Thoughts on Marvel's Agents of SHIELD

After watching Captain America: The Winter Soldier, I decided to give Agents of SHIELD another shot. I didn't care for the first episode, due to the character roles being very generic and thinking that the sole reason for the show was MOAR COULSON.

I'm now 15 episodes in and, while not completely caught up, I am happy with my decision to give the show another shot.

Skye, Simmons, Fitz, Coulson, May, and Ward.

If you don't know what the show is about, Agent Coulson, who had apparently died in The Avengers, is back. On top of that, he was told to create a special team of SHIELD agents that would work mostly independently, under Coulson's supervision. He recruits some of the best SHIELD has to offer... and a nerdy, anti-establishment hacker named Skye who managed to hack SHIELD in the first episode...

True, most of the characters do have their stereotypical roles (Machine Wiz, Computer Hacker, Science Chick, Badass Secret Agent Man, Ice Queen, and, well, Coulson.), but the characters within the roles grow and change. Even Coulson, who I was sure would be 100% deadpan 100% of the time, has shown some pretty tremendous changes (and acting skills I wouldn't have guessed!). The rest of the cast shows some minor growth, though the most interesting changes come from Skye for the most part. Fitz, the Machine Wiz, actually has some truly subtle moments of a shifting personality that I'm not sure if they're accidental or actually building to something interesting.

Several characters have private agendas that we learn over time:

Coulson wants to learn about how he was saved from death. While the truth isn't exactly what I was hoping for, I'm coming to terms with it. I'll do a spoiler section below to talk more in-depth.

Skye wants to learn about her past and her parents, and her only link to that info is a redacted SHIELD document she recovered... She recruits Coulson to help her. Their relationship quickly becomes father-daughter like, but it's handled lightly enough to not get awkward.

Everyone else... Well, they get different motivations as the show goes on, but they're trained agents and that's enough for them. Fitz and Simmons (Science Chick) are getting first time field experience, Ward (Badass) is unwillingly being taught to work with a team, and May (Ice Queen) is being reintroduced into active roles after some emotionally damaging trauma.

The best part of the show, for me, is how it connects to the greater Marvel Cinematic Universe. At first, I thought it would be fairly weak in terms of actual references, so that anything important can be saved for feature films. Fortunately, Marvel has a rich history and enough of a roster to play around with things. For example, I just watched the episode where the Asgardian Lorelei came to Midgard and started recruiting men for her army. Most folks might not have any idea who the heck Lorelei is, but fans of the comics will recognize her as Amora the Enchantress' sister, one of Thor's major enemies. Lorelei's power to control men is similar to Amora's, while saving the better known character for a throw down in a future Thor film.

I'm really anticipating the episode where events from Captain America: The Winter Soldier come into play. I'm also mildly wondering how they're determining what to spoil and when to do so -- I imagine MAJOR spoilers for the Cap movie must be revealed in the TV show, and I don't really think that's ever been a problem for a movie before.

One step closer to Maximum Carnage!

Before I jump into spoiling about Coulson's death (as much as I know if it, anyway, still not current!), I want to say that the show is definitely worth watching. It brings fans of the movies in with references to the feature films, and it also keeps the comic fans interested by dropping fairly interesting hints/characters. I mean, we've already met the characters that will become Blizzard and (probably) Deathlok! And, what's more, they were done pretty damn well!

Oh, and I'm also offering a prediction that the Big Bad, the unknown "Clairvoyant," is from the future. To me, that's the only way to really tie in Deathlok...

SPOILERY discussion below. Go away if you haven't seen at least Episode 14. Everything below the image of dead Coulson are spoilers.

Coulson's death discussed below!

Alrighty. I was hoping that Coulson was going to be an LMD (Live Model Decoy, or, you know, robot). That's something SHIELD is famous for in the comics and it even seemed as if they were hinting at it in the earlier episodes. 

Instead, the answer was revealed to be... a lot of surgeries. Wait, what? And he was dead for days? Well... They got a little better when they introduced that the medicine used was extracted from the corpse of a Kree alien (I'm assuming it is Kree, they haven't officially stated what it was by episode 15). This made me a BIT more excited because they also used the "medicine" to cure Skye. I don't know how well folks recall Ms. Marvel's back story, but all of her powers came from the Kree. I'm not expecting Skye to step into that role, but it is a thought. I'd love to see some more on that end, despite being sick of "aliens" being the problem. I'd much rather have some of the awesome earthling baddies crop up to fight SHIELD and the Avengers. Kang, anyone?

