye down the road as a result of not definitively putting Ward down when she had the chance.

 

[sinkwriter]

 

Judging by the gory smears that were all that was left behind of his victims in one of Crazy Cal's earlier appearances, I was prepared to believe that his strength is beyond human norms

 

Am I remembering incorrectly... back when they were hinting at Skye's father, and they showed only parts of him in a scene and we just heard his voice, I thought they showed his hand and it looked monster-like. Every time Skye said she thought her father was a monster, I remember back to that moment when we saw his grotesque hand and I thought, "Yeah, Skye, your father probably is a monster, literally." Which would explain his inhuman strength, I'd say. But am I imagining that? I could have sworn there was something about his hand. It was right before or right after he killed those men.

[Chaos Theory]

First off I never hated Skye.  I thought the writing of her was unfortunate in a lot of ways that many people find annoying.  I made my opinion on Skye and people calling her a "Special Snowflake" on her character board so I won't put it here.   I do think however that the writing of her character has improved greatly over time.   Maybe that has a lot to do with the fact that her story arc has improved from her just being a "wow are their really......" to someone who actually knows what is going on in the universe she is living in.   Plus watching her shoot Ward was fun.  I never was a shipper between the two of them but I am actually warming up to the idea of them as kind of a weird pairing....bot ship per say but as something else.  An Anti-Ship if you want.  Plus I anti lovydony but I do love animosity.  I find that intriguing.  

 

I am not a comic book reader (uhhhh graphic novels?) so I have no idea who Daisy is so the whole idea of this universe is new to me and it has me fascinated.  I am intrigued by her and her promise for the universe.  

[Miles]

Or SHIELD handguns seemed to have no problem defeating Hydra body armor until this very moment. I guess May just didn't have teaching time to switch from shooting center of mass to take the head shot.

Thing is that Sky is supposed to be a computer- hacker- nerd- type. She should be genre savy enough to know that you don't leave your enemies for dead. You make damn sure that they are in fact dead. Since the gun wasn't empty after the 4 shots to the side, that would have meant a nice head shot.

Also how badass would it have been if she had followed up her "never turn your back on an enemy"-line with a head shot? I think that would have brought me around on her character. Like it is now, I'm just annoyed again.

 

Also to consider that for the second year in a row since their last mid-season finale last year, another black guy was used as a sacrifice. Before Mike Peterson became Deathlok he seemed to be aiming towards being an agent with some supersoldier-like abilities only to be taken away (not in a good way IMO) and make it looked at first like he was killed. So. . . Yeah I agree I think it's a bit of a big deal too.

Well last season finale we had agent Hand, who is very not black and that was a pretty big deal, too. Remember, these are the Whedons running the show. Sooner or later everybody will be dead. Don't worry. ;)

 

Oh, god, Skyler. He was done the first season, but nooooooooooooooo, they had to keep bringing him back. Gah.

That goes even more so for Peter Petrelli. He was super overpowered which is why it was originally planned that he would die together with Skylar in the finale. But nooooo they couldn't even let the most annoying character of the whole cast die. With Skylar I can at least understand how it's hard to let him go, but Peter, really?! Edited December 12, 2014 by Miles

[APSimpson]

Okay, if Cal is Calvin Zabo, why again is Skye "Daisy Johnson"?

 

I've been thinking a lot about this myself. I'm not familiar with the comics, so I don't know any Quake origin stuff, but I asked the question about the Johnson last name and someone said Johnson is the last name of Quake's mother. I don't know if that necessarily applies to this version of Quake, but who knows. Is Johnson the last name of Daisy's Chinese mom? Or a foster parent? Will they contrive some reason for her having the last name Johnson? Or will they side-step the whole thing? And, will the team now call her Daisy or continue to call her Skye? Should be interesting.

 

I love the name, though. Daisy Johnson has a nice ring to it.

[Kromm]

I've been thinking a lot about this myself. I'm not familiar with the comics, so I don't know any Quake origin stuff, but I asked the question about the Johnson last name and someone said Johnson is the last name of Quake's mother. I don't know if that necessarily applies to this version of Quake, but who knows. Is Johnson the last name of Daisy's Chinese mom? Or a foster parent? Will they contrive some reason for her having the last name Johnson? Or will they side-step the whole thing? And, will the team now call her Daisy or continue to call her Skye? Should be interesting.

 

I love the name, though. Daisy Johnson has a nice ring to it.

This version isn't the same as the comics. In the comics it seems that Daisy isn't an orphan per se. She's the daughter of a prostitute (apparently named Kim Johnson) and Zabo is a John. Although I was wrong that she was raised under that name. Apparently the story goes that she was born Daisy Johnson, put up for adoption, had her named changed to "Cory Sutter" (so... no "Mary Sue Poots") but then after she gained her powers Nick Fury informed her of her real name and background.

