Huh, I guess it really is all connected.
Everything, the ATCU, the Inhumans, HYDRA, all of it, is connected to that monolith and the thing that lives on the other side. It is an Inhuman, the one true head of HYDRA, and Malick is using the ATCU to create an army for it so he, and now Ward, can rule by its side when the time comes. That's an awful lot to take in, and is testament to how good the show is lately that this didn't feel like a massive info dump.
Still, it is seriously convenient that everything our heroes have been dealing with this season leads all the way back to their regular arch nemesis-es. I know HYDRA is meant to be this vast criminal conspiracy with fingers (or should that be tentacles?) in many pies, but does absolutely everything have to be connected to them? Why can't it be Leviathan or some other secret spy organisation named after a mythical monster?
If you were worried that Rosalind really was HYDRA then you weren't the only one. Coulson has suffered too many betrayals these last few years to trust anyone completely, even someone he admits he likes. While he laid on the charm and gave her a guided tour of the base, he had everyone not named Fitz or Simmons breaking into the ATCU to find every last scrap of dirt on them they could. Which meant we got to experience the eternal joy that was Lance Hunter going undercover as a hipster hacker.
I'm glad that Rosalind didn't turn out to be HYDRA. I like her and really hope that her relationship with Coulson can overcome his suspicious nature and emotional detachment. They are just so cute together. I pretty much went "awwww" when she called him "Dearest". Hey, now they can bond over the fact that they've both unknowingly worked for HYDRA? I know that Constance Zimmer has a regular gig on another show, but can't they work something out so she can stick around? Watching her and Clark Gregg play off each other has become one of the highlights of this season for me.
While all of this was going on, Ward was on his own little quest to find the fabled Von Strucker family vault and no doubt hoping it wouldn't turn out to be as empty as Al Capone's. This involved killing and torturing some HYDRA goons and potentially crashing a commercial airliner, thus killing hundreds of innocent people, all because he couldn't get a direct flight to where he needed to go. And there are people out there who still think that Ward is redeemable? Wake up and smell the supervillainy, people!
I highly doubt that Ward buys into Malick's grand plan to raise an Inhuman army for some far away Inhuman on another planet. Even when delivered by someone as menacing as Powers Boothe, it all sounds pretty cuckoo. Is this what all of HYDRA has been working towards or just Malick's branch? At this point I'm starting to suspect that HYDRA isn't even one organisation, but several organisations that all share the same name and logo but can't sue each other for copyright infringement because they are supposed to be secret. Do they often fight over who is the real HYDRA?
Notes and Quotes
--Hunter's shirt. It speaks for itself.
--Bobbi's batons have been given a nifty Thor-style upgrade.
--Please, please, please give us a fight between Melinda May and Sensei Ping, I mean whoever Mark Dacascos is playing.
--I'm going to try my best to ignore all this Fitzsimmons drama until it hopefully goes away.
Coulson: "I feel like you’re going to tell me I didn’t make Little League All-Stars."
Hunter: "I’ll remind you that we’re basically the same height, I just don’t wear bloody heels."
Ward: "From all of us here at HYDRA thanks for flying the friendly skies."
Hunter: "Username, God... Save... the... Queen."
Three out of four secret spy organisations named after mythical monsters.
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Mark Greig is the one who knocks. More Mark Greig.
I thought it was a pretty good reveal.. Hydra had/has many members over the years all with varying ideas..I dont find this a stretch to be honest..
ReplyDeleteIts no diferent to Shield...Nick Fury although part of Shield alos had several private plans that no one knew about and the Avengers was his and Coulsons idea
"I'm going to try my best to ignore all this Fitzsimmons drama until it hopefully goes away."
ReplyDeleteMe too! That scene was just Yack! Mostly because there's zero chemistry and i felt like a kiss between brother and sister!
Love Rosalind and Coulson!
Great review!
That was pretty good. I especially liked how much ground this episode covered without feeling overstuffed. I really like where they're going with this.
ReplyDeleteThe Fitz/Simmons scenes didn't bother me as much, as the scenes were pretty well written and acted. The problem is that they don't really have a whole lot of romantic chemistry and so those scenes don't quite work on that level. I can't say the same for Rosalind/Coulson, who are just great together. I'm also really glad she isn't Hydra and really hope it's not a double bluff.
The fake-hacker scenes were an absolute blast, despite Hunter being a bit of a dick this season (he kind of was from the start to be honest). Not that him trying to kill Ward and put Andrew in danger was unwarranted, due to the fact that Ward being alive means much more people are going to die. His reasons for doing so and his attitude afterwards were the issue.
I've been kind of getting bored with Ward recently so it's nice they're taking steps to make him a more valuable player. Speaking of Ward, Brett Dalton's been teasing something even bigger to come.
Such an amazing episode! One of the best!
ReplyDeleteFunny, but it's that episode that convinced me that Ward MIGHT be redeemable.
ReplyDeleteListen to all this talk about "higher purpose" of HYDRA and bringing this Inhuman Chtulhu back... am I the only one who is getting Angelus vibe? "We are going to make history... end", anyone?
And Ward might just make an excellent Spike.
Let me take a moment to curse Iain De Caestecker and Elizabeth Henstridge. They are so great they made me like the Fiztsimmons kissage scene. I’m not becoming a shipper (yet, at least), but their scenes continue to slay. Big time.
ReplyDeleteThis was a good episode. I liked that the spy stuff took center stage. Hunter was so much fun as inept hacker, and Bobbi was awesome kicking ass. Why don’t we get more of that? Adrianne Palicki has great athleticism and screen presence, she deserves more spotlight.
My favorite spy bit was indeed a small little bit of information: Tahiti. What a great catch. I loved that Coulson had the upper hand and noticed something so small. Good writing there, going back to the season premiere.
So, it’s all the same story. I’m really glad with this new direction they gave Hydra. I was not buying Ward’s miniHydra, it just looked so amateur. Malick’s agenda, however, feels grand and fits with everything we’ve come to know about Hydra. Heck, this series started with Hydra studying and using enhanced people. It all comes together.
It is a little convenient that all the disparate storylines are all part of the same story, which was also what happened on the first half of last season... So maybe that’s the writers modus operandi and we’re supposed to flow with it?
I absolutely loved Hunter as a hacker spouting Daisy's technobabble. Delightful.
ReplyDelete