TV Retrospective: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Season 1 episodes 20-22 review

It's time to look at the finale to season 1's episodes of Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.

Nothing Personal

The cat’s out of the bag, folks. And it’s a good job too, there’s so long an audience can put up with knowing something whilst the main characters are unaware.

But even more so when the person in question has murdered someone in their own house. But that’s by-the-by. They find that out within the first 10 minutes of the episode, and it only gets bigger from there folks. That’s a lot to live up so.

After having momentary distractions serving as the plot for the last couple of episodes, it’s time for the plot to shift into high gear again. Skye takes Ward to where he believes she can unlock the drive, but really she’s baiting a trap for the US authorities to come and arrest him. This goes about as well as you’d expect. Oh, hey Deathlok, I forgot you were here for a minute.

So Deathlok decides after Ward’s charms don’t yield anything that the best thing to do would be to stop Ward’s heart and beg sky to save her. Well, I say Deathlok, he’s still getting orders, so… Well, yeah. It works, so it was an effective plan, but Ward is obviously none-too pleased.

Just as Coulson and co set out for their daring rescue, Maria Hill enters the scene, working for Tony Stark after the events of the Winter Soldier. Oh, and she’s sold out the entire SHIELD base to Talbot, she thinks this will help Coulson, because… because

But when she hears the revelation that Hand is dead, and Garrett alive, she helps them escape (yeah, that might’ve just blown any cover you had with Tony, but don’t worry, I’m certain it’ll never be mentioned again) and helps the rescue.

Aww Lola, it’s sad how you sustained so much damage.

A few character moments at the end. Tripp is still bland as ever, but that won’t change until he dies (spoilers)

Rating: 8.5/10

Ragtag

The finale looms and it’s time for things to hit rock bottom for our heroes

It’s also time for the Ward’s origin story. John Garrett visits ward in Prison. Ward had busted out of military school, stole a car and drove thousands of miles to set his parent’s house on fire. Garrett offers him a way out of a potential prison sentence if he joins up with S.H.I.E.L.D.

News reports of people with superhuman strength killing drug dealers. Deathlok specifically seems to be tied to them. Coulson theorises that everything they were up against has one thing in common, the involvement of Cybertek. Skye has uploaded a Trojan Horse into the system, which they can activate only if they get into their systems.

Ward is clearly not happy about having Deathlok siced upon him, as Raina reveals that she’s made progress with the GH325 serum. Tripp brings his howling commandos including things, things, emp joybuzzers and laser cigarettes (which look way too modern in style to be from the howling commandos era, but I digress.)

They use it to infiltrate Cybertek, but they don’t have a sever room, just a large lot of hard files. They take the drawer relating to project Deathlok and discover that Garrett himself was the first subject and that he wants GH325 for himself as well as for the army.

Garrett leaves Ward with a dog in the wood for 6 months, he manages to survive through his own skills, he returns wanting to teach Ward how to shoot, with his first target being the dog. Damn, Garrett you are an atrocious piece of sh*t, I mean ordering people to shoot Skye into the stomach, I can live with, but ordering someone to shoot a dog. YOU DESERVE TO DIE. Thankfully our heartstrings can rest easy knowing Ward let the dog run and then has him on the scope with the sniper rifle

So, the team splits up, one of them finds the HYDRA’s barbershop headquarters, whilst Fitz and Simmons find the bus and are caught by Ward, Fitz activates the EMP, shutting down the electronic systems within Garrett, Garrett orders Ward to kill them as they head to a medic.

Coulson, Tripp, Skye and May enter the barbershop headquarters. Fitz and Simmons barricade themselves in a cargo pod which Ward ejects from the plane. To save Garrett’s life Raina ejects him with their only sample of GH325, with the sample gone, she can’t make any more.

Tripp finds some computer systems behind a wall, but are soon encountered by centipede soldiers and a guy holding the bezerker staff. Ian Quinn proposes to 2 US Defence Force generals about an army of super-powered soldiers to promote US security in the wake of the fall of S.H.I.E.L.D. and the rise of HYDRA

This episode attempts to answer the question as to why Ward is Loyal to Garrett and honestly it’s not all that satisfying an answer as we don’t see when that loyalty grew. Ward’s adventures in retrospect could be attributed to Garrett but we don’t see when Ward has that realisation, he certainly doesn’t have it during the flashbacks. Everything else about the episode is fantastic and on first watch I was looking forward to the finale.

