TV Review: Agents of SHIELD - "Shadows" & "Heavy is the Head"

Agents of SHIELD - "Shadows" (2x01) & "Heavy is the Head" (2x02) ABC, Tuesdays, 8 p.m.

 I didn't get a chance to review the season two premier of "Agents of SHIELD" last week, and it works out, since "Shadows" and this week's "Heavy is the Head" is essentially a two-parter, establishing the show's new normal.

With the dismantling of SHIELD in "Captain America: The Winter Soldier" and the subsequent episodes of "Agents of SHIELD," Coulson now finds himself as the new director, with Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) apparently out of the picture until next summer's "Avengers: Age of Ultron."

As the second episode's title implies, being in charge comes with a lot of responsibility for Coulson, especially when SHIELD is down to a handful of agents, one secret base and a few mercenaries.

With Grant Ward locked up and Fitz still trying to recover from a near-death experience which left him with brain damage, the team is a bit short on members, with Melinda May, Skye and Triplett the only ones still capable of field duty. Enter Izzy Hartley (Lucy Lawless) and her band of mercenaries, including Lance Hunter (Nick Blood).

Unfortunately the stakes are quite high, as Hydra and its agents are still in play, as is Brigadier General Glenn Talbot (Adrian Pasdar), who has made it his mission to root out the remaining members of SHIELD. In his mind, both it and Hydra are one and the same.



These two episode deal with the very first 084, discovered during World War II by Peggy Carter (Hayley Atwell) and the Howling Commandos (a nice tie-in to the upcoming "Agent Carter" series arriving mid-season).

All in all, the two episodes serve quite well bringing forward the remaining plot lines from season one, as well as laying the groundwork for its season two arcs. Although the first season started a bit rough, it improved greatly by the end, and so far it seems season two is working off the show's better aspects.

BEYOND HERE THERE BE SPOILERS

The two biggest character questions left at the end of the first season were what was going to happen to Ward and how badly damaged was Fitz from his near-drowning. As to the first, we still don't really know. I doubt they're keeping Brett Dalton around to simply play Ward occasionally sitting in his prison cell talking to Skye. I really hope they don't try to do a redemption arc for him, since the show did a pretty good job showing just how bad he was. Sure, he had a bad childhood, and was led astray early on, but he is directly responsible for a lot SHIELD agents' deaths, not to mention Fitz's current condition. I'm pretty sure they're going to try anyway, but as I said, I really hope not.

Speaking of Fitz, it was downright heartbreaking when they revealed that Simmons was just a figment of his imagination. The writers set it up really well, with the realization that Coulson was risking his team's lives to get a cloaking ship, showing he had little faith that Fitz would be able to solve the problem. It was a rather shocking betrayal (of sorts), but then we learn just how damaged he is. This carried over into the second episode, showing while he still is struggling, Fitz was able to help solve both problems facing the team--getting the Bus cloaked and stopping Creel. I'm not sure I want to see what happens when he realizes Simmons is gone.

As for the main story arcs, we learn that Hyrdra far from defeated, with the mysterious Daniel Whitehall now in charge. In the second episode, we have the return of Reina (Ruth Negga), who is now in the employ of someone claiming to be Skye's father. Then, of course, we have Coulson and his mysterious symbols, which seem connected to the 084. I do have to say, I'm already more intrigued by the symbols and the artifact than I ever was about Coulson's mysterious resurrection, which is a good sign for this season.

I do have to say I'm surprised how quickly we lost Hartley, but I'm liking the character of Lance Hunter so far.

With the return of the Bus, we should get back into case of the week type stories, slowing building the the major arcs over the season's run. So far, this season feels like the better half of season one. Hopefully it can keep the momentum.