Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D.: An Ode To Agent Triplett

(Note: there are pretty significant spoilers in here for the midseason finale of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Either go watch it or read Christina Roberts’ recap and review. Your choice.)

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Afer my wife and I watched Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. on Tuesday and I was done cursing, she turned to me and said, “Maybe Trip isn’t really dead. I mean, Mac … ”

I shook my head and said, “No, he got turned to stone and then blasted into dust. I’m pretty sure he’s dead.” Sure enough, ABC posted a farewell video by B.J. Britt, the actor who plays Agent Triplett. He’s definitely gone.

Since the hashtag #IfTripDiesWeRiot never really caught on — and that was two weeks ago, when it looked like his life was in serious danger the first time — I’m going to assume that there aren’t too many big fans of Antoine Triplett out there. And that’s a shame, because as a de facto replacement for Grant Ward, he was better in nearly every way.

Let’s start with the obvious, which is that despite serving under John Garrett, the same way Ward did, he chose to stay loyal to S.H.I.E.L.D. despite far fewer bonds with the team members. He also nurtured a pleasant flirtation with Jemma Simmons instead of Ward’s creepy stalker fixation on Skye/Daisy. Yes, his death clears the way for Leo to give Jemma a shoulder on which to cry, but I never shipped #FitzSimmons. It’s just too obvious.

Where Ward was a sourpuss even in the best of times, Trip had jokes. There were even a few connections made between him and Director Coulson thanks to the old school spy tech given to him by his grandfather, one of the Howling Commandos (probably Gabe Jones). Triplett was just a likable character, one who never complained even though he got left behind to hold down the fort at least as much as he got to be in the thick of the action.

You never heard him complain though, not the way I did when the writers had Trip’s life in the balance as a pawn in crazy Cal’s game a few episodes back. I was sure he was getting killed off there, and when they managed to save his life, I figured he was safe.

Then the writers threw us all for a loop, making it look like Mack (a character I also like, though not as much as Trip) was the one whose life was in danger before pulling the bait and switch and having Triplett run in after Skye. Guess it wasn’t enough for him to defuse all the bombs, right? He had to catch some Terrigen Crystal shrapnel in the chest as well. Damn.

So long Trip. Sorry I couldn’t organize any mass displays of outrage or online petitions to bring you back like Beth Greene on The Walking Dead, but at least for this fan, the show won’t be quite the same without you.

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