The confusing thing here is that her mother in this TV version is said to be a Chinese national (so not JUST ethnically Chinese but also a resident), but we also know she's an Inhuman. Neither which seems conducive to the surname "Johnson".

[I Love Me]

I wonder if for budget reasons Raina will be able to shift between her furry and human self.

 

In the comics Tigra wasn't able to change back and forth until she received that amulet thing.

 

What I don't get is why is Skye's power earthquake based? Just because they shoehorned the name Daisy Johnson from the Marvel series onto her so that they can match the power up is not a good enough reason.

 

Daisy Johnson has the ability to control/create seismic waves.  Skye is Daisy Johnson (the produces have confirmed this episode was MCU's origin story for Daisy Johnson).  Why Daisy was originally written with those powers, only her creator knows.  Not sure why Magneto was written to control metal.  Not like his birth name is Magneto.  He got the nickname after his powers came into play.  Daisy was the same.  She didn't start going by Quake until after her power manifested.  In fact, none of the superheroes' birth names line up with their powers/mutations.  That's what the nicknames are for.  

Edited December 12, 2014 by I Love Me

[Sakura12]

We don't know the last name Skye choose for herself. It could be Johnson (it's a common enough surname to use for a fake name). So when she does decide to go by her birth name she would be Daisy Johnson.  Or they are just taking the name Daisy and her nickname Quake, with the last name not meaning that much. 

[Chicago Redshirt]

Judging by the gory smears that were all that was left behind of his victims in one of Crazy Cal's earlier appearances, I was prepared to believe that his strength is beyond human norms -- it seemed, if not precisely on the Hulk's level, more than one scalpel-wielding psycho doc ought to be able to manage on his own, no matter how wrong they get his daughter's name.

 

Cal is Calvin Zabo. So here are some comic spoilers: 

Calvin Zabo is in the comics Mr. Hyde. Not unlike the literary Mr. Hyde, he has super-strength and is insane. The level of super-strength he has has varied. He was originally a Thor villain, so he at times can trade punches with Thor. Later, he's fought with Daredevil (whose strength is only human) and Spider-Man (who's got superhuman strength but several classes below Thor) and of course has lost to both.

[ACW]

Now that Tripp and his romance potential is gone, Fitz and Simmons are clearly going to be a thing. It seems like the writers considered hooking Simmons up with Tripp but ultimately decided to write something romantic with Fitz. This probably made Tripp a surplus requirement.

I can't be the only one who sees Mack's romantic potential with Fitz, right? Simmons can have Skye. ;-)

[mac123x]

These writers seem to love their villains, and so do I, but they really need to trim them down. Right now we have Ward, Agent 33, Bakshi (unclear if he's dead or in a coma or what, but it looked to me like he was still alive), Skye Daddy, and Raina, plus Hydra is still out there as an amorphous evil that will probably be spawning another bad guy. And now they've introduced No Eyes Guy, who I'm assuming will be another villain. How are they going to keep working them all in?

 

The nice thing about this is that they're not all working together.  Sometimes they do, like Cal and Raina working with Hydra, but even then their agendas were at cross-purpose.  I think their are gradations to their villainy that make the show more interesting:

 

Hydra:  Flat out "take over the world!" villains. 

Ward:  Despicable evil human who is actually pretty directionless, which explains why he's teaming up with...

Agent 33:  Mind-controlled by someone who is dead, so she's directionless.  Also, who knows if or when the mind-control will break

Cal:  Crazy murderous nutjob

Raina:  Completely out for herself, but not necessarily evil.  Plus, she's achieved her goal by being transformed, so who knows what direction she'll go.

Blind guy:  No idea what his agenda is, other than to find Skye and Raina.  Maybe to kill them, maybe to recruit them, maybe to protect them.

[silverwings]

I can't be the only one who sees Mack's romantic potential with Fitz, right? Simmons can have Skye. ;-)

 

Nope! I do too! Between Head!Simmons comments about Mac and Fitz's interactions with him (especially the "I'm going to go work in the garage with Mac" conversation), I feel like we're building to a Fitz/Mac endgame.

[sinkwriter]

 

Between Head!Simmons comments about Mac and Fitz's interactions with him (especially the "I'm going to go work in the garage with Mac" conversation), I feel like we're building to a Fitz/Mac endgame.

 

I wish I could believe the network would be willing to try that because that really would be interesting and different. (Then again, they tried a lot of cool relationships on Buffy, but that wasn't ABC.)

[Sandman]

I wish I could believe the network would be willing to try that because that really would be interesting and different. (Then again, they tried a lot of cool relationships on Buffy, but that wasn't ABC.)

 

Or Disney.

 

I think it's far too soon to tell whether Blind Guy/Reader will be an antagonist, ally, frenemy, or what. (I've been calling him Blank Bolt -- cue the groaning -- because I'm assuming he'll prove to be the leader of the Inhumans.)

