Strong Points:
Matrix style fight scene
Swift use of Daisy's powers
Finally got to see the true nature of Fitz's father
Fitz is really good as a bad guy
Coulson back to being a leader
Bakshi's cameo
Connection to the Ghost Rider storyline
Weak Points:
Fitz is really good as a bad guy
More of a 'setting up' episode
Main bad guys getting the 'special' treatment in fights
In-depth Review:
This season's definitely been the most separated in terms of story arc's, with myself almost forgetting about the Ghost Rider pod, it's that distant. But AoS does seem to be tying all the arcs up now, with Eli's element pod getting a mention this week as Aida's figured how to use it to create life and give her a real body, removing her restricting protocols (which, as predicted, is what's stopping her from killing everyone in the pods as we speak).
Daisy's back to being Inhuman and her and May waste no time in getting down to some Matrix style business. We had slow-mo, we had flips, we had quick punches, we had basically an awesome fight scene in all, culminating with Ophelia in a lift. Now, of course, with her being a main bad guy, Daisy couldn't have just taken her and her guards out, that wouldn't have advanced the plot. Instead, we had to listen to Ophelia realise that May had switched sides, threaten Daisy and May a bit and then, just as I thought May and Daisy were captured or a fight scene would break out, Daisy realised she wasn't constricted by simple fight tropes such as wait for the other person to start fighting, and promptly blasted Ophelia out the window in a slow-motion shot which was all sorts of great. What is a bit weird though is that her two guards seem to just disappear.
Of course, Ophelia's not really dead, that would be too easy, although she is crippled and bedridden, not only elevating Fitz's hatred of S.H.I.E.L.D. and the team but also getting them to speed up Project Looking Glass, which is slightly different from what I was expecting, as mentioned above. So, we got to see Ophelia get thrown through a glass pane in slow-motion, but the effect is that she has accelerated her plans to get out of her restrictions? Maybe I shouldn't have cheered when Daisy did that and I should've known that this being Marvel, Ophelia couldn't have really died. But that action scene was so good!
I have a massive dilemma with this arc - Fitz is great at being a bad guy and I love and hate it simultaneously. The What If? scenarios that have been created as a result of The Framework have just gone to show how many different ways a story could've gone, and Fitz's is one of the most striking. I mean, the kind-hearted, nervous, others first Fitz has been replaced by the cruel, calculating, single-minded Doctor and what's so great about this character twist is that you could see it happening and he's not plain evil. Much like Ward getting picked up by Hand and changing for the better, Fitz was brought up by his father and has turned into this emotionally restrained, albeit successful, man. This successful bit and the fact that he's not different once his father's not in the same room shows that he's really changed and not just scared of his father.
Talking of Fitz's father, we finally got to see some of his true colours this week. After a restrained performance last week, in which he didn't seem particularly threatening, Alistar interrogated Radcliffe for information and he shows his 'no-nonsense' attitude by beating up Radcliffe to try and get information. Not in a fit of rage mind, but in a calculated response to Radcliffe and even though it doesn't particularly work, he does get word that Radcliffe and Daisy had corresponded (why they don't have voice recording equipment in the interrogation rooms is beyond me), which should make for an interesting following episode. It's all leading somewhere now.
Compared to last week, it might have seemed that not much vital happened this week, and you'd be right to think that as it was definitely more of a setup episode for something bigger next week. I mean, yes, Ophelia's hurt, Project Looking Glass is up and running and May and Daisy escaped but there was still a slowness of pace this episode which slightly removed it from one of the greats. I'm not saying we didn't need this episode (it helps the pacing of all future episodes) but it definitely wasn't one of the most important ones.
Conclusion: overall, this was a great episode even if I didn't jump in my seat in tension, I didn't pause it halfway through either to make myself a coffee, it was pleasant to watch. Last season had Watchdogs, a similar episode with a similar feeling as well - they were both good, just not outstanding.
Rating: 85%
Thanks for reading, Satamer.
P.S. I really enjoyed Coulson's speech this episode as well, and it's nice to see him back in the leader's chair.
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