Marvel’s Agents of SHIELD Brainstorm Session – “Purpose In The Machine”
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If I could just say a few words, I’d be a better public speaker … That’s about all I’ve got for an introduction to this week’s Agents of SHIELD brainstorm. Forward!
Overarching Questions
1. Any guesses as to what the side effects will be for Simmons?
She’s spent months on an alien planet, being hunted/chased/scared out of her mind, we’re not quite sure. We do know that she does wake up from nightmares in this episode, brandishing some sort of sharpened stick, which … where the heck did she get that from? Groot?
Unfortunately, my theory of her getting superpowers from the Monolith doesn’t look very promising right now. Psychological drama, yes, that’s a given. But how badly? Will Fitz be able to help her through or will she be this season’s isolated nerd?
2. Does anyone else feel like Coulson is going to have another sort of descent into madness?
Andrew’s speech to Skye in regards to their Inhuman recruits still not fit for duty comes dangerously close to calling Coulson out for being way too reckless. The Director has done this quite often on this show, and it’s not surprising that so many people are calling him out on his issues.
He’s desperate for a victory — any victory. The order to Hunter to kill Ward, not capture him, while warranted, feels like it goes against everything Coulson has done so far. Bring him in and force him through TAHITI, then we’ll get a half-season of bland Ward until his evilness breaks through the GH-325 and he reverts back to good old evil Ward.
3. Will Werner Von Strucker grow on me?
I can’t be the only one who doesn’t really care about Baby Von Strucker. Is it just that it feels like he’s such a random addition to the proceedings? Or that his turn to the Dark Side seemed a little too easy?
Well, let’s think about this. As the mostly-ignored son of the head of a super evil organization who was killed in cold blood by a sentient robot, the switch to be evil probably wasn’t that difficult. Family problems always help out, and family issues also help you bond with others in similar situations. So it’s no surprise that Ward looks intriguing and compelling, like some sort of legitimate father figure.
But his storyline looks like it’s going to play out to standard beats: Befriend May’s ex, kidnap him, get that to bring May out of hiding, kill Andrew, May kills Baby Strucker, Hunter mortally wounds Ward. I hope they do something more than that. If anyone has anything they’d like to throw into that mix, be my guest.
I could get behind the whole storyline. Just don’t follow the predictable beats, Agents of SHIELD. Please.
Fun Theory I’m Making Up Right Now
Hunter’s plan of rising through the ranks of Hydra to take down Ward goes swimmingly. He practically flies up the ladder, though slow enough not to draw too much attention to himself from the higher-ups. When the time comes and he and Ward meet face-to-face, Hunter will take him out in cold-blooded revenge.
And then Hunter will step into Ward’s position and take over running Hydra.
What makes a person change to the good old Hail Hydra? Maybe by that point Ward will have turned it into a bustling underground metropolis of evil that somehow draws on Hunter’s deeper, primal instincts. Maybe he just wants to watch the world burn and have a front-row seat of the destruction.
Or maybe Hydra just has really good perks. I heard their starting salaries and paid vacation are fantastic for an entry-level position.
Weekly Avengers Cameo
If i may just quote myself from this week’s recap:
"Is there any reason they didn’t ask Erik Selvig about the portal? I mean, I know he’s not an Asgardian or anything, but he was there when Thor came to Midgard the first time, seems to constantly be working alongside Jane Foster, was around during the entirety of The Avengers, was back to it again with Thor and crew, and then was called in on an emergency retreat with Thor in Age of Ultron. (Any reason aside from having an actual budget for episodes?)"
Fitz specifically mentioned Einstein-Rosen Bridges. Since Natalie Portman is definitely out of the budget, why the heck wouldn’t they go with the next-best thing?! (I understand that he’s not technically an Avenger-Avenger, but let’s just tie in more of the MCU).
Weekly Webisode Idea
“Mack Versus the Big Mac.” Mack gets two webisodes in a row! One day he comes back to HQ with McDonalds takeout, and Bobbi and Hunter catch him in the act of eating a Big Mac. They proceed to taunt him with “Big Mack, Big Mack!” until the rest of our crew comes to his aid … and chants with Bobbi and Hunter.
He’ll never live it down.
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Lincoln returns to the proceedings this upcoming week, and there’s guaranteed to be googly eyes between him and Skye. Hey, if this stuff’s too good for you, I’ve got some crap!
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