Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Season 1 Episode 1 "Pilot" Discussion Thread

[Rorschach2012]

I thought the first episode was boring and corny. I'll watch the second episode to see if it gets better.

I had a feeling that this would be the case, all the trailers and tv spots lead me to that conclusion

 

[jonathancrane]

Late in posting, but:

I liked it. It was good seeing Coulson & Hill and I like the team members: they each have their own distinct personalities. My only problems with the episode were:

a) the dialogue. For the most part, it was fine; at times it descended from dialogue to speech (the Extremis/Erksine formula guy's rant at the end,) and other times it was too-forceful of name dropping (Journey Into Mystery, Spidey's famous line, and so on.)
b) the comedy. There were times when the jokes worked well and times when they forced and really disrupted the dramatic tension when it should have been retained. The Marvel cinematic brand is known for the humor; however, humor works well with discipline, and at times in the pilot, some of the attempts at a joke should have been excised.
c) unlikeable victim. The survivor of the Extremis/Erskine formula was a real a**hole. I had no sympathy for him.

Final rating? I'd give it a 3.5/5 or a 4/5. There's room for improvement and I have to acknowledge again, its' a pilot, so there's room for error.

 

[Thoix]

Can't say I was disappointed because I thought it would be alright, but I am disappointed with what this season seems to offer. I was hoping for something a bit more unique, but it seems like they will be doing the bare minimum with their stories, characters, and plots. Too bad.

Overall, the first episode was good, but nothing special. 7/10

 

[Dr. Evil]

Next week's special guest star: Leonor Valera, who was in Season One of Dallas.

Or for all of you Arrested Development fans, Marta #1 (aka the better looking Marta)

 

[jaqua99]

Ugh - YES! It's a problem I had with Buffy and even moreso with The Avengers. The "cutesy speak" and smug humor that's randomly interested into serious scenes completely takes me out of the show (and movies) at times.

I wish he would tone it down but I know that's one of his trademarks people love so whatever.

I really liked it. It wasn't the best pilot I've ever seen but the show is a lot of potential.

This, I've noticed a bit.

 

[Dr. Evil]

I think that the leader of the group that tried to kill J August Richards will be played by:

Spoiler

Ruth Negga

 

[CFE]

The majority of it I liked. There were a few iffy patches but that comes with the territory of any pilot, when the show hasn't quite hit the sweet spot of its agenda (typically reserved for, what, the 4th or 5th episode?) with the story arc.

For now it has certainly started on a solid foot more or less...I think because it knew it needed to be "Coulson and Friends" to kick things off. After all Clark Gregg is our initial investment and seeing him back in the role proper is the 2nd biggest hook for getting us in (1st being that it's a Marvel show anyway). I think the series, more so than the films obviously, provides a real opportunity to flesh Coulson out and I'm arguably more interested in that than the beginnings of the narrative itself...but again, slow burn for these first few episodes, I'm sure it'll pick up in due time.

Being a Joss Whedon piece lends a few notable characteristics, first being the sense of camaraderie between the cast. It's not "Firefly" (yet) but the team bounces off one another decently, more so in the lighter moments personally. I thought Coulson getting all hot and authoritative with Fitz and Simmons didn't play that strongly...which is really only because until now Coulson's been the wry, matter-of-fact lovable guy. Let him work at it. I'm not saying he doesn't have presence, just that he hasn't raised his tone yet so when he did it, it wasn't as commanding as I'm sure it will be in the future.

The writing was decent, more so for the characters and their relationships to one another than the plotting...which is where I think Whedon's strength resides anyway (that's a great advantage, though. Plot SHOULD come second to Characters in this sort of thing). I also noticed the whole "cutesy" speak and I feel like that's another Whedon-ism (and Jeph Loeb-ism really, given his involvement perhaps?). Meh. Maybe it'll get get toned down or at least better with time.

I'm actually glad they didn't just fall back on either the Comics history or the MCU's own by making this villainous organization some sort of connection to AIM or HYDRA (at least not yet). I loved that the included Extremis in order to tie it into "Iron Man 3" and confirm its place on the timeline. One has to wonder what, if anything, will derive from the show and play out in "Thor: The Dark World" or any of the other future films that the series will run parallel to.

It's hard to pick a favorite out of all the new cast, but as far as first impressions go I really liked Chloe Bennet a lot. I'm not big on hacker-types (having a beautiful woman who can hack computers echoes thought process and aesthetic of Alicia Silverstone-type proportions) but she felt authentic enough...maybe a bit too snarky and self-satisfied but not bad. Everyone else was fine and they all, Coulson included, have been established as characters that seem like they have room to grow with time...which I've always found to be a critical factor in making a show with some staying power.

I'm invested, obviously. And ready for more. My inner-fanboy is most anxious to see who or what from the Marvel Universe they'll introduce along the way. Fingers crossed for Luke Cage and the other Heroes-For-Hire, personally.

