'Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.' Recap: The 8-Foot-Tall Murderous Inhuman May Be the Least of Their Problems
Warning: This recap for the “Chaos Theory” episode of Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. contains spoilers.
The Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. are no dummies: They figure out who Lash is almost as soon as we do. Not that that makes things any easier for them. As soon as he’s captured, they deliver him into the hands of Hydra. So… maybe they are dummies after all?
The Plot
Flashback to Hawaii: not a magical place, like Tahiti, but a real place that just happens to be magical. Andrew and May are reconciling until a booby-trapped Inhuman artifact exposes him to the Terrigen mist.
In the present, Andrew “evaluates” (read: sizes up to murder) Joey, but May steps in and confronts him. He knocks her out and drags her to an abandoned building. S.H.I.E.L.D. and the A.T.C.U. team up to take him down, but it’s May who actually puts him away. Rosalind convinces Daisy and May that putting him in her care is the most humane course; too bad she’s actually Hydra.
He Loves Me, She Loves Me Not, She Loves Me, He…
Quick shipping recap:
* Bobbi and Hunter — They’re both too emotionally invested in the hunt for Ward, so they decide to spend quality time with each other instead.
* Daisy and Lincoln — After nearly blowing the Lash capture operation (too emotionally invested), he calms down and joins S.H.I.E.L.D. Presumably, quality time with Daisy is part of that package.
* Fitz and Simmons — How long did it take Jemma to remember the phone full of maximally relevant information about the alien planet? The answer is “way, way too long.” She gives it to Fitz, and between the awful selfies of her with Hot Astronaut is a really amazing moment of Simmons pouring her heart out to Fitz. If you’ve been waiting for FitzSimmons to happen since Season 1 and the appearance of Hot Astronaut sent you into a fury, the line “I’ll always be with you, Fitz” will set your mind at ease.
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* Mack and Shotgun Axe — “Really gotta commit to that shotgun/axe idea” is pretty much the same thing, only for little boys (or who are little boys at heart).
* Coulson and Rosalind — Heartbreak City. What began as a quiet and sweet affair (very much unlike the “Two Pretty People Get Together Because This Is TV and That’s What You Do” that every show is plagued with) turns out to be a ruse. After spending quality time together (yes, that is a euphemism for sex), Rosalind reveals that she is in cahoots with Gideon Malick, who is the last remnants of old Hydra and now coordinating his efforts with Ward’s leaner, meaner terrorist organization. Coulson’s had so many bad things happen to him; for a moment, it seemed that maybe he could have something nice for once.
Awards for Badassery
* Daisy discovering her powers can be used defensively as well as offensively. In retrospect, though, she should’ve just let Rosalind fall.
* Ditto for Joey finding the destructiveness of his powers have a creative side. It was a little hurtful to see the joy on his face disappear as Andrew started to go all Lash-y on him.
* May’s cold-blooded gunning down of her husband. In person, Ming-Na Wen is May’s polar opposite — cracking dirty jokes and stumbling into, over, and off of chairs like a 12-year old girl trapped in an adult’s body — which makes every ass-kicking that much more impressive. Emmy voters, take note: Either give her a Best Supporting nod, or at least make a new award for Best “Daaaaaamn, Girl!” Episode in a Drama Series.
Inside Comics Moment
Joey’s powers looks a lot like Magneto’s, but it appears to be metal manipulation rather than mastery over magnetism. In fact, it looks a lot like a third-tier hero, Madison Jeffries, who was part of the Canadian team Alpha Flight. Jeffries used his powers to create an exo-suit called Box that gave him powers limited only by his imagination/mechanical skill. Could this be where the character is headed?
Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. airs Tuesdays at 9 p.m. on ABC.
