S03.E08: Many Heads, One Tale

[Jack Kerouac]

I saw Mark Dacascos and immediately thought of Iron Chef :D

 

I kept thinking he was going to shout out "Allez Cuisine!" before he started attacking.

[Tarasme]

 

I am still laughing at Hunter's typing. He is really good at the undercover schtick and improvising on the fly. I also loved that he and Bobby still managed to bicker even when in major trouble. Also if these too get their spinoff can Mack go with them? Because he's basically  wasted here and his reaction to Hunters antics is part of what makes it so funny. (I think Mack pretty much thinks of Hunter as the most annoying brother in-law who ever lived)  Plus that probably the only way he going to get an actual storyline of his own.

 

Eeek! I completely understand wanting all three of these characters to have more to do- I adore them all with the adoration of those weird little guys in the train station locker in MIB2- but I really don't want them to leave the mothership! Right now, this ensemble is firing on all cylinders because of the steps back from Daisy, the special snowflake, Coulson's it's a magical place, and FitzSimmons unrequitedness-ess-UST. I love seeing them all together working cohesively so much that I would hate to see them split up.

 

[Discussion of Roz as spy agency leader]

I think this is inline with what she said herself, that this is her first foray into the paranormal.  She is a professional and competent leader, and has been properly suspicious of SHIELD up to this point.  It wouldn't surprise me if she has a few surprises left for them; in fact, I hope she does.  She was fooled by Gideon, but then Fury was fooled by Pierce...

 

Yes- this is why I thought it weird that she would take Coulson's methods personally. Fury knew it was part of the game when he was all but murdered; for him, a stern talking to would have never raised an eyebrow much less gotten a "How can you talk to me this way!" reaction. Then again, I doubt Fury slept with Pierce.

[RustbeltWriter]

You know, they did a fairly nice job of tying the various plots together. Normally I'm opposed to that kind of gimmickery but this time it all really snaps into place. I especially like that it means the Red Skull was just riffing on someone else's idea back in WWII and didn't come up with anything original.

 

Also, when Ward is finally done in it is going to feel soooo good.

[Minneapple]

Eeek! I completely understand wanting all three of these characters to have more to do- I adore them all with the adoration of those weird little guys in the train station locker in MIB2- but I really don't want them to leave the mothership! Right now, this ensemble is firing on all cylinders because of the steps back from Daisy, the special snowflake, Coulson's it's a magical place, and FitzSimmons unrequitedness-ess-UST. I love seeing them all together working cohesively so much that I would hate to see them split up.

I agree! Right now I love all the characters and I just love how the team works together. I think they have fantastic chemistry and I would actually enjoy just hanging out with them.

[JTMacc99]

I saw Mark Dacascos and immediately thought of Iron Chef :D

It took me until the next morning to place him. I'm at least proud of myself for figuring it out eventually.

 

Also, when Ward is finally done in it is going to feel soooo good.

If I were running this show, I'm pretty sure I'd never kill off Ward.

 

 Defeat him occasionally?  Definitely. Eliminate him? Never.

[Lady Calypso]

I'm just happy that they didn't have Ward go good for Skye back in season 1. I am so thankful that the show let Ward embrace his evilness and there's no way him and Daisy can ever get together, even when the fans back then were (and still are?) complaining and hoping. Thank you for villain Grant Ward. He's the thorn in SHIELD's side and I enjoy it, for now. I don't like him being a regular still, and I wish they would eventually (at the end of this season...or before) capture and imprison him. Do I want him dead? Eventually. Do I want him dead now? Actually, no, because he's entertaining enough, and a good catalyst for things between SHIELD and Hydra. He has connections with all of our mains and I think it holds more resonance with Ward, because we've known him since the pilot.

 

Or maybe that's me and I like villains who stretch out over multiple seasons instead of getting killed off by finale time. But you know, next season, I would be fine if May, Daisy, Bobbi and Fitz took turns in shooting him with bullets. 

 

In other episode related things, Fitz and Simmons kissing....still feels weird. I like them better as friends, and I buy it more. Hell, I even remember in the first season, both actors made note that they preferred their characters as friends and that's how they were playing them. If that's still true, I don't know, but I can't forget that they didn't ship them initially. 

