shadowkat | Marvel Agents of Shield...eh I give up.

Marvel Agents of Shield...eh I give up.

Watching the 5th Episode of Marvel's Agents of Shield ...and oh dear.

(You really do need to put the Marvel bit in the title, AoS doesn't cut it, has to be Marvel's AoS or MAoS, or you might forget this is a FRANCHISE, although not sure why you would since it walks, talks, and bounces up and down like one.)

So once again, we have more interesting guest starring cast than the main cast. I really liked the actress playing Rhianna, the bad girl.

This round we meet Scorch or Mr. Chan, a street performer with the ability to create flames. Rhianna befriends him and then tricks him into becoming a human experiment. Which entails increasing his powers then all of a sudden removing the blood platelates that ensure he doesn't burn to a crisp. Because they need to figure out how to stop blowing up people who they turn into super-soliders. Or at least have stable subjects.

Meanwhile...SHIELD is on the case. And they discover someone from the Rising Tide has hacked into their systems. Everyone looks at Skye - because you know, resident hacker so obviously she did it.

Turns out not so much - but when they chase down the guy who did, he escapes, and Skye finds him and whoops rips off his clothes and has wild sex with him. (At least we are meant to believe it is). Milo - apparently befriended Skye, took her in, and taught her everything he knew. She informs him that his hacking into SHIELD could have exposed her. She was finally inside SHIELD, dang it. So they engage in a wee bit of post-coital pillow talk. She shows him the disc of info that she's managed to get from SHIELD so far - along with her hiding place, which of course is her bra. Also interestingly enough Skye is able to have sex with her bra and panties still on - because you know, it's a family show. (Hey, considering back in the day they were in separate beds or with one leg hanging over the bed, this is actually progress. ) Milo isn't so lucky - his shirt comes off, so we can see what a hunky guy he is.
(Not very realistic for a hacker from Austin, Texas. Usually they look more like Leonard from Big Bang Theory and less like Ward, but then most women who are hackers aren't in as good a shape as Skye is either.)

Skye tells Milo that luckily they haven't been caught this time, but he needs to be more careful and should help her find her shirt. (As an aside, is it just me or do people in Whedon series, who have just had sex, always appear to be hunting their clothing? What do they do, throw it around the room in the process?) Skye's shirt somehow ended up in the hall, because whoopsie, Ming-Na Wen's character is holding it. She hands it to Skye and more or less, states, Gotcha. (And no, she doesn't change expression. I'm thinking this is a direction choice and not an acting choice? Ming to the director - come on, can I crack a smile, just a slight one? Pleassse! Director - no, show no expression whatsoever, it'll be funny.) Then SHIELD materializes out of thin air - everyone on the team no less, and takes Milo and Skye into custody.

Coulson and Ming-Na Wen have a brief conversation about how Coulson was an idiot for trusting Skye. Ming-Na Wen tells him, again with no change in expression - "hey, if someone broke into my house - I wouldn't invite them to stay, but that's just me." (Which is actually the best line I've heard in a while.)

Then they interrogate them - discovering that Milo sold the information on Mr. Chan to Centipede Project. (Yes, the same group that almost killed J August Young's character in the pilot.) Through Skye and Milo's assistance, they track down Project Centipede, but are, alas too late to save Mr. Chan. Although Chan does manage to kill the doctor that J August Young saved in the pilot...so progress. He also kills the Shield Agent that had been tasked with watching him. (In rather gory detail no less - honestly did we have to see the doctor burn to a crisp and explode? Was this really necessary? You can't show a sex scene, or nudity, but you can show a woman burning to a crisp and exploding? And everyone wonders why our society is so violent.) Not to worry, Rhianna, who betrayed him, escapes.

Shield arrives on the scene, represented by Ming-Na Wen and Coulson (who aren't that great at fighting things, because our resident hackers have to aid them. Skye wants to get closer to do it. Milo argues that that makes no sense. Hackers work from their computer, they aren't Navy Seals. I'd have to agree. My attention admittedly wandered during this - so I have no idea whether they went in and saved them. I think they did - because Coulson got out of danger, long enough to shoot Scorch up with a serum which would hold him in place - long enough for him to explode. In short, they decided to eradicate the problem, rather than save the guy. Poor Scorch.)

When they return to their flying center of operations, Milo is given a bracelet that makes it impossible for him to use or get near electronics of any sort. They also leave him Japan, not in Austin, Texas where he resides and donate the million he stole to Mr. Chan's family. (Apparently it's considered punishment to dump a stupid American con artist and crook in Japan with no way to get home and no passport. What did the Japanese ever do to Shield?)

