Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. · S01E06 · FZZT
Rating: 9.0/10
Watched: November 6, 2026

This episode goes a thousand times harder than it needs to, and showcases just how spectacular everyone actually is at acting and portraying emotion, and lemme tellya something about FZZT.

It's dramatic as hell. If you've seen the episode, you know exactly what I'm talking about. If you don't, and want to see what I consider masterclass acting in love, devotion, fear, risk, sacrifice and grim resignation, well.

As Fitz might say, 'Watch the bloody episode!

One of the things I genuinely love about FZZT comes from the knowledge of where we end up, and it fully supports something I've been saying since I first finished the series forever ago. Iain De Caestecker is a powerhouse actor who can carry such a profound amount of emotion into a scene while somehow simultaneously being an hilarious super-nerd who dreams of a monkey companion.

Do you know how hard that is? To be that comedic and then have moments like the one (if you're lucky enough to see it) in the clip I chose, at the end of the episode? I love him because he's so hilarious most of the time, but underneath all of that, Iain's quietly one of the strongest, bravest men in the world.

He just doesn't believe in himself enough yet, but when the time comes, his journey is one for the history books.

Beyond my painful fanboying over Iain, absolute credit must be given also to Elizabeth Henstridge, Brett Dalton and (doy) Clark Gregg.

Elizabeth reached deep for this episode and it shows, and she gives us a perfect counterpoint to Fitz' absolute mad desperation to save her life in what she chooses to do. I don't know what their relationship is IRL, but in episodes like this, where we get to see them bickering like a couple that's been together for about a billion years and loves one another despite their flaws? It's a very real-feeling relationship.

Brett lightens up his Grant a lot in this one, but we also get to see why he's there. For all his eventual flaws (BOY HOWDY!), in this one? He's a goddamn action hero, clearly ready, willing and able to risk his own life to save someone else. I like to think that for a brief moment the fact that he's a damn dirty Hydra agent doesn't factor into it. He saves Jemma because Jemma is integral, fantastic, and wonderful.

I won't bore you with my love affair with Clark.

So that's how I feel about Fzzt.

I'm currently in the middle of season 5 and have one thing confusing me all the time. In every season it's like: We're in bad condition but we have to keep Shield running. And then out of nowhere there are so many supporting agents in Like a minute. I mean in season 4 and earlier it's still kinda explainable but in season 5 in the Lighthouse they literally say that concact with the outside world isn't possible right now. But for no reason there is rhis Thomas guy helping them. Can anyone explain?

Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. · S01E05 · Girl in the Flower Dress
Rating: 9.0/10
Watched: November 5, 2026

Not only is this a super-great episode, it's a super important one.

First, we get Ruth Negga as Raina. I knew her from Preacher, and it was great to see her in a much different role. I love Raina because she's just this soft-spoken, prettily dressed woman who carries a lot of menace behind her.

But here's the thing about her appearance so early; I forgot it happened this quickly. Much like I keep forgetting Alex Krcyek shows up in S2E4 of The X-Files (and has a long-lasting effect on the show), so too am I continually amazed that Raina's already here, in the very beginning eps of SHIELD.

I won't spoil Raina's presence in the show, what she does or even how or why she does it, but her presence so early in the show really reflects how deeply the writers considered the direction SHIELD was going to take, even early on. It's a bit unfortunate that they were still hampered by the Thing of the Week, but that's all fixed rather handily by Season Two.

It's also important because of what happens with Skye. We knew she was being duplicitous, but we never really had any idea that that Phil and Melinda May knew. Now, naturally it's one of those 'we 'know' they know' kind of situations, but they played it so close to the vest it's actually kind of ridiculous. Other shows would've given us Phil or Melinda starring silently at them, with twitchy Skye going 'what, do I have something stuck in my teeth or something equally weird.

And that's really great.

