Should you watch it, wiki it, or wait for the recap? Wiki it.
As Ward infiltrates SHIELD for his Hydra masters, Coulson takes a small team to investigate a case which has far more personal implications than he lets on. Meanwhile, May, upset with Coulson’s lack of trust in her, departs the team. Will Ward succeed in his mission, and will Coulson resolve the issues from his past?
This episode picks up the pace from “Providence” and certainly adds more to the story, but it feels more like a necessary, if dull, chapter that’s needed as we progress on to the season finale. It has some wonderful character moments, but the story of the week fails to live up to its potential. Just to be sure – case of the week involved a pretty interesting concept (dark energy) and Coulson’s aforementioned love interest (“The Cellist”), but still turned out a little dull.
Highlights:
Ward’s lie detector scene
The team goes through lie detector tests to determine their allegiance’s, and it’s an interesting bit of character development for all of them – we learn bits of their background that would never have come out organically otherwise.
But the most interesting has to be Ward’s interrogation – he has to tell enough of the truth to fool the lie detector but avoid revealing his intentions. And here we see more of the burgeoning Ward-Skye relationship developing – it’s far more intriguing to see Ward’s side of the story than Skye’s, given his cold, stern demeanour. And this leads into the next good thing about the episode, which is:
Ward & Skye love
They share a kiss. Again! While you know that Ward is trying to reel Skye in, the fact that he uses his feelings for her to fool the lie detector sets up the foundation for what is probably going to be the reason Ward returns to SHIELD – Skye. Three more episodes to the season finale!
Melinda is emotionally vulnerable
As with Ward, May is another one of those emotionless characters. Yet you see her revealing her deep emotions for Coulson in the way she reacts – by leaving SHIELD, on account of Coulson’s distrust for her. The fact that she’s hurt, by Coulson of all people, shows us why he’s the central character which the team revolves around, and another unlikely but believable facet of May’s character.
Letdowns:
The Cellist was disappointing
The way the Cellist was played up previously, you’d either expect a groundbreaking revelation or some sort of grand reunion with Coulson. Neither of the two occurs. Coulson never reveals himself to the Cellist, and it’s just longing stares and missed connections. There was so much that could have been done with the Cellist – she could have held the secret to rebuilding SHIELD or defeating Hydra.
Nope, it’s just Coulson looking out for his ex-girlfriend.
Marcus Daniels was a letdown
For someone who can absorb energy and rechannel it, this was one villain that was taken down surprisingly easily. He escapes in the middle of the episode, and the camera tilts to show the night skyline of an entire city – full of electricity for Daniels to drain. It never comes to pass, and what should have been a powerful, difficult foe to defeat turns out to be Coulson’s easily defeated rival in love. This was one incredibly silly and badly executed romantic subplot.
It’d be good to Wiki this just to find out what happened to the Cellist, since she was so heavily built up in prior episodes. You can also try to YouTube Skye & Ward’s kiss. But besides that, this episode was just a bag of unfulfilled potential. On to the next episode!
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