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

[marcvader]

The characterization of Hill seems off, for sure. They could have worked that joke into the episode somewhere else, without involving her.

Granted its just a pilot, but they sure seemed to make SHIELD seem like an offbeat and generally positive place. I'm hoping the series takes a look at its darker side, too.

You know SHIELD by and large are the good guys.

 

[Nathan]

You know SHIELD by and large are the good guys.

Who do some dirty stuff too to keep the world spinning. I enjoy that not everyone is running around with a stern look on their face, or act all serious, but I also don't want every single SHIELD member be a goofball deep down.

 

[Xeno]

I just love Coulson's face in this scene.

Clark Gregg was great throughout, but that Skye character is problematic for me. It didn't feel realistic that SHIELD would recruit someone like her and give her access to so much classified information. Computer experts are a dime a dozen and one would expect SHIELD to have far more talented people on its payroll. They don't even know her real name at this point.

It would have made more sense for Coulson to take Skye in, interrogate her (without Ward's unprofessional assistance) and then wipe her memories and turn her loose, sans her trashy "Mystery Machine" van. Whedon would have to create a female focus character from the ranks of SHIELD if that happened, which wouldn't be a bad thing. (Coulson is supposedly the main character, but since this is a Whedon show that's not really the case.)

 

[Tanin]

I hope the show fleshes out cause the pilot was well... kinda boring.

 

[Hypestyle]

at least the person of interest didn't get killed at the end.. (apparently?)..

Stark. AIM. Roxxon. I wonder how vast is the MCU corporate community?

.. I guess we'll have to see what kind of name drops happen along the way, of people, places, events. outside of Captain America and the Howlers in WWII, it's still not clear how much "meta" action has taken place in the world over the decades.

I wonder will the Iron Man 3 President ever make an appearance.

I wonder if Damage Control will ever be dealt with at all (peace be upon the Maestro)...

I know Kat Dennings is busy on CBS with 2 Broke Girls but maybe a cameo?

I suppose the temptation is there to eventually have some 'established' heroes or villains show up. I'll have to start poring over the "D-lists" for ideas. For starters, there's Captain Ultra (heh). Also, there's "Captain #@$*" from Nextwave, lol. (didn't Capt. America beat him up on first meeting?)

I hope some new villains are created that can make it to the comics.

Globetrotting should be in the mix. What does the "Marvel Atlas" (pun intended) look like? There are a number of fictional Marvel countries already.

Too bad that Alpha Flight might be off limits. (Or....?)

Yeah, my random speculation is that Coulson's brain engrams were saved, then uploaded to an LMD body. (Perhaps Phineas Horton was a pioneer of such constructs).

 

[iamlegend]

You know SHIELD by and large are the good guys.

Who, quite often, do some less than heroic things to accomplish their goals. SHIELD certainly is on the "good" side of things, but it plays in the gray on a regular basis, which is what often brings it into conflict with the Marvel U heroes.

I'm just hoping that's not forgotten. I LIKE the group's "For the Greater Good" approach in the comics.

 

[The Question]

Clark Gregg was great throughout, but that Skye character is problematic for me. It didn't feel realistic that SHIELD would recruit someone like her and give her access to so much classified information. Computer experts are a dime a dozen and one would expect SHIELD to have far more talented people on its payroll. They don't even know her real name at this point.

It would have made more sense for Coulson to take Skye in, interrogate her (without Ward's unprofessional assistance) and then wipe her memories and turn her loose, sans her trashy "Mystery Machine" van. Whedon would have to create a female focus character from the ranks of SHIELD if that happened, which wouldn't be a bad thing. (Coulson is supposedly the main character, but since this is a Whedon show that's not really the case.)

1: From everything we've seen of Coulson, him recruiting Skye seems totally believable to me. He's an overgrown superhero fanboy, I feel like his hiring policies would be more in line with building a superhero team than a covert intelligence agency style screening process. He'd definitely deputize someone if he genuinely felt that they had the right stuff, both in terms of skills and basic moral fiber.

2: 50% of all Joss Whedon shows before SHIELD had male lead characters so I'm not sure what you're talking about there.

 

[wobbly]

Who, quite often, do some less than heroic things to accomplish their goals. SHIELD certainly is on the "good" side of things, but it plays in the gray on a regular basis, which is what often brings it into conflict with the Marvel U heroes.

I'm just hoping that's not forgotten. I LIKE the group's "For the Greater Good" approach in the comics.

I think Captain America : The Winter Soldier will almost certainly be exploring Sheild's gray area less than honorable side.

 

[iamlegend]

at least the person of interest didn't get killed at the end.. (apparently?)..

