Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Season 1 Episode 2 "0-8-4" Discussion

[Silvermoon]

lol wonder if each of the drones have names of the seven dwarves or if each is named after some oddity they do.

Pretty sure they're named after the dwarves, cause we've had sleepy and I think bashful (in the pilot) too

 

[Nathan]

I begin to wonder: the last 084 was Mjolnir as Coulson revealed. So why did they approach this device so different? Just a small team? There was a huge SHIELD base at Mjolnir's crater, even when Coulson arrived there were at least 4 different SHIELD cars, a way bigger team than in Peru. I know the show is about this 6 people, but when you add tidbits like that one might think the would think about a certain consistency too

I figure they are like a response team. They will be the first ones on site, evaluate the situation, and then call in for more personnel if required. Also the situation was slightly different. When the Hammer fell down to earth, tons of civilians already found it and were trying to have fun with it. It's only normal you'd have numerous SHIELD Agents to get rid of the civilians. And then a base got build around the Hammer, because they couldn't move it.

Here we had an archaeological team that found the Hydra device in a Temple, and immediately contacted the authorities. And then chaos immediately broke out when rebels attacked, while they weren't even sure what they are dealing with.

 

[ctsketch]

....LEAD LINED fridges might keep you from radiation poisoning. Don't forget Lead was used in MANY MANY items back then.

Kevlar is a cloth that can stop a bullet...why couldn't a Raft made of the same type of material or something close not plug a hole?

It will save you from radiation, NOT from being disintegrated or fried in a nuclear blast. and even if that didn't happen getting tosed that far in a fridge you'd break every bone in your body and be soup by time you stopped tumbling

Also Kevlar stops bullets but it's still flexible and they don't make rafts out of it..

 

[ctsketch]

BTW was there any significance to Coulson saying "it's all blue skies"? Was that any kind of signal to the others? Could they even hear him? And how did he know to strap himself properly if he didn't know what they were planning (to blow a hole in the plane)?

they were looking for a code word so they wouldn't get shot down so I assume that was it

 

[The Question]

....LEAD LINED fridges might keep you from radiation poisoning. Don't forget Lead was used in MANY MANY items back then.

Kevlar is a cloth that can stop a bullet...why couldn't a Raft made of the same type of material or something close not plug a hole?

This is going to make it onto an episode of Mythbusters I'm sure of it.

 

[jonathancrane]

I was quite pleased with the episode. Before viewing it, I had read nothing but scathing reviews (on the Hype) and was expecting Hulk level bad. However, I was quite surprised: the episode is good. It is miles better than the pilot and kept me interested the entire time. The characters are shaded better: I enjoyed the small touches such as the OCD of the male half of Fitzsimmons had when putting away his robots and dashboard ornament Skye brought with her.

Overall, it was a good episode and I am exciting about episode 3.

 

[BoredGuy]

This episode was excellent, much better than the pilot (and I liked the pilot too)
I just do not understand all the hate from some internet sites
most of the criticisms I just wanna respond with "what were you expecting?? It's not the avengers, nor is it a film, it's the first season of a tv show"
if ya watch the first season of a lot of shows, and it can be pretty painful.
If SHIELD only gets better from here, I'm def excited

 

[Chewy]

I get the criticisms. I agree with a lot of them. The characters are all really broad and somewhat ill-defined, the plots are generic, the tone isn't quite there. But at the same time this is how a lot of these shows start out. Especially spin-offs

I'll give it a little bit of time to find its footing before I start seriously worrying. Once the writers and cast get a better feel for the characters and how they fit together, and start to hone in on the overarching story instead of these little missions, things should hopefully improve

 

[Mysteryman]

I begin to wonder: the last 084 was Mjolnir as Coulson revealed. So why did they approach this device so different? Just a small team? There was a huge SHIELD base at Mjolnir's crater, even when Coulson arrived there were at least 4 different SHIELD cars, a way bigger team than in Peru. I know the show is about this 6 people, but when you add tidbits like that one might think the would think about a certain consistency too

That was for a movie .
They may not have the budget for that.

 

[Dark Raven]

That was for a movie .
They may not have the budget for that.

They could always get a lot of extras in dark suits. The extras could even be the film crew. Most people own a dark suit of some sort, and it's not difficult to hire a simple cheap suit which would only be seen at a distance anyway.

 

[Xeno]

It will save you from radiation, NOT from being disintegrated or fried in a nuclear blast. and even if that didn't happen getting tosed that far in a fridge you'd break every bone in your body and be soup by time you stopped tumbling

Also Kevlar stops bullets but it's still flexible and they don't make rafts out of it..

Maybe SHIELD has kevlar rafts. They get shot at so much they probably have Kevlar everything.

The bit with the raft was only inserted to give Skye a heroic moment, IMO. Otherwise, it was a bit ridiculous and definitely unnecessary.

 

[Infinity9999x]

....LEAD LINED fridges might keep you from radiation poisoning. Don't forget Lead was used in MANY MANY items back then.

Kevlar is a cloth that can stop a bullet...why couldn't a Raft made of the same type of material or something close not plug a hole?

As others have said, the lead wouldn't protect you from the initial blast, nor help your body from being smashed into pulp after the fridge was jettisoned hundreds of feet into the air and smashed into the ground.

And a kevlar raft would probably still be flexible enough to be sucked right out of that hole.

But honestly, I didn't mind. Like I said, it felt like an Indy homage to me, and TOD has it's own ridiculous raft/plane moment.

 

[Mr. Dent]

Chewy validating the dark side smh

 

[Infinity9999x]

Chewy validating the dark side smh

....What?

