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0-8-4 Review Introduction Even though the third episode has already been released there is still enough time to take a look at last week’s trip. At the moment, I am very aware of the considerable drop in viewers of the show, which would seem quite alarming. Personally, I am not exactly aware how to weigh its influence at the moment, but I am learning on the side how the system exactly works. What I do know is that the show is receiving quite an extensive backlash in the community. I find it quite intriguing that after the great amount of hype build around it before its release, especially after the first showing at San Diego Comic Con. Time has past and a few episodes have come out for many to complain about its integrity. Some consider it too family-friendly while others say it sticks out too much as a television series.
Now, I believe the biggest issue is that not only were expectations quite high, my own including, but also it is suffering from the Mandarin’s twist backlash. Marvel made quite an interesting gamble at the time, which certainly paid off financially but managed to divide the fandom. As the series started shortly before Thor – The Dark World would hit cinemas many opinions are still quite negative towards Marvel Studios at the moment. Naturally, starting in an entirely new sector was another risk they took and as the series develops it is still trying to cement its part in the universe. Some issues were to be expected but it is their job to prove to us, the audience, what direction they truly are heading towards.
Short Synopsis After the last events Skye is joining up with Coulson’s group as a consultant, while our team heads out to Peru hoping to locate a “0-8-4”, which is an object of unknown origin. There they find a strange artifact lodged into an ancient pyramid while the local government meets up with them. Coulson meets an old flame in Commandante Camilla Reyes (Leonor Varela) and the team must learn to work together to fight a common enemy.
Review After the roles were set in the pilot we finally get to see how our team interacts with each other. The veterans on the team already are strongly against having Skye join them as a consultant simply as they already having two children that aren’t suited for combat. It is a rather formulaic story at first simply as it is the first one for them to start working together as a team, which uses a rather classic “common enemy” theme. Skye joining the team does seem rather bizarre, as she serves no true purpose, especially when they enter a field operation in the middle of the jungle where a hacker isn’t of any true use. Adding an incredible cameo by everyone’s favorite director Nick Fury to warn him from the girl, which is further cemented through her ongoing contact with the Rising Tide.
What seems to be an overarching part of this episode was simply to allow further development of each character, even if it was only minimal currently. Skye was kept in the background mainly besides the facts mentioned before, but her and Ward has a rather interesting contradiction. Both sides give reasons for what they believe in, which seems rather fitting for how the world is in a conflict currently if government information should be public or kept a secret. With the Rising Tide having a strong similarity to Anonymous further solidifies these two contradicting opinions towards public safety. Fitz-Simmons still seem rather like comic foil but there are some small nods to split these characters apart. Simmons seems rather curious and is the sole reason why both have joined this team, while Fitz is enticed by the possibility of action, but is quite afraid of it. One thing I noticed is that Simmons trying to open the window may seem a bit dumb for a scientist, but the first time under fire while holding a rather dangerous object there wasn’t much she could do. Additionally, Fitz seems to care a lot about I am quite curious to find out what happened to Melinda May and why she is named “The Cavalry”.
We got a little bit more action this time around with a rather fun shootout between our agents and rebels. The camera is slightly frantic and can distract from the action, but sometimes it can be quite brutal, especially when considering Ward’s attack at the beginning. The events on the plane were well done and it was quite an interesting move to blow up the bus after just one episode. One thing many people complain about is the raft scene, which I have to confess had me confused as well as I believed it would have been sucked out alongside Ward. Still, it is a universe featuring a man turning into a green giant and another who has been alive for more than 70 years, which makes our regular physics slightly misplaced, but it shouldn’t become a habit either.
I have mentioned this is the classic “teambuilding” episode, which is shown in the last half of the episode where Commandante turns on Coulson. What I found interesting, and hope was intended, was how surrounded by the strange device they all started fighting. It could hint at a connection between the Tessaract’s power as well as that of Loki’s staff that ended up with a massive fight between the Avengers. Speaking of, the device was a nice callback to Hydra and Captain America – The First Avenger just wished it was explained a bit better, especially considering that there seems to be something different about this one.
Overall, I thought it was quite an enjoyable episode, we are slowly seeing some of the characters develop and get some understanding how S.H.I.E.L.D. functions. At the moment, the show works slightly minimalistic on how it introduces the entire world but it needs to find a stride before anything can truly develop. My only concern at this moment is if these elements from the first episodes will return at all, as it seems project Centipede was slightly forgotten (also would love to see J. August Richard return as Mike Peterson) and this Hydra technology. The show still lacks a proper antagonist but I do hope that either A.I.M. or Hydra will take a center stage to confront our team. Also, the humor works for me personally and I also find it interesting how self-referential this show is. Comments about the mid-life crisis, or May’s “You talk too much!” are interesting and probably telling their fans they are listening to all complaints. Also, I know many say agent Ward is quite wooden, but I think some of his actions speak a lot, how he observant he is about the whiskey bottle as well as him actually trying to save one man’s life even if they attacked them, especially considering his position as a specialist who specializes in taking out the enemy.
World Building I already stated the return of Hydra and the Tessaract through the 0-8-4 of this episode, but there are some additional nods. The original version being Thor’s hammer was interesting and allowed many to speculate what other kinds of devices they might find over the course of the show. The biggest callback, in my personal opinion, was Coulson’s love for old things. It says a lot about a person when they collect items that have existed way before their own time, but still surrounds himself by rather young people. The “after-life crisis” is quite interesting as we are to believe that he has no idea yet how he truly survived the battle of New York. Also, it may be a new introduction but I like the idea of the “Slingshot”, it says more about the agency than what we think as it gives us an answer to what happened to all those items from the Chitauri invasion. It is always good to see Nick Fury return, but I wonder if his anger was truly about the damage on the plane or the fact that Coulson almost died again even though he was just brought back from his “death”.