S.H.I.E.L.D. (Joss Whedon's Live Action Marvel Universe TV Series on ABC) (1 Viewer)

[Patrick Sun]

I never got the early buzz for this show, and the pilot failed to light a fire under me. Will give it a few episodes, but I just can't quite get into it yet.

 

[mattCR]

 

[Robert Crawford]

I felt is was ok. Not horrible and not fantastic. I was happy to see the Whedon touch of humor throughout.
I like the Fitz-Simmons combo. They will be a lot of fun as the series goes on.

I just hope it doesn't go the way of Heros and burn out too fast.

Same here, ok so I'll watch for a while and hope it gets better.

 

[Jeffery_H]

For me, I was really disappointed in this show given how hyped it was. Just about everything I felt was lacking, very poor acting from everyone but the older guy, script was just dull and boring, lacking anyting original. The special effects were so-so, expecting better given what was said about it. But I just felt like everything fell very flat in most all areas.

The worst is the young girls trying to act, felt like a teenage show on the WB like Vampire Diaries, Gossip Girls, etc. They were B- acting at the best and I'm being generous with that.

I'm going to see if it improves, but it may be the first show I stop watching this year and I NEVER thought that would be the case as I had high hopes. But I don't see much changing given how much I find lacking.

 

[Sam Favate]

Tonight's episode was terrific - a real crackling good time, very intense, good character moments. If most of the viewers from last week tune in, the show's going to take off. Clark Gregg is easily the star - he owns every scene he's in. Ming-Na Wen is also captivating; she portrays confidence well. The writing was sharp, and the action was too.

 

[mattCR]

Tonight's episode really got going and kept up the pace. Some great stuff. A total blast.

 

[todd s]

Hope everyone stayed until right before the credits.

 

[Matt Hough]

I almost missed the coda but something kept me from hitting the delete button. Funny. Clark Gregg is a treasure. I thought so on The Adventures of Old Christine, and he's just as droll here.

Again, good action, and it's nice to see the team gelling more (and with the added drama of a mole present).

 

[mattCR]

I think what works is that she isn't some sort of evil organization mole, she's a whistle-blower mole. In other words, she isn't in this to gain world power or conquest, she just believes that shadow government organizations shouldn't exist. Think of it a bit like ... Julian Assange as a cuter girl Which makes for a conflicted, more interesting character. You feel as though her end goals may be noble (or not) but what she is doing it may not be so noble (or maybe they are).

I like that kind of complicated character that lets us see the story in a completely different way, and I thought that was a great touch.The scene before the credits was great.

 

[NeilO]

Hope everyone stayed until right before the credits.

That was a pleasant surprise. I hope we get more during the season.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

Tonight's episode was terrific - a real crackling good time, very intense, good character moments. If most of the viewers from last week tune in, the show's going to take off. Clark Gregg is easily the star - he owns every scene he's in. Ming-Na Wen is also captivating; she portrays confidence well. The writing was sharp, and the action was too.

I still don't think they're all the way there, but this was a big improvement over the pilot; the production was more polished, the cast had more to do, we got a better feel for what a typical "S.H.I.E.L.D." episode might feel like. Clark Gregg is terrific as the team leader. Pretty much every scene Fitz-Simmons are in is gold, and Skye's getting some real character development. Ming-Na's fine as the cypher with the storied career history. The only one that still isn't clicking for me is Grant Ward. There still doesn't feel like enough "there" there.

Hope everyone stayed until right before the credits.

That blew me away. I figured that if we ever saw the character in question, it would be a voiceover ala John Forsythe in "Charlie's Angels", or via a grainy video screen. I never expected to get the man himself in full-costume. I didn't think Marvel would want to do anything that might complicate their nine-picture deal with the actor in question.And a hilarious scene to boot.

I think what works is that she isn't some sort of evil organization mole, she's a whistle-blower mole. In other words, she isn't in this to gain world power or conquest, she just believes that shadow government organizations shouldn't exist. Think of it a bit like ... Julian Assange as a cuter girl Which makes for a conflicted, more interesting character.

Yeah, it was all in how the actress played that final scene. Skye really took a beat to weigh her response; she'd just been through this trial-by-fire bonding experience with these people and she clearly gets a rush from being in the thick of things. It's a pretty interesting and unconventional choice to have the audience's window into this world be the mole.What it also means is that her choices down the road are going to depend on what she sees from these people. Coulson has to convince her that his position is superior to the Rising Tide's, without necessarily knowing that she's betraying him.Although, given the way he figured out what was going to happen a moment before it did with the hole through the plane, I wouldn't be surprised if he did know.It bodes well that the show improved after Joss Whedon took a step back.Next week's episode looks like the first villain from the comics to debut on the show.

 

[Walter Kittel]

Clark Gregg continues to just own the show. "Cancel the fish tank."

Nice followup to the pilot showing the group beginning to work together. A few things felt overdone, but it mostly worked. Great, great cameo in tonight's episode, and very surprising. This episode, in terms of style, reminded me a lot of the too short lived series Human Target and the episode where Chance goes to South America.

I enjoyed the promo for Thor: The Dark World that played at the first commercial break. Kat Dennings killed me with the You're still all muscle-y line reading.