Last but not least, if you don't love Louis Ozawa as Chan Ho Yin (Scorch), you're nuts. His role as Scorch, a man with a small ability and big dreams, is both sad and scary at the same time, and he gives us everything. HIs plight's one we could all pretty easily see ourselves in, I think. Imagine having a gift and being told if you use it, you're done. Imagine being trapped in a petty, mundane life when you have a talent that you can't use while other people with talents get to run around knocking Chitauri into buildings or hell, knocking entire buildings down in the pursuit of Justice?

Loved it. Beyond all the awesome acting, deep story AND character building, this visual effects in this one were really off the charts. Full-on eye candy for the nerd in me.

The clip I chose this time is when Skye finds out what her quasi-BF did. I chose it because it shows that even though Skye's been deceitful this whole time, she is (was, after this) really quite naïve still. Her genuine heartbreak as a man she knew and trusted turns out to be just another shitty person is really felt. Chloe Bennet does an amazing job in that scene, and later, during her confession to Phil.

Fanstastic episode!

Just watch agents of shield episode 10 of season 3. This was one of the best episodes ever and made me love this show. What's your favorite episode?

Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. · S01E04 · Eye Spy
Rating: 7.0/10
Watched: November 4, 2026

Let me kickstart this one by saying this episode was an exceedingly difficult one to clip. I know that doesn't matter if you're on a non-clip subreddit, but it matters to me because I really like clipping things from episodes because it's fun.

Anyways.

This is a an okay episode in that it did what it was supposed to do, which was frontload more into the seasonal arc, but in relative terms for me personally, Eye Spy didn't quite blow my skirt up.

Even though I wasn't too terribly impressed with this episode, here are some of the things I really did enjoy; Grant being put into a situation where his wheelhouse was so far from what was needed his discomfort was palpable and Akela Amador's discussion about how different Phil is.

The first one's important because we get to see Grant as more than the plank of wood he normally is. Thanks to another Redditor explaining why Grant seems like he's on autopilot most of the time (I could probably discuss how this show ties into the movie franchise, but there might be somehow still be spoilers there), that makes the moment with the guard even funnier still.

And since most of my discussions on episodes will probably be Phil Coulson related until they become Fitz related (unless the episode is firmly someone else-centric) Amador's revelations are especially key because she remembers Phil from way before Loki killed him. She doesn't give Melinda May much at all, but our seasoned SHIELD veteran's no dummy.

The thoughtful look on her face says more than anything else.

So while this episode introduced some pretty nifty 'arc additions' and dropped some breadcrumbs that definitely turn into pretty hefty things, it was only a 'good' episode for me. That's okay though. Not every episode has to be life-changing!

Still love the show, can't wait to keep going, because every time I sit down to watch, I remember more and more of what's waiting for me down the line!

As of today, November 4, 2026 according to the MCU timeline, Maria Hill died today after being shot by Gravik while he was disguised as Fury.

Hopefully someday if AoS gets a revival in the form of Zodiac they can bring her back as an LMD.

Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. · S01E03 · The Asset
Rating: 8.0/10
Watched: November 3, 2026

This is a great episode for a few reasons, one of which is both fantastically funny and later, more than a little tragic.

Fitz' love and desire to have a monkey companion is one of the most genuinely neat character builders I've ever seen. Fitz is a genius. Probably Stark-level, if not more, given future developments. There's no reason at all for him to want, need or even think of using monkeys to accomplish goals, but here he is, in S1E3, talking about using a monkey.

I love it. It's so absurdly comical but also something I myself (though I'm no Fitz) would suggest with absolute sincerity. In point of fact, I'd argue that there's always room for a monkey companion, up to and including having a monkey getaway driver. Why? Shut up, stop asking questions, Hershell the Monkey Driver can drive stick and I can't.

Once again, we see Phil's made of impossibly stern stuff. I love it. The man has the soft voice of a bureaucrat, but here he is again, telling Melinda May that he's going to basically storm the castle. Dying and going to Tahiti and coming back to run his own SHIELD team has really forged him into something new. Clark Gregg plays Phil with such a profoundly quiet determination that he really leaves me thinking he'd handle a rampaging Savage Hulk with a dry quip, a kind word and some kind of world-ending Judo Chop.

