'Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.' Recap: 'Inside Voices'

Written by John Edward Betancourt

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Over the course of its illustrious five-year run, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. really has grown when it comes to storytelling, and that’s largely due in part to the fact that it has slowly separated itself from becoming a tie-in series for what’s happening in the overall MCU to tell its own unique stories and we’ve enjoyed some incredible seasons and moments because of this. However, while there is a lot to like about this series, inconsistency continues to find its way into the overall story from time to time and that’s unfortunate to say the least.
 
Because those ‘off’ moments take you out of the story briefly, and unfortunately, last night’s episode, ‘Inside Voices’, qualifies as one of those inconsistent stories. Because, after weeks of tense tales, ones that managed to move the audience and wow us with incredible and stunning moments, we were more or less treated to fluff last night and well, I don’t want to turn this recap into an angry fanboy diatribe about how the show HAS to do better, because I get it. Twenty-two episodes is a boatload of scripts to write, direct and produce and it’s certainly impossible to make every single one of those tales flawless in their own right.
 
But this tale, well it frustrated me simply because it was in essence the combo breaker to one hell of a hot streak. We’ve been deeply moved by this series as of late thanks to some powerful moments and revelations, so to see filler come about definitely gave me pause. But, while it may not have vaulted the plot forward by any leaps and bounds, it did feature some cool moments, like the prison break from the Hydra facility for instance, since that sequence of events allowed for Carl Creel to shine as a hero for a change and it allowed for Ruby to showcase just how wicked she can be and let’s be honest, the fight between Creel and Ruby was pretty badass.
 
Plus, the entire dynamic between Robin and May was pretty interesting, since Robin has apparently seen her own death, and has already accepted May as her mother and it was fascinating to see the young prophet’s biological mother be so accepting of the fact that she may die in the weeks to come and be so at peace with it, and I definitely appreciated the boldness that the ‘Invincible Three’ exhibited this week as well. In fact, Jemma’s plan to break Fitz out of his cell was about as bold as it gets and thanks to her, they’re now on the trail to find the superweapon that Hydra is desperate to deploy.
 
In the end however, that’s really all there is there to discuss about this episode. There were no major developments when it comes to the plot, just some action and adventure and some setup for next week since clearly, we’re going to spend a lot of time in the frozen tundra with Talbot and Coulson as they work to find their way to safety. I just hope that next week gets the story back on track and that more wonderful moments await us, because this series has proven, time and time again that it can be one of the finest comic book/superhero shows out there. Until next time.

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