It's official.. Marvel's new TV series is.. S.H.I.E.L.D!

[Podmark]

Yeah I'll agree the show is much more enjoyable lately.

[MJB]

This show really turned the corner. So much fun lately.

Spoiler

Thoughts about the preview for next week... If the writers try to redeem Ward in ANY way I'm done with this show. Evil Ward is the greatest thing they have done. I hated the character with a passion. Watching good guy Ward best Triplett in a fight was a crime. Looking back I see it was just to set up bad guy Ward as a force to be reckoned with. The writers need to keep him evil. In fact they can push him into possible super-villain status if they want to. DO NOT REDEEM HIM.

[catwhowalksbyhimself]

I want them to take Ward in one of two directions.

Spoiler

1.  Redemption equals death. He dies Saving Sky.
2.  He gives up on his interest on Sky, crosses the Moral Event Horizon and because completely irredeemably evil, which seems to be the direction its going

I'd be fine with either, but not with Ward turning good.  With Triplett on the team as his apparently replacement, I'm pretty sure that won't happen.

[JeyNyce]

It's becoming clear now that much of this was planned for the start, but unfortunately the boring stuff that they have since twisted around have already turned a lot of people off who took it all for face value.  Too bad, because the show's now pretty good and the early episodes are now put in an entirely new light.

Like I said earlier I think they did that to keep in sync with the movies.  Now that the movies are done for now, they can go at their own pace.

[Podmark]

I think you've got the right idea Cat.

[MJB]

Cat:

Spoiler

Out of the two options you posted I would totally choose number 2.  Irredeemably evil is the way to go IMO.

Triplett is now one of my favorite characters on the show. Hope he sticks around for the long haul.

[BWPS]

Oh dear God I finally caught up,  and boy am I glad I did.  This show,  post Winter Soldier tie-in  is at least three times as good as the best it was previously.TWS  is my favorite movie,  it's so good that it saved a TV show. I really hope this gets picked up for a second season!

Spoiler

I really didn't realize  Sky was half Chinese nor did I realize May was 50.  She looks amazing.  Anyway, she's definitely Sky's mother.

Ward being evil is the best thing ever.  He wasn't a good character but boy is he now!  He's absolutely crazy.  I can't wait to see May break his neck.  The whole Hydra storyline dismantling Shield was exactly what this show needed (maybe  even moreso than characters with super powers)

I really like Triplet,  he's a great replacement for Ward.  Having that episode with Robin was great too,  she's tough as nails!  Patton Oswald  was a great guest too.

[Podmark]

It really is interesting how much better the show has gotten. It went from a show I just kinda watched just because, to one that I really look forward to.

Spoiler

Well I sure hope Fitz-Simmons are okay. They're my favorite.

[crimsonquill]

Agents Of SHIELD was officially picked up for it's SECOND season (I'm sure a lot of it has to do with it's major shift in story after Captain America 2) and just like I heard rumored.. the One-Shot short (from the Iron Man 3 Blu-Ray) Marvel's Agent Carter IS GETTING IT'S OWN SERIES (not hard to believe if they used an extended version of the one-shot as the pilot). So, we will be getting a double dose of Marvel probably on Tuesday Nights for the 2014 Fall/Winter lineup.

For those who never saw the Agent Carter one-shot, It's follows Cap's girlfriend Peggy in the years after he vanished during his last mission and her joining the Strategic Scientific Reserve and then joining Howard Stark to help assemble SHIELD.  Hayley Atwell (from Captain America 1 & 2) returns as Peggy along with cameos of Dominic Cooper (as Howard Stark) and various members of The Howling Commandos (they already confirmed that Derek Luke will show up as Gabe Jones for a few episodes). Toby Jones (Arnim Zola) is slated to be a regular on the show as the resident mad scientist.

- CQ

[BentonGrey]

CQ, that...actually sounds really awesome!  Count me in!  I'd love to see a WWII/Cold War era superhero/spy series.  Ohh, they could bring in the Invaders as guest stars!

