*I think the 'Centipede' device was simply another experimental means of trying to deliver a stable Extremis to a subject. One that failed, obviously, but I would not be surprised if Extremis appears again later on.
Yeah, it seems more than likely that the centipede is modified Chitauri tech that delivers a new Extremis formula.
I really liked how the pilot took elements from the films and combining them to create the centipede. Some references
to The Avengers felt a bit too heavy handed, but this part felt like a solid bit of writing and it seems a shame to dismiss it as being basically the same thing as Extremis.
In IM3 the explosions have two causes: a quantity too large or an inability to self regulate resulting in an overdose or a person's system straight out rejecting the Extremis formula after the initial injection. Sure, the effects border on magical but the basic principal here is the same with any real world drug in that the wrong amount can kill you. At the end it all comes down to the hard numbers: how large a dose will blow someone up, can Tony find a solution for the chemical's incomplete equation?
No one in IM3 appears to blow up simply out of anger nor is it ever brought up as a possible warning sign of detonation. So it seems weird that when we're reintroduced to Extremis again in Agents Of SHIELD not only are we told that Mike can blow himself up just by getting pissed off enough, but Mike suggests that the whole rage trigger is based less on numbers and more on personality traits. Come on, now, doesn't that sound way less stable than what is seen in IM3? The old serum was apparently fixed. What could you possibly do to it that would
increase your chances of going too hot?
You add gamma radiation, of course! It's a move that makes little sense assuming your goal is to stabilize/perfect something like the original Extremis, implying that a physical cure-all was never the intention of this new project. What if Stark's new and improved Extremis worked by slowing down the regeneration factor to a less "super" rate or even just inadvertently removing the range of incredibly increased abilities exhibited by the Extremis soldiers? If your goal is to create powers you might go looking for a less stable version of Extremis on purpose.
Moving the whole purpose of Extremis from a healing agent into this magic power granter moves it further from solid math and deeper into comic book territory. The addition of gamma radiation, for instance, apparently creates a new trigger for the self detonations. They're now linked with the subject's rage. An emotion that is made worse by the serum itself which, as Mike tells us, brings out whatever is already present inside of a person. A trait it happens to share with the Super Solider Serum given to Steve Rogers himself. Add all of that (plus a little alien technology) to the mix and while they might have called the centipede Extremis at first, it seems like it's a very different thing from IM3. It feels much more like a "group effort" type of deal.
And, again, what I like about it is that the show never goes, "It's Extremis but they added gamma radiation, meaning that the explosions will now be triggered by anger just like that other famous gamma experiment: The Hulk!" Hopefully the references on the show will stay closer to this.
(I also watched again in Channel 4, so they didn't lose a viewer, lol)