 

Bobbi and Hunter going undercover was pretty hilarious. I also liked May and Lincoln having to team up. They definitely have issues to work out, but I think they could make an interesting pairing, especially with Mack and Daisy out on the field. 

 

I also really like Rosalind and hope she doesn't die just for plot and drama reasons. I like her with Coulson and even if that means her leaving and coming back only occasionally, I'm ok with that.

 

And the tying of the plots was well done.

[wmdekooning]

Even though I predicted it last week, I'm glad that it did end up that, barring a major long con, Rosalind wasn't in league with Hydra, but just thought Gideon was a simply business man, who advises the President.  So, she isn't flat-out evil after-all!  Coulson still might of torpedo a good (ish) thing though.  It's hard to walk some of that stuff back, especially bringing up her dead husband.  

The whole scene between them I'm thinking to my self, "Man Coulson, you are talking yourself out of some sex there."

[Traveller519]

Everytime I sit back and think about a particularly good episode, I find myself amazed at how far this show has come from the first half of the first season. I should probably stop mentioning it, but I can't help but believe it bears much repeating. In fact, I can only imagine what it would be like to go back and watch some of those episodes now. Cringe-inducing I'm sure.

The show ain't Breaking Bad or The Wire, but I think it fits in incredibly well with the MCU now at least, both as a standalone property, and tying in with the other parts of the universe. It's entertaining and fun, and the characters are great.

Mack's yin to May's yang when it comes to being the more seasoned vet and "parenting" the youngn's. May is calm and measured with Lincoln, wheras Mack went to go search him out and provide a safe space for him to come in. Plus he's got those big brothery nick names for them, "Turbo" and "Tremors." I love having Henry Simmons on my TV, keep giving him more to do.

I think the big discovery our friends made with respect to the portal was also keeping it open for as long as they did. If memory serves, the medieval machinery broke when trying to keep it open too long on the first attempt. Daisy kept it open that little bit longer, enough for them to save Simmons. So it really is the Simmons targeting, Daisy sustaining, and Fitz understanding of both sides that they're going to need to look at bringing anyone back.

Edited November 21, 2015 by Traveller519

[xqueenfrostine]

I think the big discovery our friends made with respect to the portal was also keeping it open for as long as they did. If memory serves, the medieval machinery broke when trying to keep it open too long on the first attempt. Daisy kept it open that little bit longer, enough for them to save Simmons. So it really is the Simmons targeting, Daisy sustaining, and Fitz understanding of both sides that they're going to need to look at bringing anyone back.

 

Given how ancient the equipment was, I don't know that what Daisy did counts as a discovery.  Presumably more modern machinery could do what she did, since all she did was act as an amplifier. That's tech that exists in the real world, and I'd be surprised if MCU NASA didn't possess such a machine at the time Will went through the portal.  And Fitz, as brilliant as he was, didn't figure out anything Hydra didn't already know about the monolith.  It's only the Simmons piece of the puzzle that was completely new and unknown.  

 

I think the main reason that Hydra has never managed to bring anyone back is because the frequency that's used to manually hold open the portal seems to stress whatever material the monolith was made up of.  The act of holding the portal open even for just the few minutes that Daisy managed caused the monolith to explode, so it's unlikely that the portal could be held open long enough for a mission to go in and then come back.  That's why Simmon's knowledge on how the portal moves is so important.  The only way SHIELD or Hydra is likely to mount a successful round trip voyage to the Blue Planet is by allowing the portal to close behind them (so the monolith remains intact and capable of creating the return portal) and plotting their return trip using the algorithm Simmons wrote to predict where to find the portal opening at a set point in time. 

[VCRTracking]

Now looking back on The Avengers it explains why Malick wanted to nuke New York City during the Chitauri invasion. He was eliminating bot the competition and the people who could stop him(The Avengers). .

Edited November 20, 2015 by VCRTracking

[Loandbehold]

 

I think the main reason that Hydra has never managed to bring anyone back is because the frequency that's used to manually hold open the portal seems to stress whatever material the monolith was made up of.  The act of holding the portal open even for just the few minutes that Daisy managed caused the monolith to explode, so it's unlikely that the portal could be held open long enough for a mission to go in and then come back.  That's why Simmon's knowledge on how the portal moves is so important.  The only way SHIELD or Hydra is likely to mount a successful round trip voyage to the Blue Planet is by allowing the portal to close behind them (so the monolith remains intact and capable of creating the return portal) and plotting their return trip using the algorithm Simmons wrote to predict where to find the portal opening at a set point in time.