That's great news, the show being picked up for a second season.  After they stepped things up so much here at the end, they definitely needed a chance to see what they could do with all this new good will they built up.

As for the last few episodes:

Spoiler

So, this has continued to be good, though it's dipping into cheesy in a few spots.  When Sky isn't having a REALLY good performance seemingly painfully pulled out of her by Ward, she's still just not that great.  She has gotten better, though, and the whole bit with her and Ward was really pretty excellent.

I agree with Sky, though, her not letting Ward die was DEFINITELY weakness.  That wasn't compassion; it was stupidity.  Coulson, come on man. 

I too am EAGERLY waiting for May to beat the ever-loving tar out of Ward!

Yeah, I also hope Fitz-Simmons are okay.  They're my favorites too!  The questions about Ward's action there, to my mind, are two-fold.  First, did he expect to kill them with that trick?  Second, and probably the answer to the first, who is behind the sniper scope targeting Buddy, the dog, in the brief flash back right afterwards?

All-in-all, this show is maintaining its fever pitch, and it is very, very good.  I liked the reveal of what was going on with Garrett.  That makes a bit more sense, but we still really need some more development of who he is.  The whole Hydra thing seems to be really just window-dressing for him.  I'd like to see that explored more. 

That last moment, though, with the super-soldiers all around the team?  Wow.  I'm looking forward to the next episode.
I have one MAJOR complaint about this last episode, though:

So, we get the dramatic reveal of Ward's history with Garrett.  It's supposed to reveal why he's so fanatically loyal, 'cause he 'owes him so much,' etc...but there's one glaring problem.  Nowhere in that episode did I see anything that would point to some type of devotion or bond between them.  Garrett gets Ward out of prison, dumps him in the woods for six months, and presumably for years afterward, and then forces him to shoot the only friend he's ever known.  That's much more like a nemesis than a mentor.  Maybe Ward was desperate for a father figure, but we don't see that, and we don't see anything that even looks REMOTELY like it could justify Ward's actions or motivations.  That's a big problem.

[catwhowalksbyhimself]

The show's ratings have not been spectacular, but they've been at least okay all season.  They've been rising steadily since the Cap 2 changes, so they'd be stupid to cancel it before seeing how high it could go.  But even without good ratings, they've been getting some huge mileage at of using it as a promotional engine for the big movies.  It's worth keeping around even if the ratings had been sub-par just for that reason.

The Carter series could be good.  I finally saw the one-shot and it apparently served as the internal pilot, with it being ordered to series with no additional filming.  There was a hickup as they took longer to make a decision than was expected, so the actress's option on her contract actually expired, but they she agreed to renegotiate, so it worked out.

[crimsonquill]

CQ, that...actually sounds really awesome!  Count me in!  I'd love to see a WWII/Cold War era superhero/spy series.  Ohh, they could bring in the Invaders as guest stars!

I'm pretty sure Union Jack will get a cameo since Montgomery Falsworth was one of the movies Howling Commandos and they did confirm in Captain America 2 (within the Smithsonian exhibit) that all of the commandos except Bucky survived all of their conflicts and retired in some capacity. I wouldn't be surprised that they somehow weave in some background info on Baron Wolfgang von Strucker into both Agents Of SHIELD and Agent Carter before his appearance in Avengers 2 with the twins.

- CQ

[BentonGrey]

Awesome!  I love Union Jack!

[JeyNyce]

Great way to end the season.  Had action, jokes and mystery.  I'm not going to talk about it until enough people have seen it, but it was a great show!

