S04.E10: The Patriot

[Cranberry]

Coulson and Mack discover a shocking secret about Mace, which leaves all of S.H.I.E.L.D. in a dangerous position.

[paigow]

What are the odds that a Mel Gibson reference gets dropped by Mack or Coulson?

[Sandman]

I want to caption that still with Coulson grumbling about "Really, Mack gets to pull off these dark glasses better than I can, too? Crap."

[AimingforYoko]

So Mace is a knock-off Captain America after all. Makes a lot more sense than him being an Inhuman. 

Self-aware May robot? Uh-oh.

[Maverick]

 Is Fitz suffering a relapse from his brain damage?  And didn't Aida call him Leopold, not Fitz?

 So, Aida kills against your wishes and you're just like 'whoopsies, need to adjust your programming'   Ya think?   She's running on a program and still arguing about killing people.  Perhaps that's a red flag you don't have as much control as you think.

 Fitz and Radcliffe just don't need to be made to watch the Terminator series.  They need to be strapped in that chair with their eyes pried open like Agent 33 and forced to watch them on a continuous loop.   Oh, and every so often a showing of Datalore should be dropped in there.

[Tiger]

Last week I suspected but now I am sure that Aida is playing Radcliffe.  Simmons pretending to get ready to torture that HYDRA guy was perfect.  It's uncanny that in the same season Simmons has come into her own, Fitz is being ruined with his obsession with Aida.  

[Lantern7]

I think Daisy's ceremony was a bit overdone. I mean, they need to establish that she's a public good guy . . . but "MACE/JOHNSON 2020"? Actually . . . sure. Why not?

Nice twist with Mace. Of course Talbot would be behind using Cal's stuff to fake an Inhuman agent. I can't help but feel bad for Talbot, since his one-time TV brother has better hair and ratings. Nobody in real life wants that hair. Well, unless J. Jonah Jameson enters the MCU.

Awesome use of Aida I's head. Of course Fitz would be attracted to it. Professionally, I mean. He still needs help, though.

[benteen]

Fitz continues the long-standing Marvel tradition of the smartest minds in Marvel Comics making the stupidest decisions imaginable.  Tony Stark, Reed Richards, Hank McCoy, Hank Pym, etc.  These people are a danger to others because they believe their intellect gives them a right to play Russian roulette with the world.  What Fitz is doing isn't as bad as those four morons but still, stupid.

Nice twist with Mace.

Radcliffe really isn't seeing how his crappy treatment of Aida is going to bite him in the ass.

Always nice to see Talbot return.

[DrScottie]

My guess, the secret serum Mace was taking was none other than Gummiberry juice for his super strength. Duke Igthorn would drink it, but I would imagine injecting it would make it last longer. I'm a child of the 80s, what can I say. 

[thuganomics85]

Mace isn't an Inhuman, but injected by super serum, as part of a plan by Talbot to create the perfect "face" of SHIELD.  Should have known he was too good to be true.  At least he did seem sincere about wanting to do the right thing and I'm interested in seeing him remain the face, but now Coulson will rightfully call the shots.

Talbot is still a spectacular ball of ham as always.  The ringtone bit slayed me.  Enjoyed Simmons having enough of him and finally making him tell the truth.  Simmons is awesome, crafty, and should never be underestimated.

On the other hand, I see Fitz got hit with a big stupid stick.  He really wants to continue working on Aida and has even downloaded her onto his phone or something?  What the fuck, Fitz?!  I would say that deserves a smack upside the head from Mack, but that would actually cause serious harm on Fitz, considering how big and strong Mack is.  But, seriously, Fitz: what is wrong with you?  I at least get why Radcliffe is obsessed over this, since she's his creation, but I really expected better of you.

Radcliffe's dismissive treatment of Aida is so going to bite him in the ass.

Android Melinda now knows she is actually an android, but will keep it from Daisy and the rest.  Meanwhile, regular Melinda is resisting whatever trance Aida and Radcliffe put her in, so they're going to make it more action pact instead of calm, since that is the reason it is not working.  Yeah, for her, that actually makes sense.

Mack continues to be the best.

[ProudMary]

Mack looks damn good in a suit!

