#rewatchingaos2

[ryder616]

Rewatching S.O.S. Part 1

A day in the life of a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent: you have barely put your best friend’s deceptions behind you and the fallout from the latest internal squabble has just started to settle when your former temporary not-boss is murdered, a whole community of powered people is duped into thinking you are the Gestapo and the young agent you’ve been mentoring for the better part of the year doesn’t trust you and flings you across a courtyard.

And you have just begun to contemplate the very real possibility you might be forced to go against another superpowered mother and daughter duo, after the first time it happened it almost destroyed you, when you discover that your traitorous former teammate and dalliance has kidnapped one of your friends and now there’s a second crisis to go with the first.

Yeah. It’s not a fun day to be May.

It’s not an easy day to be Daisy, either (is it ever?). Everything is crashing down, again, another promise of a home destroyed, again, and she’s faced, again, with a choice between her biological family and her found one. And for the first time since she stepped on the Bus, she doesn’t choose the latter, even if it doesn’t last.

And why not. If S.H.I.E.L.D. had been really guilty of what her mother frames them for, opposing them would have been the right, if painful, thing to do.

But they aren’t. And when she finally understands what her mother is doing, there is no hesitation. Skye chooses S.H.I.E.L.D. unreservedly. After all, they haven’t murdered anyone in the past 24 hours (well, unless Nameless Inhuman #3 died when Agent Trigger Happy shot him 😏) and aren’t gearing up for a massacre.

Before that, however, there is the little matter of not trusting May and, if nothing else this season, she had earned the right to be trusted.

I like that May stresses to Coulson - who is by far Daisy’s biggest stan, honestly 🤣 - that Skye chose, although when they fight I think she was mostly running on impulse (“I don’t exactly over-analyze. I just act impulsively and then I freak out after the fact” -- 1x19).

The actual choice is bringing the charm (I hope that’s a correct term for it) back to Jiaying later (“Bring this back to me if you decide to join our fight”), and therefore much more significant because it is a reasoned choice, not a hasty reaction with the sound of explosions and the accusatory words of her bleeding mom still ringing in her ears (not to mention the shooting of that unarmed Inhuman right in front of her).

Regardless, May is owned another apology. 😉

To Kill Like a Mockingbird:

Speaking of bad days, Bobbi’s trumps them all, courtesy of Ward and Wardette, because Kara is now gone completely over to the dark side.

Despite hours of torture, she still looks capable of getting the upper hand against Ward at least until Kara wakes up, making it likely that a well rested and unhurt Bobbi could have dealt successfully with both of them (and she had already made very quick work of Kara in 2x20).

Her mental fortitude is even more remarkable than her fighting skills. She mocks Ward relentlessly (“Take her to Hawaii”) and clinically dissects the abusive and beyond toxic partnership between him and Kara. Her outstanding profiling skills don’t fail her even under extreme duress and she remains unwavering when confronted by death.

And when Ward tries to draw a parallel between them (“Both of us, living one life on the outside. But who we really are, we keep that buried deep inside where no one can ever find it.”) she delivers the perfect rebuttal:

You're such a hypocrite. You say I betrayed her? You betrayed your entire team. How many people who trusted you have died? See, I've seen the real Grant Ward, the one buried deep inside. He's a coward who always has an excuse or someone else to blame.

It’s a shame she’ll never get the chance to thoroughly trash him.

Gotta Catch ‘Em All:

Alisha Whitley aka Ginger Ninjas (thank you, Mack) is the Inhuman answer to Multiple Man, capable of creating up to four duplicates of herself who can fight and take action just as effectively as their original, as long as Ashley Prime remains conscious.

She knows and controls what they are doing even when there’s significant physical distance between them, (in S3 she’ll do it from at least several miles away).

She’s also a very skilled martial artist (her actress is Adrianne Palicki’s stunt double on the show) and likely possesses superior strength and speed to the average human.

The death of one of her duplicates doesn’t harm her physically but it’s a severe psychological shock. And once a duplicate is dead, she doesn’t seem able to replicate another in its place, since by the time she is killed by a Kree Reaper in 3x19 she was down to only one double.

She’s Got The Powers:

Skye had already accidentally dismantled a gun with her powers in 2x12, here she does it on purpose, a feat she won’t repeat again until 6x01. She also uses her powers to create a concussive wave to knock May out, in what will become an infinitely more common display of her Inhuman abilities.

Beloved Frenemy:

After almost two years of being mostly a thorn in our agents’ side (no puns, I swear), Raina  basically dies so that our budding superhero can learn the depth of her mother’s corruption and rejoin the fold. Which is disappointing.

Personally, I would have expected her to manage it without dying and finding a way to exploit it to her advantage - a S3 Inhumans cult-like enclave led by the true Clairvoyant anyone? - but I’ve always had a soft spot for Raina, even when she was doing terrible things to characters I love like Mike Peterson. 

Stuff that crossed my mind:

Sir, there’s been gunfire. Skye’s mother’s been shot, allegedly by Gonzales. Yes. Very, very allegedly.

What about Gonzales? [...] -- Got what he always wanted. Oh, how I wish it were that simple, Fitz. But I appreciate your unwavering distrust in the man. 😉

Why would you let them do this to us? I thought you were on our side! By all means, guilt trip your daughter. You just lost all your cool mom points. Well, and also with the murder, that was bad, too. 🤭

Oh, hi Alisha. And nameless guy who is about to be shot.

Tell me, Agent Trigger Happy, what possessed you to a) shoot an unarmed and unthreatening person in the middle of this powder keg b) do it with your fellow agent in the line of fire? Enjoy your frankly well deserved asskicking.

Skye, stop! -- What have you done? Congratulations, Ms Johnson! Your membership of the “Assume the Worst of May” Club has just been renewed for the year! 😁

I don’t want to hurt you! -- You won’t. Echoes of their conversation during training in 2x12, when it was Daisy who told May she didn’t want to hurt her and May assured her she couldn’t. And in terms of physical hurt, she still right. Until Skye used her powers, the fight was one-sided even though May was hardly going all out.

I’m sorry, May. You’re not welcome here [woo-woo-woo-woosh] Well, now, that’s just cheating. 😁

And my brother's been on me for years, wants us to motorcycle down to Baja.[...] So there’s nothing I can say? -- To change my mind? No. Oh, that’s right, Mack, you resigned.🤣 First mention of his brother and love for motorcycles.

None of this would have happened if Gonzales hadn’t attacked. -- You can’t actually believe he would do something like this. -- Oh, no, Gonzales would never attack a base unprovoked. I think the Bus Kids have also formed the “Assume the Worst of Gonzales” Club. I’d proudly claim honorary membership except unfortunately I already know what really happened.

Gonzales was smarter than this. It's too sloppy. I like that Coulson seems to dismiss the idea only because he thinks Gonzales would have done it better, not not done it at all. Another member for the aforementioned club? 😉

I think you've helped enough. -- What is that supposed to mean? -- It means Jiaying was right, S.H.I.E.L.D. couldn't be trusted. But you convinced her otherwise. Guilt trip #2. What a fun day this is shaping up to be.

Skye feels as betrayed as we do, Lincoln. Maybe more. -- I don’t think we know the full story. Hold on to that thought, Daisy. This would be a really good time for your "mistrust of home superpower”(2x17) to manifest itself, btw.

You know, I am capable of finishing -- my own sentences. Yes, you are. I'm sorry. Well, at least something is going well. Fitz seems fully back to his old fast-speaking, fast-thinking self.

No, you're here to ask questions about what's gonna happen next. [...] Well, that's the tragedy. Because even if I were inclined to tell you, you wouldn't believe me, not with our history. It is a very fair assumption. However, it couldn’t hurt to try and actually explain? That’s the problem with clairvoyants. They become so sure the future they see is what will unquestionably happen, they don’t even try to change it. Unless they’re kids with a passion for crayon drawings...

Your mother isn't leading our people, she's misleading them. It's you who are destined to lead. Oh, what fateful words. Or not. Still working on that, I guess?

They're all willing to fight because S.H.I.E.L.D. attacked. -- What about your daughter? -- I'm hopeful she'll do the right thing. Oh, don’t worry, she will...😈

I'm a present, a gift horse...a peace offering from my family. I'm also an excellent Shanghai Rummy partner. -- Sir, I'm worried he's more of a Trojan Horse. Well, he just told you he is. “Gift horse”? C’mon.

Bobbi once set Hunter’s 1967 convertible GTO on fire. Reason #1047 I’ll be forever pissed Most Wanted didn’t happen.

What’s wrong? -- Everything. S.H.I.E.L.D. attacking, you getting shot, me fighting May, the threat of more people dying...this is way up there on one of the worst days ever. Quick, Jiaying, she’s entering the “freak out after the fact” phase and then comes the thinking and you can’t have her thinking things through. Say something unsettling and demanding of action! Or, wait, no, don’t. I’m not rooting for you. What the hell? 😳

Skye's mother orchestrated the whole thing. It was a performance. [...] Every Inhuman up there believes that S.H.I.E.L.D. attacked their leader and declared war. -- Including Skye. Don’t give Jiaying all the credit for that. S.H.I.E.L.D. bungled this Inhuman business from the beginning.

This reeks of Ward. He left Agent 33 here for this very purpose. [...] There’s a piece we don’t understand yet. -- There’s a piece that Ward doesn’t understand. When I find him, I’m going to kill him. Eh, the kids have been trying all season. He’s got plot armor made of vibranium right now.

I'm sorry you were in that safe house, but I did the right thing. The lives of the many outweigh the life of one. You swore to the same ideal when you signed to S.H.I.E.L.D. -- That's your apology? Ward, you’re the last person who can complain about half-assed apologies. And don’t knock it. She’s taking full responsibility for her actions, used “I” the whole time and even said the word “sorry”. It’s already miles ahead of what you delivered to your former teammates a couple of episodes ago. She was also fighting nazis instead of helping them, so, you know.

We may still have assets in there. -- Agent Skye? She could expose us. She knows every S.H.I.E.L.D. procedure. You're gambling with our lives because of one agent. The security of S.H.I.E.L.D. far outweighs the safety of Skye. -- It's not her safety, it's her usefulness. Eeehhh...I don’t know Phil...I’m pretty sure it’s at least both.

Mack, I thought you left. The Curse of Mack. He can try. But he can never leave. Mhwhahahaha! 🤣

What about the alien thing in the cargo hold? Could be what this is all about. It’s what started the paranoia on their side, that’s for sure.

I think [Cal’s conconction] is an ill-conceived attempt at super strength. -- Other than Cap, every attempt has been ill-conceived. Fanboy Phil, reporting for duty. 😁

Do you think it'll end with me? There's always someone else to blame. [...] I bet he started you off easy, a symbolic target. Maybe the doctor who made your mask. Ward probably started off easy, too. -- You're right. It was his dog. Garrett made him kill his dog. I know what you're doing, Agent Morse, and it's not going to work. Pity, because she nailed it.

Grant's already told me everything about his abusive family, about John Garrett, about having to kill Victoria Hand. But in the end, he overcame his family and the pain Garrett put him through. He remade himself. It's why I love him. And why no matter what he does, I will always stand with Ward. Well, I’ll be...sometimes the AoS writers are really not subtle, uh? 🤣

There's only one thing that can save the Inhumans from death and destruction. And it is neither you nor I. It's Skye. I've considered killing her and you, running from my fate. I’m glad you mentioned the kill option because that would have been my first question.

Peace? I built this community in the middle of nowhere so we would be left in peace. Yet, S.H.I.E.L.D. found us. I know. And you’re right. But nosy secret agencies aren’t an excuse for mass-murder.