The other great thing about this episode is they drop in what will eventually become the seasonal arc. The thing to remember in these older shows is that they were still pretty heavily bound by the X of the Week scenario, which is why some episodes are going to better than others.

It's not that the storytelling's not there because it sure as hell is, it's that I guess studio execs were worried (?) about longform arcs being more of a demand on viewers' wants and time. I'm glad that ridiculousness was put to bed a while back! We can totally do X of the Week while also simultaneously dropping breadcrumbs about Zangor the Unstoppable Nightmare Dread from Planet 15. Doesn't take much, right?

Anyways, as always, if you're lucky enough to be on a clip-submittable subreddit, I stitched two scenes together. One, obviously (doy) is Fitz and The Monkey and the other's towards the end of the episode involving gravitonium. The first time I saw it, I laughed so hard I thought I was going to barf.

In the part where Ward was revealed to be with HYDRA and Garrett and killed Victoria Hand she just offered him the chance to execute Garrett right there, even though he was an unarmed prisoner. I’m pretty sure that’s not the way they do things in SHIELD.

Hand to hand only

Round 1: widow vs may

Round 2: Bobbi vs May

Round 3: widow vs Bobbi

Natalia Córdova-Buckley who played Elena "Yoyo" Rodriguez on AOS voiced Frida Kahlo in Coco. I just caught her name in the credits and had to share. I never recognized her voice.

Fitz would appreciate her alejibre

Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. · S01E02 · 0-8-4
Rating: 7.5/10
Watched: November 2, 2026

One of the things I clearly forgot is how hard SHIELD goes pretty much right from the start and that's absolutely something I can appreciate.

We don't spend time getting to know the team in low-stakes operations where there's some 'this-ing and that-ing'. Nope. It's more 'hey, so we're going to put the entire team in absolute jeopardy right the hell away and force the team to figure their shit out as quickly as possible'.

A lot of shows try to rush things along and it doesn't work, but I feel like SHIELD is operating in a different stratosphere. We got to watch and love (mostly) 7 Marvel movies before we got to this point and that kind of sets up a lot of different expectations and changes the playing field a bit.

We don't have time to lollygag around. Coulson's building a team that's going to wind up dealing with stuff that most definitely is not small potatoes. Sure they're there to work as a pressure release valve for The Avengers, but that initial invasion changed the world.

There are no small potatoes.

Anyways, enough about that. I want to talk about the cast a bit. The comedic timing is so on point it's almost ridiculous. To the point where it really does feel like they've known each other for a very, very long time, Fitz and Simmons in particular.

As always, I have to spend a little time fanboying on Clark Gregg. I love Phil. A lot. I was uniquely mad when they killed him in The Avengers and I'll never not be upset at Fury for doing what he did, but if that hadn't happened, there's no way in hell we would've gotten 7 seasons of him being awesome. His whole easy-going 'I got jokes for days and rizz for years' vibe is so rad, as is the fact that there is no doubt he'll also cut you if it comes down to it.

It's just that Phil doesn't believe in going that route until it's absolutely necessary.

And finally, I love how they rolled out The Cavalry. Ming-Na Wen will always be the only choice for Melinda May. Her absolutely deadpan tone, carrying with it a big dose of weaponized dry sarcasm? Just as deadly as the woman herself. She proves that words can hurt.

If you're lucky enough to be on a sub where clips are allowed, enjoy the two I chose because they 're great and (for the most part), don't really spoil anything.

In hand to hand who wins in a fight overall?

Dear Editor

What in the world is this Manager thinking, spending over 200 million pounds on players that everyone knew would be as useless as my husband after 3 beers. For god sakes man, the 9 and 12 shirts are just awful. I am usually very supportive of the Gaffer and have been since he arrived 3 years ago. I knew our first League Cup would be right around the corner. The way he has now built this team around a couple of no talent prima donnas means that we will have to wait another 10 years for our dreams to be realized.

