AGENTS OF SHIELD: “Deals with Our Devils” {Roundtable}

Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. had the penultimate episode for this half of the season last night and after a few weeks off, the stakes are high and the team is fractured. Can they all pull it back together for the finale?

Karen, Rueben and Roz dig into the episode.

1. Ugh Eli. What are your feelings on the way in which the ghosting was handled during the episode?

Karen: I actually liked the dual scene storytelling. It was cool to see two perspectives inside the same narrative, and pretty funny when Coulson and Fitz were yelling at Mack and May before they realized they were incorporeal. However, it turned a bit tragic when Fitz had to watch Mace discussing what was going on with Emma, and with him not being able to help in any way – that must’ve been agonizing.

Rueben: I thought it was a very clever way to tell the story and I really liked it. I did feel bad for Coulson and Fitz once they figured out that Mack and May (and the rest) couldn’t see them. It had to be so frustrating for them. Like Karen I liked seeing the two different perspectives of the same narrative. It added so much to the storytelling form.

Roz: As a narrative structure, it was great to have two different POVs, but it added to my feelings of disconnect from what the show was and what the show is. That said, Eli’s a bad guy and I hope there’s a way to get him killed or removed to some outer dimension soon.

MARVEL’S AGENTS OF S.H.I.E.L.D. – “Deals With Our Devils” – (ABC/Jennifer Clasen)
JOSE ZUNIGA

2. Simmons, please stop looking at this man covered in carbonite. Well, what’s your reaction to her story?

Karen: Mace, Mace, Mace. What does the Senator have on you anyway? He’s gotta get out from under her boot BUT QUICK if he wants to be effective at SHIELD. Simmons definitely wanted to help Nadeer’s brother, and there’s also the scientific curiosity factor. What did she learn from her experience? I’d wager not much. I don’t think Nadeer wants to let SHIELD have access to any information they don’t already have, and she certainly doesn’t want them to know about her brother. Nonetheless, she’s back now, and all is well in FitzSimmons land.

Rueben: I have to wonder what will happen to Nadeer’s brother now. Was it the point to only have Simmons help in so far as to get her brother out of the carbonite? And then what? I doubt Simmons could have learned much from her time in that secret location either. Given what happened here is Mace now going to have his strings pulled by Nadeer from here on out? How effective of a leader can he be if he is nothing more than a puppet for Nadeer?

Roz: Nadeer’s personal machinations are grating on my nerves, especially because it’s spreading the team out in all different directions – we all know how well that turns out – and I just wish Mace would not use doublespeak to get things done.

3. Aida’s secret is out. Do you want her to take on that role with the Book for the good of the team?

Karen: She would be the only one that could, but again… Ultron anyone? She did that wonky brain thing, does that mean she’s fully sentient now? Because BAD. That being said, the book is super dangerous, and putting it in the hands of an artificial intelligence might be smart.

Rueben: Given the circumstances, I thought it was wise for Aida to read the book in order to get Fitz and Coulson (and eventually Robbie) back; but I have to wonder given that she was creating that “brain thing” (as Karen called it), what kind of affect does the book have on an android. Could it make an android turn bad?

Roz: Man, it was good she was there to read that book, but her doing that thing with the brain at the end has me SCARED! Karen, I’m feeling Ultron creeping back in too and I don’t like it one bit.

4. MACK NO!!!! What do you think it means for Ghost Rider to transfer bodies and do you think Robbie’s deal with Ghost Rider was the right call?

MARVEL’S AGENTS OF S.H.I.E.L.D. – “Deals With Our Devils” – (ABC/Jennifer Clasen)
HENRY SIMMONS, DAVID AN

Karen: Aww Mack’s cool. The Spirit of Vengeance leaves you fairly unscathed when you’ve got it for less than a day. Robbie knew taking back the spirit and using it as he had been was the right call, and continuing on with the mission is important. It may not be legal, but it’s important to some people that just want to have retribution and then move on. The spirit is never wrong, and it has an agenda. He’s a very complex character. I can’t wait to see where they take him.

Rueben: I was just relieved that the Spirit left Mack so quickly. I wasn’t really up for seeing Mack be that vengeful. He has too good of a heart for that – at least to me he does. Yes, it was the right call for Robbie to make that deal with the Ghost Rider because he may be the only one who can get close enough to Eli to stop him.

Roz: I think Robbie made the right call, but I didn’t enjoy seeing Mack with the Spirit of Vengeance.

5. Generally did you expect this sort of episode with the miniarc being Ghost Rider? Or are you like many other people and not as thrilled with this spin on SHIELD?

Karen: I love it! Ghost Rider is great, and he doesn’t seem to be dominating the story. We got a pretty decent balance this week between FitzSimmons, Mace, Coulson/Fitz/Robbie, Daisy/May/Nate, and even Eli. I like where they’re taking GR, and I also dig the AIDA / book storyline too!

Rueben: I was okay with the whole Ghost Rider arc, but I’m not as invested in the canon as other fans are since I’m such a novice about the Marvel Universe. I just like good storytelling. Moving the show to 10 PM allowed them to go darker, but that might have also hurt them because viewership is down even more and I’ve read rumblings online where there is some disappointment about this season.

Roz: This longer arc feels like it’s taking away from the original purpose of SHIELD as a show, and it’s not sitting right with me. I don’t hate the storyline, but I think it’s too different for this to all be the same show.

Marvel’s Agents of SHIELD fall finale is next Tuesday at 10PM/9PM Central on ABC.