[Enigma X]

6 minutes ago, ProudMary said:

Mack looks damn good in a suit!

I have not seen the episode yet but did see the previews. And Mack was just dayum!

[Sandman]

10 hours ago, Maverick said:

Oh, and every so often a showing of Datalore should be dropped in there.

Bwah-hahaaha! Now there's a cruel and unusual punishment.

9 hours ago, benteen said:

Fitz continues the long-standing Marvel tradition of the smartest minds in Marvel Comics making the stupidest decisions imaginable.

Fitz gets a "What could possibly go wrong with my brilliant plan?" pass maybe once; definitely not twice. What's galling is that Fitz has been shown in the past as specifically having imagination -- it's part of what makes him brilliant. There's no way he should be having this much trouble recognizing the possibility that things will go wrong, again. 

Now I'm afraid we're in for a LMayD / Aida's Head / New!Aida Battlebot throw-down -- but I do sort of feel bad for LMayD, who has no fricking clue what's going on, and probably still hasn't figured out where the dreams of electric sheep are coming from.

[Primetimer]

Which inanimate objects are going to make a big splash and which are going to fizzle out?

View the full article

[Loandbehold]

11 hours ago, DrScottie said:

My guess, the secret serum Mace was taking was none other than Gummiberry juice for his super strength. Duke Igthorn would drink it, but I would imagine injecting it would make it last longer. I'm a child of the 80s, what can I say. 

Not sure about that. Injecting it goes pretty much directly through into the bloodstream, so it will begin working faster, but might not last as long. I'm thinking about the difference between injecting myself with glucagon vs. drinking OJ vs. eating glucose tablets. Who knows what the Marvelverse holds.

[Traveller519]

I think Fitz is overtaken by the "We were so close, it's only some minor modifications that'll sort this out!" I mean after all, after Ultron, Tony made Vision.

I'm not sure which Aida we saw crafting her own Brain after reading the Darkhold, but I'm thinking our current Aida has that Brain and is playing like she doesn't. Radcliffe just doesn't seem to have the same control over her. I'm captivated to see how this plays out.

While I'm glad Coulson didn't become Director again, part of the reason he recognized he needed oversight was his prejudices for people he believed in or held grudges against. How long before he slides back into that in his Operations Command role?

[vibeology]

Can I tell you what really bugged me? After we all found out that Mace isn't actually an inhuman, everyone was acting like Mack and Coulson were poor sitting ducks out there with no protection. Um, no. Mack and Coulson are both badasses. I get wanting to find your friends and quickly, but its not like Mace was out there protecting two small babies. Fitz and Simmons in particular seemed very concerned and its not like they don't know that Mack and Coulson can take care of themselves.

Also, LMayD is bugging me. I don't understand how this is working. Where is her memory of Lola coming from? No way Radcliffe knew that to program that in. May would never tell him that. They don't have access to LMayD so it's not like they're getting information from RealMay's weird brain program and feeding to LMayD. There is no way someone who barely knows May is able to create a personality so strong that it's fooled multiple people who really know May. I don't care if there was Darkhold magic involved. Where are they getting actual memories from? I need them to explain this.

[Sandman]

2 hours ago, Traveller519 said:

I mean after all, after Ultron, Tony made Vision.

I think there's a decent argument to be made that (in the movie version, at any rate) Ultron, JARVIS, and the Mind Gem created the Vision, rather than Tony. It was pretty strongly implied that the influence of the Mind Gem in particular is what made it possible for the Vision to become more truly a person than JARVIS.

I guess I've been assuming that Radcliffe's body-mod technology includes some sort of engram-encoding memory reader and upload gizmo -- no doubt handwavium-powered.

Edited January 18, 2017 by Sandman

[Traveller519]

2 minutes ago, Sandman said:

I think there's a decent argument to made that (in the movie version, at any rate) Ultron, JARVIS, and the Mind Gem created the Vision, rather than Tony. It was pretty strongly implied that the influence of the Mind Gem in particular, is what made it possible for the Vision to become more truly a person than JARVIS.

