Anghus Houvouras reviews the eleventh episode of Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D…
After a brief Holiday hiatus, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. has returned to resolve some dangling plot threads and provide some clues regarding the mystery surrounding the one character everybody still seems to like: Agent Phil Coulson.
Last night’s episode was a defining one for the series. After a polarizing first half of the season, many saw the break as an opportunity for the show to take a breath and perhaps reset its priorities. Nope. Not even a little. Instead, the Producers doubled down on the creative mandates set forth since the series first hit the airwaves. It delivers a heaping helping of what many people see as the shows one redeemable character, Coulson. It also delivers a healthy dose of what most people hate about the show, uber hacker Skye.
We pick up just after the events of last years midseason cliffhanger: Coulson has been kidnapped by agents of the mysterious Clairvoyant and his team left to deal with the fallout. 36 hours later, the teams plane has been boarded and taken over by the no nonsense Agent Hand who sees taking down the Extremis powered Centipede organization as a higher priority than rescuing Coulson. His team feels differently and starts working on their own to try and rescue him. Skye gets stripped of her clearance and goes rogue to try and follow the money through to her mentor.
Coulson is being dragged through a physical and emotional hell using torture and some high tech equipment designed to dive into his sub conscious to uncover the truth about his resurrection. Clark Gregg is the highlight of the episode delivering some reall good dramatic moments that, let’s face it, the show has been lacking. Coulson is faced with a sobering reminder that S.H.I.E.L.D. has lied to him, kept secrets from him, and cost him the chance at a normal life. The chance of learning the truth behind his Lazarus-like return proves too strong. But the truth might be more troubling than the gaps in his memory.
As I mentioned, this episode is very much the sum of the first half of the season. Its still very much quip filled and character based Whedon style storytelling. The big change here is the dark territory that Coulson is starting to traverse.
If you’re a fan of the show, you’re gong to enjoy this episode. It may be the best of the season so far. If you haven’t been a fan of the show’s more all ages leanings and cute character moments, this episode is going to be like rubbing salt into a fresh carpet burn.
Anghus Houvouras is a North Carolina based writer and filmmaker. His latest work, the novel My Career Suicide Note, is available from Amazon.
Originally published January 8, 2014. Updated April 11, 2018.