Then Coulson talks to Skye, informing her that he knows she's hiding something. (Yes, Coulson is a tad dense. But he did get skewered by an alien, so we'll give him a pass.) She gives him the disc that she hides inside her bra. Stating that contains everything on her. No wait. Everything she has been able to find out about her parents. The farthest she got was a redacted file - labeled classified by SHIELD. (Pesky government is always hiding things from people in tv shows.) Coulson warns her that she might not like what she discovers. Skye states that it can't be any worse than what she's imagined. (Normally, I'd say that she's wrong, but in this case I doubt it. There's three or four possibilities - they are rogue agents/villains, they died horribly, turned into monsters in a weird experiment, have become the worst criminal on the CIA's black list (oh wait, that's The Black List) or are still alive but in highly covert jobs - ie running Shield. (Yes, she's the love child of Agent Brand and Nick Fury - yet weirdly doesn't have green hair or black skin. Or maybe she's the love child of Agent Coulson and Agent Smulders? ) Then Coulson decides to put the same cuff around Skye's wrist that he put around Milo's -after Skye swears to him that there is no way Shield can stop her from finding out about her parents. Apparently there is? (So are they keeping Skye around or dumping her in Japan? Looks like they are keeping her around, but on a short leash. (At least from the previews for the next episode). Poor Skye. Who by the way looks more and more like Eliza Dusku's younger sister or love child by Amy Acker, except without the acting skill of either.)

Meanwhile...off in a prison cell-block somewhere in Asia, Rhianna (I think that's her name)
visits a mysterious guy and informs him that they've made it to stage 2 with project centipede and discovered a way to stabilize their subjects. (Project Centipede by the way appears to have been stolen from Iron Man 3 - which also had super-heroed people who turned into bombs, but they lived. Actually I preferred that story line not to mention the name of the item, plus bonus, Robert Downy Jr. and Guy Pierce.) And she needs his assistance for Stage 3. Also they have a problem with SHIELD - who interfered with their last subject (J August Young) and now, Scorch (although it wasn't so bad this round, since they were sort of done with him, plus he wasn't as good an actor so didn't get to survive). Can he consult the clairvoyent and see what they know about it? The guy in the cell tells her - he's not so sure, since the clairvoyent doesn't like to be touched. (Oh? So is the clairvoyent Ming Na-Wen, because that would explain a lot.) But, okey-dokey, he'll do it.

We end there.

I don't know...even the really bad episodes of Buffy S1 were more entertaining. Actually...for that matter, so was Charmed and The Tomorrow People. But on the plus side?
It was better than the second and third episodes...so progress?

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I clearly have missed a lot because as someone who hasn't watched, I couldn't begin to follow the plot.

Not really. It's basically a goverment covert ops team who wanders around the world hunting threats - mainly poor naive super-powered foreigners or rogue agents. Skye is a hacker, with a group called Rising Tide (which we found out this week is two people). Her agenda, assuming she told the truth, is to dig up information on her parents, who she knows nothing about. She's infilterated SHIELD because they have the information she wants. SHEILD discovered she was a spy this week - because her partner in crime did something stupid and got them both caught. Meanwhile there's an evil organization called Project Centipede (I kid you not) that is turning normal human beings into super-powered ones.

That's pretty much it.

It's unfortunately not that interesting or well written. My attention keeps wandering during it. Not sure why I've kept watching, possible in the hopes it will get better? But right now, I seriously doubt it.

Also, the ratings are dwindling, so apparently I'm not alone.

Edited 2013-10-23 22:03 (UTC)

In short, they decided to eradicate the problem, rather than save the guy. Poor Scorch.

You did miss that part-- they did try to save him, but he was so cranked up with the power-expanding serum he injected himself with that they couldn't get him to stand down, and the reaction from the serum has a runaway effect, so he had passed the point of no return-- they couldn't save him. They gave him the paralytic so that the team could get away before he blew up.

As to the partly-clothed sex scenes, while network S&P for a "family show" may play into it, and likely does, it's also possible that the actress may have a "no nudity" clause in her contract.

This series is holding steady for me so far-- neither better nor worse. I do agree that for a Whedon related show, casting choices have been very uneven-- which I find very odd given his track record in finding great people that you never heard of at the time and giving them an audience.

Edited 2013-10-23 04:23 (UTC)

There are other ways to do that without wearing bra and panties...she could have used a sheet. (See Buffy S6 for examples. SMG did have a no nudity clause in her contract.)

I'm afraid that I'm losing interest...my attention wanders during it. Last night I kept getting bored and playing on my ipad. I keep hoping they'll do something interesting or different, but so far? Nothing.

Just when I thought I couldn't find Skye anymore disappointing we find out that she really doesn't have any moral issues with SHIELD, she's just searching for her family (which of course she will eventually find in her new group of work friends, yes blah blah created families favourite Whedon theme that has now become dull). So basically the line that we've been told all along, that Skye is there to question SHIELD's authority, is a lie and we're just supposed accept the shadowy unaccountable authority. When I wasn't flipping over to watch Biggest Losers working out I amused myself by thinking of the laws SHIELD was violating. Let's see, they kidnapped Miles without charge, denied him legal counsel, then dumped him in a foreign country with an electronic monitoring device that will make him unable to practice his livelihood for an unspecified amount of time, and function in modern society, also informing him they've drained his bank accounts to supposedly give to a third party. Yay team?

Yeah, I keep waiting for them to do something interesting, but so far? Na Da.
Also, I tend to agree - there is a questionable moral message being conveyed here, making me wonder if Whedon has sold out to Marvel in order to direct big movies (similar to Angel selling out to WRH to save Connor, although Marvel isn't quite as bad)?

