Agents of SHIELD: Many Heads, One Tale recap S3, Ep. 8
This season, SHIELD has effectively merged the more superheroic aspects of the Marvel universe with the Inhumans storyline and its own spy vs. spy realm. The result has been a fascinating season that only got better in this penultimate episode before the fall finale that was Agents of SHIELD at its best.
After spending the night at Rosalind’s it’s only gentlemanly for Coulson to do the same. Granted his home is more of the secret organization type than a posh penthouse, but what can you do?
Despite Mack’s concerns of Coulson sleeping with the enemy, Coulson actually has a plan. While he’s cozing up to Roz, he’s deploying an infiltration team to get as much intel as possible on the ACTU’s plan for the Inhumans. I get that poor Phil has severe trust issues at this point, but man does this plan seem cold. This should pretty much kill any chances for a second date.
I love when Shield goes into its Mission Impossible spy mode and this week had some great moments. Mack revealed his hidden talent as a smiley IT rep while Hunter and Bobbi went undercover as an FBI agent and a hacker investigating an alert at the ACTU with Daisy feeding Hunter hacker lingo.
May brought Lincoln along with her so she could apologize for Andrew killing his friends. I still haven’t warmed up to Lincoln yet as he’s more a cool power than an interesting character, but at least now he’s getting involved in the action.
After separating from the group, Bobbi learns the hidden agenda going on in the ACTU science wing — fish oil pills. I really wrote that off last season, but the Terrigen crystals getting into the water really has become a significant plot point in creating this new generation of Inhumans. Bobbi revealed her latest tech upgrade — magnetic batons — just in time to meet an ACTU agent with the ability to manipulate metal.
Coulson confronts Roz on Shield’s findings. I’ve enjoyed Clark Gregg and Constance Zimmer’s interactions all season and this was a significant moment of broken trust with Coulson and Rosalind as both felt betrayed.
Coulson has been shaken since she dropped that casual Tahiti reference that only SHIELD or a Hydra agent could know. Rosalind at Coulson’s inference that her interest was faked to sucker him in. after a little verbal sparring, Roz realizes she’s been played and has Banks help get Bobbi and Hunter to safety.
The only part I didn’t enjoy was the Fitz and Simmons romance drama as it felt out of place with the rest of the episode’s pacing. When they weren’t debating their feelings, their efforts to bring Will back, which has felt like a completely disconnected operation and a distraction for two of Coulson’s best, finally tied in.
Turns out there’s been a cult that has been sending victims through to the portal for decades and this cult has ties to both NASA … and Hydra in Gideon Malick. Some posters are speculating that Will is a Hydra agent, but that would be way too easy a cop-out of handling the tricky Will/Fitz/Simmons love triangle.
Meanwhile, Ward meets with Malick about the plans for Hydra’s future. It makes perfect sense that Hydra would also infiltrate the World Council originally seen in The Avengers and also why Malick wasn’t among the WC members chewing out Alexander Pierce in Captain America: The Winter Soldier.
Recognizing a potential threat, Malick sics his men on Ward, who quickly takes them out and threatens to use an acetylene torch to get the location of this secret Hydra vault. I can’t stress enough how dramatic Ward’s turn has been from the Season 1 straight-laced bore to Season 3’s most unpredictable and enjoyable guilty pleasure.
After getting the vault location and parachuting out a commercial plane flying over it, Ward confronts Malick. Impressed at Ward’s determination, Malick reasons he was looking at him as a threat when he should have considered him a valuable ally.
Hydra was aligned with the most powerful Inhuman, who was dispatched to this portal. Now, Malick is building an Inhuman army for him and wants Ward helping in learning how Shield was able to get someone back.
Rating: 9.5 out of 10
AOS is comfortable and assured in its direction and the series has matured into must-see TV each week especially as Hydra’s agenda unfolds.
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The show has vastly improved without being the movie department whipping boy, no more vague episodes. Stuff actually happens, plots move at a good pace, Daisy is so much better than skye when we get just the right amount lol. Who knew they could turn this once less than gotham trash heap to maybe earning the TV/comic book champ. In may you have to crown who one the belt this year lol. I havent given supergirl a run but i dont care for superman that much so im watch later. For me shield firs, flash, then arrow. I have a sneaky feeling arrow may win once we figure (hopefully felicity.. i will miss her but she is running out of purpose and bogging it down) who dies.