I am planning for our future, your future. Daisy, I won’t live forever, and when I’m gone, you must lead these people, protect them as I have done. -- Protect them? You killed Raina. You are leading them into a war. If they need protection, it is from you! -- I'm sorry you feel that way. Kids, uh? They never appreciate all the things parents do for them...

When this is done, hopefully she’ll understand. I can’t tell if you’re finally fully delusional or just playing concerned mom for the kicks.

I never got [the formula] quite right. Always missing something. Highly unstable. Made me a little moody. Could it kill me? Sure. But it was worth the risk. That’s entirely a matter of debate.

Maybe they both just needed a holiday. Bobbi always liked Spain. Probably sitting on a beach, telling 33 what a lousy husband I was. I did have my faults. I would call that the “When Pigs Fly” scenario, Hunter. 😔

If you hurt anyone here, Daisy will never forgive you. -- Stop calling her that! -- Sorry. I thought...never mind. -- "Daisy" to me and her mother, not you, not anyone else! Right, Coulson, how dare you. It’s not like Cal spent half the season barking bloody murder at everyone who called her Skye. 🤭

You've always done her dirty work. She's the real monster. -- She's not like me. -- No. She's worse. Mhmmm...I think they’re both pretty bad and broken, all things considered. I wouldn’t make it a competition.

Get me an adrenaline injector, one milligram. Oh dear. I believe that would be the missing ingredient. 😬

Got to admit, I'm not hopeful [the Icers] will do anything but piss him off. -- There are more lethal solutions. -- Not yet. He's Skye's father or at least, he was. I'm hoping there's still a sliver of the man who [Cal breaks out of quarantine] oh-oh. Jemma’s quick sideye look is a thing of beauty and I can’t blame her. Coulson’s “let’s not ruffle one hair in the vicinity of anything Skye-related” policy was starting to wear *me* down. 😂

A day ago, I never wanted to talk to her again. Now she's all I can think about. -- Love's weird that way. -- I'm not sure it's love. More like a dance of desire, discomfort, and unreliable feelings. You say potato...

I wonder what you'll feel when you watch somebody else die because of what you did. And the Wardification of Kara is complete. Blaming others for her own terrible actions.

Do we have anybody left still fighting below? Well, there’s Mack and his axe so yeah, there’s plenty! 😎

You gotta admit, FitzSimmons make excellent bait. They look so harmless and helpless, with his cardigans, her sensible shoes and both their fresh faces...who could ever resist the lure to chase and slaughter them? 😁

All clear. The ship's been taken. [...] -- Now what? -- Now, we begin. Phase 2: Kill All the Humans.

[ryder616]

Rewatching S.O.S. Part 2

If it weren’t for a certain young scientist with two PhDs in allegedly unpronounceable fields being sucked into a portable Einstein-Rosen bridge, S.O.S. would be the closest AoS came, to date, to deliver an upbeat ending in a season finale.

S1′s finale had comatose Fitz and the uncertainity of the future, S3′s is a complete tragedy, S4′s had the prospect of jail time looming and the kidnapping to space and beyond and S5′s is a cryfest. And I’m not really counting S6 as it feels more like a midseason cliffhanger, but time travelling to the Prohibition era to stop a bunch of uptight synthetics from conquering the planet isn’t exactly a happily ever after scenario.

S2, however, leaves almost all the characters in reasonably good places.

Sure, Skye’s just lived through the worst family reunion ever and lost both her parents again but she’s endured, has finally all the answers about where she comes from and is looking to lead a team of her own, saving lives and making a difference, which is what she always wanted.

Phil lost his hand and May’s leaving but he’s full of plans for the future and S.H.I.E.L.D. is much stronger and rich of resources than it was when the season started. He’s succeded at the nigh impossible task of rebuilding after The Fall.

May’s going on vacation and has a second chance with Andrew and maybe at a life where S.H.I.E.L.D. isn’t everything. She’s smiling, stealing whisky and packing red bikinis and guns, which is sort of a positive, too, because until now she didn’t want anything to do with guns unless absolutely necessary. She’s feeling better about herself.

Bobbi is traumatized and has a long recovery ahead but she is alive, which wasn’t a given, and there is no reason to believe she won’t pull through, and she and Hunter are in a good place with each other again (or look like they will be).

Lance has Bobbi back and he’s not the mistrusted merc with a fake cynical attitude he was at the beginning of the season.

Mack didn’t quit and is bossing British scientists around, in full control of one of the things he fears most, alien stuff.

And FitzSimmons are safe, sound and have a dinner date planned.

Yeah, even if Jemma hadn’t been eaten by Monolith Prime 15 seconds later, that would have been a red flag. 😉

Gotta Catch ‘Em All:

In Part 1 Jiaying’s gift revealed itself to be much less benign than everyone had been led to believe, audience included: not a simple passive tissue regeneration and/or a slower decay but an active, vampiric-like ability that requires her to willingly “absorb” somebody else’s vitality to heal and prolong her own life.

Given that her DNA is a key ingredient for the final version of the Centipede serum (5x19), it’s likely she does have some form of passive self-healing ability, too, but to heal serious wounds and to extend her lifespan over centuries, she needs “the generosity of others”, as she so very creepily understates in 2x21.

Going on Cal’s words, for many generations she did it out of a sense of duty, entrusted to carry on the Inhumans’ knowledge and traditions, with willing volunteers and while still trying to convince them otherwise ( “She would weep, scream, beg them not to” 2x22)

After Whitehall, she had to go through numerous subjects to heal  - an entire village, “supplied” by Cal - and taking so many unwilling lives likely burned out whatever might have been left of the compassionate and loving person she was described to be before her horrific ordeal.

Stuff that crossed my mind:

What we both want is to protect your daughter. Welcome to an all new episode of Agents of D.A.D.S.!

I'm not saying your wife is a monster, Cal. I think you already know she's a monster. What I'm saying is, you're not. I know you've thought so for a long time. But deep down, you're a good man. I believe that. I do. Honestly, I think they were both good people, once, and now they’re not. But, you’re trying to convince him to help you and Jiaying is unquestionably gone off the rails at this point.

You got a big heart, full of love. You wear it on your sleeve. Skye got that from you. You know, wearing one’s heart on one’s sleeve sounds like a terrible trait for a secret agent.

Jiaying's out for blood, and there's no way in hell Skye will go along with that. Think about the danger that puts her in. She's not my daughter, but she's as close to family as I've got, and I will save her, no matter what the cost. Soooo, that stuff about “it’s not her safety, it’s her usefulness” you said last ep was you fronting, uh? I would never have guessed it. 😁

You want to lend me a hand getting these things off? Or a face? 🤣

Who’s with you? -- Just you and me, Tremors. "Just you and me, Tremors”. 🤗 I want more of just him and Tremors. Pls, S7? Also first time he calls her Tremors. 🤗

We have to show them what we're capable of. It's the only way they'll ever leave us alone. Actually, it seems like the perfect way to ensure humans wouldn’t leave you alone. And, powers or not, there’s like a gazillion more of them than you.

The problem is, [the S.O.S. signal] is hard-wired, clear on the other side of the ship, with a dozen Ginger Ninjas and God knows who else standing in the way. -- But we're still gonna try. -- Hell yeah. The totally excellent adventure of Mack and the Daisy. 😉 (though I expect the “D” in that title refers to Mr. Lemons).

I didn't think May would be with him. She could screw the whole thing up for us. Nice of you to not underestimate her.

[May radioes fake instructions to fool Kara] Hunter’s the only agent left -- She doesn’t know that. And look. She just screwed the whole thing up for them. 😎

And what about us? How dangerous are we? -- Very. We've always been. Now they know it. They’ve always known it, genius, they were scared shitless of you, that’s how (part) of this mess started. And you confirming their worst fears is how it’s ending. 😞

They have turned Jiaying’s own daughter against us. No, I’m pretty sure it was all the unprovoked murdering that did it.

She just killed them, all of them, didn’t even think about it. [...] And I fell for the whole act. -- [...] You had to choose between two sides that both mean something. I get it. You make the best choice you can. Sometimes, it works out. Sometimes -- It didn’t -- It did not. Is it possible you’re speaking from experience there, Mack? 😉

Try to hack the code and turn it off -- Wait. Where are you going? -- To find a power saw in case you can’t. Ok, now you’re just being insulting. In case she can’t hack it? What show have you been watching? 😄

I've modified my field generators to act in unison as a quantum-field disrupter. [...] The disrupter should keep him contained to a single space. This nifty piece of technology will be re-used in 4x21 to temporarily contain Aida who had acquired Gordon’s teleportation ability from the experiments in the Framework.

Let’s get her prepped for surgery. Unless Jemma graduated while she was infiltrating Hydra - and tbh I wouldn’t put it past her - it appears that S.H.I.E.L.D.’s best trauma surgeon is someone who doesn’t even have a proper medical degree. Could be much worse, though, the lead surgeon could be a mechanical engineer guided step by step by a field agent reading “Surgery for Dummies” on her tablet. 😁

Jiaying staged the whole thing. She murdered Gonzales, then shot herself to frame S.H.I.E.L.D. so we'd follow her to war. [...] -- Do you even hear how crazy that sounds? Says the guy who shoots lighting from his hands and is currently hijacking the ship of an organization that routinely deals with alien invasions and people with superpowers.

I was getting through to him. -- Right now, I’m in a “crack heads first, ask questions later” frame of mind. It’s fine, I wouldn’t worry, Lincoln’s pretty hard-headed. 🤭

How bad are we talking? -- There’s no way it will end well. Was she still fearing a Bahrain #2? Despite Coulson’s unwavering convinction, they didn’t know Skye was back on their side yet.

This? Now? You want to talk about this now? Indeed, awful timing. Neither of you is in imminent mortal danger, after all.😄

Sir, something’s happening with the S.O.S. signal from the boat [...] There's a pattern to it, like a code. -- It's Skye. What's she saying? -- That it's a trap. See, Mack? Of course she can hack it. 😎

Break the crystals. Release the mist. Either they’re Inhuman or they’re dead. I’m starting to see the wisdom in Mack’s “crack heads first” policy. Other than Skye, Lincoln seems to be the only Inhuman on screen who has a problem with murder.

It’s Gordon, right? -- And you are? -- I’m the guy who kills Gordon. As it turns out, you’re actually the friend of the guy who kills Gordon. Still iconic, though. 😉

There are descendants everywhere. I’m going to find them and build them a better world, where they’re not hunted, not afraid. -- And kill anyone in your way. -- Only if they’re in our way. Oh sure, when you put it like that, it sounds much more peaceful.

“No-eyes”?That is the best you can do? Hey, cut him some slack, he already came up with Tremors and Ginger Ninjas. Even the Homer of nicknames nods off sometimes.

What are those things? -- Quantum field disrupters. Should contain him here if he comes back. -- Of course. Why didn't I think of that? -- That's okay. You've been busy, and you're not a quantum physicist. It's completely understandable. 🤣

My head still hurts. -- I'm sorry. I didn't know. Well, not a “lengthy” apology but it’ll do in a pinch. They are a bit pressed for time, after all.

Skye, I’ll do it. I’ve done it before. -- No -- You have to be willing to -- I won’t hesitate. Whatever it takes. Yep, Bahrain’s definitely on May’s mind. And Skye just pledged to kill her other mom if it comes to it. This isn’t fun anymore. 😞

I'm trapped in here. That's not possible! What did you do?! -- Science, biatch. Speaking of iconic lines...