Alright, that's all I got. Maybe I'll post a response to the entire season when it's all finished up (and I've actually caught up). Until then, watch the damn show! 

Spoiler Free Diet: Captain America: The Winter Soldier

I was able to see The Winter Soldier this weekend with the Wife and friends, and I loved it. Most everyone I've spoken to has felt the same, some even suggesting it is the best Marvel movie to date. At this time I can't think of any complaints I have for the entire film, while I'm able to find something for every other Marvel movie, so maybe I even agree.

Maybe.

If you're aware of the comic book arc surrounded the Winter Soldier, you're unlikely to have many surprises. Even so, each character was handled well, the three or so major reveals in the film were masterfully maneuvered, and the story line was very well paced (which is something Marvel doesn't always do terribly well -- looking at you, Iron Man films...).

This movie has some of the most intense fight scenes I've ever witnessed. You could almost feel some of the hardest blows, and Captain America REALLY showed his worth when kicking ass and taking names. In the comics, he rarely comes off (to me) as a character that stands shoulder to shoulder with super-powered heroes when it comes to fighting. Generally his trademark is throwing his shield, and that's pretty much it. On screen, where you're not having action sequences drawn panel to panel but instead see every fluid moment, Chris Evans shines. He's appropriately acrobatic and his enhanced strength, while not remotely close to Hulk level, still makes combat against normal folks REALLY one sided. And when he's pitted against super-strong foes, he is still able to hold his ground reasonably. This just doesn't come through the comics that I've read with Cap, but was really amazing to see on screen. Even the shield throwing was pretty badass, and I didn't think that was possible.

If you thought Fury was BA before, wait until you see him now...

One thing I really appreciate is the growth in character. His physical abilities have grown since The First Avenger, which makes sense with his constant training. His relationships with the other characters and SHIELD has also grown, and in interesting ways. This is not a stagnant character, though he is consistent in what he views as right and wrong. It's nice to have a character that's not completely beset by self-doubt.

As far as villains go, the Winter Soldier is pretty intense, but hardly the most interesting character in the film. Fortunately, he's not completely alone...

That's most of what I have to say on the film without spoiling anything. Maybe I'll do a follow up post down the line, or maybe I'll just wait until all the Phase 2 movies are released...

SUGGESTION: Watch Captain America: The First Avenger right before seeing the film. You'll appreciate the refresher, I strongly believe.

I rate the movie a 9/10. I rate the first Captain America film an 8/10. For a character I dislike in the comics, I'm absolutely loving him in the films. Chris Evans has found his role, and I'm glad his past as the Human Torch didn't prevent him from being Captain America. For further comparison, I rate The Avengers and the first Iron Man at an 8/10... So it may be safe to say that The Winter Soldier is my favorite Marvel film to date as well...

Maybe.

2014 (Nerdy) Movies of Note

I have been severely disappointed with recent movie releases. I don't believe I've actually bothered to go to the theater in 2014 yet, and that is one of my favorite dates with The Wife. Well, this is all about to be rectified, starting two weeks from tomorrow... for me, anyway (the Veronica Mars movie coming out last week was probably a big deal, but I've never seen the show).

April 4th: Captain America: The Winter Soldier
The adds have looked amazing and I've been especially antsy for the next Marvel movie due to all their teasing of things to come. That's it in April for me, unfortunately. May, however, slaps the cinema into shape.

May 2nd: The Amazing Spider-Man 2
I'm actually not excited by this movie, beyond that it is Spider-Man. I'm getting a "Spider-Man 3" vibe with the excessive amount of villains that, really, look terrible (I hate what they've done with Jamie Foxx, and the Electro origin story, if it truly deals with electric eels, is embarrassing). I'll see it, but I'm full of anti-hype at the moment.

May 16th: Godzilla

Most anticipated of the year, for me.

This. Looks. Incredible. They're actually using a strong cast of actors and the ads have been causing goose-bumps. Woof. Even the Japanese films had terrible acting, I'm not sure I can imagine a Godzilla with a strong cast and good writing. Of course, it remains to be seen just how well they've written an American kaiju film, but I've got a lot of hope for this one (and suspect I'll need to rope friends in to see this one, The Wife doesn't enjoy Godzilla that much...).

May 23rd: X-Men: Days of Future Past
I'm on a edge for this film. I love dystopian future settings, I really enjoyed the short comic run, and some of the promo materials look pretty damn good. That being said, they're NOT following the comic line for more than general setting, I'm not sure how the sentinels will actually come off in the film, and we've seen X-Men films flop hard when they try to do too much. I'm looking forward to this one, but fully plan on annoying everyone by complaining, loudly, about all the plot holes I see (thinking of you, X-Men: First Class).