 

[Mr. Dent]

Sigh...I'm making fun of Chewy for for saying the critics of the show have a point. This forum really needs smilies or something.

 

[Infinity9999x]

Sigh...I'm making fun of Chewy for for saying the critics of the show have a point. This forum really needs smilies or something.

Ahh okay. It does have smilies, but I think it was just because Chewy's post was a few posts back so I wasn't sure where it was coming from. I get ya.

 

[mr. peasant]

I get the criticisms. I agree with a lot of them. The characters are all really broad and somewhat ill-defined, the plots are generic, the tone isn't quite there. But at the same time this is how a lot of these shows start out. Especially spin-offs

I'll give it a little bit of time to find its footing before I start seriously worrying. Once the writers and cast get a better feel for the characters and how they fit together, and start to hone in on the overarching story instead of these little missions, things should hopefully improve

I think that's only to be expected two episodes in since this is an ensemble show; with limited time to spend on each character. Doubly so when you consider it's a show that plans to develop said characters. If you already start with fully developed characters, then there's not much room to developer further. It would be like complaining that you haven't a half dozen fully fleshed out characters after reading the first chapter of a book.

Personally, I think at this point, we've got sufficient development for each character. Each one has their respective niches and personalities that are both, distinct from one another and sufficiently memorable to us new viewers who are unfamiliar with the characters. If everyone was such a unique snowflake, then we, the viewers, would likely have trouble getting a grasp of them all at once due to information overload.

 

[Mysteryman]

They could always get a lot of extras in dark suits. The extras could even be the film crew. Most people own a dark suit of some sort, and it's not difficult to hire a simple cheap suit which would only be seen at a distance anyway.

You may have a point.
But, since I dont want SHIELD looking too much like Men In Black ,
I am glad that they didnt do that .

 

[Chewy]

I think that's only to be expected two episodes in since this is an ensemble show; with limited time to spend on each character. Doubly so when you consider it's a show that plans to develop said characters. If you already start with fully developed characters, then there's not much room to developer further. It would be like complaining that you haven't a half dozen fully fleshed out characters after reading the first chapter of a book.

Personally, I think at this point, we've got sufficient development for each character. Each one has their respective niches and personalities that are both, distinct from one another and sufficiently memorable to us new viewers who are unfamiliar with the characters. If everyone was such a unique snowflake, then we, the viewers, would likely have trouble getting a grasp of them all at once due to information overload.

The characters can start off well-defined and still be developed as people. That's usually the development that's most meaningful to a viewer. You don't have to spend much time with characters to make them more than broad archetypes, you just have to know exactly who you want them to be and be deliberate with your information. I'm sure the characters will be developed as the show goes on (like I said in the post you responded to!), but that doesn't mean they couldn't have been better presented in these first few episodes

Chewy validating the dark side smh

 

[mr. peasant]

The characters can start off well-defined and still be developed as people. That's usually the development that's most meaningful to a viewer. You don't have to spend much time with characters to make them more than broad archetypes, you just have to know exactly who you want them to be and be deliberate with your information. I'm sure the characters will be developed as the show goes on (like I said in the post you responded to!), but that doesn't mean they couldn't have been better presented in these first few episodes

I get what you're saying and I hear you. Though my question is this... what precisely were you expecting? What detail or information were you looking for?

It's very easy to provide a list of expectations that while sounding sensible in theory, but prove impossible to achieve in practice given the limitations of time and pacing. On a personal note, I feel that I got the information I needed at this juncture to get a handle on the team. I know precisely where and what role each of them fill in the team and their respective temperaments.

If you ask me, I feel the show has done a terrific job in showcasing the various relationships and where each character stands relative to one another. Think about it... the show has been able to have every one of its main cast interact with all the others in a way that establishes the interpersonal dynamics going on within the team. What's more, each relationship is pretty unique from one another.

 

[metaphysician]

I figure they are like a response team. They will be the first ones on site, evaluate the situation, and then call in for more personnel if required. Also the situation was slightly different. When the Hammer fell down to earth, tons of civilians already found it and where trying to have fun with it. It's only normal you'd have numerous SHIELD Agents to get rid of the civilians. And then a base got build around the Hammer, because they couldn't move it.

Here we had an archaeological team that found the Hydra device in a Temple, and immediately contacted the authorities. And then chaos immediately broke out when rebels attacked, while they weren't even sure what they are dealing with.

Don't forget that Mjolnir was something they literally couldn't move. They *had* to set up a mobile base around it, because they had no alternative.

 

[Brainiac 8]

Finally got to watch it last night.

I thought it was a pretty fun episode. The raft was silly, but didn't bother me what with this being based off comics and such. Silliness is to be expected.

I thought it was quite a step up from the pilot. Fury's cameo was fantastic.

 

[Keyser Soze]

I really enjoyed this episode. It felt like a significant improvement on the pilot, which I also liked, with a lean, well-paced plot that made for a quick hour of television.

 

[Son of Coul]

That's one thing I have to give them kudos for. A lot of hour-long dramas can drag, especially in the beginning, but this show, as plain as it can be, moves by at a pretty brisk pace.

 

[Dark Raven]

You may have a point.
But, since I dont want SHIELD looking too much like Men In Black ,
I am glad that they didnt do that .

But they already did look that way in both Iron Man and in Thor, Coulson especially. So they wouldn't look any different and it would at least be consistent with when Thor's hammer was discovered. And if not that, then they can always wear SWAT-looking gear.

And there were plenty of SHIELD uniforms left over from the Avengers anyway, so it's not hard to get people who will fit them.