Category Archives: SHIELD Recap

Recap: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. – “The Well”

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After the last two superb episodes, SHIELD has finally arrived at the point that many have been waiting for: a direct crossover with the Marvel Cinematic Universe.  Last week gave us a fun, exciting and hilarious James Bond adventure which simultaneously expanded the scope and mythology of the show.  This week, however, found our heroes dealing with the direct aftermath of the events of Thor: The Dark World, currently the top film at the worldwide box office.  It’s a tough act for the show to pull off, trying to find a way to work the film and the episode together in a way that honors the film but feels true to the show, and I think SHIELD pulled it off with subtlety and a light touch which kept things surprising.  So without further ado, let’s fall down “The Well”, which was written by Monica Owusu-Breen and directed by Jonathan Frakes (Star Trek: The Next Generation‘s Will Riker).

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Recap: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. – “The Hub”

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Hello Level 7 Agents, SHIELD is back but you may need your clearance upped for tonight’s episode.  Last week’s episode was the best one since the pilot, with the show taking a huge leap forward in terms of character development and emotion.  Tonight’s episode continued that trend, and I think it’s safe to say that after these last two episodes SHIELD has definitely found its feet.  “The Hub”, written by Rafe Judkins and Lauren LeFranc and directed by Bobby Roth, gave us a look into SHIELD’s daily operation and the scope of the organization, a peek into the mystery of Skye’s parents, some development on Coulson’s resurrection, not to mention some solid action and some of the funniest lines of the season.  Without further ado, let’s take it from the top. Continue reading →

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Recap: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. – “F.Z.Z.T.”

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After a week off (a bye week, as my best friend called it) SHIELD is back!  Last time we got our most mythologically interesting episode to date, which gave us glimpses into Skye’s backstory as well as more information about the mysterious Centipede group.  Tonight’s episode set aside the mythology to give us a mysterious investigation and a generous helping of emotion, we learned a lot more about Fitz and Simmons and got some excellent acting from Clark Gregg and company.  So without further ado, let’s dive into the amusingly named “F.Z.Z.T.”, written by Paul Zbyszewski and directed by Vincent Misiano.

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Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. doesn’t need fixing, just patience

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Entertainment Weekly ran an article today about “How to fix ‘Agents of SHIELD’”, which brought up many of the common complaints about Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. along with a variety of suggestions for how the show to improve.  I’ve spent some time perusing forums and comment sections and have seen most of these complaints before, and I thought I’d take some time to answer some of them.  I should preface this by saying that I’m hardly an unbiased observer.  I’m already attached to SHIELD, and I’m obviously enjoying it.  I want to see it succeed, but even more than that I want the writers and creators to tell the story they want to tell without trying to bow to internet grumblings.  (This would obviously be different if the show had a problem of a social variety, such as racism, misogyny or a negative attitude towards LGBT issues.  I would say that the show is pretty darn white, though of the 6 leads one actor is Chinese and another is half Chinese, so that’s something at least.  As for LGBT characters, I have faith in Joss and company if not in ABC, considering it took huge ensemble show Once Upon a Time three seasons before we got an LGBT character.)  Suffice to say I’m invested in SHIELD and I think it’s doing a lot of things right, and while I’m not a big fan of audience blaming I think some of the criticism is unfair and shortsighted.

Before I get to addressing Darren Franich’s specific complaints/suggestions, I should say that I think SHIELD’s creators have a different approach to “genre” television than what is commonly seen on TV in the 2010’s and what audiences expect from “genre” television in general these days.