Stark. AIM. Roxxon. I wonder how vast is the MCU corporate community?

.. I guess we'll have to see what kind of name drops happen along the way, of people, places, events. outside of Captain America and the Howlers in WWII, it's still not clear how much "meta" action has taken place in the world over the decades.

I wonder will the Iron Man 3 President ever make an appearance.

I wonder if Damage Control will ever be dealt with at all (peace be upon the Maestro)...

I know Kat Dennings is busy on CBS with 2 Broke Girls but maybe a cameo?

I suppose the temptation is there to eventually have some 'established' heroes or villains show up. I'll have to start poring over the "D-lists" for ideas. For starters, there's Captain Ultra (heh). Also, there's "Captain #@$*" from Nextwave, lol. (didn't Capt. America beat him up on first meeting?)

I hope some new villains are created that can make it to the comics.

Globetrotting should be in the mix. What does the "Marvel Atlas" (pun intended) look like? There are a number of fictional Marvel countries already.

Too bad that Alpha Flight might be off limits. (Or....?)

Yeah, my random speculation is that Coulson's brain engrams were saved, then uploaded to an LMD body. (Perhaps Phineas Horton was a pioneer of such constructs).

The problem with, well, just about any established Marvel hero (even second and third tier ones) is that the Mothership would sooner sit on the property on the OFF CHANCE that a movie happens, rather than risk introducing a character to the universe on a TV show. Any character that they've even considered doing a solo movie for won't show up here.

 

[cherokeesam]

1: From everything we've seen of Coulson, him recruiting Skye seems totally believable to me. He's an overgrown superhero fanboy, I feel like his hiring policies would be more in line with building a superhero team than a covert intelligence agency style screening process. He'd definitely deputize someone if he genuinely felt that they had the right stuff, both in terms of skills and basic moral fiber.

2: 50% of all Joss Whedon shows before SHIELD had male lead characters so I'm not sure what you're talking about there.

Plus, Skye may turn out to be a lot more than she appears on the surface. Yeah, I seriously doubt Coulson hired her for her "mad hack skillz," because she clearly doesn't measure up in that department. She also clearly has a background that's hidden and pretty much completely up in the air right now --- Ward already intimates that he and SHIELD know damn well that "Skye" is just an alias, and that she's hiding something.

Possibly a very *big* something.

I've still got money on the fact that Skye will be revealed to have superpowers at some point this season, superpowers that even she may not be aware of; but that Coulson can already recognize in her.

 

[Dr. Evil]

Plus, Skye may turn out to be a lot more than she appears on the surface. Yeah, I seriously doubt Coulson hired her for her "mad hack skillz," because she clearly doesn't measure up in that department. She also clearly has a background that's hidden and pretty much completely up in the air right now --- Ward already intimates that he and SHIELD know damn well that "Skye" is just an alias, and that she's hiding something.

Possibly a very *big* something.

I've still got money on the fact that Skye will be revealed to have superpowers at some point this season, superpowers that even she may not be aware of; but that Coulson can already recognize in her.

Some rumors have Skye being well.....a familiar name (or two) in the Comics that is associated with the group.

 

[Whiskey Tango]

I like Skye. And I also like Darcy. So neener neener, haterz.

 

[jonathancrane]

Well I would HOPE somewhere down the line either Gillian Anderson or David Duchovny has a walk on maybe not as Skully and Mulder but just for fun. Like maybe a Halloween show. lol

This x1000

 

[pr0xyt0xin]

8/10 I liked the show. It didnt feel like Arrow or Smallville which is a good start imo.

I was pleasantly surprised to see a few things:
1. Cobie Smulders. I had no idea she would be in this. Idk if i was just out of the loop or if they actually tried to keep it a secret but I'm really happy we got to see her.
2. None of the main cast disappointed me like I thought they might. Some people seemed to dislike Fitz/Simmons but I honestly didn't mind them. Might be my love of the brits. Skye is actually the more annoying one imo, but not awful. Ward and May were cool.
3. "Chitauri Neural Link" explaining that they were linked and why they all collapsed after the nuke. "Inner ear comms" explaining no ear pieces in The Avengers. And other little additions like that.
4. I like Coulson. I like that there is mystery behind his return. And I like that they are probably going to delve into that. I assume [blackout]he's a Life Model Decoy.[/blackout]

Things that i dont love:
1. SHIELD cars with the SHIELD logo on the side?! wut. most secretive government agency in the world and they drive around with their logo plastered to their cars? Not likely.
2. Flying car ending. ughhh... although it was a nice nod to Howard Stark.
3. Most of the score. It was pretty bad.