Oh I agree, but I'm thinking in-universe the perception would be that Tony's decision to take another kick at the can worked out perfectly. Especially to Scientists trying to rationalize their own re-modifications

[blackwing]

I guess I'm resigned to the fact that just as Ghost Rider was the first half of the season, "Agents of SHIELD: LMD" is the second half of the season.  I can't say I particularly care about Aida, or Fitz caring for Aida v1's head, or whatever Radcliffe is doing. 

The only things I really want to see are:

1) LMD May becoming self-aware a la Thandie Newton, rejecting her programming, and teaming up with Real May.  Would love to see both Real May and LMD May continue on this show with Ming-Na in a dual role.

2) Mack continuing to be a badass

3) More powers.  This is supposed to be a superhero show.  We need more people with powers on this show. We only have Daisy, who rarely seems to use hers anymore.  And Yo-Yo, who got injured and is apparently part-time now.

Frankly, I don't give a crap about Coulson.  I never have.  I think he's a horrible leader and I wouldn't mind having Mack becoming the director.

Regarding Daisy, I'm so glad that she no longer eats the show like she used to.  But is it me, or does it seem like the show no longer wants to support the special effects needed for her powers.  Is money an issue?  She used to stick out her hands and we'd see her Quake air lines all the time.  Now, we barely see them.  The show made this excuse about how her bones were too fragile so she couldn't use her powers.  This episode it seems like she is back to using her powers but we didn't even see them.  She used her powers to launch herself in the air to land on the roof with the sniper, but we only saw her landing, not launching.  She used her powers to throw the two guys about to gun down Coulson and Mace in that cabin through the windows, but we only saw the two guys flung through the window.  Is there less budget for special effects now?  Is that why we don't get many powered people anymore?  I remember in earlier seasons we had Franklin Hall (Graviton), Blackout, Blizzard, and the telekinetic played by Mark Da-caca.  All of whom had very cool looking powers.  Maybe they blew the season's budget on Ghost Rider.

[Sandman]

10 minutes ago, Traveller519 said:

Oh I agree, but I'm thinking in-universe the perception would be that Tony's decision to take another kick at the can worked out perfectly. Especially to Scientists trying to rationalize their own re-modifications.

Hmm. Yeah, that sort of shortcut/self-justification might be tempting. But then I can never decide whether Tony's reputation in-universe is equal parts "Feckin' genius!" and ::facepalm::, or what. (Peter Parker was pretty chuffed to meet Tony, but how much life experience is "Underoos" bringing to the table, really?)

In other words, how much irony is there going to be in any given utterance of "And look how well that turned out for Tony Stark"?

Edited January 18, 2017 by Sandman

[Humbugged]

17 hours ago, Lantern7 said:

I think Daisy's ceremony was a bit overdone. I mean, they need to establish that she's a public good guy . . . but "MACE/JOHNSON 2020"? Actually . . . sure. Why not?

Nice twist with Mace. Of course Talbot would be behind using Cal's stuff to fake an Inhuman agent. I can't help but feel bad for Talbot, since his one-time TV brother has better hair and ratings. Nobody in real life wants that hair. Well, unless J. Jonah Jameson enters the MCU.

Awesome use of Aida I's head. Of course Fitz would be attracted to it. Professionally, I mean. He still needs help, though.

She was born in China .

[Lantern7]

So Skesy wouldn't be considered an American citizen that can fill the vice-presidency? Okay  . . . what about Melinda May? She'd be the scariest veep ever. Even scarier than that guy. And I'd dig her for that.

ETA: I'd also go for Mac. How many people in high office have had their own shotgun or axe, let alone a combination?

[Sandman]

Aw!

17 hours ago, Lantern7 said:

I can't help but feel bad for Talbot, since his one-time TV brother has better hair and ratings. Nobody in real life wants that hair.

Now I miss Frying Man and Power Re-Peter Petrelli all over again.

Edited January 18, 2017 by Sandman

[blackwing]

19 minutes ago, Lantern7 said:

So Skesy wouldn't be considered an American citizen that can fill the vice-presidency? Okay  . . . what about Melinda May? She'd be the scariest veep ever. Even scarier than that guy. And I'd dig her for that.

ETA: I'd also go for Mac. How many people in high office have had their own shotgun or axe, let alone a combination?