This war started decades ago, when S.H.I.E.L.D.was founded to guard the world against people like us. And it will never end. But you and I together...think of how powerful we could be. We could launch a revolution, side by side. -- I don’t want your revolution, because this isn’t about protecting me or your people. This is about hate. It’s consumed you. You can’t even tell right from wrong. “Join me and together we can rule the galaxy”. Oops, wrong Disney property. 😁 Props to Jiaying for speaking of a “revolution” though, she did learn at least something about her daughter’s inclinations these past few weeks.😉

Please. Stop. You don't have to do this. You don't have to live with that pain. I will. -- Cal, what are you doing? -- Keeping my promise. And how much worse of what Skye had imagined did the truth about her family turn out to be? Greek tragedy worse. 😭

Taking a bullet for me was stupid. -- Walking into a trap when you know it's a trap is stupid. Sounds like you’re made for each other, if you ask me.😁

But soon, you’ll be stable, and then -- And then, I can’t do this anymore. Add this to the list of “I really want to choke Ward” moments.😡

[Mack] respects you. But he still holds a deep distrust of all the alien artifacts you've encountered. -- That's why I put him in charge of them. And from the looks of it, Weaver and Jemma might eventually murder you for it. 😂

I'm your patient now? I wasn't your patient the other night when you and your ex-wife snuck into my office and drank up half my scotch. Was it Haig?

I got Fitz working on these designs. We'll need to be mobile. Hey, check those outs. The early schematics for the Zephyr One.

I'm glad you think Skye's ready for this. -- At this point, I think she's ready for anything. Not quite. 😭😭

You're better than I imagined, and I imagined you perfect. You're way more interesting than that. Ikr? 😎

She walked out on you? -- She drowned when her lungs filled up with blood. That’s one way to get rid of nosy bartenders. 😂

What's the plan, sir? Chaos? -- Closure. Because it worked out so well for you so far... 🙄

Just ask for Dr. Winslow. I'm sorry. And you are? -- Daisy. *dead*

If we do this, we need to be -- Anonymous. That's the idea. But it's not “if” we do this. We have to do this. We don't have a choice. It may feel like things have cooled down right now, but this? [shows the stump] This is my permanent reminder that we'll always be paying the price, that we'll never get ahead of the consequences that I, that you, that S.H.I.E.L.D. have set in motion. -- Like a ripple in the water. -- But this ripple won’t fade. It’ll grow and grow until it’s a tidal wave. It almost sounds like whoever wrote your dialogue (Jed&Mo) already knew there was going to be a deluge of new Inhumans next season... 😁

[noticing the open door of the Monolith’s enclosure] Ugh, what idiot... Your idiot, just now, I believe. Which makes this even worse. 😭

[ryder616]

Rewatching One Door Closes

As AoS base invasions go, the first suffered by the Playground is very light on mayhem and destruction, as only a corner of the server room gets a real beating. It however hurts on a different level: once again it’s S.H.I.E.L.D. against S.H.I.E.L.D. and this time there are no bad guys.

That is, until Calderon and his goons chase Skye through the woods and almost kill her.😡  

Aliens and people with superpowers seem to be at the root of everything Real S.H.I.E.L.D.’s being doing and their fear of both, while grounded in very legitimate concern - Earth was invaded by an alien army just a couple of years prior after all - is now bordering on paranoia.

The fact that Gonzalez thinks Coulson is masterminding a secret army of superpeople, in particular, is kind of hilarious, since Phil and everyone else at Cool S.H.I.E.L.D. have so far been stumbling in the dark about all things Inhuman. Of course, he will end the season planning to build a secret team of superpeople so maybe I should give Gonzalez’s paranoia more credit. But, for the moment, it’s Hydra who’s trying to do what he’s accusing Coulson of, with the project that gave Wanda and Pietro Maximoff their powers (2x19).

While the Playground is exchanging landlords, the formerly resident Inhuman, now temporarily relocated to a sylvan retreat built to withstand the Hulk - which may be both scary and flattering - is having another hell of a day. Or night, as it were.

Gordon shows up and finally gives Skye a positive perspective she can’t easily dismiss - I think she clearly did with Fitz’s when she called it a “positive spin” - and a new mystery to chew on for her inner conspiracy nut (a group of people with powers that nobody knows anything about? Tasty!). He also tries - not very subtly - to instil mistrust toward S.H.I.E.L.D., something May’s warning (“who’s coming for me? -- S.H.I.E.L.D.” ) and the following attempted murder likely accomplished much more successfully than his arguments.

To Kill Like A Mockingbird:

Bobbi saved everyone on the Iliad, refusing to follow the orders of the commander who wasn’t on the ground - Fury - and the one who was but couldn’t see past protocols and the chain of command. In the present, she executes her inside (wo)man role almost to perfection. Her only true mistake is underestimating Simmons but by then it’s too late for what she has set in motion not to come to fruition. And finally, she saves Skye’s life, shouting a very timely warning. She gets a little trashed for her trouble but being the supercool gal that she is, she won’t hold a grudge.

May’s Boundless Badassary:

She wins her confrontation with Bobbi, even though the younger agent manages to escape, but the real feat is what happens after: she stalks the invaders hiding inside the walls of the base, gathers vital intel to warn Skye, takes out Gonzalez and two extras with impeccable flair and sends Coulson on the run while choosing to stay behind to protect FitzSimmons. Where would S.H.I.E.L.D. be without her?

Biochemical Shenanigans:

Sometimes in S3 Jemma will lament that she’s the only woman on the base who can’t kill with her bare hands but this episode makes it clear that she really doesn’t need to: she can kill, or disable in this case, with her brain. She completely fools Bobbi - someone who, we have repeatedly been told and shown, is an expert at catching lies - playing up her bumbling scientist persona. Those months at Hydra have clearly taught her a lot.

She’s Got the Powers:

Every object in this universe gives off a vibration. Did you know that? Nothing rests. Animals, trees, people, even this ratty couch. And you have the ability to tap into those vibrations. Don't you see? You could become magnificent.

I don’t think it’s possible to overstate how huge of a deal this is. If all matter vibrates and she can resonate with it - amplifying, reducing or matching the frequencies - Daisy can potentially affect anything around her and at a very fundamental level. It also means that she has been gifted a sixth sense of a sort, perceiving the world in a way the rest of us needs instruments for.

For now she has little to no clue how to use her amazing new talents. Everything is an incessant and uncomfortable buzzing (“1,000 bees are trapped inside of me”), the equivalent - one can imagine - of seeing a whirlwind of colors and light but not being able to discern objects and people. Almost instinctually, she discovers how to manipulate water in the first non destructive manifestation of her powers, and then the quickest way to turn a forest into firewood.😁

Wall of Valor:

In the comics Isabelle Hartley is Victoria Hand’s girlfriend, a connection this episode at least hints at, since in the Iliad’s flashback she says she’s heard from “Vic”, implying a high level of familiarity (Hand hated it when Garrett called her “Vic”, plus the fact they were in contact during such a crisis). A longtime friend of Bobbi and Hunter, her deep friendship with the couple is made very evident when she immediately recognizes the significance of the “Franny’s Saloon” keychain Bobbi asked her to deliver to Hunter. She spent years working undercover (2x01) and her marked preference for knives over guns solidifies the impression that S.H.I.E.L.D.’s agents are a quirky bunch. Had she survived the season premiere, she would have backed Bobbi’s infiltration, likely making Real S.H.I.E.L.D.’s takeover even more successful. She is survived by a sister, Jane, who is however battling breast cancer (2x02).

Stuff that crossed my mind:

Always with the nazi stuff. Here’s an idea: if you don’t like being associated with nazi, don’t associate with nazi.

What the hell is that? The herald of an Avenging Goddess. Or a smartphone. These things are easy to mix up.

Fury left us orders. -- To do what? To save S.H.I.E.L.D. Fury’s one hell of a demanding boss.

The path we've chosen...doesn't leave a lot of room for trust, does it? Cut to Skye, who he told last episode she was one of the few people he trusted. This can’t be good.

Skye’s distinct lack of enthusiasm for the gluten-free biscuits and the awkwardness of the promise to look for them makes me suspicious that she had already found them and promptly discarded them to the bottom of a cupboard.

The prototype gloves are laced with a microthread Jemma designed to accelerate bone healing and dampen vibrations.

I want you to be safe, Skye. You know that, right? -- I do. I do, too, even if I may have found exception with some of the proposed methods. It’s Fitz who needs convincing.

How's your science experiment going? -- I told you, Leo, I'm only trying to help. -- Whatever, Jemma. Oh, boy. First name basis between them, especially from her, is a bad sign. It occurs to me though that at least part of Fitz’s grumpiness might be motivated by the fact that Coulson had maybe already told him about Mack’s duplicity.

You went through rigorous testing when you joined my team. Were Billy or Sam Koenig the testers, by any chance?

Are you working with Hunter? Or is he just a pawn in this, too? Oh, God. Get May on the line, now. The moment you realize that there’s something much worse than two traitors in your midst: when one of them is Bobbi Morse.

I work for S.H.I.E.L.D. I do. I swear. But you don't. -- Try again. Bobbi, you’ve just been YAML’ed. 😂

She said she was working for S.H.I.E.L.D., Phil. The real S.H.I.E.L.D. -- What the hell does that mean? Ultimately? A load of crap, if you ask me.🤭

That man there had an axe. Now I have it. Still, left quite a mark. Is there a more badass way to say “I killed the guy who wanted me dead using his own weapon but I was hurt and now I can’t walk”?

Troubleshooting a wired network connection? First, check if the cables are plugged. *pats Skye*

Fitz, why did you make me watch "Paranormal Activity"? Hey, it could be worse. He could have made you watch The Cabin in the Woods. I’ve never been able to look at any kind of cabin or isolated house the same way since.😬😂

I can see that you are afraid.You don't need to be. Not with me. I'm like you. And I've come here as a friend. Notably, Skye isn’t reassured at all. Not only she doesn’t let go of the poker, she readjusts her grip on it.

The real difference between the two of us is what happened after we went through the mist. [...] I knew from an early age how special I was, had a mentor, a guide of sorts. And the first thing she did after I transformed was embrace me. Tell me, Skye, what was the first thing that S.H.I.E.L.D. did to you? I see where you’re going with this, Gordon, and the answer is they put her in quarantine but, aside from the fact that they also fought two pretty powerful aliens for her and there was at least one hug, this is an unfair comparison because, unlike you and everyone around you, they had no real clue about any of it. Jemma’s reactions and behaviour, for example, will be quite different with other newly transformed Inhumans, when she knows exactly what she’s dealing with.

Honestly, I don't give a damn who they're working for. If they took Fury's toolbox, I bet that's not the only thing they're after. Cut to Skye, again. This is definitely not good.

What does it feel like, your gift? -- I don't know. It's intense. Like 1,000 bees are trapped inside of me. And I feel it all the time. It's always there. In the framework, she’ll describe it as an “hangover made of bees”. Props to Radcliffe, Fitz, Aida and the Darkhold for the accurate simulation. Props to Daisy for another of her precise, clinical descriptions 🤣. I really want to read her mission reports, dammit.

If I could just find this prototype. -- You know what? Maybe Fitz has it. We should go try to find him, make sure he's okay. When in doubt on how to deal with a FitzSimmons, mention the other FitzSimmons. It didn’t quite work this time, though.

Would you mind...could you give this to Hunter? -- Bobbi. He's gonna be pissed. You know that? -- Yeah. Hunter had the same keychain in 2x06 so I’m still not clear whether both have one or if Hartley delivered this one eventually, even if Bobbi didn’t die. I think the former but *shrugs*

I’m not gonna hurt you buddy. I would never hurt you, you know that. No, he doesn’t know that. The last guy he thought of as his buddy dropped him to the bottom of the ocean from a flying plane.

