Far and away the best episode Agents of Shield has ever produced. The only episode that can give it a run for its money is last season's spotlight episode on how May earned her nickname. There's a lesson there -- centering an episode on an individual story, particularly one that centers around one of the better actors in the cast, gives the show a focus that is often lacking when trying to juggle multiple intersecting plotlines at once.
This was a hell of a showcase for Elizabeth Henstridge. The production design team helped. (Production design as a plus in 'Agents of Shield"? I"m as surprised as you are.) The blue tint was a cheap way to sell the alienness of the world, but it totally worked, and the dessert topography really sold the desolateness of the environment and contributed to the sense of hopelessness in that world.
But Henstridge is what made the episode work. She sold the isolation, the small moments of crestfallen loneliness and discouragement, the little joys of success and friendship, the simple humanity of a survival story. Her burp, her wistfulness when she says "My dad would like you," and her conversations with an imaginary Fitz (a nice nod toward Fitz doing the same routine last season) all made her feel like a three-dimensional person in an extreme situation. There's a sense that this is Marvel's take on 'Castaway' or even 'Last Man on Earth', and doing this kind of laser-focused narrative requires a lot of the actors involved. These types of stories are, by necessity, character pieces; Henstridge was more than up to the challenge, and it deepened my appreciation for Simmons.
The actor who played Will was pretty good as well, and while his story could have felt too cliche, it worked in the context of the episode as a whole. Really, this felt like a well-structured science fiction short story as much as it did an episode of an ongoing series, and that's not a knock. Knowing Fitz and Simmons's relationship helped give certain moments more weight and significance, but it could almost work as a standalone piece. That's how strong and self-contained this was.
There was also a legitimate sense of menace from the planet. The zomibe-like astronaut, the tentacle creature, and the dust storms all suggested something frightening and alien about this world. It prompted so many great emotional moments from the two characters stuck on it. Doing an episode like this, so unlike AoS's usual M.O., was something of a gamble, but it paid off like gangbusters here.
No pervy ghosts, meddlesome in-laws or annoying side chicks. Just emotions and lots of Sa-Pi Young - this episode makes up for all the ridiculousness we’ve had to put up with so far… Almost. Quite.
Tasha gets points for knocking the smirk off Madeline’s face at least.
Interesting new storyline, at first I was dissapointed that it wasn't another shooting or fire, you know the super dramatic horrific things that occur a lot on this show but halfway through this episode I loved this idea of a massive hack. It's a very realistic idea.
I can't wait to see what happens next, the last seconds left me gasping for air.
I WAS SO SHOCKED IN THE END OMG
This was probably the best episode Empire has had in a minute, it is a major build up to a bunch of drama that we did not see about to happen. I am actually looking forward to next week and I haven't said that about this show in a while.
I like that they make up for last season being cut short from COVID by making one fast-paced and dense premiere about it. The "recap" of 2020's events up until January 6 to bring both the show's world-building and its characters up to current events' speed is an absolute whirlwind of the show's strength in concentrated dose. Gets a bit messy at times but overall very exhilarating, and the time-skipping rhythm helps the two actor's exits feel smoother than it would have been, after they lost the tail end of last season's episodes to properly conclude their stories.
Two things I get a kick most of: Luca saying people find her "exotic" in London when she's played by a British Cush Jumbo, and Diane's laugh in disbelief (oh how I miss that from Baranski!) at the absurd way Julius got off the sentence.
OH MY GOD THOSE LAST FEW SECONDS!!!!! I gasped so loud!
Overall I liked this episode even with the issues it had. I don't think it had as many problems as some other viewers do. I had started to suspect some sort of AI involvement last episode when we saw Half Data girl glitch at the end. I hadn't put together that the seldom mentioned Control was that AI. I blame Person of Interest for my misconception.
Now that we know about Control it helps elevate some of the current issues with Section 31. Maybe they can use this as an excuse to re-hid them.
My main issue had to do with Half Data. I always hate when a show introduces a character that every seems to know and be friends with (that we've never seen before) just so they can kill them. What they did with Airiam was close. Like most of the bridge characters we had barely known her. For this to have the right impact, for Michael to be so torn, it needed to be setup long ago. If somehow it had been Tilly Michael's hesitation would have been more understandable because we known there's a relationship there. Half Data has been more like a piece of bridge equipment.
This was an absolutely terrific season opener; I just hope it's an indication of the rest of the season's calibre. Can't wait!
Bye bye Airiam, we hardly knew thee.
What a waste of an interesting character!
The look on her face at the end was priceless.
