Since so many of us are Buffy fans, we had to review Agents of SHIELD (2013-2020) when it started. Mark Greig began our coverage, then shared reviewing duties with Sunbunny, and then Lamounier took it on and finished it. So I’ll let Lamounier take over from here.
Lamounier: A lot of my viewing choices gravitate towards Buffy the Vampire Slayer. I became a fan of How I Met Your Mother because Alyson Hannigan was part of the cast. I only ever tried Ringer because Sarah Michelle Gellar's agent put her and us through that. The queen of pain Marti Noxon was behind Sharp Objects and I was immediately drawn to it. You know the drill.
I never obsessed about the MCU, only watching every other movie. But I knew I had to watch The Avengers once Joss Whedon was announced as the director, and I knew I had to watch its subsequent "TV spin-off."
Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. had a slow start, but eventually found its footing and became part of my weekly schedule. It was less of a Joss' show – his official involvement was restricted to season one – and more of a Whedon family series (plus Jeffrey Bell), and they were always willing to explore new directions and territories, which kept the show fresh and exciting.
The series ran for seven seasons and peaked, in my opinion, with seasons four and five. Coincidentally, I started reviewing Agents during season four, and I had a blast writing for such a quality series. My reviews for season five are quite possibly my favorite I've written for Doux. I remember I was so into the story, the twists, the turns, the darker tone the writers were going for. When you fall in love with a TV show to that extent, it's awesome to get the opportunity to delve into it as much as writing about it allows you to do.
Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. fell out of grace within the MCU, with many stating it wasn't "canon" anymore. Personally, that's not a discussion I'm interested in. The series worked best when it wasn't trying to follow the movies, but telling its own tale about a group of decent, flawed people trying their best to do something good and keep the world safe. And that's why, to this date, it still has a small but dedicated fanbase.
(Final note from Billie Doux: When the show premiered, we had a somewhat silly debate about whether or not to use the periods in the title, and Josie Kafka wrote a hilarious article about it. Just FYI, in case you never caught it.)
Okay. I must confess that while I started watching AoS with everyone else, I dropped out early in season three. If you look, my comments were dated 2015 for the first few episodes, and after that, they're dated 2022.
ReplyDeleteDuring the initial run's hiatus between season two and season three, I just stopped tracking what was going on. Maybe I hadn't paid that much attention. I'm not deeply into the MCU, although I've seen nearly everything at least once. The first time through, while watching season three, I realized that I honestly didn't know what was going on and I didn't want to go back and rewatch. So I stopped.
A year or so ago, I gave it another try. I had to start at the beginning. And it is therefore my opinion that AoS is better if you binge it. In 2022, I watched the whole thing and I loved it. It's a darned good show.
I must add that the Buffyesque comment thread for "Devils You Know" is one of my absolute favorites.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.douxreviews.com/2015/10/agents-of-shield-devils-you-know.html
Oh, that comment thread! I'd completely forgotten about it but instantly remembered, which is appropriate in an odd way.
ReplyDeleteI actually just re-read my S.H.I.E.L.D. article a couple of days ago. I was trying to figure out exactly when the first use of "Agents of Doux" appeared on the site. It was definitely inspired by this show.
I loved Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and I'm so glad I was able to get back into it. I made it to around the middle of S3 like Billie and stopped. I honestly cannot remember why, but it probably has to do with the snail pace of network television (not that streaming is much better). For me the ending was wonderful, and I think some of absolute best episodes were in those final two seasons. Of course I also loved 4 & 5 with those mini-arcs an engaging villain storylines.
ReplyDeleteThank you to all the writers for getting it fully reviewed, and especially Lamounier for finishing things up!
This is funny/interesting, because the halfway mark of Season 3 is also where I dropped off... twice! (I think) One time I persevered, until the end of season 4. Season 1 and 2 remain the high marks for me. I actually kind of liked the interwovenness at that time with the MCU, makes for extra immersion for me.
ReplyDeleteWith season 3 I think perhaps it had to do with there being a kind of lull IIRC at the midway point, where one storyline in that season (Jemma's) has finished up a bit?
Thanks for these retrospectives, and thanks for all the writing! During my latest Agents rewatch I read all reviews after watching the episodes and it's a great way to watch.
I also quit watching during season three! It wasn't bad, I just didn't care for the storyline when it became about Ward 3.0.
ReplyDeleteThen, when season four started, I gave the series another chance and I simply loved it. I would only watch those season three episodes I missed much later, and thought they were actually good.
I'm grateful that I gave Agents of SHIELD another chance. I got deeply attached to the characters and the series is up there among my absolute favorites.
> I think some of absolute best episodes were in those final two seasons.
Samantha, I agree! Though I think season six is Agents' low point, I liked that the writers were willing to have some fun after season five, which resulted in the two most Whedony seasons of the entire series.