[Shogunn2517]

It was some good TV.  It was actually fast paced, I thought the show was at the end when it was barely halfway through.  Though I like how it tied up and where it's leading, there are some pretty SIGNIFICANT questions that are still unanswered.  Not that is a bad thing.  Especially since we know it'll be around next season to answer them.  Though there are some impressions and questions I have:

Spoiler

Even though Garrett was the focused of the latter part of the season, I noticed Hydra never really had a "leader" of much of a focus at all that was really explained.  I halfway expected to see Thomas Kretschmann(Baron Strucker) or Raina get re-introduced as Madam Hydra or something.  Now that Hydra is out in the open and has more than 4-5 episodes to play around with, I really want to know what direction will they go?  Will they be like a Outside enemy with opposing interest, like Alias(which I'm rewatch) had with a K-Directorate/Alliance of 12/Covenant?  Will there be another enemy?  Will they have a larger role?

Another thing that bothered me is them going back to Koenig again, after he was killed...  They couldn't use a Clay Quartermain or G.W. Bridge or any number of other SHIELD Agents to introduce the Playground?

What's going to happen with Fitz?  He wasn't around and they'd only say that he's "alive" or "breathing" and didn't show him for the last 30 minutes or say that he would be okay.  That tells me that rather De Caestecker will not be coming back or the character will be different.

What will happen with the team?  If Coulson is the new Director, I doubt he's going to be flying around on the plane looking for unidentified objects anymore?

What will happen to Ward?  I know they didn't make him a "Good Guy" all over again, but they definitely left that door WIDE open.  I don't have a problem with it as much because they played it well.  I doubt he can be a regular, but I doubt he's done either.

I really love Simmons.  She puts a smile on my face everytime she's on screen.  She is just that happy little nerdy sweetheart that I'd totally go for in High School.  Not really a question about the show, just wanted to share.

[catwhowalksbyhimself]

Now with the last episode, we finally know what the show is really all about and how it will fit into the greater Marvel universe, but great setup for next season.

Spoiler

The good guys win, of course, and Deathlock is set free to goes off to be a hero.  Garrett is killed.  Twice.  Ward apparently takes over as the big bad.

That's not the interesting part, though.  Coulson is now Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. and has been tasked by Fury to rebuild the organization from the ground up.  I know SHIELD would be back sooner or later, so its good to see that happening.

[Podmark]

I liked it.

Spoiler

Anxious to see what happens next with Fitz. I'm expecting he'll be in a coma, or a wheel chair, or otherwise disabled for much of the season/series.
Really glad he didn't die, but mostly because Whedon shows have played that card too many times now.

Disappointed Deathlok walked away. I'm sure we'll see him again but I would have really liked to see him become a regular and that appears less likely now.

I was very surprised how much Samuel L. Jackson appeared as Nick Fury. I was just expected a cameo, but he was a legitimate guest star. That was very cool. Sadly his speech at the end makes it sound like this might be the last of him on the show for a long while.

Coulson becoming the new director is a pretty neat development. I hope they get back Colbie Smoulders next year. In the comics Hill is always gunning to run SHIELD, I wonder what this versions reaction would be.

[JeyNyce]

Great Show

Spoiler

I love the part with Coulson and Fury was talking about how crazy Garrett was.  Also I'm guessing by the way Fury left that he will not be in the show any more, but what about the movies?  I'm surprise nobody didn't say anything about Skye's father.  Who do you guys think he is?

Now that the season is over, do you guys think that they are going to still try to tie the show with the movies (Avenger 2, Cap 3) or are they going to let it go on it own, so it won't have the slow start like this season did?

[MJB]

After watching every episode from this season I can say with certainty that the next season of this show will tie into the next season of movies.

The season finale was neat. Nothing mind blowing from my end. Kind of a safe way to handle everything IMO.

[Glitch Girl]

Spoiler

At one point I thought to myself "Wait... Garrett is going to be next season's big bad as well?"

SPLAT!

"...Nope."

And I too loved that scene with Coulson and Fury discussing the crazy. 

All in all, a good season ending.  (may add to this post later when my thoughts are more organized.)

[BentonGrey]

Well, I agree with most of what's been said at this point.  It was a good finale, and the show is definitely in much better shape going into its next season.