My problem with this theory is that NASA (Hydra?) must have been able to hold the portal open long enough to get all the equipment through for Will's team. If not, then Will should have known when and where the portal should next appear. Of course, this is assuming that Will's entire story isn't made up as part of his being taken over by the Inhuman prior to Jemma's arrival.

[sinkwriter]

 

My problem with this theory is that NASA (Hydra?) must have been able to hold the portal open long enough to get all the equipment through for Will's team.

 

Did they fly it all in on one vehicle (NASA spaceship)? Then I would think if their ship was prepared and poised at the monolith, waiting for it to open, then flying through the portal would take a very short amount of time.

[Jack Kerouac]

Did they fly it all in on one vehicle (NASA spaceship)? Then I would think if their ship was prepared and poised at the monolith, waiting for it to open, then flying through the portal would take a very short amount of time.

My question is why wouldn't they send a probe through like SHIELD was going to? Even a few seconds worth of data would be invaluable for their mission. For example, they would have known not to send SOLAR POWERED anything. Maybe a hand cranked generator, just in case?

[sinkwriter]

It does seem pretty stupid that they've had connection to this thing for all these years and years and they've not been able to think of performing even the most basic of tests.

[xqueenfrostine]

My problem with this theory is that NASA (Hydra?) must have been able to hold the portal open long enough to get all the equipment through for Will's team. If not, then Will should have known when and where the portal should next appear. Of course, this is assuming that Will's entire story isn't made up as part of his being taken over by the Inhuman prior to Jemma's arrival.

 

 

How much time do you really think they would have needed to move all of their stuff in though?  If they didn't carry it by hand, there's no reason a vehicle (and I don't think it has to be something as fancy as spacecraft or airplane) couldn't move in with their equipment and supplies in the span of a few minutes.

 

 

My question is why wouldn't they send a probe through like SHIELD was going to? Even a few seconds worth of data would be invaluable for their mission. For example, they would have known not to send SOLAR POWERED anything. Maybe a hand cranked generator, just in case?

 

How many probes would it take though to show that there is never any sunlight?  We don't know how frequently the portal opens on its own or how often they can manage to open it on their own.  I would think it'd take a lot of probes to show that the planet is completely without sunlight if they're only getting a minute's worth of data each time.

[jay741982]

Just wanted to add that Bobbi rocked that business suit.

She also rocked the glasses and suit from a couple of eps ago but I find Bobbi Sexy anyway lol

[Sakura12]

If Will was the evil Inhuman the whole time, why was he playing house with Jemma? And why didn't he shove her out of the way and go through the portal that he's been trying to get back through for centuries? That's why it only works if Will was taken over while Jemma was being rescued. Or I still like my theory of Jemma being controlled by the Inhuman and is trying to get him back. 

 

I also think the aftereffects of mind control stories are interesting to watch especially when played by a good actress which I think EH is. Plus that would also make it her story and not about which guy she likes more. Jessica Jones is doing that storyline and it's horrifying and intriguing to watch. Because of as of right now this story has become more about Fitz than Jemma. And that I do not like. 

[DeLurker]

She also rocked the glasses and suit from a couple of eps ago but I find Bobbi Sexy anyway lol

I am really surprised at how nicely Adrianne Palicki cleans up.  I've got limited exposure to her but my first was her character in Friday Night Lights which was called Trailer Trash where I grew up and then I think she played part of a serial killing couple in Criminal Minds.

[KirkB]

SHEER SPECULATION: The portal has been reopening periodically for centuries, and this Inhuman has apparently been there for a lot of that time. He's had plenty of opportunities to watch for the portal (in between human visits where he gets to eat or play or whatever) and theoretically even work out when and where it's going to reappear so he can be waiting right there for a return trip. After all it wouldn't be much of a cell if the door kept opening on a regular schedule. So my guess is he is probably the only one who can't simply walk back through, otherwise surely he would have had a chance before now. He could be in an incorporeal state for example, and perhaps him possessing them effects their memory and is what turns people crazy, but he needs one to hitch a ride back to Earth. Will has forgotten part of who he is (the non sciency scientist thing) because he was possessed at one point and killed the others, and it later tried to get into Simmons but Will managed to pull her away. Then as Fitz was saving Simmons he got Will again. Thanks to SHIELD, he's finally in a position to go back if he just sits in Will and waits.

