‘Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.’ Recap: ‘Alien Commies From the Future!’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

HIS IS THE EMERGENCY SPOILER ALERT SYSTEM. YOU ARE ADVISED TO READ AT YOUR OWN RISK.

​The further we get into the nit and grit of the final season of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., the quicker it is becoming apparent that this farewell tour of the series is going to be quite special for certain. Because not only is doing a phenomenal job of paying respect to the rich history of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, it’s also taking the time to have a lot of fun by giving these dynamic characters unique situations to work with. The kind that create some awkward and funny moments, and also provide the audience with the sense of outright adventure that permeated the fabric of season one of the series. And for proof that these elements are becoming a staple of year seven, then look no further than last night’s episode of the show.
 
For ‘Alien Commies From the Future!’ dropped the team just outside of Area 51 in 1955. Which is a unique setting for certain, and the need to figure out why the Chronicoms chose this particular point in time to try and destroy S.H.I.E.L.D. is what led to the fun and adventure and homages in question. Because the 50s is a perfect setting for an episode dealing with a mad dash to stop bloodthirsty aliens, and you simply cannot go wrong with having Phil Coulson and Jemma Simmons go full Blade Runner in this story by working together to evoke emotional responses from base personnel and their visitors, since that led to some rip-roaringly hilarious moments. Especially when Phil used a question from that iconic movie to make a little old lady cry on a tour bus and the wonder of this episode didn’t end there.
 
After all, this episode also featured the return of Agent Daniel Sousa, Peggy Carter’s old partner from the short-lived and outright wonderful Agent Carter, and it was quite awesome to see him on the small screen again and of course, enjoy another wonderful slice of S.H.I.E.L.D. history. But while these elements alone could have carried the episode no problem, another wonderful storytelling decision when it comes to this final season, is that the show is trying to offer up a little more depth and some genuine danger for these intrepid agents to face and the depth in this story, came about by acknowledging the fact that the 1950s and the Americana that permeated it, wasn’t all that great after all. Because this was a pretty racist time in American history, and it was brilliant of the series to call this out in appropriate fashion and remind us that we still have a long way to go in making equality an outright reality.
 
As for the danger in question, well that all came forth by way of some overdue focus on the fact that the team is isolated from the modern world. For there is no cavalry coming, no backup to call. It’s just this team, and their intelligence and their savvy and while that’s not a bad thing by any means because these agents rock, and they’re able to make miracles happen with their collective minds, in the end, there’s no rest for the weary. Which is quite dangerous for certain. Because if one or more of the team is critically injured, or if Yo-Yo and May cannot overcome their respective issues, bad things could possibly happen, the kind that allow for the bad guys and gals to win the day. And considering how they’re now running into tougher challenges both emotionally and physically, there is a fair chance that this isolation may come back to haunt them down the line.
 
But for now, the important thing is that they were able to preserve the timeline in this tale and really in the end, this was just another quality episode. Because it really did offer up a delightful story, one filled to the brim with wonderful moments and depth and it goes to show that the writers’ room is pulling out all the stops in order to provide the audience with a phenomenal final season of this storied series. One that should satisfy fans at every single turn and one that will wrap up some loose ends in the MCU as well, since the preview for next week’s tale, looks to involve the end of Agent Sousa and that should make one for powerful and gritty episode, one that will no doubt emotionally move all of us, as we inch closer and closer to the final chapter of this dynamic and phenomenal series. Until next time.  

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