Neil Brazier | On 01, Apr 2014

This review continues minor spoilers

Marvel takes a Pulp Fiction approach to Episode 13 of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. with the team split into groups and telling the story from the perspectives of each member. It’s a refreshing change and works excellently in another intense episode of high drama,

The agents have gone undercover on a train to investigate a “084” in hope of recovering the device and tracking down its buyer, evil business tycoon Ian Quinn. After some investigation and when all the stories are tied together – will you look at that, they actually tied something up – the agents breach Quinn’s compound to find a familiar face… but not as they remember.

The series has been back on “T.R.A.C.K.S” now for a few episodes and number 13 is no exception; humour is abundant with Ward and Coulson trying to understand technology, while Simmons is clearly enjoying being one of the show’s major players, her ability to emote making her eternally likeable. The chronological leaps keep us on tenterhooks throughout, delivering a moment and then going back to retell how they got to it.

It’s fantastically gripping television… until the ending.

Instead of being bold and brave and dealing with potential heartbreak, Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. delivers the kind of denouement that made Heroes so frustrating, falling back on technology rather than reality. If one of the main characters is ever in peril, we know that they might be able to come back to life again. We were given that throughout the first 10 episodes with Agent Coulson’s return from death. It is unwise to do it again.

Next week, though, sees another Asgard crossover (has this show only been about promoting Thor?) but instead of a random character arriving, Lady Sif (Jamie Alexander) will land on Earth. Her appearance comes one week after Stan Lee makes his traditional cameo and indicates that more heroes will be appearing on screen soon.

The arrival of Darth Peterson could be the beginning of that – not to mention the “084” Skye secretly harbours. With the future looking promising, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. remains a show that makes you want to watch more. Here’s hoping, though, that the final nine episodes build up to a more satisfying ending.

 

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