Writers: Monica Owusu-Breen
Director: Jonathan Frakes
Starring: Clark Gregg, Ming-Na Wen, Brett Dalton, Chloe Bennet, Iain De Caestecker, Elizabeth Henstridge, Peter MacNicol
Synopsis: After the events of THOR: THE DARK WORLD, the agents must track down an Asgardian weapon that has fallen into the wrong hands.
In its biggest referencing to date, Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D. opens with a cleanup operation centred around action sequences that laid waste to London in THOR: THE DARK WORLD. Although it’s probably pleasant enough for fans, it does also seem tacked on. Sure, it serves as a reminder concerning Asgardians and their way of life, which is essential to the episode’s plot. The episode opens up with clips taken from THOR and THOR: THE DARK WORLD, although Chris Hemsworth’s face is mysteriously absent, probably to avoid royalties. It is a fairly decent scene which does address the question of who cleans up after such events in blockbuster movies. Nothing wrong with a bit of fan service.
In keeping with the last two episodes’ focus on individual characters while constructing a simple plot around them, this time it’s the turn of Agent Ward (Dalton). But before we delve into his psychosis, which is much needed to develop upon his action man persona, there’s some plot to get out of the way. Just this week AMC announced the first 2 parter that will come into play and it’s obvious that this show needs such an extension. We follow two people exploring a Norwegian reserve looking for a strange item. They eventually come across some kind of sceptre which when touched turns the female of the pair into a raging bag of anger with super-strength. After this, Coulson and his team have to fumble around with some dialogue and poor excuses as to why Thor can’t be contacted. They may have well just said “Chris Hemsworth’s too expensive,” and be done with it.
In the interest of saving time, Coulson just so happens to know an Asgardian expert, Professor Elliot Randolph, played by the always reliable Peter MacNicol. It just so happens, Coulson contacted Randolph about Thor’s hammer back in the day, although we never saw or heard about that until now. This early scene gives the frightening prospect that MacNicol will be serving as Captain Exposition only, as he gives all the information the agents need without having to do a single shred of detective work. He reveals that there should be two more pieces to the staff, and fortunately it turns out that Randolph wants the staff for himself. I say fortunately, because it means MacNicoll get to show off his commanding screen presence. A later unexpected twist also reveals why he wants the staff, which I won’t ruin here.
During a scuffle with Randolph, Ward accidentally touches the staff which makes him angry, strong, and also forces flashbacks to a troubling incident. Ward has been played very stoic up until now, and there were even times when I would doubt Dalton’s ability as an actor. Here he shows a much more vulnerable side, portraying both fear and a childlike innocence, as well as uncontrollable anger. It makes him both threatening and more endearing, and the past tragedy of his life is particularly grim and questionable. It isn’t the old “parents killed in front of me” malarkey, but a tragedy Ward himself was a part of.
The finale offers up enough action for a satisfactory rip-roaring conclusion, with both Ward and May kicking ass and taking names. No surprise given Frakes history as a director on some fantastic shows. It’s not quite an improvement over previous weeks, but it does maintain the quality level of character development. I like the idea of plot devices forcing characters to confront themselves and their pasts, but the stories are beginning to rush at an uncomfortable pace during the first half of the episodes. Fans of the Marvel Universe as a whole, will no doubt love the nods to their latest big screen adventure but how the show will continue in the wake of THE AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON is anyone’s guess. Here’s hoping the strong lead performances continue to carry the weaker plots until they both find an equal balance.
Best Bit: May decides to show Ward how it’s done, by picking up all three of the staff pieces and kicking some serious arse. Nice to see it was also followed by a suggestive curveball as to which romantic links the series is intending to create.
Marvel’s Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D. hits Channel 4 every Friday at 8pm.