Rating 8.5/10

The Beginning of the End

So, we start with a new employee of Cybertek, brought on by the incentives programme. Each employee has control of one centipede soldier. May takes the bezerker staff and kicks the asses of the centipede soldiers before bringing their base down upon themselves.

Garrett doesn’t give a sh*t. Testing his newfound strength and ideas. Ward thinks that Garrett might well be losing it. The Trojan horse has given Coulson and his team access to a desired programme. Coulson reports that Fitz and Simmons managed to tag the plane, alerting them to the location of the HYDRA base but Fitz and Simmons aren’t responding.

Fitz and Simmons are at least 90ft down in the ocean, with no real way out and limited air. Garrett proposes allowing Raina to carry out her vision for the Gravitonium, dumping Ian Quinn in the progress. Raina thinks Garrett can now answer her question “what will I become?”

Fitz and Simmons talk science mumbo jump before realising that the sealant on the glass could be used to find a way to blow the window open. Coulson and Tripp steal a vehicle with missile launchers and breaks a way in for Skye and May to break into the facility. Our military guys aren’t pleased, and are even less so when Garrett starts monologuing, again. They’ve really stepped up the crazy, hammy acting with him, haven’t they?

Garrett proceeds to kill one of the US guys forcing Ward to have to lock the rest of them up. Ward thinks he’s gone crazy and Raina tries to convince us he’s enlightened. No love, he’s definitely f*cking crazy. Skye and May attack the HQ, they switch the soldiers to default directive: protect John Garrett at all costs. Ward asks Garrett for orders and after finding out she was in their control centre, and knowing what Raina told her, Garrett tells Ward to get her.

Fitz and Simmons are ready to escape but there’s only enough oxygen for one of them. Given Fitz’s broken arm, and the fact that Simmons is a better swimmer, it has to be her. When Simmons protests, Fitz tells Simmons that he loves her. They share one final hug before they ignite the explosive and Simmons carries Fitz to the surface. Damn, you have b*lls girl, carrying someone under water, no matter how light they might be is going to be a massive drain on energy.

But they still have the problem of being stranded, a problem quickly solved by the arrival of Nick Fury and his helicopter. Nick says he might has a vested interest in Coulson and may want to wager in on his battle. Fitz is being seen to by a medical team whilst Simmons is in decompression, essentially eliminating them from the battle.

Ward confronts Skye but Skye sics May on him as she takes the Cybertek leader to uncover the incentives programme. Coulson confronts Garrett and is helped out by the convenient arrival of Nick Fury. The centipede soldiers, Deathlok excluded are all taken down with I think the weapon Coulson used against Loki in the Avengers. Nick promises that they’d have a lengthy conversation about the use of GH325 on him.

Oh, god how many more monologues is Garett gonna give us. Skye finds and reveals she’s been in contact with Deathlok the entire time. She brings a message from Ace to Deathlok allowing to turn on his master.

Ward is defeated by May, who shatters his Larynx, amongst other bones I’d hope. Ward will have to wrestle with the question ‘who is he without John?’ Deathlok leaves hoping to make amends for his actions.

And we get a teaser for season 2 as Garrett rises from the ashes, and enters the Deathlok machine, becoming more powerful than ever… oh wait, it’s just a set up for a joke. Coulson destroys him using a weapon from an early episode.

Coulson confronts Nick over the GH325 and Nick reveals that he has no regrets and considers Coulson an Avenger. Coulson agrees to be new foundation for S.H.I.E.L.D. to be built upon and gives him a toolbox with necessary intel to do so. They arrive at the new base with Simmons waiting for them and are then greeted by Agent Koenig? Actually he’s Billy Keonig, played by the same actor as Eric.

Raina reports to someone who looks absolutely nothing like the actor who eventually plays Mr Hyde (at least not from the back of the head.) Coulson wakes up during the night and begins doing the same carvings Garrett was doing on the walls.

It’s an interesting season end, ending the current threat with a pretty major guest appearance, and setting up season 2 in an interesting way, without it feeling too much like a cliff-hanger (like season 2)

Rating 9/10 

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