I'd like to officially withdraw my concerns about using the dendrotoxin gas. It's got style. Agent Asshole was against using the non lethal weapon. How surprising.🙄😡 

Weaver thinks [the alien blood] made you into some kind of a messenger for an alien race. Weaver reads too much sci-fi.

Remember, Skye's a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, like one of us. Icers only. Yeah, I don’t think you convinced them, Bobbi. The agent Skye knocks out near the panel didn’t have an Icer either. 😡 

Let's just hope we don't live to regret this, Agent Morse. -- Let's just hope we live. Plain as day why Hartley and Hunter got along so well, that could have been his line.

So now you all operate as what? Five friendly faces who agree on everything? I don't see the other four here talking to me. Just you. -- I have no desire to be the director. Of course not. Gonzalez is charismatic and experienced enough that he can influence the decisions being made without needing a title.

Try and remember Project Insight was Fury's idea. Yeah, that was his bad. 😏

If you wanted to talk to me, Agent Gonzales, you should have talked to me. You put spies on my team, invaded my base, hurt my people. Fury's secrets didn't bring down S.H.I.E.L.D. Hydra did. Oh, thank you! Besides, there’s a word for people who begrudge secrets while doing things in secret and that word isn’t “trustworthy”.

So, what’s the plan, boss? The correct question is “who’s the plan” as the first item on Rogue Coulson’s to do list is going to be Skye.

[ryder616]

Rewatching Melinda

You're worried that I don't understand your choice. Well, sometimes that's the price of doing the right thing. No one will understand, and it hurts like hell.

May was dealt an extremely lousy hand in Bahrain, one of those nightmare scenarios where there are only different degrees of bad options. Yet she didn’t hide behind the “I had no choice” defense, not with others and not with herself, no matter how much she regrets it (and we know exactly how much: it’s still her biggest regret almost a decade later), and even though she thinks it was the right choice to make, as the quote above makes it clear. But she fully aknowledges it as a choice - in 2x20 she’ll reiterate that she “made the call”  - and she would not have been almost destroyed by it otherwise.

So she removed herself from a position where she could be called upon to make another “call” of that magnitude again, a voluntary exile from the field - when working in the field meant so much to her that she planned to stay even after becoming a mother - that would have likely lasted much longer than six years had Fury not decided to resurrect Coulson.

Of course, since AoS loves to torture its characters, not only she is in that position again, she has already faced the possibility of history repeating itself with someone she loves three times now (Coulson, twice, and Skye) and Season 3 is just around the corner.😭

Director Deceptor:

The secrecy surrounding Theta Protocol - quite the fancy name for what is ultimately a project to fix a big ship - is perfectly justifiable from an operational point of view but why keep May out of the loop? She is second in command and a person so close to Coulson that he told her about his carving obsession and asked her to kill him if things got too bad and then take over as director. I suppose there’s an argument for the compartmentalization of information but it’s easy to see why May felt so betrayed.

Real S.H.I.E.L.D. of course thinks he’s ammassing powered people but for once their paranoia isn’t unjustified because that could be something he probably shouldn’t feel comfortable sharing with May. Fixing a helicarrier so Fury can grandstand when the Avengers need backup just doesn’t seem to have enough weight to it.

Mommy Dearest:

Jiaying will manipulate her daughter very ruthlessly but starts their relationship giving her back the agency that Cal took away in Puerto Rico: “I wanted to run to you the second I saw you, wrap you in my arms. -- Why didn't you? -- Because you were forced into going through the mist. Joining our people had to be your choice. You deserved that.”

She also helps Skye understanding and accepting her powers. And she tells her the true story of Bahrain. Or does she?

Jiaying knows the facts but misses all the context of what May faced in the warehouse. We, as the audience, see it, but she never did as she wasn’t in there. And all of her life experience tells her that S.H.I.E.L.D. wouldn’t think much of “putting down” a dangerous person with powers.

And it’s not like she’s wrong about that. S.H.I.E.L.D. agents almost killed her daughter who is an agent and infinitely less malevolent and threatening than Katya was. So the truth as she knows it makes her point for Inhuman isolationism already. No need to spin it for her daughter’s detriment. I also don’t think she believes killing Katya was the wrong move. She says Katya had to be stopped but it was “her responsibility” which implies that she objects to S.H.I.E.L.D.’s involvement in the situation, not necessarily its outcome.

She’s Got the Powers:

Daisy moves a mountain, makes some music on purpose and glass confetti by mistake. Not bad for her first day of Inhuman school.

We also get this explanation of her powers, courtesy of Jiaying: “Everything's shaking already, vibrating at its own natural frequency. This stone, the wood in the trees...I believe you can learn to sense those frequencies around you and resonate with them so that not everything is shaking, only what you choose.”

This ability to sense the natural frequencies of everything around her and resonate (amplify) with them doesn’t apparently extend to alien swords that can insta-kill body-snatching fiends who align their atoms through harmonic resonance (resonant frequencies) and are vulnerable to its disruption.🤨 Or maybe she just forgot and nobody thought to ask her? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 

Gotta Catch ‘Em All:

Eva Belyakov (shouldn’t it be Belyakova btw?), a 35 years old Russian Inhuman, was pursued by both S.H.I.E.L.D. and Russian Intelligence. Her superpower was enhanced strength, of the standard “smashes cars and throws people around” variety. S.H.I.E.L.D. considered her an Index candidate and was hoping to make her an asset. Her daughter Katya was able to sense and “leech off like a parasite” other people’s emotions and exert a form of mind control over them, all initiated by touch. This ability was too much for her young mind and she went insane.

Stuff that crossed my mind:

Yay, Andrew is back!

When you get back, maybe you and I can take a trip. Somewhere warm. I think this makes their eventual trip in between seasons the most belated vacation ever.

He's gonna be a hell-raiser. -- Not in my house. My house has rules. Hopefully those rules did not include no phone, no tv and a 7.30 curfew because that sounded a bit excessive.😄

You really leave your front door unlocked? -- I got the best security system in the world. His wife is an awesomely kickassing badass and he loves it.

Fury's quietly started a new initiative. Instead of this catch-and-release with powered people, we form a team, take Earth's mightiest to find out if they're heroes. It (Wa)s All Connected(tm)...

Well, I know you got the family-planning thing going on. -- I'm staying in the field. -- Good, 'cause you'd be great. And that way, we could keep working together. Aida really missed the boat on a much better AU than saving the girl and inadvertently triggering the fascist takeover: after a better outcome in Bahrain, May joins the Avenger Initiative, teams up with Natasha, pranks Starks and Cap relentlessly, swoons - very surreptitiously - over Thor and eventually saves Phil’s life. And at some point they pick up Daisy while she’s cosplaying around Stark Tower looking for avenues to hack into Jarvis and enlist FitzSimmons with extra cupcakes.😁

Let's hope Belyakov cooperates. -- And if she doesn't? -- Then I call in the Cavalry. Don’t call her...oh, right. You meant the boring kind of Cavalry. My bad.

Fitz has a lot of ideas. We're just making sure that he doesn't get any crazy ones. -- Like seeking out Coulson? Guys, that’s not even a 1 on the Fitz Scale of Ideas, crazy or otherwise.

Coulson doesn't bore me with the details of every little operation. Well, I’m no Bobbi but even I could tell you were covering a huge “HE DID WHAT?!!” there.

We're not talking a few black-bag operations. Take your entire current budget and match it with this one program. Okay, but their budget didn’t even allow Coulson to fly business so how much are we really talking here? 😁

I want to know where you’re from. Did you make friends there? This is such a mom question. I was half expecting her to ask if she was eating well and if she had packed heavier clothes after that. 😂

[S.H.I.E.L.D.] are like family. Or they were. -- Until you changed? They sent agents after you. -- I don’t know what happened. I know I impaled a guy. -- Who shot at you. -- No. I lost control. Yeah, you did, but don’t feel bad...it was very entertaining!

Agent O’Brien, be sure they don’t interfere. Unless he had a twin or a clone, O’Brien made it unscathed through the following seven years of S.H.I.E.L.D as the same actor is one of the two agents trailing Fitz in the tag scene. If memory serves, he will also be among the agents turned into Primitives in 3x21. So enjoy life while you can, O’Brien?

I don't think Coulson's a bad guy. But a secret as big as Theta Protocol...I can't ignore that. Whatever he's doing, it needs to be out in the light of day. This isn’t unreasonable. You guys should have led with this.

[Skye] got everything and I got thorns. Heh, I wouldn’t envy her too much... Although she’ll live and you won’t, so there’s that.

What's wrong? -- Nothing. That's just it. Everything is great here. It feels like home, which never ends well. [...] Something bad happens every time I feel settled somewhere. [...] S.H.I.E.L.D. was the closest I ever came to having a family. I belonged there, saw what I could be. Even that ended with agents hunting me through the woods. Yeah. *heavy sigh*. It’s not easy being Daisy.😞

We’re not gonna turn on you or abandon you. You had to say it... 😩 Ward told her the same thing in 1x03.

After your father pieced me back together, we scoured the Earth. We were ruthless in hunting for you. One morning, I woke up, and I barely recognized myself. Your father was buried in the new, horrible man he had become. He couldn't admit that our baby was gone. I thought I had to accept it. I'm so sorry. My sweet angel. I thought if I couldn't find you, maybe I could help protect others, so I came here. It’s hard to reconcile this woman who is so self-aware and upfront with the one who will be ready to kickstart a genocide and kill her own daughter.

Ah, May! Thank God you're back. Everybody keeps leaving. Reminder that Jemma was all alone there for a while, with nobody she could talk to or fully trust. Not as bad as her early adventure at Nazi Central but not fun either. Also May’s reactions to hugs are always something to look forward to.

They weren't too harsh on that awful ship? -- No, they were very fair. Having dragged Real S.H.I.E.L.D. for three write-ups, I have to admit they were indeed extremely fair and trustful with her. Since I’m petty, I’m crediting it all to Bobbi’s influence.😄

I've been through a lot with Coulson. He doesn't go off the reservation without a good reason. Did he have a good reason not to tell you, though? Jury’s out.

I can do this. It's all about slipping in and pulling them out. Oh, that’s it, uh? I see where your padawan gets it from now...

Oh, what are we saying this time? Nuclear? Bio? Eh, Bio always works. [...] A biological weapon was set off! Nasty stuff, flesh eating [...] -- Did you say “biological weapon”? -- Yes, I did. 🤣 🤣

You’re going in alone? Babe. -- Drew, they have a little girl. -- Okay. You’ve done this before. You always come home. [...] Do good, Melinda. but come home. She’ll make it through but she’ll never really “come home”. 😭😭

Bobbi wasn't lying, May. It's a whole other life. And -- What is it? -- Coulson met with your ex-husband. They've been consulting for a while. *Ouch*. It’s not what it looks like! Or, it is what it looks like, but it’s not what you think!

We think he's building another base, for powered people. In my opinion, Coulson's determined to explore people with powers. He's been on the front lines of it his whole career [...] --  Why blow up the alien city? -- Well, why go there at all? Mack, what do you mean “why”? Hydra? The Obelisk everyone thought was a superweapon? Potential mass-murdering? Am I ringing any bell here?

Oh, hi Ethan. I’d say “enjoy your trip” but... 🥶

My rules must be enforced. People have died when the process for selection and training has been ignored. -- But I already skipped that process. -- And I protected you from the swift response that usually brings. Yeah, it doesn’t sound like Katya’s chances of survival would have improved much if the Inhumans had caught up with her before S.H.I.E.L.D. did.

Hey, every agent who walked out of that building is alive because of you. -- The girl. I couldn't save her. She didn't understand. I tried. -- It's all right. You have to let the girl go, Melinda. Let the girl go. This last part of the speech we already knew from 1x09, possibly the most underrated episode of AoS.