I don't think that's correct.  The qualifications to be Vice President are exactly the same as they are to be President.  But I don't think the requirement is to be a natural born citizen.  I think the requirement is to be an American citizen from birth.  While I'm unclear as to the citizenship of Jiaying (I would presume she was a Chinese citizen), surely Calvin is an American citizen.  If Daisy's father is an American citizen, then Daisy is an American citizen, no matter where she is born.

That's how there is the situation of all of these "accidental Americans" who are surprised to learn that they are American citizens and have an obligation to pay U.S. taxes.  Lots of situations where one American parent marries and moves abroad but never renounces American citizenship.  Suddenly there are lots of Canadians with one American parent who are being told that they are in trouble for never filing a U.S. tax return.

I think a Melinda May / Daisy Johnson ticket is much more appealing to me than Mace/Johnson or Mace/May.

[Bruinsfan]

1 hour ago, vibeology said:

Also, LMayD is bugging me. I don't understand how this is working. Where is her memory of Lola coming from? No way Radcliffe knew that to program that in. May would never tell him that. They don't have access to LMayD so it's not like they're getting information from RealMay's weird brain program and feeding to LMayD. There is no way someone who barely knows May is able to create a personality so strong that it's fooled multiple people who really know May. I don't care if there was Darkhold magic involved. Where are they getting actual memories from? I need them to explain this.

While it's certainly possible that the Darkhold itself could be responsible for doing so (in the comics it's magically alive, and capable of casting spells on its own without anyone around to read it), I don't think that's what the writers are going for. It certainly doesn't seem like Radcliffe thinks magic had anything to do with what he's accomplished so far. Maybe the same tech that's projecting VR into May's mind was able to make a static copy of all her memories, which Radcliffe was able to pair with the LMD's operating system and his programming?

[TVSpectator]

Latern7 Said:

Quote

So Skesy wouldn't be considered an American citizen that can fill the vice-presidency? Okay  . . . what about Melinda May? She'd be the scariest veep ever. Even scarier than that guy. And I'd dig her for that.

 

 

Some people in that crowd did carry signs saying they want Daisy and Mace to run for president and VP (with her as VP). Okay, now if the same rules for who can and can't run for US President and VP are to assume the same as the rule found her, Daisy being born in China would be, IMO, moot since she wouldn' even be able to meet the age qualifications for being VP (it's the same age as the president, which is 35 years of age). If Daisy was really born in 1988, then she would only be 32 in 2020- so she will be 3 years too young to be even legally on the ballot. 

Quote

No person except a natural born citizen, or a citizen of the United States, at the time of the adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible to the office of President; neither shall any person be eligible to that office who shall not have attained to the age of thirty five years, and been fourteen Years a resident within the United States.

 

 

 

https://www.law.cornell.edu/constitution/articleii

Now, the issue of what it is meant to be a "natural born citizen" and also resided in the US for at least 14 consecutive years (and btw, this phrase is actually found in the Constitution and also applies to the VP- basically both the VP and president qualifications are the same) since some have argued that it literally means being born in the US. Although, I do believe that if you are born on a military base, embassy, and/or US ship then you are also considered to be a US natural born citizen (meaning your citizenship of the US is given to you at birth). Now, I have heard a law stating if you are married to a foreigner and have a child, overseas, then by legal definition  (and through this law) your child can be given US citizenship as well (although it gets sticky once you start to run for US president- IMO, Ted Cruz who was born in Canada to a US citizen mother and a Cuban citizen father can tell you- people can still question if you have met or not met the legal requirement of running for president)

Edited January 19, 2017 by TVSpectator

[Texasmom1970]

22 hours ago, ProudMary said:

Mack looks damn good in a suit!

Mack looks good in everything!

[Raja]

Who would have thought that Crazy Cal got closest to the Super Soldier Serum. We do need to know what are the side effects Director Mace faces, obviously not as bad as the AIM spontaneous human combustion in Iron Man 3. Since I have not yet caught up with Luke Cage, and Mace standing toe to toe with Ghost Rider seems more like him than Captain America I need to revisit season one to see what happen to the Centipede improvements on Extremis and why are there not more of those types of enhanced stepping forward.

 

And General Talbot is a whole lot more than just a One Star USAF officer. The President has a line to him and  he has a ringtone and he ultimately choose the SHIELD Director.