Edited November 21, 2015 by KirkB

[APSimpson]

Yeah, I'd really like to see Ward and Fitz in scenes together again. Ward kidnapping Fitz (and Simmons perhaps) makes sense since they'll need someone or both to manage the planet hopping. Or whatever they'll need them for. Also, in the promo for the next episode there's a scene showing Fitz and Simmons together and Fitz has an "uh oh" look on his face. Could be Ward. Anyway, that would explain why Coulson is so angry and blaming Hunter for not killing Ward, if Ward indeed kidnaps Fitz (and/or Simmons) and Coulson is irate about it.

 

Who knows? Maybe Fitz will slap a mind-wipe gadget on him and our handsome hero can rejoin the team? Ha! *Runs away*

[paigow]

I kept thinking he was going to shout out "Allez Cuisine!" before he started attacking.

His Magneto powers are handy in the kitchen...

[Jack Kerouac]

His Magneto powers are handy in the kitchen...

 

And the secret ingredient is ... terrigen!

 

I just finished a re-watch of this episode and in the first five minutes my biggest question is how did Hydra make a serving tray out of vibranium and/or adamantium? I mean that tray deflected several bullets for Ward, when in reality, those bullets should have plowed right through, killing him.

[TVSpectator]

And the secret ingredient is ... terrigen!

 

I just finished a re-watch of this episode and in the first five minutes my biggest question is how did Hydra make a serving tray out of vibranium and/or adamantium? I mean that tray deflected several bullets for Ward, when in reality, those bullets should have plowed right through, killing him.

 

By the magic of TV!

[Fogh]

Maybe some sort of titanium steel alloy?

[Raja]

And the secret ingredient is ... terrigen!

 

I just finished a re-watch of this episode and in the first five minutes my biggest question is how did Hydra make a serving tray out of vibranium and/or adamantium? I mean that tray deflected several bullets for Ward, when in reality, those bullets should have plowed right through, killing him.

 

 

By the magic of TV!

Yep TV magic, pistol rounds they act like an Air Marshal's safety slugs when fired at a lead character, they don't even punch a hole through his cool vehicle when he takes cover behind it but bounce away with a spark. But then they act like cop killer armored piercing bullets and cut right through the redshirts body armor when a lead character is doing the shooting

[TVSpectator]

Yep TV magic, pistol rounds they act like an Air Marshal's safety slugs when fired at a lead character, they don't even punch a hole through his cool vehicle when he takes cover behind it but bounce away with a spark. But then they act like cop killer armored piercing bullets and cut right through the redshirts body armor when a lead character is doing the shooting

 

Oh, there are lots of gun myths on TV and in the movies. Here is a link to an article talking about some of them....

 

http://www.cracked.com/article_18576_5-ridiculous-gun-myths-everyone-believes-thanks-to-movies.html

Edited November 25, 2015 by TVSpectator

[paigow]

But then they act like cop killer armored piercing bullets and cut right through the redshirts body armor when a lead character is doing the shooting

Why do Stormtroopers wear armour? One shot in the chestplate from Han Solo kills them.

Edited November 25, 2015 by paigow

[Kel Varnsen]

Joss Whedon is only getting producing credit. He doesn't have much to do with this show. 

His only involvement is whining publicly that Coulson is still alive, and collecting a weekly paycheque.

 

Overall a good episode, I liked that they stepped things up with the threat of Hydra. Only annoying thing was the whole Coulson being surprised that someone knew about Tahiti. Shouldn't everyone know about that? All of SHIELDs secrets were dumped onto the internet in The Winter Soldier

[ahisma]

THIS is the super-competent, teamy SHIELD I love!

Yay for Mack pressing Phil on the Ros question, and yay for Phil being a step ahead of him on it. Just because it turned out that Ros (as far as we know) was innocent of knowing what Mallick was up to, Phil pressing her seemed harsh. But he was right to do so. He is the freaking director of freaking SHIELD. He has to get it right.

