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Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. – Bouncing Back Review

This week's Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.  had a bit of a rocky start, in an episode appropriately titled “Bouncing Back." It’s been so long since we last saw our favorite agents that it was a little difficult getting back into the storyline. Luckily, there was enough going on to help refresh our memory. The first time we saw Coulson in the episode, we were sadly reminded of Rosalind’s death thanks to a horrific blood stain on the carpet. Coulson, justifiably, hasn’t been able to forget the pain of losing her. I understand his pain, but I also understand that Constance Zimmer is busy winning Critic’s Choice Awards for other shows. So, she's in a better place, even if Coulson isn't. The positive news is that some good came out of Rosalind’s death: Coulson has started taking Gideon Malick seriously, and proved that he is more than ready to take him down. He even took extreme measures as to kidnap Werner von Strucker, who was working with Malick. He was in a coma, but Coulson was determined to get some answers, and he used that the “Tahiti” memory device to get some information out of him. Turns out, Malick hadn’t been very nice to von Strucker either, and he unintentionally gave Coulson information to help find Malick. Once Coulson got in to talk to Malick they were able to trace the call, and, in turn, shut down a few of his companies around the world. NATALIA CORDOVA-BUCKLEY Malick, however, didn’t seem too upset about the whole thing, because oh yeah, guess what? He has Ward in custody, or at least something that looks like Ward. He definitely isn’t the same Ward we remember. Ward came back through the portal a changed man. They didn’t give any real answers to what he is now, but it is pretty clear that it’s creepy. The makeup team really outdid themselves with this one. In the meantime, Hunter, Bobbi, Daisy and Mack are on the trail of a new Inhuman that showed up in Bogota. At first there was a huge miscommunication and the new super speedy Inhuman (Elena/Yo-Yo) kidnapped Mack. His teammates went after him and were able to capture Elena and put her in a containment cube so she couldn’t run away anymore. I have to say of all the powers we’ve seen, I’m really impressed with this one. The special effects were amazing and it seemed like it could definitely come in handy quite often. After the team talked to Elena, they discovered that she was actually trying to use her powers for good by protecting her community from the police force who haven’t been protecting and serving as they should. Bobbi and Hunter met up with the police, only to realize the cops also had an Inhuman on their side. One of the cops had what they nicknamed the "Medusa" power, because he can make people immobile with his eyes. This was another sweet power that I was kind of jealous of. Finally, some powers that are actually useful on a daily basis. NICK BLOOD Hunter and Bobbi got captured, but naturally, Daisy, Mack, Elena, and Joey went after them. The rescue mission was my favorite part of the whole episode. We got to see Elena’s powers at work solo, plus her and Daisy using their powers together. It was pretty impressive. Soon enough, the S.H.I.E.L.D. team was reunited and they had the Medusa cop in their custody. Unfortunately that didn’t last long, as a Hydra helicopter stopped in to pick him up. In the end, the S.H.I.E.L.D. team tried to get Elena to stay and work with them, but she insisted on continuing her work in Colombia. However, it all worked out after Daisy gave her a watch where she could call them, and vice versa, if they needed each other. There was also a mini Fitz and Simmons storyline this episode. Even though things were still very awkward after the whole Will thing, it looked like maybe they are going to start over and be friends again? I really hope that is the case. If they can’t be together romantically they at least have to stay friends. They are really the glue that holds S.H.I.E.L.D. together. MARVEL'S AGENTS OF S.H.I.E.L.D. - "Bouncing Back" - In the midseason premiere, "Bouncing Back," in the aftermath of his trip to Maveth, Coulson is more determined than ever to get to Gideon Malick and put an end to Hydra once and for all. Meanwhile, Daisy and the team encounter more Inhumans who have powers like they've never seen before, but will they be friends or enemies of S.H.I.E.L.D.? "Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D." returns for a game-changing second half of Season Three, TUESDAY, MARCH 8 (9:00-10:00 p.m. EST) on the ABC Television Network. (ABC/Eric McCandless) HENRY SIMMONS Overview: - Unfortunately there weren’t many laughs this episode, but I think they are doing a really good job of balancing all the characters they have while continuing to add new ones. - This show is very busy and complex, but it continues to be interesting and intriguing. - I wish they could give Lincoln something more to do if they are going to keep him around. I find that he just keeps blending into the background. I want to like him, I really do, but he really isn’t necessary at this point. - I’m not sure what direction the rest of the season will go, but it looks like they might be trying to built an Inhuman army worldwide- so they don’t all have to be in the same place, but they are always just a call away. It seems smart, but it's also going to be hard to remember all of these characters. - Also really interested to find out what’s happening to Ward. He’s very creepy and that sand thing at the end leads to believe he might be the monster from the portal and I don’t think anyone wants that. I guess we will have to wait and see what happens next week when Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. airs on ABC at 9/8c.
Rating
7.0
Pros
  • New character Elena/Yo-Yo is awesome
  • Fitz and Simmons talk things out
  • Special effects/make up remain impressive
Cons
  • Lincoln is still hanging around
  • Plot is getting confusing with so much going on

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