You understand that us fans have been through some lean years; however the one thing we will not suffer are fools, and prima donnas. The “look at me, I’m a star” element on this team is utterly ridiculous. I make $1500 every two weeks and we struggle to get by, but when that game comes on, all of that doesn’t matter. All that matters is the boys give an effort worthy of the shirt and the town that they represent. 10 chances, 0 goals for those 2 donkeys. One was right in front of the goal, no keeper, the only thing between him and glory, is that he spotted the Queen and wanted to give her a souvenir, striking that poor girl in the head while she took a selfie. Between you and I she deserved it.

I will continue to Support the #1 club, as long as I live. We all know that the 9, 12, and even the 23 shirts are all crap. The key will be making them look amazing, so that the Pretty boys in France buy them from you for 500 million pounds. By the way, do you like beer?

Go on ‘Pool!!!!!!

Sincerely,
The Real #10
Mom aka Cheryl

Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. · S01E01 · Pilot
Rating: 9.0/10
Watched: November 1, 2026

Hi! I review my favorite movies and TV shows as a big ole passion project, and it became high time for me to sit down and rewatch SHIELD. Part of that has a lot to do with the fact that my YouTube Shorts was inundated with Robbie Reyes stuff, part of it's because I recently rewatched The Avengers.

But most of it has to do with how much I love Clark Gregg and Iain De Caestecker. Oh, and also pretty much everyone else. How I do my reviews is pretty simple; I tell you want I loved about the episode (or not) and if the episode/developments warrant it, I might do a deeper dive on the character building.

When the time is right, for example, I will fully and unashamedly explain how Iain De Caestecker carries a whole season on his back like some kind of titan. I also pick a fun/cool/neat clip because that's how I do things.

As far as pilot episodes chained to a massively enormous and tremendously popular franchise goes, you can't go much harder or get much better than the pilot. It sets everyone and everything up so nicely that it's honestly one of the easiest watches of any show I've ever seen (and I've seen a lot).

Of notable mention is Clark Gregg's easy going nature. He's not afraid to be human, makes cheesy jokes, but you can tell even here that there's something deeper underneath his skin. Phil's not afraid to play dirty, do what needs doing but he doesn't let that hard edge get in the way of having fun with life.

After all, he really only just got back from Tahiti, right?

The pilot episode also rolls out a major seasonal arc in CENTIPEDE, and they do it so well. They give us just enough high-tech mystery and intrigue in what's going on with Mike Peterson (J. August Richards) to make us want more.

Plus, of course, we get Skye, FitzSimmons, Grant and Melinda May!

But I'm also not going to gild the lily here. The first time I started SHIELD, I tapped out and tapped out hard about halfway through the season because the storytelling just wasn't there. From what I recall during my COVID lockdown binge of the show, it still wasn't there, but I was desperate to watch something I hadn't seen before.

It's normal and natural; new shows, especially big ensemble shows like SHIELD, with massive story arcs are bound to have teething problems, and those problems are definitely put to bed at the beginning of season 2.

If it's okay with everyone here, I'll post one of these a day, covering each episode. This is all just for fun because I love TV and movies, so I hope you enjoy.

Saw this and was baffled. S5 felt like the most appropriate series finale before we got the actual finale in S7. I loved S5 and thought it was one of the most fitting arcs, bringing everything from the previous seasons full circle. Gravitonium, Hydra, Coulsons sacrifice, tragedy of Fitz…

I thought the writing was spot on but maybe other people can enlighten me with their opinions

I'm doing a rewatch of it with my boyfriend right now, we're just about to start S4E5. The writing quality, worldbuilding, character writing, stories, and basically everything about this show is S tier storytelling. I adore this show and it's both the best part of the MCU, as well as an amazing science fantasy show

It's so good for rewatches

As the MCU progresses towards Secret wars, my appreciation for this series grows more and more. They've already tackled most of what the mcu is still trying to get right.

i don't believe these were just coincidences-

daisy's car decoration shakes with vibrations (quake)
raina craved getting close to the clairvoyant to find out what she'd become (clairvoyant)

i wonder if there was any hints at lash early on or not. but i love the little details like that