Yeah, I appreciate the fun and action of Flash a bit more, but this season, Shield has been better than Arrow for the most part and that’s more an indication on Shield raising its game than an indictment on Arrow.
Having issue with your url again,dude
Ah, this one was easy to figure out. There’s a few buzz words that prompt comments to head to the spam folder. You’d be surprised how much spam junk has Nazi in it.
It’s the Whedon way. The action points occurring more frequently that you speak of. I don’t believe it has anything to do with being tied into the larger MU.
Being the whipping boy as you’ve designated it is simply coincidence.
Whedon just has a rollercoaster ride writing style. Buffy and Angel both display this. The initial seasons/episodes start slow with a uphill climb,then reach the zenith and go into a whiteknuckle freefall with enough momentum for a pulse-pounding pleasing ride that last well into the series finale.
I knew what we were in for season one episode one.
As for Flash IMHO,the super speedster is the headliner and AOS brings up the rear(and I’m not talking about the air times) I watch them live and Flash airs first then AOS on my local tv stations.
? To me Flash is not diluted. It’s not pulling any punches and right out the gate(no pun intended) the show is dealing with the weird,superhuman,and metapowers denizens of the DCU.
Much as I enjoy AOS and its g-men in black/mystery men super spy content,I’ve got to give it to DC for bringing their heroes to life right of the page. Flash,GA,Firestorm,Dr.Light, Atom Smasher,Jay Garrick,Atom, etc..it’s too much fun! I feel the same about AOS,but it’s a complimentary contrast. It’s like one is the burger and one is the fries(to use a food analogy)
They’re BOTH good,just different.
Good from the beginning,capt.
..to the last drop.
?Shalom
Okay. My goal it’s to keep this short.
We know Brevity is my kryptonite.?
I’ve thoroughly enjoyed AOS in it’s entirety. This episode made me dig into my library to research HYDRA. The old Handbook of the Marvel UNIVERSE,and in the original story the subversive organization grew out of the Nazi party and was lead by a formidable Nick Fury villain Baron von Strucker,that is until Red Skull usurped the credit and the power.(This is one of my fanboy peeves I’ve had with MCU lack luster handling of Strucker)Even though this tv incarnation is pure modern permutation of FUN! I’m a fan of Whedon’s writing and ever suffice his hand and company have been assigned(Avengers)I never had any doubts about this would be a theme park ride. JK you made mention of a cult like HYDRA is a separate entity. HYDRA as a beautiful new wrinkle in this modern telling IS the cult. Remember what the SKULL said way back in CAPT.America. The Nazi party was just a means to end for HYDRA accomplishing their goals on an intergalactic/interdimensional scale vs the comic original being simple world dominating terrorist super villain camp like say Cobra of GI Joe.
I agree. Ward is a guilty pleasure with his over-the-top super villain super spy antics. ??Let’s leave the guy in a room to his doom and see who walks out trope. Very classic007 motif.LoL.
Then the bit with the plane and dripping into the vault made me “lmao” ? Am I watching Bugs Bunny cartoons?! Man that was hilarious. In a good way.
Kinda like Batman being able to master most known human forms of unarmed combat type of fiction and employing the suspension-of-disbelief(but not quite. Bruce is more believable)?
?Shalom
Yeah, I do wish Von Strucker had more of a presence. I was disappointed he was killed off camera in A.O. Ultron.
On that cult thing, I wanted to see another group so it’s not like Hydra is always playing the Cobra to Shield’s GI Joe.
Okay. Thanks. Good to know.
I guess no “IN” wyrd is safe now days.
The original anthropological classification for those with dark skin of Sub Saharan African ancestry: “in” followed by the letters E- G – R – O Latin for the designating of the hue “Black” then there’s the infamous very incendiary devisive distorted(but nigh ubiquitous) permutation. Jay Z would say, Ninja Who ninja what!, but not exactly so. For shizzle my “in” zzle?
Now the name of the consummate social party of antagonists is verboten too the technology.?
No “in” word is safe!
How about Nerd?
By my count that’s 4 words(i didn’t count ninja) my ninjas can’t be seen to count them. “It’s what you do.”?
Lol…yeah. I shall tread lightly in the future with 14th letter word of the socialist party infiltrated by HYDRA.
Thanks again,JK.
?Shalom
Nerd still rocks with no worries ;-)