I learned who my mother was today, and she taught me things. I've never had that before. That was possible because of you. And wasn’t this just the perfect thing to tell him? Well done, Daisy.

Wait. '88? I'm 26? That's so messed up. Yes, you’ll be a wrinkly old hag 10 months sooner now. /nudge Fitz

It's not a dream. Episode 2.17 and we finally have a true Clairvoyant in action.

Fitz? How did you open Fury's toolbox? -- Don't worry. It's safe. I stole it first. - You stole it? Fitz, you're amazing. I love how proud Fitz sounds that they stole the toolbox. And I think this was big for him, the first time on a mission all on his own.

Note: I think Tumblr ate the tags or something but if you made it this far you’ll probably be interested to know that I didn’t skip Afterlife and you can read it here. 😊

[ryder616]

Rewatching Scars

Fear. That’s what it is. [...] Fear drives us to do things we would otherwise never do.

S.H.I.E.L.D.’s fear of powered people and Jiaying’s fear of both the horror that befell her and humanity’s very poor track record when a group deems another as “different”, collide and the result is a tragedy. One that probably needed too many things to change to be avoided: Jiaying not being broken, S.H.I.E.L.D. not being pigheaded, the Inhumans not being predisposed to believe the worst and maybe Coulson putting his foot down and deciding “objectivity” wasn’t what the situation called for. True empathy and a real personal connection were sorely needed and Gonzales had neither.

I would also question his “objectivity”. He called Skye a “thing”, blamed her for Agent Asshole’s fuck-up, and seemed to view powered people as dangerous threats only. That’s not objectivity, that’s prejudice.

He tries, to his credit, to deal fairly but Jiaying’s wounds go so far beyond “normal” trauma, no wonder she’s outraged by his attempt to establish common ground. And his credibility to do right by the Inhumans is close to zero. He’s the guy who, as far as Jiaying is concerned, sent people to kill her daughter, another S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, because of her Inhumanity.

Coulson, on the other hand, was highly recommended - even Cal spoke well of him in his own special way - and probably would have known better than to compare scars, given his experience with T.A.H.I.T.I., or be better equipped to speak about the hurt that goes beyond the physical. And his care and affection for Skye would have rang true, where Gonzales with his gift can only appear manipulative.

Ultimately, Jiaying murders Gonzales while he’s extending a hand in friendship, to manipulate the Inhumans to follow her into a genocidal war and that torpedoes all the legitimacy her cause had. Her fear drove her to plan a bloodbath. She might have already been too far gone for a different approach to change her mind and if so, Gonzales’ insistence on an “objective” negotiator simply traded his life for Coulson’s.

Wall of Valor:

Robert Gonzales (who I kept calling Gonzalez for most of these ramblings of mine, sorry about that 😊) is another “company man”. A veteran officer who joined young, like Coulson, renowned for his strategic brilliance, loyal to the ideals of S.H.I.E.L.D. and “one of the best commanders S.H.I.E.L.D. ever had” (Coulson, 2x15).

He is certainly a charismatic and thoughtful leader.

Then again, when you’re portrayed by Edward James Olmos, a lack of charisma is hardly a concern.

As clichéd as that would have been, I kept waiting for the reveal that his dead wife - her passing prompted him to leave S.H.I.E.L.D. before coming back with renewed dedication - had been killed by a “gifted” or in some alien related incident because his hostility toward Skye felt very visceral and frankly irrational. It permanently soured me to the character, since bigotry and doing Daisy wrong are two main ingredients for the conconction to turn *me* into Mr. Hyde.😉

Honestly, Real S.H.I.E.L.D. seemed a costant exercise in overreaction. They overreacted with Coulson, with Skye and then finally with the Inhumans and without Phil’s reining in their worst impulses, Jiaying would have had no need to manipulate anyone.

I suppose it’s understandable. In the span of a couple of years the organization all these loyal agents had dedicated their lives to was partly responsible for an Alien invasion and then basically turned on them. That’s a lot. Still, it’s hard to look at the season and not imagine how much better everything might have turned out for everyone without their meddlesome trampling.

Stuff that crossed my mind:

I wholeheartedly approve of Sam Koenig’s choices in socks and bedding. 😁

Any update on Agent Gonzales? -- Unfortunately, no. [...] -- Keep looking. Reminder that Cool S.H.I.E.L.D. was trying to build Full S.H.I.E.L.D. while Real S.H.I.E.L.D. was spying on them with Hartley and Mack already embedded at The Playground.

What can I say? I’m a company man. With the fall of S.H.I.E.L.D. Fury felt we needed a failsafe, something completely off the books, a “break in case of emergency” type of thing. I have this theory that resurrecting Coulson and giving him the Bus and an independent team partly outside of the standard chain of command was following a similar logic.

I tried to do it all alone. That was a mistake. Even Fury had a World Council watching over him, providing guidance. Ah, yes, the World Security Council. The guys that ordered to nuke New York in The Avengers and one of them was Gideon Malick btw (well, it was Powers Boothe, and AoS cleverly took advantage I think). Not a fan.

She says she wants to take him home, whatever that means. She won’t say much else about it. Not to me, anyway. I feel you, Jemma. I don’t think it’s personal. “Home” has never been a more complicated concept for Skye than it is right now, which is saying something.

You were undercover at Hydra with Agent Morse, weren’t you? -- Well, sort of. I didn’t know she was there at the time. She had very dark hair. a) I think Jemma, like Hunter, prefers Bobbi as a blonde. b) Kara already knows Bobbi is the one who gave the safe house location to Hydra so Jemma may have just avoided her own kidnapping and torture by revealing she had no idea about what Bobbi was doing at Nazi Central.

You’re safe now. Added bonus, you’re not naked with needles poking out of your skin. How is that an added bonus? Oh, for him. Gotcha. 😄

You never should have come for me. [...] the only thing that’s kept us safe all these years is that we were a secret. Now S.H.I.E.L.D. knows we exist. And they won’t stop till they find Afterlife. Willing to die horribly to keep people safe. Like we didn’t have enough self-sacrificing idiots in this joint.

Raina is living her best life. She’s special, revered and I do think she was initally scheming to climb on top of the food chain, despite her protestations to the contrary.

Last night, I saw something beautifully peculiar. It's hard to describe. It was a giant stone, but not a stone. And then, suddenly it was like an ocean, waves crashing against the shore. *badly imitating Spike* “It's a big rock. I can't wait to tell my friends. They don't have a rock this big.” 😁

It’s Kree, dangerous, intended to destroy our people. -- But didn’t they make us? -- Then they decided we were a mistake. Would it make you feel better if I told you that it was just a faction and the modern Kree empire would be quite happy to enslave you all? No?

Things are getting back to the way they were. -- You really believe that? Or do you hope that if you forgive Coulson, Hunter will do the same for you? Uh? Is this projection? Because Coulson has done stuff to be forgiven for by May. But in the Bobbi-Coulson dynamic, if anything, it’s the opposite? 🤨

She convinced Gordon and Skye to go after Lincoln even though they knew it wasn’t safe. How little you know your daughter. Which, of course, you just met her after all. Raina didn’t convince Skye of anything. Mostly, she gave her ammunition to wear down Gordon’s resistance faster. She was going to go after Lincoln regardless.

I’ve never seen [Raina] not want something. -- What is it you think she wants now? I like that Jiaying is gathering information and seeking counsel, showing the better, thoughtful side of her leadership style. Unfortunately, anyone she can ask about Raina has a terrible (if perfectly well motivated) opinion of her.

So this is alien. -- Recovered from a dig site nearly a hundred years ago. Its energy signatures are unlike anything we’ve seen before. Filing for future reference. 😉

And does anyone have any idea what alien world it came from or what it even does? Oh, this new S.H.I.E.L.D. brain trust seems to be working out brilliantly. This is not helping either, Hunter. But 🤣 🤣

These are good people, Coulson. -- Are they? People, I mean. Phil. What. The. Hell. 😲

We don’t even know what to call them. -- Inhumans. *ding-ding-ding*

Maybe they’re just afraid of it, afraid of what Gonzales might do with it. Indeed. Listen to your kid protégé junior agent, guys.

This man teleported onboard, Skye. He’s clearly very dangerous. -- Well, same could be said about you, May. I heard about what happened to that little girl in Bahrain. [...] So you, of all people, should understand why they’d want to keep their location a secret, what they’re so afraid of. It would have been really nice if Daisy had handled this with a little more...shall we say, delicacy? She knows this is THE most painful subject for May. And she can certainly fill in the blanks of what Jiaying couldn’t tell her about the context of the situation. But her point stands. This isn’t a one way street. As Bobbi also said, “We’re all dangerous”.

You know where they are? -- We do. I think it's time we pay our new friends a visit. This is a Very Bad Idea(tm).

What’s our plan of attack? -- Who said anything about an attack? -- These people are a threat. -- We don’t know that. -- We don’t know anything about them. Remove Coulson from this conversation and a fleet of Quinjets filled with tactical squads ready to at the very least detain everyone -  and we’ve seen how well that went when it was just Skye - would have taken off for Afterlife by the end of the day. Don’t talk to me about objectivity.

We could use Skye as a liaison. She is a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent. -- Is that still true? -- Of course it is. -- Now’s a good time to find out where Skye really stands. Coulson’s unwavering faith vs May’s pragmatism. This is why they make a good team and good leaders together.

Enough! S.H.I.E.L.D. wants us to be afraid, to fracture us. But we're all tied together  a history that goes back thousands of years. They will not take that away from us. Hiding from the world was already plan B for Jiaying and it didn’t work. Time for plan C: kill them all. 😬

Look, at the very least, we need to find out how many people we're dealing with, assess their powers, place them on the index. You know how this works.You're a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent. -- I don't know what I am anymore. Skye started the season proclaiming that “S.H.I.E.L.D. was [her] life now”(2x02). Then Stuff Happened(tm) and this is where she is now.😔

We're locking her up? -- Don't tell me you empathize. -- She was one of us. -- So was Grant Ward. -- Look, when she takes your face, then we can talk. There’s a distinct lack of empathy for Kara’s plight in May’s words but as imminent events will show, it was too late for it anyway. The time to help Kara was much earlier in the season and unfortunately everyone was too preoccupied with other matters. 😥

Hunter's always worn his heart on his sleeve. I don't know how to do that. Maybe something's wrong with me. Mack, don’t just stand there looking sad and vaguely ill. This is the part where you hug her and say something comforting!

I spoke to Skye. This woman she keeps talking about, Jiaying... it's her mother. I was expecting at least a raised eyebrow, but okay. 🤣 🤣 

That girl wasn't killed in the crossfire, Phil. It was her or everyone around us, and I made the call. I only told Andrew. Back then, our boundaries were clear. I was married to him, and I worked with you. When you started carving into that wall, you asked me to watch you and put you down if you got out of control. I would never have shot you, but I should have stopped you. -- I never lost control. -- Skye is living proof that you did. So, the boundaries aren’t that clear anymore. Interesting. But I still don’t see how Coulson could or should have done anything different regarding the alien city, with what they thought the Obelisk was and Hydra having it. So if this is about “Skye’s getting powers is your fault”, I disagree. If this is about “you care about Skye too much to be objective”, then, duh. And I might have a kettle to go with that pot. 😁

Jemma saved the hula girl. Excuse me while I dissolve into a puddle of “awwwwws”.

But I'm sure you guys already have my blood from when I was out, right? -- It's protocol. Also a violation of medical ethics or something? He obviously couldn’t have consented to his blood being filed in some database while he was unconscious...

Gordon explained it. He can sense us. It's this thing called quantum entanglement, and ... Yeah, he'll find us. I can’t tell whether she stopped explaining because she can’t or because she felt Lincoln’s stink eye that she was about to reveal too much about Gordon’s powers.