Spoiler

The episode started sorta' weak, with the escape from all of those Centipede soldiers straining my suspension of disbelief a bit.  They just sort of stood there, shot, and were somehow not instantly killed, despite the fact that a single Centipede was previously a match for the entire team.  Plus, May got the Berzerker Staff away from its wielder with ridiculous ease.

Still, the show picked up right after that scene, and pretty much everything else was great.  It had a ton of really fun dialog, and I'll add my voice to the chorus praising the Fury/Coulson discussion.  That was lots of fun.  I also really enjoyed the moment when Coulson is handed the super-gun from The Avengers.  "I know what this does."  It was cheesy, but I still loved it.

Garrett's second death was a wonderful subversion of the usual tropes.  That was awesome.  I was REALLY not thrilled that he was back because I really didn't care for the character or the actor much.  He just seemed awfully 'tv-actor-chews-the-scenary' to me.  Still, that was a very satisfying end to him...both times!

I was also SUPER excited to see May finally give Ward his just deserts, and that was a great scene.  I was disappointed, however, that she didn't put a few nails into his head as well.  She should have finished him off, and I can't think of a single good reason for the character not to have done just that.  I was quite ready for Ward to die, because I've still seen no reasonable motivation for him, and I REALLY don't want to see them try to reform him.

The monstrous father of Sky is (partially) revealed!  Interesting!  I'm wondering if the predictions that some FR folks made regarding Sky being an Inhuman might be correct.  That would be a good backdoor way to deal with mutation, which seems to be the direction the show is headed.

Fitz!  He finally told Simmons how he felt, which is great.  That was a wonderful scene, and both of those guys did a great job with it.  I do hope that he's alright, though I imagine we'll definitely seem some kind lasting consequences from his experience.  It's possible that there will be a story arc next season about trying to heal him.

Coulson as Director of S.H.I.E.L.D....that's interesting.  I'm not entirely sure what I think about it, but I'm glad that the organization is getting rebuilt.  It's not the Marvel U. without S.H.I.E.L.D.

[Shogunn2517]

Thought this was a pretty good interview, asking Gregg about his thoughts on the Marvel Universe and thoughts about the direction of the next season.  Pretty fun view, IMO.

http://marvel.com/news/tv/2014/5/16/22532/watch_clark_gregg_talk_about_marvels_agents_of_shield_season_2?linkId=8293214

[XStream]

School became so time consuming this past year that I missed the entire season (other than the pilot). I cannot wait to have a chance to binge watch it on Netflix or Bluray.

Anyone else watching Cap:tWS on the edge of your seat when Cap was giving Fury what for and expressed his disapproval of Fury compartmentalizing everything? I kept waiting for Fury to say, "Well, I guess I should tell you about Coulson..."

Anyway, I hope I can watch before the Carter series begin.

[HarryTrotter]

Soo...did Graviton really appeared here?

[BentonGrey]

Spade:

Spoiler

Sort of...the accident that gave him his origin occurred, but so far he hasn't emerged with powers yet....though the gravitonium or whatever it was has recently reemerged.

[HarryTrotter]

^Thanks.Somebody was saying that Agents are possibly setting up for Thunderbolts because of Gravitons apperance so I had to ask.

[Starman]

Graviton only featured as a bad guy fighting the Thunderbolts a couple of times in the comics. As far as the actual team, we only saw Blizzard on Agents of SHIELD. I doubt that indicates they are setting up the Thunderbolts for an appearance unless they plan on introducing a whole pile of Marvel characters in Season 2.

[HarryTrotter]

^Its just somebody blogging.Its not official.

[Podmark]

Read a confirmation today about something I'd been wondering about, that Ward will be returning in Season 2. Not sure if he's still a regular or if we'll be seeing some smaller appearances. Personally I'm guessing he's still a regular.

[BentonGrey]

Hmm, here's hoping he's minor.  He's crossed the moral event horizon, and there just isn't that many places they can go with him that aren't just going to tick me off.