Edited January 19, 2017 by Raja

[Tarasme]

I really liked this episode:

* Red shirts were given due reverence.
* Call outs to Cap, Erskine serum, Cal, etc. Awesome.
* Mace's Inhuman humanization provided him with a means to be... human. Good characterization all around. Poor guy drafted to be more than he is- cool.
* Mack's Not!Ax hatchet. Heh.
* Confirmation LMayD doesn't know she's an LMD and good philosophical discussion between AIDA and Radcliffe about the extent of programming on AIDA and May's actions.

I'm really interested to see where they go with LMayD's discovery and how AIDA is going to end up rejecting Radcliffe. Will decoy May go to Simmons or Fitz, try to go it alone, or is there something "programmed" that will insist she return to Radcliffe? Humans have "programming" too- I'd love to see how the LMDs AIs deal with nuances like the morality of the protection SHIELD is trying to offer vs the apparent immorality of the Darkholde.

[Bruinsfan]

Let me see if I have this straight—the US govt. subjected a volunteer to a refined version of Calvin Zabo's crazymaking super strength formula in the hopes of making another Captain America, then put him in charge of a huge intelligence/peacekeeping agency, and he basically had zero qualifications on either the spy or soldier fronts? And General Get-Me-a-Cup-of-Coffee-Girlie is the one who's actually been making policy decisions and defining mission objectives the whole time?

[MadyGirl1987]

Congrats Fitz and Radcliffe... You have reached Barry Allen messing with the timeline on The Flash levels of stupidity! Surpassed it actually since, unlike Barry, you have seen what could happen as a results of your actions. To quote Mace when he found out about Aida,"Doesn't anybody remember Ultron?" I love Fitz, but jeez louise... Is it stubbornness or arrogance to want to continue and think you can succeed after the colossal failure of AI in Ultron?

Really enjoyed the Mace storyline. His look of fear when the briefcase got sucked out of the plane and then when both vials were destroyed really sold him as someone in over their head. I am glad they didn't end up having him be a bad guy(so far), as that feels like it would have been the obvious choice. 

[TVSpectator]

On 1/19/2017 at 5:08 PM, Bruinsfan said:

Let me see if I have this straight—the US govt. subjected a volunteer to a refined version of Calvin Zabo's crazymaking super strength formula in the hopes of making another Captain America, then put him in charge of a huge intelligence/peacekeeping agency, and he basically had zero qualifications on either the spy or soldier fronts? And General Get-Me-a-Cup-of-Coffee-Girlie is the one who's actually been making policy decisions and defining mission objectives the whole time?

 

 

 

Welcoming to AOS' version of the MCU policy making- IMO, it really does make no sense when you think about. I know that the movie side isn't that much better, IMO, but this show just threw a very complicated political argument that the government filled Coulson's wish of an enhanced person on to the team and why we should care that he isn't a real Inhuman but I still felt that Mace was probably the guy they picked in a pinched because he must've volunteered for the project before Coulson was looking for the new director. As with Talbot, in this episode has way more power than a One-Star General and acts more like he is in charged of the DOD and now I wonder if the guy is actually a Four-Star General pretending to be a One-Star General? Although to be fair, there isn't a lot of Four-Star Generals in the US Air Force but the US Air Force has only been around since the 1950s. 

 

That being said, I kind of liked how Talbot was able to stand up to Simmons and told her that he was in fact in charged and not her. This season all of the main cast of characters have been portrayed as kind of a-holes to Mace (and to a few other characters that turned out to be redshirts. IMO, any side character with a name and lines are bound to be killed off) and now I am just glad someone just stood up to her. Although, I still wonder why did Mace make her is second in command and not like Coulson or even May?

