Marvel’s Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D. Blog 1.9 Repairs

Writers: Maurissa Tancharoen, Jed Whedon,

Director: Bill Gierhart,

Starring: Clark Gregg, Ming-Na Wen, Brett Dalton, Chloe Bennet, Iain De Caestecker, Elizabeth Henstridge, Laura Seay,

Synopsis: A woman who seemingly has uncontrollable telekinetic powers is taken in by S.H.I.E.L.D.

So with Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D. currently riding high on a trio of well-plotted character studies, it was time for the most interesting character of all to get her moment in the sun. Agent May, played by the fantastic Ming-Na Wen, has remained the most interesting part of the show by keeping herself a complete mystery. We’ve always heard about little snippets from her past, but usually from the mouths of others as May isn’t much of a talker. This also allows her to stay away from the banter of other characters that all sound the same. Pop culture remarks and witty putdowns are not part of her repertoire, and for that I am very greatful. Unfortunately, it’s a bit of a step back in terms of what the show has achieved recently.

Perhaps the biggest problem lies with the writers and creators of the show, married couple Maurissa Tancharoen and Jed Whedon. This is their first time writing for the show since the opening three episodes, and the fall-off in quality is certainly apparent. Annoying characters are annoying again, the dialogue is interchangeable, and even some of the same references are used; Skye once again refers to the S.H.I.E.L.D. academy as Hogwarts. The biggest problem is that most of May’s background is delivered by third parties and remains an enigma. With the little this episode gives us, it took me a while before I realised who was supposed to be the focus.

In the week that CARRIE hits UK cinemas, it’s interesting that we have a plot that supposedly focuses on a woman with uncontrollable telekinetic abilities. It starts with a horribly acted opening where lines are delivered with all the conviction of a Goosebumps extra. The young woman in question, Hannah (Seay) is then set upon by her community and S.H.I.E.L.D. come to take her in. With all the good work that other writers put into the characters of Fitz (Caestecker) and Simmons (Henstridge), we’re now back to an annoying double act. The issue is that Simmons seems dead set against the idea of someone with telekinetic abilities. This just seemed so preposterous given she lives in a world where The Hulk, Thor, and Captain America live. What exactly would be so unbelievable about telekinetic abilities? The duo’s next contribution is where they lament finishing school early and never getting to play pranks on freshmen. This becomes such a ridiculous and childish subplot that it was very detracting at times. It may show their slightly immature nature, but they are also government agents working towards international security. The whole thing seems crowbarred in for the final, and admittedly funny, joke .

After Hannah is taken to the S.H.I.E.L.D. plane, things take a dramatic tonal shift as we suddenly find ourselves in horror territory. The episode flirts with the paranormal as it becomes apparent that Simmons was correct about telekinesis all along, and Hannah is really being pursued by a dimension hopping ghost. It’s all explained with pseudo-science that apparently requires some knowledge of THOR: THE DARK WORLD. The Ghost, as he is referred to, appears and then disappears as lights flicker on and off and the agents become separated. Although it’s nice to see a different genre incorporated, unlike the likes of Doctor Who which can switch between sheer terror and fun, the cast have difficulty getting their fear across and the dialogue keeps things light.

In the end we discover that The Ghost isn’t all bad, and the final plot strands connect with a similar mission from May’s past. This fixes in enough emotional content, but it’s all very rushed in those last few minutes. Obviously this was to keep certain things surprising, but it does impact the pay-off in a negative way. Although not awful, and the more May the better, the episode suffers from following such impressive stories over the last 3 weeks. Hopefully the series will try its hand at horror again in the near future, but will contain less sass and more threat.

Best Bit: May and Ward’s relationship is confirmed and it’s great to see characters hooking up outside of their “natural” pairings. An interracial relationship with an age difference that avoids any saccharine nonsense or dependency issues is a welcome addition to TV land.

 Marvel’s Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D. takes a break next week, but will return to Channel 4 on 13th December at the usual time of 8:00pm.