[Maverick]

His only involvement is whining publicly that Coulson is still alive, and collecting a weekly paycheque.

 

Overall a good episode, I liked that they stepped things up with the threat of Hydra. Only annoying thing was the whole Coulson being surprised that someone knew about Tahiti. Shouldn't everyone know about that? All of SHIELDs secrets were dumped onto the internet in The Winter Soldier

 

 I don't think  TAHITI was on the SHIELD servers. I think there was a scene where FitzSimmons search the servers and figure out a bunch of data was deleted  and somehow that leads them to the base.

[paigow]

How did Hydra make a serving tray out of vibranium and/or adamantium?

They hired the same company that made Vicki Vale's bulletproof tray in BatKeaton 1

[KirkB]

Didn't Ward use a serving tray in a similar way in the pilot? Maybe it's not the trays that are special but Ward who has a latent ability to make things bulletproof and/or tougher than they should be.

Edited November 26, 2015 by KirkB

[TVSpectator]

Didn't Ward use a serving tray in a similar way in the pilot? Maybe it's not the trays that are special but Ward who has a latent ability to make things bulletproof and/or tougher than they should be.

 

IMO, Ward has the ability to get shot, usually by one of his old SHIELD friends, but always survive the shooting (so far his count has been Daisy/Sky=2 and Hunter=1). If it was someone else then you kind of know that Ward isn't going to get shot by them and/or they will fail. 

Edited November 26, 2015 by TVSpectator

[ChelseaNH]

Now I kinda want Ward to get shot by some random off-duty security guard.  That in itself would be amusing, but the massive snit fits from the team would be a major bonus.

[Jack Kerouac]

Now I kinda want Ward to get shot by some random off-duty security guard.  That in itself would be amusing, but the massive snit fits from the team would be a major bonus.

That would be AWESOME.

[KirkB]

Man, Simmons in particular would be pissed she didn't get to do it.

[TVSpectator]

Man, Simmons in particular would be pissed she didn't get to do it.

Simmons already kind of already  f up one attempt, while Ward was actually working with Coulson,  and ended up killing Bakshi (Bakshi sacrificing himself to save Ward).

[Raja]

Now I kinda want Ward to get shot by some random off-duty security guard. That in itself would be amusing, but the massive snit fits from the team would be a major bonus.

Omar's not coming anymore

[John Potts]

Does it strike anyone else that it was a bit... unHYDRA -like to want to serve whichever Inhuman power it was that was exiled via the portal however many millennia ago? OK, it's realistic to expect a technologically advanced, ancient civilisation to expect to take over when encountering a more primitive society rather than the other way round, but it's unusually Genre Savvy for a villain to express such awareness - that sort of realisation normally only comes once the demon has been summoned/supercomputer has achieved sentience and they decide to give it orders only for it to go "No, I think I'll rule this place for myself and enjoy you as a light snack!" Also, REALLY don't see the Gideon/Ward Diumvirate lasting as the head of HYDRA: there's a reason it's named after a mythical beast whose heads would bite at each other and it wasn't because they thought harmony was most conducive to progress.

 

 

benteen So Gideon Mallick is the same character Powers Boothe played in The Avengers and his henchman is Wo Fat...pretty damn cool.

 

It would be pretty badass for him to actually BE Wo Fat - the fact that he's dead would be only a minor inconvenience, given the number of dead characters that generally walking around in comic book land.

 

kitlee625 someone he could go head to head with, but nope, one night with Coulson and she's a trusting patsy, and he's still super spy.

 

 

Did like that Rosalind wasn't evil, but it was disappointing that she was SO upset at getting played by Coulson. Anyone who gets to the top of a spy agency should EXPECT their rival to be less than open with each other and that any interaction between them was probably some sort of power play.

 

 

Dandesun Simmons and Fitz having it out was enjoyable, too.

 

I wouldn't say enjoyable exactly - but believable, certainly

[AKA...CJ86]

So, constant lurker in this section, first time poster, although I've liked quite a few posts.

 

I'm really enjoying Season Three so far...which means I'm caught up to this episode, still have a couple more to get to.

 

Rosalind is my favorite new addition and totally stoked she's not evil...as far as we I can tell.  

 

I think the only developments I haven't been feeling are/is the Lash stuff.