Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. returns this week with episode 16: “End of the Beginning” and the title is certainly appropriate.
It’s no secret that Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. has had pacing issues from the get-go, and I’m not talking about the constant breaks in its airing schedule. That said, it’s certainly been picking up the pace as of late. In recent episodes we finally discovered the secrets behind Coulson’s miraculous recovery from his apparent death in The Avengers (and it blew my clone theory out of the water) and this week we finally learn the identity of the “Clairvoyant” …and it turns out the Agents were on a wild-goose chase all along.
It seems obvious in retrospect, but the Clairvoyant was really just another Agent with high enough clearance to know exactly what Coulson’s team is up to at all times. Agent Victoria Hand is the one pulling the strings, almost literally in Mike Peterson’s/Deathlok’s case who has no choice but to follow her commands. She’s had The Bus turn around and is preparing to execute Coulson’s team on arrival, and plans on taking Coulson out herself.
Of course that’s not all that happened this week. Coulson made Skye an official S.H.I.E.L.D. Agent, because apparently hacking your way in and getting shot a few times is good enough to let you skip the years of study and training at the academy. FitzSimmons are understandably (buy annoyingly) still trying to convince everyone around them that they need to send Skye’s blood off for further study to uncover the secrets of the wonder-drug that saved her. Agent Ward shot and killed a fake bad guy (oops!) and Fitz busted Agent May so the team knows she’s been making super secret calls to… someone.
Originally my theory was that Agent May had been keeping tabs on Coulson for Nick Fury. After she overhead Coulson and Skye discussing the alien origin of the wonder drug she simply reported “he knows.” If this show is good at anything it’s misleading its audience, so maybe it’s much more complicated than that. Looks like we might just find out next week.
Closing Thoughts
- I swear Deathlok looks more and more like the love child of a Mortal Kombat character and a Terminator with each passing episode… DUN DUN DUN DUN-DUN!
- Speaking of Deathlok, shouldn’t the team perhaps think about calling one of the Avengers in by now?
- Ward, stop being so overprotective. Skye’s a big girl now.
- We probably should have clocked onto Agent Hand earlier, those evil red highlights in her hair were a dead giveaway.
- So here’s the question; is The Bus being controlled remotely, or did someone in cahoots with Agent Hand sneak on board and take control?
What did you think of the episode?