I’m starting to think there is a curse on this column, as I’m the third reviewer in 5 episodes. I’m probably just filling in for Matt this week and maybe next – that is, until a piano falls on my head and Vince has to take over. Or something like that. Anyway, on to the episode!
1. Interesting but not compelling
I was thinking during the show tonight how Skye’s position as a double agent makes for a really interesting plot point for the show. However, because she is also the most likable person on the show outside of Coulson, it makes it even harder to care about any of the other characters. Fitz and Simmons are such amazingly childish archetypes, Ward is wooden to the max, and Way is too brooding to really get invested in. Skye and Coulson are the heart of the show, and when half of that duo is playing the other, it just isn’t working. It would be one thing if, at the end of the season, it was revealed that Skye was still working for the Rising Tide, but by doing it so early on in the season, it isn’t as impactful as it could be. The show is interesting not for the characters but for the situations they find themselves in; in theory, that is ok, but they should probably start beefing up the characters a bit beyond the broad and dull stereotypes they currently are.
2. X-Menish
This episode felt a lot like an X-Men tie-in but, because of legal reasons, all mutant speak had to be eliminated, so it felt…well, off. It felt a bit like watching a politician talk about their opponent without ever mentioning their name. They wanted to say mutant, they wanted to call him Pyro or Sunfire; you know if Marvel owned the film/TV rights to those characters, they would have.
3. S.H.I.E.L.D. isn’t A.O.K.
I like that the show doesn’t necessarily white-wash the actions of S.H.I.E.L.D. – it is implied that, while they are the good guys, they also make a lot of mistakes, and this episode more than the others really showed their potential to really fuck up a life. I mean, they aren’t Centipede or anything, but they act in a way that benefits their wants and needs, and somewhat steamrolls over anyone in their way. It is well meaning bureaucracy, but it is still bureaucracy.
4. Aren’t Whedon Shows Noted For Their Dialogue?
Simmons actually says this about a character he has known for 5 weeks: “I thought she was our friend – we’ve been through so much together.”
Really? That is the best they could come up with? You can express that same emotion without telegraphing it to such an extreme degree. There are a lot of moments in this show that feel like the writing staff is putting placeholder lines in there, to come back to later and fix, and they never do it. While others have issue with the pacing of the show, or the creep of the week format, to me, the biggest strike against it is the absolutely unsubtle dialogue. A quick pass from a high school English teacher would help considerably.
5. Teases
Is Raina the Raina who is a member of the Hauk’ka? Is the clairvoyant mentioned in the stinger Madame Webb? Does anyone outside of super nerdy obsessed fans and guys reviewing the show for a website even notice?