The real thing that I didn't like was that they had to hit the reset button (kind of) and make Coulson the "real" behind the scenes director and Mace is now just a figure head for the public. IMO, Coulson is much better suited for a field agent position than any policy-making the position at SHIELD. We saw what happened when he was the director and it wasn't really great decisions making choices. Plus, he is so emotionally invested in Daisy  and has been told it to his face at least once in every season (and even May told that to his face last season)- that he has to know by now how compromised he is in a position of the "real" behind the scenes decision maker, with having Daisy in the field. Maybe if Daisy is stuck in the base (which Daisy would refuse to stay on the base and why are they still at the Playground and not in DC if they are now totally operating in the light and with the full support of the US government? I mean yeah, they will probably get some kind of building in DC, but why are they still at their once off-the-books now on-the-books 1940s/1950s SHIELD bunker base? This has been kind of bugged me since the first episode of the season.)  I could see it be a bit better but that probably won't happen since Daisy, May, and Mac seems to go on every field mission SHIELD has now. 

Edited January 22, 2017 by TVSpectator

[TVSpectator]

9 minutes ago, MadyGirl1987 said:

Congrats Fitz and Radcliffe... You have reached Barry Allen messing with the timeline on The Flash levels of stupidity! Surpassed it actually since, unlike Barry, you have seen what could happen as a results of your actions. To quote Mace when he found out about Aida,"Doesn't anybody remember Ultron?" I love Fitz, but jeez louise... Is it stubbornness or arrogance to want to continue and think you can succeed after the colossal failure of AI in Ultron?

Really enjoyed the Mace storyline. His look of fear when the briefcase got sucked out of the plane and then when both vials were destroyed really sold him as someone in over their head. I am glad they didn't end up having him be a bad guy(so far), as that feels like it would have been the obvious choice. 

 

 

I really don't know where they are going with Fitz. They could be setting up something like, "see AIDA wasn't really evil she was just following Radcliffe's program and really is just a good robot and I will help/fix her" or maybe they are going with that Fitz has been secretly replaced with an LMD, or he is just really too stubborn to realized that the Darkhold and AIDA are a bad thing, etc... 

Personally, though he is looking more and more stupid but I do wonder if he has been replaced by an LMD?

Edited January 19, 2017 by TVSpectator

[Terrafamilia]

Does the head of the FBI name his own successor? The head of the CIA or NSA? Apparently SHIELD as no need for such niceties. Sure, Fury did it, but that resultant SHIELD was working underground and in the cross-hairs of the law. Now that they have come in from the cold shouldn't they make some effort to be worthy of the new, hard-won public trust?  Isn't this the sort of mind-set that got them into so much trouble in the first place?

[TVSpectator]

1 hour ago, Terrafamilia said:

Does the head of the FBI name his own successor? The head of the CIA or NSA? Apparently SHIELD as no need for such niceties. Sure, Fury did it, but that resultant SHIELD was working underground and in the cross-hairs of the law. Now that they have come in from the cold shouldn't they make some effort to be worthy of the new, hard-won public trust?  Isn't this the sort of mind-set that got them into so much trouble in the first place?

 

 

The logic of the show seems to be that Coulson shall lead SHIELD, even in the shadows. 

Edited January 20, 2017 by TVSpectator

[Bruinsfan]

Forgot to mention the double-take it gave me at the pilot being skewered through the cockpit window when their quinjet crashed. Does Mutant Enemy have a quota?

[Raja]

4 hours ago, TVSpectator said:

Welcoming to AOS' version of the MCU policy making- IMO, it really does make no sense when you think about. I know that the movie side isn't that much better, IMO, but this show just threw a very complicated political argument that the government filled Coulson's wish of an enhanced person on to the team and why we should care that he isn't a real Inhuman but I still felt that Mace was probably the guy they picked in a pinched because he must've volunteered for the project before Coulson was looking for the new director. As with Talbot, in this episode has way more power than a One-Star General and acts more like he is in charged of the DOD and now I wonder if the guy is actually a Four-Star General pretending to be a One-Star General? Although to be fair, there isn't a lot of Four-Star Generals in the US Air Force but the US Air Force has only been around since the 1950s. 

 

That being said, I kind of liked how Talbot was able to stand up to Simmons and told her that he was in fact in charged and not her. Ths season all of the main cast of characters have been portrayed as kind of a-holes to Mace (and to a few other characters that turned out to be redshirts. IMO, any side character with a name and lines are bound to be killed off) and now I am just glad someone just stood up to her. Although, I still wound why did Mace make her is second in command and not like Coulson or even May?