We don't have to leave. S.H.I.E.L.D. doesn't want that, either. Nothing has to change. -- Sometimes, I forget how young you are. That and she trusts Coulson. Skye’s approach to the whole matter was way more sensible than what Jiaying’s will turn out to be anyway. I would make a Boomer vs Millennial joke but Jiaying is who knows how many generations older than a boomer, so... 😄

Coulson...he's a good man. He's...he's the only person who's ever tried to take care of me. And until now, he's the closest I've had to family. Oh this makes me so sad every time, picturing young Daisy growing up... but also, c’mon, Daisy. *First* person would have been more accurate.

You're too close to this. Skye's like a daughter to you. I didn’t remember the D-word being spoken so early in the show.

This is one of the greatest threats S.H.I.E.L.D.’s ever faced. Dramatic much? Though I suppose an argument can be made that Jiaying’s was a genocidal dictator waiting to happen as Afterlife couldn’t have gone hidden and undisturbed forever. Hydra was already zeroing in on them after all.

I did try to kill him, Fitz, and I'm kicking myself that I failed. The next terrible thing he does is on me. Jemma Simmons giving Daisy some hefty competition in the “blaming yourself for stuff that’s not your fault” category. Luckily (yeah...not quite) she will be soon too preoccupied with matters of survival to dwell on what will happen to Bobbi, I’d imagine.😥

Bobbi, Coulson wants us to scout ahead. Already locked in the coordinates. I think this means they used the Quinjet autopilot all the way through and that Kara really can’t fly and I guess Bobbi didn’t question why “May” wouldn’t fly it herself. I know it’s super minor but it bugs me.

The fact that Theta Protocol turned out to be a Helicarrier doesn't change things for me. Fury brought you back from the dead, and he used alien blood to do it. And you can't be blamed for what happened to you, but you can't be trusted, either. [...] I had my own brush with something alien, and I know better than to mess with things I can’t understand. But it seems like you haven’t learned that lesson. Your honor, I believe you may have chosen the wrong line of work if you didn’t want to mess with the crazy 😉 Anyway, good luck with that resignation, Mack. 🤣

Phil Coulson is my least favorite, but he does care about our Daisy. -- She was telling me about something called the Index. -- The Index? Do they want to? No, no, no. They will brand you, all of you. You have power here, lots of it. -- To do what? Openly attack them? Blast their planes out of the sky? -- Well, for a start. -- Our daughter wouldn't want that. And my people would never blindly follow me into a war. And here I suppose is when the plan starts forming. Which means we can blame Cal just as much as Jiaying.

There's not a single soul that knows you who trusts you, Raina. Very much a case of the Inhuman Who Cried Wolf. 😔

He's killed agents of yours, hasn't he? -- Uh, no. No, not SHIELD agents. I don't think. No, just people who had it coming. Please, Cal. The two guys you butchered in 2x05 might have been criminals but they had done nothing to you. And there was that psychiatric hospital security guard in 2x13 and I bet other similar “collateral damage” through the years.

What happened to Coulson? Did they do something to him? -- We all felt it was best to have someone more objective to meet with your mother. [...] -- Why can’t you be in there right now? -- I told you, we needed someone objective. From Skye’s perspective, this is extremely worrisome. Because “more objective” in this context obviously translates that both May and Coulson are too close to her. There are sensible reasons for why that would be seen as an issue under the circumstances but also *very* bad ones like, say, if S.H.I.E.L.D. had decided to eliminate her mother and cull the Inhumans...

I hope your mother is everything you wanted her to be. Well, I’m dead. I don’t know how Daisy’s still standing. Must be the GH 325.

I have lived enough life to see countless people profiled for their differences. It's amazing how many generations fall into the same trap. What is it that makes people feel they have the right to do that? Fear. That's what it is. [...] Fear drives us to do things we would otherwise never do. The last part sounds like she knows she’s driven by fear, too.

Why can’t we kill her now? Because Ward, in addition to his other faults, is also a sadistic SOB who aims to complete your transformation into someone just exactly like him. Also, there’s two more episodes and never enough drama. 😁

[ryder616]

Rewatching Aftershocks

Everyone deals with it in their own way.

I generally love episodes coming right after a Big Event because they tend to focus on the characters, showing how everyone copes with whatever the disaster of the previous week was. And in this particular category for AoS, Aftershocks might just be my favorite.

Of all the various reactions to Puerto Rico’s tragedy the episode explores, Skye’s, Coulson’s and Jemma’s get the most attention. They are, ostensibly, the most affected by Trip’s death and neither of them is dealing with it particularly well. Where they go from there is, however, quite different.

Skye, of course, is a mess. A friend is dead, another’s traumatized, everyone’s hurting and on top of that she has a crazy power she can’t understand or control. And if this sentence sounds familiar that’s because it’s almost verbatim what Skye herself had said way back in Repairs (1x09) when strongly empathizing with Hannah Hutchins’ situation.

If she could, maybe she’d run (Is that what you want to do, run? -- Sometimes. You? -- Couldn't even if I tried) but she’s stuck in a fishbowl and has to watch helplessly and increasingly distressed how what she’s blaming herself for is affecting everyone else. It’s a feedback loop of grief, guilt and fear and given the way her emotions play up with her powers it’s a miracle she doesn’t accidentally bring the base down.

While Skye is directing her grief inward, Coulson finds an outward target, a very easy one considering they’re the ultimate guilty party. Cutting off the heads of Hydra in one fell swoop by exploiting their inherent scumbagginess is the most ruthless he’s ever been yet but one can’t argue with results. Well, ok, one could, I suppose, but it’s Hydra and the only reasonable regret here, as far as I am concerned, is that List had already left and von Strucker is out of reach.

Then there’s Jemma, who sacrifices her scientific curiosity and natural compassion - remember when she argued against terminal solutions for the Centipede soldiers, for instance - to advocate for an approach that’s against everything she’s done and been until now. I want to give Skye endless hugs but Jemma truly breaks my heart.

Biochemical Shenanigans:

Jemma’s caught a lot of unfair flack, in my opinion, for her reaction in this episode. She’s devastated by Trip’s loss, has to witness - and escape - Raina’s slaughtering spree and then deal with the possibility that the friend she can’t imagine [her] life without (1x14) is contaminated by something unbelievably scary and dangerous a few months after her best friend in the world (1x22) was almost lost.

We, the audience, know what’s really up and are, I’d imagine, looking forward to it (I certainly was. Superpowers, baby!🙌). But she doesn’t. And her previous experience with alien things were a highly contagious and deadly virus that almost killed her and blood that made people go graphomaniacally insane. Of course she’s worrying about an epidemic. And if her reaction feels extreme, that’s because everything she’s dealing with is.

Daring Engineering:

Maybe I just need a hug.

As hug therapy goes, Fitz’s approach in this episode is flawless. He gives Skye acceptance and comfort, relating to her in a way no one else is able to and delivering one of the best lines in the entire AoS run: You’re just different and there’s nothing wrong with that.

I suppose his methods could be considered flawed - he falsifies data and springs Skye out of quarantine when he can’t be certain yet that Jemma’s fears of an epidemic are in fact entirely off base - but can he really be faulted for it? Everyone was going a little mad and his heart is definitely in the right place.

Gotta Catch ‘em All:

Technically Gordon isn’t the first Inhuman we see on screen using his power but he’s the first to do so willingly and purposefully. And as powers go, the ability to teleport is one that would be absolutely awesome to have in RL. Manipulating vibrations sounds incredibly fun (and potentially god-like) and perpetual youth is one of humanity’s collective obsession but never dealing with Airport security or rush hour traffic again? That’s truly life changing.😁

Gordon’s power came packaged with the loss of his eyes but, thankfully, not sight, albeit his works differently.

His teleportation ability is grounded in Physics as, according to Hydra’s research, it works by creating a “quantum entanglement bridge” (2x18). Through quantum entanglement he can also sense other Inhumans and their location (2x20). He’s also stronger than a regular human but this is something all Inhumans seem to (and should) share if in different degrees.

Stuff that crossed my mind:

We prepared for this his whole life, readying him for whatever may come. [...] It's terrifying. [...] even with the years of preparation, without your warmth to guide them through their transformations, these poor souls, they would be lost. *cut to Skye in quarantine* I believe this qualify as  “laying it on thick”. Thank you AoS. I wasn’t feeling bad enough for Skye just yet.

The obelisk triggered a massive earthquake. Imagine how much worse it could have been If he hadn't destroyed it. He died a hero. He died because he was a hero as destroying the obelisk was sadly useless and the very thing that killed him. 😭 😭 😭  

Once medical clears you, we'll get you out of there. You'll just be stuck underground, like the rest of us. Yes, about that, are you guys taking your vitamin D and stuff? All that time away from natural light can’t be healthy.

Don't blame yourself. Phil, you’re asking the impossible. That’s her third superpower, after hacking and quaking.

A Baroness, a Sheikh, a Banker and some other self-important dude walked into a bar room...

You underestimate S.H.I.E.L.D. Constantly, it would seem. Seems only fair. S.H.I.E.L.D. underestimated Hydra for decades to the point they thought it was gone forever and instead it was festering within its ranks.

I could spend a year down here answering these questions. [...] let's flood this cursed place. Destroying instead of researching. There’s no better illustration of how distraught Jemma is.

I was beginning to feel like a leper. -- Are you kidding? You managed to be taken hostage by three known murderers, you gunned Ward down, then were blasted by an alien chemical weapon and walked out unscathed. Leper? I think you're a rockstar. In all the awww-ing for Fitz awww-worthy support of Skye in this episode, Bobbi’s visit is often overlooked. But she’s apparently the first, excluding Coulson, to check on Skye trying to cheer her up. Also, the extended version of this scene that was, I imagine, cut for time, highlights Skye and Trip’s closeness, hinting - if you look for it - at the possible romantic connection that could have been.

I know what you're going through. -- Really? You know what it's like to lose control, to be trapped inside your own body, unable to tell it what to do, to watch yourself hurt the people that you care about?! -- Yeah. -- I'm sorry, buddy. -- It's okay. Fitz’s empathy for his friends’ struggles is doing overtime this episode.

I don't want anyone else falling prey to this alien crap. Uh-oh. Mack already wasn’t a fan before Puerto Rico and now he has a very personal reason to reinforce his instinctive dislike.

Are you saying we shouldn't have gone in to save her? -- I'm saying there wouldn't have been anything to take if you and Skye hadn't been obsessed with the alien messages in your damn head. Judgy MacJudge is once again in session. 🤣 Hydra had been after the obelisk long before Coulson knew anything about it and was planning to use it to engineer mass murder on a planetary scale. And with Cal’s involvement, Skye would have always been a target.

I shouldn't have to ask any of you to save one of our own. -- You never ask! You just give your orders, no matter how cracked out they are! Ok, but...he’s the boss? 🤨 If you don’t like orders and hierarchies, which is a very valid position I happen to sympathize with, you shouldn’t have joined a paramilitary organization? 🤔

Incidentally this little family spat happens in front of everyone in the lab as they're there to include Skye in the planning, which is very thoughtful.

If Trip was here, he wouldn't be arguing, he wouldn't be bitching. He would be gearing up to do what needs to be done. Yeah, I miss him, too. 😭 😭 😭

"You'll never take us alive"? Really? A little over the top, don't you think? -- I only had a day to come up with this whole thing. Besides, if I let you write the script, no one would say anything. 🤣 🤣 🤣

Well, can you fix it? Get a look at Skye's biological data? -- [...] I think so. I won't know what half of it means until Simmons gets back, anyway. You’re underestimating yourself again, Fitz.