I found how they dealt with Miles and Skye sort of awkward. And it was hard to follow, I kept playing on my ipad during it.

So basically the line that we've been told all along, that Skye is there to question SHIELD's authority, is a lie and we're just supposed accept the shadowy unaccountable authority.

As several people have mentioned below, it is possible that the story so far has been setup for a subversion where Skye will indeed become SHIELD's enemy, or at least SHIELD will be portrayed as a severely morally gray organization and she will have to decide what to do about it.

I wonder if the plan might be to make Skye the newest version of Nikita? (The USA Network, Peta Wilson Nikita, that is, not the newer CW version.) Kind of similar, don't you think?-- powerful, shadowy, outside the law organization supposedly fights evil in the world that legal authorities can't touch, but only by operating in a moral haze.

Maybe, maybe not. I will be very disappointed if it stays on the current course, but Whedon does tend towards slow sculpture, at least has in the past, so I'll be sticking with the show for at least a while yet.

Two thoughts:

1. What Skye told Coulson about her family was almost certainly a lie, at least in part.

2. Chloe Bennett does remind me of ED, but maybe even more of Alyssa Milano.

1) I did not see that at all. I could be wrong of course. And my attention admittedly kept wandering...

2) That's who she's reminding me of. Thank you.

No. 1 was just instinct on my part.

Just to clarify....

I think there is some truth to the fact that she's looking for her family. The lie was in leading Coulson to believe that this search was *the* reason for infiltrating SHIELD. I think she has an additional agenda and is using her family as a (ahem) shield while she pursues it.

That certainly fits better with the previous four episodes. But if it is the case - they need to reveal that sooner than later. Audience's don't have the patience they did when Buffy aired.

I'd guess episode 7. Joss almost always does a big episode at No. 7.

He may need to change that approach, in Today's world, the big episodes are episode 2 or 3.

Yeah, I think I'm close to done too. At least 24 and its ilk were honest about being a reactionary fantasy about how foreign people are dangerous and must be stopped by brave, steeljawed heroes using any means. This show sells the same message with compassion for the poor, naive, easily misled fools who don't trust the non-elected US authorities to keep their best interest at heart. Urgh.

I have to think that any show with Joss involved intends to subvert that.

I have to think it.

1) I suppose it is possible. But I don't see it in the framework of the series. Could be wrong of course...but I'm not sure I have the patience to stick it out to find out.

And...

2)Well...a couple of things..first, this is a Marvel series. Second..it is off of the Avengers (not the X-Men) and I don't know if you are familiar with the Avengers? But the closest they came to subverting that was Civil Wars - where the theme was super-powered people have too much power and someone has to speak for the people, so let's put them in camps.

Third? I honestly don't think Whedon's that involved. His quippy dialogue is missing.

Whedon's childhood dream was to become a big-time film director not television scribe. Doing this for Marvel, allows him to be a big-time film director and make movies like Much A-Do About Nothing.

Methinks the man sold out some time ago to Marvel comics. Granted there are worst organizations, and I can't completely blame him...

Edited 2013-10-23 21:36 (UTC)

I was never an Avengers fan, so I trust your view of the comics series. But every single show Joss has done has included a very strong distrust of authority figures, so I'm holding out the hope that he intends some subversion here too.

Those were the series that he was heavily involved in. I don't believe he is...here. I could be wrong. But everything I've seen and read indicates otherwise.

Unfortunately, I have to agree. I can't decide if they are oblivious or being deliberate about all the rogue agents and bad guys of the week being either POC's or women? While the heroes are white, all-American, square-jawed guys and gals. The pattern is beginning to be a wee bit obvious particularly after watching other tv shows which are doing the opposite.

Also...the US as police for the poor naive countries outside of it - sigh.
It does remind me a lot of American super-hero comic books, which do tend to do that, (well except for the X-Men - who sees the government and SHIELD as the bad guys).

The problem with doing a series about human (non-super powered) government agents cleaning up the world of uncontrollable super-powered people is ...it comes across as wee bit fascist. Does not help when you make all the rogue super-powered people either POC's or Women or Both.

If they plan on subverting this - they better do it soon. I'm tempted to give it two more episodes to see...but frankly, it's not that entertaining.
And I'm not sure I have the patience.

The problem with doing a series about human (non-super powered) government agents cleaning up the world of uncontrollable super-powered people is ...it comes across as wee bit fascist. Does not help when you make all the rogue super-powered people either POC's or Women or Both.

Or when you have people mention Manning and Snowden etc only to have Our Heroes immediately dismiss it as "platitudes" and prove that the person in question is just in it for the money. Really subtle there, guys.

Yep. And interestingly enough, every other tv series has dealt with it in the exact opposite direction.

The story would have been more interesting if Miles was not in it for the money and actually sent the information because he'd been tricked by Rhianna (sp?) or if the Project Centipede group wasn't sooo clearly EVIIIIL.

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Marvel Agents of Shield...eh I give up.

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