Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
Afterlife
Season 2, Episode 16 Preview :: Art of Evolution

4/03/2015

We're gonna find Skye and I'm gonna take back SHIELD... We're not going down without a fight.

I had a general feeling of uneasiness before bed last night. I had no idea why. It followed into my dreams and was still there when I woke up. As soon as I checked my email from Marvel I understood; I had forgotten to write about the next Art of Evolution print! Only six more to go. I haven't bought one yet. There are just too many, so I have to choose wisely. But I really love Afterlife because it reminds me of Providence. I think any artwork with Coulson as the centerpiece is going to be my favorite.

Normally I would say I don't have time to talk about this print and the last episode, and then go on to spend an hour (or three) doing so. Though I would like nothing more, today I really have to cut this short. You can read more about "Afterlife" at Entertainment Weekly. Alright, now just a two-week wait until the next episode...or so I thought. I remembered the date incorrectly, probably due to every other series I watch deciding to take at least the next week off. Like The Blacklist, which, after a similarly enormous winter break to Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., won't be back until May... Ah, May - her in action is so fun to watch. I love how she dispatched the guards on Coulson, in the midst of a hostile takeover, in order for him to escape.

What a mess "the real S.H.I.E.L.D." has made. I get the concern over Coulson having alien blood in his veins and being obsessed with a hidden city after his resurrection, and Skye developing powers after being subjected to the Terrigen mist. The world is scared and wary of extraterrestrial threats now, and there are more and more humans with inexplicable powers that choose to use them in selfish and dangerous ways, as some humans always choose to do. They have a right to be afraid, and some react badly to that fear. And that's the way "the real S.H.I.E.L.D." is reacting: from fear, because they have no understanding of Coulson and Skye's experience nor of the good-hearted people they are. Rather than talking to them they come in guns blazing. Of course, Bobbi, Mack, and Gonzalez were in the thick of the Hydra uprising, as many were, and I'm sure they will find it hard to trust ever again, so I give them the tiniest bit of slack and hope they come around.

And poor Skye, terrified and just trying to get away from the people who would lock her up, maybe experiment on her, rather than try to help her. But that's apparently what we do now in this new world; there's no discerning between the good guys and the villains, and anyone with otherworldly powers need to be put away. (Crazy Cal had a point.) Two of these people Skye thought were her friends, and I think Bobbi still is. She's going about things in the wrong way because she's loyal to the people she went though hell with, but any viewer could tell that while Bobbi was with her team, it maybe wasn't 100 percent. She was concerned for Skye and warned her when she was about to get shot by Kirk Acevedo, whose character is such a dick right now that I can't be bothered to remember his name. At least he got a nice big "splinter" from Skye. I cheered that...after my jaw dropped at the acre of trees she took down. That won't help her case with him, though. He'll think she did it on purpose when she was just acting on instinct to protect herself. He actually tried to kill her instead of using his ICER, as he was ordered to do. Now he will be even more determined to eliminate Skye. It's Calderon, by the way, Acevedo's character. I just looked it up.

So now instead of peaceably joining forces, the "real S.H.I.E.L.D." has captured and made enemies of people who would have been allies. Good job. If they keep this up, I'm going to start calling them "Hydra-lite." So, Coulson and Hunter are all that's left and I assume they're out there gathering new forces. (Yay, Hunter! Love him.) They're going to need numbers in order to get their people back, or a super sneaky strategy. Having Skye would make it easier, but she escaped with Mr. Creepy No Eyes Gordon after her incident in the forest. She'll now be with his clan of Inhumans, and he apparently doesn't discriminate against the mentally unstable (Raina, Cal). Yeah, that'll go smoothly. No chance they'll want to take over the world and destroy everyone who gets in their way, Inhuman or not. Skye will either be in danger or she'll become the danger. The faster she gets out the better.

Oh, look, I did the thing I didn't want to do anyway. I never listen to myself. Before I go, here are a couple things that deserve special note:

Sweet, nervous Jemma is getting good at lying. She took down Bobbi, who was completely unsuspecting! That was hilarious...and a little scary.

Mack saved Fitz! Awwwwwwwwwwwww. I like you again, Mack. Now, I would love it if Bobbi and Mack both came to realize that this is all wrong and do something about it. I don't want any of the new S.H.I.E.L.D. people to get hurt, except maybe a splinter for Calderon's other arm, because they aren't Hydra. They're just scared and trying to weed out threats. I hope they can eventually be reasoned with. I'd like to see more of Adama - *ahem* I mean Gonzalez, and would love a recurring guest role for Olmos in future seasons.