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Recap: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. – “Girl in the Flower Dress”

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We’ve made it to our fifth episode of SHIELD, and I think it’s safe to say that the plot has thickened.  Tonight’s episode gave us some major character developments and background information, a peak into the season’s potential “Big Bad”, a continuation of plot points from earlier in the season and some internal conflict within the group.  The darker and more mature tone from last week continued this week, but instead of detached eyeballs and severed hands we got some good old sex.  And, perhaps biggest of all, the show returned to the issue of superpowers, something that will be key for the show if it wants to be a success.  But let’s take it from the top! Continue reading →

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Recap: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. – “Eye-Spy”

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Last week’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. gave us our first peek into the deeper universe of the Marvel comics, by serving as an origin story for villain Graviton.  This week, we were introduced to a new character with ties to Coulson’s past, while the team continues to grow and evolve as they begin to find their roles.  This week’s episode, the punny-titled “Eye-Spy”, was written by Jeffrey Bell (one of the series’s showrunners and writer of my favorite episode of Angel, “The Cautionary Tale of Numero Cinco”) and directed by TV veteran Roxann Dawson (also known as B’Elanna Torres from Star Trek: Voyager).  Let’s jump right in! Continue reading →

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Recap: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. – “The Asset”

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Since the first announcement of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., the fanboys and fangirls have been wondering how strongly and frequently the show will pull from the Marvel comics.  We already knew that the show would tie in to the Cinematic Universe, and we’ve already had references to pretty much every character from The Avengers, not to mention specific plot connections to Iron Man 3 and Captain America: The First Avenger.  But what comic fans were really hoping for was something aimed at them.  The early rumors were that J. August Richards’ character from the first episode would turn out to be Luke Cage, and there was quite the outcry when he turned out not to be, crushing the hopes of a direct connection with the comics.  However, the fans’ prayers might have been answered a bit tonight, as SHIELD encountered a character straight from Marvel’s pages.  But let’s take it from the top before we get ahead of ourselves. Continue reading →

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Recap: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. – “0-8-4”

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Clearly SHIELD’s budget is not dependent on congressional approval, because Agent Coulson and his crew are back with a new case this week, despite the government shutdown.  This week’s episode gave us a much better look at our characters, and a closer glimpse at what we can expect from the show going forward, all while building on the promise of last week’s premiere.  And while it may not have lived up to the brilliance of Joss Whedon’s “Pilot”, “0-8-4” (written by showrunners Jed Whedon and Maurissa Tancharoen, J-Mo, and Jeffrey Bell) was a solid entry in the young series, building on some of the things that were hinted at last week.  Plus, in Marvel Cinematic Universe fashion, it had one hell of a post-credits scene and a big-ticket cameo.  But let’s take it from the top!

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Recap Follow-up: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. – “Pilot”

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Yesterday I rewatched the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. premiere and thought of a few more things to say, so I thought I’d post this little follow-up to my recap.  The first thing I realized is that despite my best efforts I need to do a better job of balancing note taking and watching the show, because I missed some things and got some things wrong in my recap.  I guess that’s to be expected a bit, but I think I can do better in the future.  It was my first time writing a true recap, and it was for an information heavy series premiere, but hopefully it’ll get a little easier.

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Recap: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. – “Pilot”

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When Marvel and Disney decided to combine the Marvel Cinematic Universe with cult favorite writer/director Joss Whedon (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Firefly, Dollhouse, Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog), the result was The Avengers, the 3rd-highest grossing movie of all time.  When you combine that film with the rest of the MCU, including the Iron Man series, Thor and Captain America and their upcoming sequels, it’s an obvious choice for Disney/Marvel to want to expand the empire that has brought them such commercial and critical success.  And who better to give the reins to their new TV series to than Joss and his team, which in this case includes his brother and sister-in-law, Jed Whedon and Maurissa Tancharoen (also known as J-Mo)?  The result is the awkwardly titled Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., which I will from here on refer to as something that’s easier to type.  SHIELD is not the story of the superheroes that get their own films but of the government agents who are forced to deal with them “to protect the ordinary from the extraordinary”, people who have no superpowers of their own yet who are constantly in contact with those who do.  And who better to anchor that story than Agent Phil Coulson, who was stabbed through the chest by villain Loki during the events of The Avengers and presumed dead?  But instead of getting ahead of myself, why don’t we just jump into tonight’s episode, boringly titled: “Pilot”.

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