June 6th: Edge of Tomorrow
Ok, I'm not too sure about this one. It looks somewhat interesting, but so did Oblivion. I suppose I appreciate Cruise is doing a lot of sci-fi films that are relatively unknown titles, I'm just not sure if I'll motivate myself to see it.

June 27th: Transformers 4: Age of Extinction
Ehhhh. I'll probably see it, as reluctant as I am. I mean, I saw that last three in theaters...

July 11th: Dawn of the Planet of the Apes
I liked Rise, that's enough for me. Even if I find the movie titles excessively long.

August 1st: Guardians of the Galaxy
The recent ad for this made it look pretty damn awesome. I'm hoping it stays fairly light-hearted -- Marvel could use a funnier hero film.

Looks great, hoping comics being unknowns won't hurt it...

September 19th: The Maze Runner
Never read the book, but the premise sounds interesting. Oh, and the month of September has nothing else interesting for me...

October  17th: Dracula Untold
Another premise only, these two months look to be a movie dry spell...

Nothing in November, other than annoyance at another YA novel-turned-film being split into two films...

December 17th: The Hobbit: There and Back Again
I'm sure I'll complain about this being cut into three films some more, but I did enjoy the first part...

And, you know, sometime in 2015 we get The Avengers: Age of Ultron... I'm looking forward to seeing what kind of collected set they'll have for the Marvel Phase 2 movies -- I really enjoy my SHIELD briefcase for the Phase I Blu Rays...

Marvel Now! has got a flagship: Uncanny Avengers

Marvel Now! is about switching up the Marvel Universe. It's not a reboot ala DC's New 52, its a re-imaging and re-branding. This means the teams will be switched up, titles will have some radical changes, and everyone went clothes shopping:

I... am not impressed so far. I don't approve of comic book characters being made to look like their movie counterparts (in this image, see Captain America and Nick Fury [Junior, of course] for examples). The movie-verse should stay the movie-verse and be interesting all its own. I understand the drive for iconic status and money generation, but I still don't approve.

The X-Men on there have gone for one retro outfit and on completely stupid jumpsuit. Spidey looks like he is in red and black. WE DO NOT NEED ANOTHER RED AND BLACK SPIDER-MAN. Ever, in my opinion, but certainly not at this exact moment when we have Scarlet Spider and Ultimate Spider-Man. I'm hoping this is just promotional art and or another temp suit, I'd be bummed if it's the new status quo. And I've seen that design before -- it's the Alex Ross design for the original movies:

Blarg.

But, on to the Uncanny Avengers!

This title is a super team that is composed of a mix of previous Avengers with the addition of some X-Men. A mildly interesting concept, if, you know, the Avengers haven't been accepting everyone lately and already having several X-Men/Mutants on their team (Wolverine and Beast/Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch off the top of my head).

Thor: I'm not a huge fan, but he seems to be an Avengers staple. He could use a swap out, but then I don't know what they'd do with him. Still, I don't hate him, so that's a plus.

Scarlet Witch: An overpowered character if there ever was one. Oh, and prone to going bat-shit insane. Also, not a new addition, though they are plugging this as a redemption arc for her, apparently. Not an addition I care to follow.

Captain America: I'm fine with him in an Avengers team (because I wouldn't read a Cap title), but I still (from 30 seconds ago) hate his costume redesign and find it odd that he's not going to be the leader of the team.

Havok: The only interesting character on this team for me, and he's the leader. At this time I don't know why and don't know what they've done with him recently, but he will be a new player on the current field and that will be interesting.

Rogue: Only ever liked her in Age of Apocalypse. Don't know what she's been doing recently and, since I don't see Gambit anywhere around, I don't much care. Depending on what they do, she could be another great addition, though. Like I've said, I've seen at least one rendition where I've liked the character, which is more than I can say for some on this roster (looking at you, Scarlet Witch).

Wolverine: I love Wolverine. But usually only when he's teaming up with Spidey. As an Avenger... It doesn't seem to suit the character. After doing some reading over at The Weekly Crisis, I think I'm going to check out Uncanny X-Force for my Wolverine fix.

I think I'll keep an eye on Uncanny Avengers but pass on initially. Well -- I'll get the first issue at least. But that's just because I'm getting an unhealthy obsession with first issues...

Sorry the blog has been so comic centered lately -- at least on Monday I'll be switching it up with some literature. And... hmm... I could use a few more scheduled days. Maybe I'll force some Video Games on here as a weekly post. More on that soon!