- Walter.

 

[Ejanss]

I still don't think they're all the way there, but this was a big improvement over the pilot; the production was more polished, the cast had more to do, we got a better feel for what a typical "S.H.I.E.L.D." episode might feel like. Clark Gregg is terrific as the team leader. Pretty much every scene Fitz-Simmons are in is gold, and Skye's getting some real character development. Ming-Na's fine as the cypher with the storied career history. The only one that still isn't clicking for me is Grant Ward. There still doesn't feel like enough "there" there.

The second episode is usually always "Our ragtag bunch finally learned to act as a team!"
Yeah, whatever. Got that out of the way.
Think everyone who was suckered in by the "Movie tie-in!" concept of the show may soon be disillusioned by the Human Target format of the stories, and to compensate, ABC may be trying to buy core fans off with more than just Samuel L. Jackson cameos by the end of the series.

As for Ming-Na, this being pop-culture-quoting faux-Whedon, I literally keep waiting for one of the characters to quip, after one of her moments of kick-ass, "Nice going, Mulan."
('Cause it's Ming-Na, y'see, and...okay, never mind.)

 

[Hanson]

The worst is the young girls trying to act, felt like a teenage show on the WB like Vampire Diaries, Gossip Girls, etc. They were B- acting at the best and I'm being generous with that.

Skye acts liked she stepped off the set of iCarly. She's terrible. Just terrible. The other one is like watching a puffball act. An absurdly high ratio of Looks to Charisma.

Ming Na can hold her own, but Coulson is carrying this show on the acting front. The lead guy is a huge slab of wood. The Scottish guy borders on unintelligible. I strain to understand what he is saying, even if it's just technobabble.

It did bother me that the episode revolved around rapid decompression, which is depicted almost completely inaccurately. Only people or objects very close to the hole could even possibly get sucked out, and the pressure would equalize quickly enough that only something in the hole would could get sucked out. That everyone in the plane regardless of proximity is being drawn towards the hole is sheer folly.

Even if you take it that the physics in the SHIELD universe are different, how is a non-rigid inflatable rubber raft going to effectively plug the hole? It would fold in on itself and get sucked out as well. Why does network sci-fi have to be this dumb? Why do they hire actresses for looks instead of chops?

I am trying to like this show and even rewatched the pilot. But this is not heading in a good direction.

 

[sidburyjr]

Did anyone else wonder about the wisdom of Skye sending and receiving texts on the plane. Seems to me that SHIELD must now have copies etc.

 

[Ockeghem]

Did anyone else wonder about the wisdom of Skye sending and receiving texts on the plane. Seems to me that SHIELD must now have copies etc.

I did. I think you're going to be right too (that the texts were copied or were otherwise reproduced).

Now that Skye is 'in', I believe S.H.I.E.L.D. will discover this and not be too worried about her motives. I also think that she will eventually change her opposing views and become one of the team (officially) in some capacity.

 

[Dheiner]

She already is "officially" part of the team. And I think SHIELD knows, and subscribes to the whole "keep your enemies closer" philosophy.

 

[Walter Kittel]

Even if you take it that the physics in the SHIELD universe are different, how is a non-rigid inflatable rubber raft going to effectively plug the hole? It would fold in on itself and get sucked out as well. Why does network sci-fi have to be this dumb? Why do they hire actresses for looks instead of chops?

Perhaps it was a reference to possibly the most unrealistic use of a raft in entertainment history when one was used to survive a plane crash in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. Or maybe it was merely as stupid as you pointed out. (?)

- Walter.

 

[Nelson Au]

I've seen both the pilot and the second episode. It is a fun show so far. My reaction is that Coulsen is like the authority figure watching over a group of whiz kids. And as such, this reminds me of those 1970's shows with a very young cast who mostly appeals to the pre-teen crowd that this series seems to be aimed at. Nothing wrong with this of course. Just seems like that show Jason of Star Command or the one about the kids lost in prehistoric times. Agreed that Clark Gregg is very good in the lead. Perhaps one of the kids will use the Mulan reference at some point, regarding Ming Na. And I was equally surprised by the visit from you know who at the end. That was fun.

 

[Ejanss]

My reaction is that Coulsen is like the authority figure watching over a group of whiz kids. And as such, this reminds me of those 1970's shows with a very young cast who mostly appeals to the pre-teen crowd that this series seems to be aimed at. Nothing wrong with this of course. Just seems like that show Jason of Star Command or the one about the kids lost in prehistoric times.

Coulson's only on the show because he was the best-known movie character they could afford every week--But in the movies, he was supposed to be an annoyingly cookie-cutter government dweeb, while Fury looked all cool and comic-y.
Here, HE'S supposed to be brilliant, genius and commanding, but he's still got that trademark insincere government-clone grin, which now comes off, well...sort of obnoxious and condescending.
It was sort of actually refreshing to see Jackson return to chew out his underling, since up to know, the character of Coulson was coming off sort of like that middle manager who gets to fill in for his supervisor while on vacation, and turns out to be a real prick once put in charge of the department.

As for this week's Where Was Coulson theory, i'm just guessing that if they're gong to keep saying:
"Tahiti?"
"Magical place".
in every single episode, that might not just be a running gag...