Edited December 12, 2014 by Sandman

[Malbec]

Nope! I do too! Between Head!Simmons comments about Mac and Fitz's interactions with him (especially the "I'm going to go work in the garage with Mac" conversation), I feel like we're building to a Fitz/Mac endgame.

I go back and forth, wondering what's going on there.  That scene with Fitz agreeing with Head!Simmons' assessment of Mac's attractiveness seemed a little too purposeful to be a throwaway moment, but who knows.

 

I have to say that I really like the way Iain de Caestecker is playing it -- subtle, but he seems to be leaving the door open in case the writers go there. 

[Sarahastro]

 

These writers seem to love their villains, and so do I, but they really need to trim them down. Right now we have Ward, Agent 33, Bakshi (unclear if he's dead or in a coma or what, but it looked to me like he was still alive), Skye Daddy, and Raina, plus Hydra is still out there as an amorphous evil that will probably be spawning another bad guy. And now they've introduced No Eyes Guy, who I'm assuming will be another villain. How are they going to keep working them all in?

The nice thing about this is that they're not all working together.  Sometimes they do, like Cal and Raina working with Hydra, but even then their agendas were at cross-purpose.  I think their are gradations to their villainy that make the show more interesting:

 

Hydra:  Flat out "take over the world!" villains. 

Ward:  Despicable evil human who is actually pretty directionless, which explains why he's teaming up with...

Agent 33:  Mind-controlled by someone who is dead, so she's directionless.  Also, who knows if or when the mind-control will break

Cal:  Crazy murderous nutjob

Raina:  Completely out for herself, but not necessarily evil.  Plus, she's achieved her goal by being transformed, so who knows what direction she'll go.

Blind guy:  No idea what his agenda is, other than to find Skye and Raina.  Maybe to kill them, maybe to recruit them, maybe to protect them.

So I do really like that the villains aren't all working together and are different levels of evil/crazy. It does make the show more interesting. I just wonder about the balance of them on the show since we only have 12 more episodes.

 

Maybe they will do that they did with Spike on Buffy and have some vanish until next season. He was around in Season 2, then barely showed up in Season 3, and became a bigger player again in Season 4.

Edited December 12, 2014 by Sarahastro

[jhlipton]

That goes even more so for Peter Petrelli. He was super overpowered which is why it was originally planned that he would die together with Skylar in the finale. But nooooo they couldn't even let the most annoying character of the whole cast die. With Skylar I can at least understand how it's hard to let him go, but Peter, really?!

Taking this to the Small Talk thread.

[paigow]

I go back and forth, wondering what's going on there.  That scene with Fitz agreeing with Head!Simmons' assessment of Mac's attractiveness seemed a little too purposeful to be a throwaway moment, but who knows.

 

I have to say that I really like the way Iain de Caestecker is playing it -- subtle, but he seems to be leaving the door open in case the writers go there. 

Rename show as:  Agents of M.O.D.F.A.M.?

[Miles]

I can't be the only one who sees Mack's romantic potential with Fitz, right? Simmons can have Skye. ;-)

While I would love that, I doubt we'll get that on the Disney channel. Although on the actual Disney channel we got Gravity Falls, so maybe I'm not giving them enough credit.

[kitlee625]

It seems that TPTB are intent on keeping their core cast around -- unless they announce some major shake-up. But having Ward pop up every episode is going to make the show feel like Road Runner and Coyote -- the villain being a constant thorn in their side that they can never really get rid of ... and eventually start to think of as a frenemy.

 

The image of Ward trying to capture Skye in a giant net while she whizzes by shouting "meep meep" made me laugh.

[Terrafamilia]

While I did enjoy this episode I was disappointed by one thing. The alien city they were looking for turned out to look very un-alieny. In fact, it looked downright dull. When I'm promised and alien temple, I want an alien temple. Maybe Kree architecture of the time was in an extreme minimalist mode. Even the interiors of the Kree warship in Guardians of the Galaxy had more visual interest and those were still pretty stark. Maybe the show spent all their money on the location shoot.

[Kromm]

While I did enjoy this episode I was disappointed by one thing. The alien city they were looking for turned out to look very un-alieny. In fact, it looked downright dull. When I'm promised and alien temple, I want an alien temple. Maybe Kree architecture of the time was in an extreme minimalist mode. Even the interiors of the Kree warship in Guardians of the Galaxy had more visual interest and those were still pretty stark. Maybe the show spent all their money on the location shoot.

I dunno. They saved a lot of money with nothing but endless dark caves.  Then again, it's nothing the Stargate and other similar low budget shows haven't done as well, and that's not a flattering comparison.  

 

The problem was in even calling it a "city".  I know they were trying to invoke Attilan from the comics (or maybe even moreso an abandoned buried former Attilan), but they gave us so little to work with even our imaginations were stretched too far.  If they'd just said it was a buried Tomb, or something like that, then they wouldn't have had this issue.