 

It won't be a 4 star pretending to be a 1 star. It is just that while he still holds an Air Force commission most of his work is with another agency maybe still as the commander of the ATCU. Most infamous example being Major Ollie North having all that power during Iran Contra. It just seems as if "the President", I wonder if President Ellis has also been term limited out of office in the MCU, takes a special interest in whatever his real job is.

[MadyGirl1987]

5 hours ago, TVSpectator said:

I really don't know where they are going with Fitz. They could be setting up something like, "see AIDA wasn't really evil she was just following Radcliffe's program and really is just a good robot and I will help/fix her" or maybe they are going with that Fitz has been secretly replaced with an LMD, or he is just really too stubborn to realized that the Darkhold and AIDA are a bad thing, etc... 

Personally, though he is looking more and more stupid but I do wonder if he has been replaced by an LMD?

That is an interesting theory. Did we ever see what happened to Fitz after he is thrown through the door and sees the murdered Agent in Radcliffe's place? Correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't it cut to commercial and just show them back at HQ after that? Then again, you do see him debating with Radcliffe about the humanity of Androids after that.... Still doesn't mean Radcliffe couldn't have done it after that, though. They do spend enough time together to make it a possibility.

[snarktini]

On 1/18/2017 at 1:32 PM, blackwing said:

1) LMD May becoming self-aware a la Thandie Newton, rejecting her programming, and teaming up with Real May.  Would love to see both Real May and LMD May continue on this show with Ming-Na in a dual role.

Ooh I like this idea!

16 hours ago, Texasmom1970 said:

Mack looks good in everything!

Hell yeah! But this was an extra special edition of Mack looking good...maybe more due to the sunglasses than the suit? As the Fug Girls have noted, Everyone's Hotter in Sunglasses.

Loved Talbot saying that May was, with the possible exception of his mother, the most intimidating woman he'd ever known. Would kinda like to meet his mom.

Agree Aida is either playing Radcliffe, or will be soon. 

[jhlipton]

Just now, Bruinsfan said:

Forgot to mention the double-take it gave me at the pilot being skewered through the cockpit window when their quinjet crashed. Does Mutant Enemy have a quota?

In an alternate universe, there's a movie based on Firefly -- I've heard some who've "seen" this alleged movie say it has a scene just like this.  "Light as a feather" my ass.

(That scene is one of the major reasons I refuse to acknowledge Serenity's existence.)

[dwmarch]

19 hours ago, Raja said:

Since I have not yet caught up with Luke Cage

That reminds me and pardon me for the minor spoiler but the bullet that hit the podium was clearly a Judas bullet from Luke Cage. The Netflix shows have made several references to the films and even a couple-few references to the TV series (Daredevil and Daisy sharing an orphanage for example, Crusher Creel, Roxxon) but I think this is the first time the favor has been returned.

[paigow]

10 hours ago, Bruinsfan said:

Forgot to mention the double-take it gave me at the pilot being skewered through the cockpit window when their quinjet crashed. Does Mutant Enemy have a quota?

That's the next Subtitle Theme.... Agents of SHIELD: Firefly

[LilJen]

On 1/18/2017 at 9:32 AM, ProudMary said:

Mack looks damn good in a suit!

Heck yeah.

 

On 1/18/2017 at 4:32 PM, blackwing said:

Regarding Daisy, I'm so glad that she no longer eats the show like she used to.  But is it me, or does it seem like the show no longer wants to support the special effects needed for her powers.  Is money an issue?  She used to stick out her hands and we'd see her Quake air lines all the time.  Now, we barely see them.  The show made this excuse about how her bones were too fragile so she couldn't use her powers.  This episode it seems like she is back to using her powers but we didn't even see them.  She used her powers to launch herself in the air to land on the roof with the sniper, but we only saw her landing, not launching.  She used her powers to throw the two guys about to gun down Coulson and Mace in that cabin through the windows, but we only saw the two guys flung through the window.  Is there less budget for special effects now?  Is that why we don't get many powered people anymore?  I remember in earlier seasons we had Franklin Hall (Graviton), Blackout, Blizzard, and the telekinetic played by Mark Da-caca.  All of whom had very cool looking powers.  Maybe they blew the season's budget on Ghost Rider.