3 out of 4.

 

[Wheels]

I guess I'm just used to Joss's meta style humor after deciding to watch his shows after enjoying The Avengers. I like the tongue in cheek nature of his stuff.

Agent Ward is the only character that didn't do anything for me, but hopefully he gets better.

 

[cherokeesam]

The pilot could've benefited from a two-hour debut, or at least a two-parter episode, to make it feel more epic and to give each character more of a chance to develop. But yeah, you've got the basics of each character established in Ep. 1, and I'm sure we'll see more development in Ep. 2.

 

[def28]

Man, I loved it. Great first EP. Always kept my interest and was alot of fun.

Already obsessed with Skye. Chicks smokin!

8.5/10

 

[Whiskey Tango]

Gave this an 8, thought it was pretty awesome overall. The humor was great but a bit much at times and Fitz/Simmons I'm sorry to say is a bust and must be removed immediately. Love the rest of the cast however.

 

[cherokeesam]

So, this Col. Camilla Reyes in Ep. 2, a "Comandante in Peru".....I gotta wonder if the name is a nod towards Dr. Cecilia Reyes. Since Cecilia is part of the X-Universe and is therefore likely under contract to Fox (Reyes was supposed to have one of those throwaway cameos in that godawful X3 cluster****), I'm wondering if "Camilla" is supposed to be an MCU proxy.

 

[WildChild]

I loved the pilot. Cannot wait to see whats next.t:

 

[Dr. Evil]

Ming Na = the only good thing about Street Fighter.

 

[TheBat812]

Came into this with no expectations, but my roommate had put it on. Enjoyed it a lot! Only things that bothered me was the bad mix (music was overwhelmingly loud at points, drowning out dialogue) and the two scientists being Scottish (is that a trend these days?). That second one wasn't really an issue, but it caught my attention. I mean there are a bunch of things they can improve on, but it was funny as hell, and certainly has my attention. That hacker chick is also hot as hell. So I'll be tuning in for at least a few more episodes.

 

[redhawk23]

The show has decent effects and set design but is really let down by looking like it was filmed in 2003.

 

[redhawk23]

I really liked the incorporation of Extremis as portrayed in Iron Man 3.

 

[Figs]

One concern I had in watching this pilot.

I had kinda hoped that the Mike character would instead be Luke Cage. So, it's not, and it leads me to worry that we're gonna end up with a bunch of "Mike" knock-offs, average people that stumble into some superpowers, rather than investigating the emergence of the Marvel Universe.

Will all our "heroes" be nobodys we don't care about, or will we get to see some familiar names and faces, even if they aren't A-List Marvel Heroes?

Hoping for a tad bit more Luke Cage, and a tad less Mike the Factory Guy.

I also thought he was going to be Luke Cage and I have the same worry that we won't see any small tiered heroes or villains in this series.


I must say that the new girl has some damn nice thighs.

 

[Saitou Hajime]

Ming Na = the only good thing about Street Fighter.

You dare blaspheme against the greatness that is Raul Julia?!

 

[TX85]

I don't get why some of you expected or was hoping the show would not be corny and cheesy,It being related to super heroes/the MCU and Marvel comics alone instantly made that,Nothing worse than most of the source material..COMIC BOOKS and CBM!

It all fit nicely with the MCU too!

 

[Upset Spideyfan]

I don't know, kind of dry and lukewarm to me. Its just a pilot so its way too early to call it but I hope the show kind of finds a stronger identity as it trucks along.

 

[redhawk23]

I don't get why some of you expected or was hoping the show would not be corny and cheesy,It being related to super heroes/the MCU and Marvel comics alone instantly made that,Nothing worse than most of the source material..COMIC BOOKS and CBM!

It all fit nicely with the MCU too!

Did it have to look like a TV show from 2003?

Seriously the standard ABC aesthetic is awful and really lets down some otherwise solid production design and effects.

 

[TX85]

I like the old school look with modern special effects,not everything has to look like a new fox show or something

 

[Frodo]

I got about half way through and found it kinda dull. I'm gonna go back and try to watch it again because I like Ming Na Wen , Coulson, and Colbie Smulders, but what I saw ,at least, just wasn't interesting enough to keep watching it live.

At this point every hero and their grandma has had a film or tv show so name dropping about stuff in the MMU isn't enough to keep me excited. The characters have to be interesting and I just didn't find them all that interesting.

That said , this is only the pilot, and pilots can be pretty shaky. They don't always hint at the potential a series has once they've worked out the kinks, change the focus, add or subtract cast members, change writers , etc.

I'll go back and watch the rest of it and give it a chance next week though.

 

[redhawk23]

I like the old school look with modern special effects,not everything has to look like a new fox show or something

There's nothing "old school" about the usual cheap ABC look or at least its not an aesthetic based on nostalgia, just the standard issue staleness of a crap network.