Danny Hale reviews the nineteenth episode of Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. season 5…
‘Option 2’ sees the consequences of Yo-Yo’s actions last week start to spill out as the team becomes even more divided and Qovas arrives at Earth seeking the gravitonium. To see our team start to turn on one another felt weighted, earned and inevitable. It was also the perfect moment for Coulson to step in and reclaim leadership; the stakes are at an all-time high and the fight is at their doorstep.
Yo-Yo makes the point early on that she is not the only person on the team with blood on her hands and is frustrated that she is being singled out. Daisy of course argues that Yo-Yo was driven, at least in part, by revenge making her self-proclaimed heroic murder of Ruby a little less noble. Elena quickly compares her actions to those of May’s back in Bahrain where we know she murdered a young Inhuman child for “the greater good”. We’ve seen over the years the toll this has taken on May and she offers Elena some solid advice; make her own peace with her decision but be aware of how it affects how other people view her. This is the most important part of Yo-Yo’s plot line; she can justify and come to terms with her actions all she wants but she may have caused irreparable harm to her and Mack’s relationship. Elena has never been afraid to make controversial or brash choices but her recent deceit of Mack and murder of Ruby may have finally taken her too far. She may change the timeline and save Mack’s life but in doing so may break them apart. I’ve loved watching these two develop as a couple over the course of this show and it’s never felt more real and layered as it does now.
A question I’ve been mulling over for a while now is what will happen to Deke when or if our team successfully changes the timeline. Would he continue to live out his life as he already physically exists in this world? Or will he simply cease to be? We now know that Fitz and Simmons at least are inclined to believe the latter. It’s a sad thought that Deke vanishing from existence would mark victory for our team and I do hope he gets to continue on in the present day timeline. It’d be nice knowing he gets experience the world he’s dreamed of though considering the tone of this season an all-round happy ending is pretty unlikely.
Due to a hilarious error on Coulson’s part the team are sealed within the Lighthouse as it goes into lockdown for 15 years; he prematurely selects option 2 on the console, a nuclear attack, as their current catastrophe, not expecting the option for an alien invasion to appear. May’s reaction was great and their subsequent bickering was just perfect. This also set up the episode with our characters (minus Daisy who went dark chasing a lead) locked inside the Lighthouse with a terrifying race of alien called marauders. Qovas’ crew are a vicious breed who bring darkness wherever they move and this allowed for some excellently tense encounters. The drab Lighthouse and mundane corridors provided a great sense of claustrophobia and helped disorientate the characters. The threat the marauders posed was further strengthened by Coulson’s immediate evacuation order, their mission to locate the override and get to freedom.
Yo-Yo takes the task of transporting Talbot to safety. She restrains him but not unkindly and seems to genuinely sympathise with him. She is also wise enough to know that trusting him is a foolish move. My main fear watching was that Talbot would do something brash or reckless in an attempt to prove he was in control and to make amends for his recent actions. I was not expecting him to activate the Infusion Chamber and to then undergo the complete procedure, absorbing the entirety of the gravitonium. Either due to the fact he underwent the infusion process completely and uninterrupted or due to his already damaged mental state but Talbot seems to have a sense of clarity and control yet unseen when he emerges from the chamber. It is also possible he is so far under HYDRA’s thrall that he is no longer in the driver’s seat at all or, worse, Quinn and/or Dr. Hall are. It was a development I did not see coming, even though I had speculated (hoped) we would finally get to see the emergence of Graviton this season. I never saw Talbot’s arc bringing him here but I can’t say that I’m not massively intrigued to see where it leads.
‘Option 2’ carried over the foreboding tone set last week and with the addition of some very effective horror elements and the building tensions between our characters Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. is really gearing up for an impactful finale. In their attempt to prevent the Earth’s destruction and to avoid the future they witnessed our characters have had to make some difficult and morally ambiguous calls and as a result the closer they get to saving the world the more fractured and damaged their family becomes. This all works really well alongside Coulson’s deteriorating health and with the team divided on how to save Coulson or, if they even should at all, May and Daisy’s lead may be the last chance to help him. After a brief meeting with the “Candyman” Daisy obtained the very last source of centipede serum and with the additional reveal that her “lead” is in fact her mother’s grave raises even more questions; is Daisy hoping to harness Jiaying’s restorative Inhuman abilities in order to save Coulson? And if so, how? With only three episodes left I know these answers are coming imminently but it’s not going to stop me putting on my tinfoil hat for the next week.
Danny Hale