The money will be there! I swear it! If not, I'll pull the trigger myself! If Hunter had truly been who he was pretending, this would have made him shoot Bakshi.

Her dna didn't just rearrange. It contains extra macromolecules. I wouldn't think that even possible. -- That's amazing. -- It's horrific. Normally, Jemma would be amazed and intrigued. This is entirely unlike her but completely believable at the same time under the present circumstances.

Well, and I feel responsible. -- There's nothing you could have done! And the shoe is on the other foot! See how frustrating it is? 🤭

What about me? You...you have to help me. -- I did. We helped each other, achieved our goals. You're on your own now. [...] I can't live as this repulsive creature. -- Then don't. Cal’s being an asshole to Raina again. I do not like it.

You and Mack have something up and running, and you avoided backing him in that argument for fear you'd reveal it. You can’t fool Hunter, Bobbi. He knows you too well.

We're in a support group, okay? Then again he seems to buy this for a minute here...but I don’t think he ever truly did.  When Bobbi start distancing herself, he’ll go straight to Mack and ask for the truth.

I hope I didn't blow my chance to work on Lola one day. -- After that little r.c. version you built for me, I'm genuinely considering it, although I couldn't figure out how to make it fly. -- It doesn't. Poor Mack. He built the cutest and super clever spy device and people keep fixating on the one thing it can’t do.

Your heart rate was recorded at almost 300 bpm. -- That's very fast. -- That's inhuman. What a peculiar and entirely coincidental choice of a word. 😁

Yeah, but I've never seen Coulson like that before. He seemed so cutthroat. -- Yeah, I've rarely seen him like this myself. For Coulson, Trip was the embodiment of the principles he wants S.H.I.E.L.D. to be built upon: compassion, loyalty, heart. And that is S.H.I.E.L.D.'s strength. And Trip's death reminded Coulson that Hydra doesn't have that, and that is their weakness. I don’t care what Mack and likely Bobbi think. It’s a brilliant plan. *pouts*

Skye is your bunk made? -- No. No, it's a mess. -- Well, maybe you could get her some clean sheets. [...] Yeah, I mean, I would do it, but last time I was in there, there was lots of ladies' things, and she's a slob. This entire exchange is to get Jemma out of the way so they can talk privately but it’s very cute, regardless.

We're gonna laugh a lot less. That's for sure. Well, post-Trip’s S.H.I.E.L.D. has been an almost unrelentless stream of tragedies...

[ryder616]

Rewatching The Frenemy of My Enemy

Sometimes leaders have to do things they don’t like, says Jiaying, and it’s a shame she and Phil never got to meet - without toxic alien substances involved - because especially after this episode they could have had quite a bit to commiserate together about that.

Enlisting Ward’s help is likely up there in Coulson’s “do not want” list and must smart, certainly trumping the small satisfaction of manipulating him. Or, rather, trying to, since Ward doesn’t buy it and, besides, he already has his own nefarious plans in motion. I do question whether Coulson had any intention to abide by their deal, since he makes a point to give his word “as the Director of S.H.I.E.L.D.” with quite the suspicious emphasis, considering that currently he is, at most, the Director of Three Rogue Agents and their stolen Plane (T.R.A.P. 😉).

“Expedient alliances with despicable characters” might be in the job description as Hunter knowingly points out but add the distateful matter of exploting a brainwashed Bakshi, Fitz’s distress at the mere sight of Ward and Mike becoming the bait for Mengele Jr. and this is definitely not the best time Coulson’s had since he let his tiger loose.

Not that things are much better at home the base or Afterlife.

May’s been left with “a mountain of lies” and no reason that would make her understand why and accept it as part of the job (like her own deception on Fury’s orders in S1), Jemma’s pissed at May and worried about her friends, Bobbi and Mack are questioning everything they’ve been doing with their Real S.H.I.E.L.D.’s pals, the Inhumans are finding out bad people are after them and Cal and Skye’s bonding trip is cut short by Hydra.

The end of the season is near and, other than Ward who’s relishing every minute of Coulson needing his help, nobody’s having any fun.

Stuff that crossed my mind:

I’m not a certified Fitz’s Outfits Tracker but I believe this is the first time he’s wearing a suit.

Mike? -- Hey, Fitz. Good to see you again. -- New hardware. Hey, how did you upgrade... -- Not now, Fitz. See, Fitz, if you hadn’t decided you couldn’t work *with* Jemma anymore - and boy do you look like the fool about that after the amazing Grand Theft Toolbox or what 😁 - you, too, could have played with the cyborg toys that her department designed in secret without even knowing what, or rather who, they were for.

Yeah, it’s been a while since I’ve been in the field solo. I admit I’m drawning a complete blank here. When was he solo in the field before now?

Desperate times, desperate measures. Count me in. -- I'm relieved to hear you say that. We're making a deal with Ward. I’m fairly sure Fitz wasn’t quite so desperate.

Poor Ethan. Pack for a camping trip, end up a dead lab rat.

We've both changed. We're not the people we used to be. To lament that is a waste of time. In retrospect, maybe a little bit more lamenting and little less accepting of the “change” might have been wiser.

They know you're not like us. [...] He doesn't exactly belong here. You know, I get the whole persecuted minority that can’t trust outsiders thing but you guys could try to be a little more inclusive. You’re all people with special abilities, what does it matter how you got them?

It bothers me that we've been so focused on Coulson and Fury's toolbox. I mean, we have a tail on Fitz, for God's sakes. It's not like HYDRA's gone. Coulson may be a lot of things, but he's not the enemy. -- You sound like Hunter. -- Well, he might have been right on this one. -- Yeah, I've been wondering that myself. And you couldn’t have wondered all of this like five episodes ago? Better late than never, I suppose.

It's time we have it all out in the open. -- It's not exactly quite so simple. -- Simmons, what did you do? Well, if that wasn’t another epic YAML (Yet Another Mom’s Look). And the exasperation that went with it, I think she just had flashback of the Hub and unconscious Sitwell, poor May.

Wipe my memories? Well, that sounds like a threat, not a carrot. Can’t disagree with you there. I wouldn’t do it either.

Tahiti will erase all the bad, let you be the man you want to be, start over. Free and clear. I give you my word as director of S.H.I.E.L.D. Except you’re not the director at the moment...what an interesting loophole...

We want to find Skye, yes, but we are making a deal with -- The devil. I'm afraid it's in the job description, mate. Expedient alliances with despicable characters. -- You'd work with Bobbi? - No, not a chance. *outraged sputtering* You did not just compared Bobbi to Ward!?!! 😡

You know how he'll get when Gordon just abandons him in the middle of nowhere. -- Not nowhere, we're taking him home. -- It doesn't matter. He will feel abandoned, and people will get hurt. -- Those people aren't my concern. Yes, well, your progeny is, generally speaking, not a big fan of being unconcerned with people’s wellbeing. This could become a bit of an issue.

We have the upper hand. Whatever Coulson's endgame is doesn't matter because he is gonna help us get to ours. Their endgame being that whole kidnapping and torturing Bobbi thing though I don’t think they knew it was going to be her until next episode.

So, where are you going? China? -- What makes you think I'd go there? No. God, no. He sounds positively appalled. Probably too many bad memories linked to the country,  the kidnapped wife, the lost baby daughter, and that massacred village...

I don't want to hear about the people you think you're responsible for. Exhausting, isn’t she? And you’ve skipped her militant “save the world from evil government agencies” phase. That was a handful 😁

Just let me go with him. I'll talk to him. I'll soften the blow, let him know I'll visit and that he hasn't lost us forever. This is all very commendable but boy will she make a bit of a mess of it.

It's not about sides, it's about the truth. Coulson left us with a mountain of lies, and the only way to understand his reasoning was inside that box. -- Honestly, I don't care what's in it. The only thing I know is that Coulson was just trying to protect Skye. Well, no, in a frankly shocking turn of events the toolbox has nothing to do with Skye, but I can see how one might assume otherwise since pretty much everything else does. 😂 

Oh, there's this great, little Mom-and-Pop bakery just around the corner. Swedish place. Swiss. I don't know. I mix them up. That noise in the background? That’s the European audience collectively rolling their (our) eyes. 😁

Oh, it was gonna be perfect. I was gonna drop you off every morning and pick you up, help you with your science-fair project... the volcano, because who doesn't love a volcano, right? We'd go to the father-daughter dances together, get ice cream. Ah, the life we could have had...should have had. I'm sorry. Memory lane isn't always that fun to visit. This is all beyond sad but at least Daisy got to know where she came from and what her parents were like. Bare minimum, but it is still something.

Does it matter? You got a cyborg on board with rockets in his arm. -- He's not a cyborg, he's a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent. With rockets in his arm. Coulson standing up for Mike’s humanity but then he just can’t help himself with the cool.😉

Fitz [who’s being choked with a knife pointed at his throat], you all right? -- Yeah, I'm delightful. 🤣 🤣

You pull anything like that again, I'll throw your ass off this quinjet at 20,000 feet. I can’t say I hate that idea...

Bookstores, dead. Video stores, dead. Old-fashioned ice-cream shops, dead. The Internet killed everything. Enjoying your grumpy old man, Skye? 🤣

I regret letting her go, but at least Lincoln's there to protect her. This “protect Skye” thing is getting a little out of hand, if you ask me. She’s survived on her own all the crap life threw at her for 25 years and now she’s a secret agent with superpowers. The way Coulson, Jiaying, Lincoln and even somewhat Jemma go about it in this episode, you’d think she was still a helpless infant. Guys, chill. She can handle herself.

Have you heard of quantum entanglement, Mr. Bakshi? No, I'm afraid not. [...] -- Quantum entanglement? Sounds like a method of torture. You guys should read more 😁

Johnson...is that your last name? [...] Daisy Johnson. Huh. Well, it’s officially official. The “more sinister” name Cal hints at is of course Zabo, which I don’t believe was ever mentioned in the show.

I had one of these. -- Coincidence? I think not. Genetics. Dear S7, I don’t suppose you could give me the origin story for Daisy’s hula doll, uh? Pretty please?

The drawer from which Cal pulls out his grandfather’s field kit also contains a yellow walkman with a number of music tapes (“I miss my tunes”) and three vials of the green concotion that turns him into Mr. Hyde.

We're not all back together. You can't hang on to the past like this. You need to move on. We all do. Jiaying...she's responsible for all those people, and I...I'm an adult now. And as much as you want to turn back the clock to the time of science fairs and father-daughter dances... -- They're gone, yeah. I know. I know. -- But, look, it doesn't mean that we can't see each other. I could visit. -- Visit? Where are you going? Good, good, let’s ease him into it, no reason to just spring it to him as an afterthought at the end of an uncomfortable conversation about what’s lost and can’t never be regained, that might go over badly...

What's S.H.I.E.L.D.’s doing here? - It's not S.H.I.E.L.D. it's HYDRA. Please try to remember that for your parents they are pretty much the same thing.

I know I said I had missed the early signs of Daisy and Lincoln impending romance but that was during Afterlife. I had completely caught on by now, what with them falling on top of each other which is basically like hitting the audience with a hammer and yell: “They’ll bang, okay?”. And the hammer is Mjölnir. 😂

Skye’s here! [...] -- the Skye who shot you three times? -- Four. Good times. 😄

I’m a friend of Skye’s. -- Sure. And I’m the Hulk. No, but you are a wee bit impulsive sometimes. Right now, for instance. You and Daisy totally don’t have that in common.😁

And Ward saves Coulson’s life. The open mouth look Coulson gives after is how I feel in retrospect. At the time I thought he was going to end the season as a begrudged ally. It was great to be that completely blindsided even though I’m not a fan of the Bobbi thing.