 

[Xeno]

Plus, Skye may turn out to be a lot more than she appears on the surface. Yeah, I seriously doubt Coulson hired her for her "mad hack skillz," because she clearly doesn't measure up in that department. She also clearly has a background that's hidden and pretty much completely up in the air right now --- Ward already intimates that he and SHIELD know damn well that "Skye" is just an alias, and that she's hiding something.

Possibly a very *big* something.

I've still got money on the fact that Skye will be revealed to have superpowers at some point this season, superpowers that even she may not be aware of; but that Coulson can already recognize in her.

First off, if Skye turns out to have powers, I'm bailing. That would be incredibly lame.

Second, you made exactly the point I made: Skye does not belong on Coulson's team because she brings no skills he couldn't have found in a SHIELD agent. That passe hacker girl thing hasn't worked since the 90s. She is clearly only on the team to satisfy Whedon's desire to have her type in the cast. That wouldn't matter much if the character weren't so grating. He could have gotten the same effect by adding an inexperienced female SHIELD agent with valuable skills to the team. Basically, a female Jasper Sitewell: Brilliant, top of her class at the SHIELD academy, but with more book smarts than street smarts, whom Coulson could take under his wing and train. Sort of like Gilles and Buffy. Had they cast Bennet as a character like that it would have made much more sense.

I like Skye. And I also like Darcy. So neener neener, haterz.

Good for you. The more people like Skye, the likelier she is to die.

 

[cherokeesam]

First off, if Skye turns out to have powers, I'm bailing. That would be incredibly lame.

Second, you made exactly the point I made: Skye does not belong on Coulson's team because she brings no skills he couldn't have found in a SHIELD agent. That passe hacker girl thing hasn't worked since the 90s. She is clearly only on the team to satisfy Whedon's desire to have her type in the cast. That wouldn't matter much if the character weren't so grating. He could have gotten the same effect by adding an inexperienced female SHIELD agent with valuable skills to the team. Basically, a female Jasper Sitewell: Brilliant, top of her class at the SHIELD academy, but with more book smarts than street smarts, whom Coulson could take under his wing and train. Sort of like Gilles and Buffy. Had they cast Bennet as a character like that it would have made much more sense.




Good for you. The more people like Skye, the likelier she is to die.

hater.

Skye is da bomb.
And she can, I dunno, fly and stuff. And shoot laser beams out of her eyes. She is SUPER-SKYE

 

[Loki882]

Daisy Johnson is the Director of SHIELD in the comics right now, and she's also Fury's hand-picked successor. She's 19 years old, so Skye is not that hard to buy.

 

[Xeno]

hater.

Skye is a bomb.
And she can, I dunno, fly and stuff. And shoot laser beams out of her eyes. She is SUPER-SKYE

FTFY.

You should run right over to Screen Rant. They're already calling for Skye to be killed off. Soon. And no backsies 'cause she ain't Coulson.

 

[Vartha]

I want to see her live. I think there should be some kind of opposition to SHIELD like that. There always is some kind of conspiracy theorist in these kinds of shows

 

[Vartha]

I want to see what Coulson would do if someone scratched Lola actually

 

[Whiskey Tango]

Second, you made exactly the point I made: Skye does not belong on Coulson's team because she brings no skills he couldn't have found in a SHIELD agent. That passe hacker girl thing hasn't worked since the 90s. She is clearly only on the team to satisfy Whedon's desire to have her type in the cast. That wouldn't matter much if the character weren't so grating. He could have gotten the same effect by adding an inexperienced female SHIELD agent with valuable skills to the team. Basically, a female Jasper Sitewell: Brilliant, top of her class at the SHIELD academy, but with more book smarts than street smarts, whom Coulson could take under his wing and train. Sort of like Gilles and Buffy. Had they cast Bennet as a character like that it would have made much more sense.

To be fair, there was already precedent for this in Item 47 what with their hiring the two random criminals off the street. It isn't very believable there either but apparently it's something SHIELD does.

 

[Vartha]

To be fair, there was already precedent for this in Item 47 what with their hiring the two random criminals off the street. It isn't very believable there either but apparently it's something SHIELD does.

I'm still wondering when and where those two will pop up

 

[Dr. Evil]

I'm still wondering when and where those two will pop up

Not anytime soon for Lizzy Kaplan.

 

[wobbly]

I want to see what Coulson would do if someone scratched Lola actually

"He must never know" t:

 

[wobbly]

Some rumors have Skye being well.....a familiar name (or two) in the Comics that is associated with the group.

Who might they be?