I figured they handwaved that away (fewer Quake special effects) with "it breaks her arms when she uses her powers, even with her special medicines"?

[Raja]

35 minutes ago, LilJen said:

Heck yeah.

 

I figured they handwaved that away (fewer Quake special effects) with "it breaks her arms when she uses her powers, even with her special medicines"?

The gauntlets she now wears again, since she is back with SHIELD as its now most famous agent  were designed to protect her when she uses her Inhuman powers at greater power levels. After all the Ghost Rider effects having LMDs does make for a cost saving arc.

[tennisgurl]

I miss Ghost Rider. His story was so much more interesting than all this AI stuff. It would be ok story,  but it requires Fitz to be an utter moron! Can someone check to make sure his brain damage isn't coming back?! This is just a plot we have seen a million times already, why is it here? Hell, its been done in tis very franchise!

I do like all the stuff with Mace, and how it turns out he is actually a good guy. I am kind of disappointed that he isn't really Inhuman, but I also find it interesting that we have gotten kind of a continuation of the Captain America stuff and the government using super serum on people. That's what I come to comic book TV for! However, why does Coulson get to call the shots now? Mace might have lied about stuff, but it seemed like he was doing fine leading SHIELD, why does he need to become Coulsons puppet?

I LOVE the idea of mecha May becoming self aware, and teaming up with Real May. That would be all kinds of awesome.

[Tarasme]

17 hours ago, Bruinsfan said:

Forgot to mention the double-take it gave me at the pilot being skewered through the cockpit window when their quinjet crashed. Does Mutant Enemy have a quota?

"I am a leaf on the wind..."

*sigh* Wash *sigh*

[AngelKitty]

I love Coulson so I'm happy he's now really in charge.  He was doing his own thing anyway so now he doesn't have to pretend anymore.

Can somebody please remind me what LMD stands for? Thanks.

[Raja]

2 hours ago, AngelKitty said:

I love Coulson so I'm happy he's now really in charge.  He was doing his own thing anyway so now he doesn't have to pretend anymore.

Can somebody please remind me what LMD stands for? Thanks.

Life Model Decoy (LMD)

[TVSpectator]

On 1/19/2017 at 10:52 PM, Raja said:

It won't be a 4 star pretending to be a 1 star. It is just that while he still holds an Air Force commission most of his work is with another agency maybe still as the commander of the ATCU. Most infamous example being Major Ollie North having all that power during Iran Contra. It just seems as if "the President", I wonder if President Ellis has also been term limited out of office in the MCU, takes a special interest in whatever his real job is.

 

 

Well, you are correct that Talbot will not pretend to be something that he isn't (and as of right now I am happy that he actually was portrayed as someone with at least a brain) and acted/stood up for what he believes to be right. So many times Talbot is used as one of the show's many butt monkeys (this is a real trope term, btw) to make the other characters look good/smart, but it looks like Mace has also taken up the butt monkey mantle on this show. 

As with the ATCU, hasn't that been scrapped by now? I mean what purpose does it have other than being redundant since SHIELD is back?

On 1/20/2017 at 5:07 AM, dwmarch said:

That reminds me and pardon me for the minor spoiler but the bullet that hit the podium was clearly a Judas bullet from Luke Cage. The Netflix shows have made several references to the films and even a couple-few references to the TV series (Daredevil and Daisy sharing an orphanage for example, Crusher Creel, Roxxon) but I think this is the first time the favor has been returned.

 

 

Roxxon is everywhere in the Marvel universe. I was just surprised that they didn't reference/named dropped them earlier in AOS. 

On 1/21/2017 at 7:31 AM, AngelKitty said:

I love Coulson so I'm happy he's now really in charge.  He was doing his own thing anyway so now he doesn't have to pretend anymore.

Can somebody please remind me what LMD stands for? Thanks.

 

 

You know, I really don't  like the idea of Coulson running SHIELD again. I get that he is one of the main characters of this show, but I just can't get behind him running the shots, even if it is from the shadows. Although, I am glad that Mace isn't a bad guy and is more closer to his comic book origins, but I also do want Mace to have a spine and stand up to Coulson and to his team. 

Edited January 22, 2017 by TVSpectator