What the hell happened here, Coulson? -- I'll tell you all about it back at the base. Take me to your leader. See, he agrees with me that Gonzales is really the one in charge. That, or he’s a giant nerd who can’t help but quoting sci-fi catchphrases any chance he gets.😁

[ryder616]

Rewatching What They Become

We finally get to find out what we become.

Skye’s specialness has been carefully seeded since day one, even before TPTB had fully settled on Daisy Johnson for her real identity. In the Pilot, Mike Peterson almost broke the 4th wall remarking “it’s an origin story” right before the camera cut to Skye in her van and just one episode later Coulson had already compared her to an 0-8-4.

Among all the foreshadowing, the hints and the pseudo hints - because there’s always at least a bit of “making it up as we go” in tv writing - that followed, my favorite remains the monologue Coulson had at the end of Seeds (1x12), after he had told Skye what he then knew about her origin: “The world is full of evil and lies and pain and death, and you can't hide from it, you can only face it. The question is, when you do, how do you respond? Who do you become?”

Skye’s definitely faced all of that and then some and she has responded dedicating herself to the business of saving lives with S.H.I.E.L.D. (“S.H.I.E.L.D. is my life now” 2x02), convinced she had finally found a place, a purpose, even the family that had always eluded her. And she has become a skilled field agent. These beliefs and her hard-earned role will be tested quite mercilessly by the rest of the season.

Fathers’ Day:

Coulson wins the Battle of the Fathers, because Skye chooses him, but Cal gets at least part of what he wanted, as his daughter goes through terrigenesis. Despite the occasional slip-up, Coulson is definitely the superior dad when it comes to respecting Daisy’s agency (he’s also less likely to go on a murdering rampage, which is another plus 😁). Cal is too wrapped up in pain and revenge and has been coveting the idea of a daughter rather than considering the real person. He will basically admit it with his “I’d imagine you perfect” speeches later in the season. He put her in serious danger, forced a radical transformation and imposed a tremendous burden on her without once considering, let alone asking, if Skye wanted any of it. That she repeatedly refused it and got caught in it only because she thought she had to stop Raina just adds to the injury.

Skye High:

She keeps it together in the midst of Hydra, the emotional control May’s been teaching her strained to the limit by Daddy Dearest, shoots Ward’s traitorous ass, takes a firm side in the Dad-off and then fails to stop a threat that was never what she and everyone else feared, unwillingly (for now) receiving her “birthright” but losing a friend in the process.

Both Philinda and Ward remark on what a capable agent Skye has become but I would counter that adapting and surviving isn’t something she learned at S.H.I.E.L.D. S.H.I.E.L.D definitely gave her more tools for it but season 1 Skye was already “smart, tough and capable”, even when she couldn’t shoot people. 

Her ability to keep it together under extreme circumstances extends to the delayed payback for Ward’s many offenses. It was a long time coming. She was already kicking herself in 1x20 for not letting him die, a regret that must have increased tenfold after what happened to FitzSimmons and since then the bodies have continued to pile up.

But she doesn’t just try to kill him, something that must have been on her mind for sometime as there was a lot of convinction behind that “put the son of a bitch down” she said in 2x09. Nothing really seemed to prevent her from shooting him straight in the head and be done with it. Instead, she aims for the lower chest area and then leaves him to bleed out. This was for herself as well. It’s probably the darkest thing not-hived Daisy has ever done but...I’m still happy she shot him and she probably shoud have aimed for the face.😉

May’s Boundless Badassary:

Her “fancy flying” (and the Hydra pilots’ lack of imagination) saves everyone on the Bus, the best display yet of her skill as a pilot which clearly rivals her skill as a martial artist. Then she basically spends the rest of the episode worrying about Skye and Coulson, who share the endearing but also often exasperating trait of taking personal responsibility for everything bad that ever happens. 🙄

Wall of Valor:

Never the phrase “we hardly knew ye” has ever been more appropriate, I think. Trip’s been with us for a little less than 20 episodes and what we know about him isn’t much but it’s all positive: brave, loyal but not blindly so, unfailingly heroic, owner of a 100000 watts smile, he’s a specialist who managed to preserve a sunny disposition and the ability to communicate verbally (😉). He’s been flirting with Simmons since his introduction but at some point must have decided not to push beyond that, probably sensing the complicated situation with Fitz, whose fits of jealousy he very gracefully shrugged off last season. And he’s been a good partner and friend to Skye, at a time when Coulson was distant, Jemma was away and Fitz was struggling and she didn’t know how to deal with it. That he died thinking he failed to save her just makes everything more tragic and unfair.

Stuff that crossed my mind:

You think they’re coming back? May’s expression of exasperated incredulity is just glorious. Thank you, Agent Koenig.

The only word for that kind of flying is "fancy”. -- Redirect us to San Juan. I'm gonna have to let Coulson know that Hydra has Skye. Well, talk about a buzzkill.

So Ward called an audible when he saw her on the plane. -- Or had his own agenda the whole time. Bingo! Give the awesome lady a new leather jacket.

A few hours at most after Fitz told her he couldn’t work with her, he and Jemma are working together to puzzle out the alien city’s defenses. And it’s a bit (well, a lot) awkward but their brainstorming is as effective as ever. Food for thought, little bear.

What if the city didn't kill Mack, but co-opted him, made him a part of it? - Like zombie ants? - Yeah. Maybe it's like the fungus ophiocordyceps. It possesses and transforms ants into creatures that do its bidding. Oh crap. Mack’s an Infected. 😱

I heard what happened with Mack. -- Then you know it was my fault. -- [...] You did what had to be done. It’s a few seasons too early but - spoiler alert - I loathe that phrase.😡

I might know a guy. Want me to see if he's available? -- Is he good? -- Good enough to know you're keeping a thumb drive from him. There’s no fooling Hunter. He’s much smarter than anyone ever gives him credit for.

You made the right call. -- The right call would have been to put two of these in Ward's head. With all these fuzzy feelings everyone’s been harboring for Ward I'm frankly surprised his head hasn’t already exploded all on its own.

How's your marksmanship? -- I don't know. Hand me your side arm. Let's find out. I’m gonna go with vengeful. Also, Ward, just F.Y.I., (not at all) subtly reminding her of your mentorship days is not going to work out the way you think.

Maybe you don't remember, but we've played this game of "let's kidnap Skye" before, and it didn't end well for you.  Bit of a vague warning I suppose, especially compared to Jemma’s a few episodes back, but a warning nonetheless.

I’m Cal. I’m your father. Oh, hey Skye, Luke Skywalker just called, wanting to let you know that the “MDIMM - My Dad Is a Mass Murderer” support group is meeting every Wednesday and you’re invited.😁

Thank you for meeting with me. -- "Thank you for..." Are you serious? I was kidnapped off a plane at gunpoint! Well, Coulson kidnapped you from your van with Ward in tow and I’m pretty sure they had guns under those suits. Is it really that different? (well, yes, lol, but it’s still funny. Right?😁)

Those little almond cookies, you know? Amaretti? 🤨 Debbie cakes are more her speed. Sorry, Cal, you’re losing points to the other dad.

Well, I don't know what you know about me. -- You're a monster, a murderer, a trail of death wherever you go. -- Those are all true. Look at her expression. She was hoping for a denial. 😢

You were born in China. Your mother was Chinese. It’s quite possible that Daisy hadn’t known about her precise ethnic heritage until now. Though she probably suspected after learning she had been found in Hunan.

I'm sorry I couldn't be there for you, that I couldn't protect you. That I couldn't teach you about the stars. Or sing you to sleep. The life that never was.😢

What's bad? -- Diego's early, and he's wearing a suit. -- Uh, yeah, you're gonna have to connect the dots on why that's bad. -- He's never early, and he never wears a suit.-- Oh, well, that clears everything up. Give it up for Diego. He knows Bobbi is smart and observant and counted on it.

Ah, the classic “let’s kiss to look inconspicous” maneuver. I bet this is in the S.H.I.E.L.D.’s handbook.

Also, San Juan looks beautiful.

You work for Whitehall and for Hydra. They are the bad guys. That makes you a bad guy. Trying really hard to reduce the situation to the simplicity of the binary code. 1 and 0, good and bad. If only.

But first, now that he's served his purpose, I'm gonna kill the man who destroyed my life. Best day ever. He’s a man of simple pleasures. 🤭

Where's your brother been hiding? -- Well, all this excitement fried his circuits. His cooling system kicked in. Now he's recharging his batteries. -- I know what you're doing. The Koenigs should be doing more of this. If I had a bunch of twins I would never relent with the clones and the LMDs jokes. Uhm. Maybe the Koenigs are simply less annoying than me. 🤣

If things go radically south here, I'll need you to implement the theta protocol. Right, the thing you have been working on in total secret that will save the day in Sokovia and hurt May’s feelings. Very cool and totally not cool, Coulson.

I'd like you to pick it up. -- You first. Sassing in the face of danger.

Two goals: stop the drill, find Skye. -- Aren't you forgetting a third? -- What's that? -- Don't die out there. We tend to remind each other not to die. -- Thought that was implicit. -- He likes to hear it. -- Who doesn't like to hear it? And again, I’m with Hunter. It’s a fairly important part of any plan, especially when in the company of the self-sacrificing types.

Discovery requires experimentation. I killed your wife. And before I kill you, I want you to watch what I do to your daughter. Ewww. Hands off my superhero, you nazi creep!

Never turn your back on the enemy. You taught me that. So, do you finally get it, Ward? It was over the second she discovered Eric’s body. *exasperated sigh*

What did you do?! -- You're welcome? -- You killed him! He was mine, and you killed him! I’m not usually this bloodthirsty but a shot to the heart is too good and clean for Whitehall.

Kara’s aim rivals a Stormtrooper’s. 🤣

Join S.H.I.E.L.D. Travel to exotic, distant lands. Meet exciting, unusual people. And kill them. Hell of a job, uh?

I'm her father, not you! How about he gets her for the school year and you can have her for the holidays? 🤭

I’m not going down there. [...] -- Why can’t you see it’s a good thing? -- Maybe it’s all the dead bodies laying around or the fact that Hydra wants it. Sound reasoning. *whispering* but it’s going to be really cool...eventually... 😏

I'm so sorry. I couldn't kill him. I couldn't kill him, and I wanted to and I couldn't. I'm so sorry. I'm gonna make it right. I’m gonna find the Obelisk. I’m gonna stop the drill. I’m gonna make it right. Apologizing because you can’t kill your own father is a new...something. Props to Chloe who switches tone and manner of speech - almost sounding like a pleading child - after Cal’s gone and she’s speaking to the battered Coulson. And as soon as she started saying “I’m gonna make it right” Coulson went “no!”, because he knows exactly where she’s coming from. And in fact, a couple of scenes later...

I put her on this path, I have to try to make it right. There you go. Cut from the same cloth and all that.

Raina escaped into the tunnels with the Obelisk. -- I wouldn't lose any sleep. The place is gonna blow in less than -- Skye and Coulson went in after her. -- Damn. Oh, Trip. 😭 Hats off to B.J. Britt who I think really sells the moment Trip swiftly decides to risk his life for theirs.

Our whole lives have been leading to this moment. -- Sorry. I don't buy into the whole "this is your destiny" thing. We're taking the Obelisk, and we're leaving. There are too many lives at stake. Nice plan. Doomed to failure the second you stepped in there, but A+ for purpose.

If you want to leave, now’s your chance. Eh...bit of a curiosity killed the cat situation at this point and that goes for you too, Raina.

No, Trip! What are you doing here? Being a hero. 😭 😭 😭

Are you seeing this? There's someone new. Exciting, isn’t it?