May 27 - What's up

What is new?

1) “Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” S2 is over. By now all of the couples have split up: Skye has become a full agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. while Grant is firmly Hydra once more; Melinda appears to have gone back to her ex, leaving Coulson behind; and Simmons was eaten by an alien rock, while Fitz wasn’t – so it is anyone’s guess in figuring out how it will go in S3. But for now, “Agents” are over. (If you not count an occasional fanfic, that is).

2) The latest season of “River Monsters”. Make no mistake – I like this show and I like JW. Compared to the other shows on both “Animal Planet” and “Discovery Channel”, RM is certainly hardcore – dealing with nature, exotic and foreign countries, and even showing some forensic science, especially in the earlier seasons. But even now, when compared to other shows on AP, which don’t have animals in them per se (i.e. “Tanked”) or show them in a very specific light (i.e. “Too Cute”), RM is still amazing! ...sadly, it still has to end.

Let me elaborate. On MLP: FIM there is Pinkie Pie, who loves to throw parties, but does not know when to stop (that is her weakness, so to speak) them. RM is like that. Certainly, JW loves the benefits, the prestige, et cetera that it brings him, but enough is enough. He has exhausted the topic, for the seasons of RM are becoming shorter and shorter, with more spectacle and less science, which is not good – not to mention that in the reputed RM S8 JW plans to focus on sea fish instead, thus defeating the actual concept of his show instead. JW, it was a great show while it lasted, but it still must end – if not with a bang, then with a whimper, but still end...

3) And as for MLP: FIM itself, so far it is rather interesting, even as it is determined to return the villains from the previous MLP cartoon incarnation – Tirek, Smooze... Now, of course, there are the Arimaspians, who appear to be based at least in part on Grogan, another villain from the past – but that is not THE interesting part.

THE interesting part is that the entire Arimaspian/Gryphon conflict was taken straight from the classical Greeks, who had both of their monsters in their mythos. The gryphons are, of course, the gryphons, while their enemies were a mythical race of one-eyed people – just think Cyclopes, but human-sized. The Arimaspians constantly tried to steal the gold from the Gryphons..., which brings us back to MLP: FIM. Interesting, no?

...Anyways, this is for this time – “Agents” are “Agents”; RM is getting too successful for its own good; and MLP: FIM is actually using real-life mythology for its episodes. Until next time!

S.H.I.E.L.D., S.O.S. - May 12

An ancient English saying says: “Best is the enemy of good”. Last night’s S2 finale of “Agents” had certainly proven it right.

Where to begin? The two-part “S.O.S.” had been truly epic, containing several plot lines. 1) Jiaying, having proved to be some sort of a life-sucking monster (BtVS grins and says hi from its new-old home in the comic-world) as well as a bio-terrorist, who wants to destroy the world – or at least, S.H.I.E.L.D. by using crystals containing the Terrigen mist. 2) Cal is sent over to Coulson in order to destroy him personal. Silly Jiaying – you cannot kill Coulson, Coulson can win over anyone (well, almost anyone. Grant Ward does not count). 3) Grant and Kara Lynn kidnap Bobbi because Bobbi had handed Kara Lynn over to Hydra between S1 and S2, and now the dastardly duo want Bobbi to apologize to”} Kara Lynn – but things do not go according to plan.

 So far so good, and on screen “S.O.S.” proved to be truly epic, as actors and their characters delivered dynamic action sequences and tense dramatic dialogue. It was a very great pleasure to watch it, but it was so overwhelming, that it was too much. Breaks in the action – comedic or otherwise – would have made this double-parter of a finale even better. Instead the tension just rose and rose until people could not take it any more – and lost interest, or lost the thread of a narrative, or the show suffered in other ways...

Take, for example, the death toll. At the end of S1, only one person had died – Garrett, and yet “Agents” still gained enough popularity to be renewed for the second season, and to sprout “Agent Carter” on top of it. Here, conversely, we have Raina, Jiyaing, Gordon & Kara Lynn (spoiler alert?). Plus, Cal had been treated by T.A.H.I.T.I. and no longer remembers anything of his old life (just how did this procedure interact with his altered biochemistry, one wonders?) and Bobbi will apparently be leaving S.H.I.E.L.D. for good (reminiscent of some of the Avengers on ‘Ultron’?). Of course, considering that there are rumors of her and Hunter doing their own spinoff, I would not discard her just yet either. Or the ship HuntingBird itself.

...Yes, the relationships of all of the agents (or “Agents”) have largely fallen apart at the moment. Grant had lost Kara Lynn and has joined with Hydra (or rather decided to take it over, as Garrett did in S1), forgetting all about Skye for the moment; Hunter and Morse have their own issues to work out; Melinda has left Phil for her ex-husband; and an 0-8-4 ate Simmons, just when Fitz was about to ask her out (but left her alone with the alien thing for a moment). That, of course, is a monster of cliffhanger in regards to the future S3 of “Agents”, but still raises some questions even now, for example - does Simmons have alien DNA just as Skye does, and that is why the new 0-8-4 had reacted towards her so?.. But these questions can wait, for any answers will be short-circuited by the show’s scriptwriters and the show’s general unpredictability.

About that. Unlike “Carter”, “S.H.I.E.L.D.’s” strongest point was its unpredictability and ability to frustrate, shock or awe its audience and fandom. That is good. But the S2 finale stretched this ability to the limit; the audience has realized that no matter what happens, they will be wrong-footed, and they are feeling overwhelmed and emotionally exhausted by this; they need a break. Hence, of course, the break in the action between the finished S2 and the upcoming S3 (whenever that will happen), but still...

Most of the characters who died did not have to die! S.H.I.E.L.D. was supposed to be about justice, instead the evil Inhumans got lynched, and Kara Lynn...didn’t deserve to die; unlike Grant, she remained a wholly sympathetic character, whose death had been unnecessary and accidental; with her around, Grant might return to the side of goodness much sooner, if at all.

...Yes, this is “Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.”, not “Skye and Grant show”, but still, Grant is beginning to become a ‘designed evil character’ or something along these lines. Cal got redemption (via memory working but still) – why not Grant? Skye fought with May – and got forgiven post haste – why not Grant? Let us not forget – at the beginning of S2 he actually cooperated with S.H.I.E.L.D., but got handed over to his brother for all that...a decision that backfired upon S.H.I.E.L.D. and got Bobbi tortured among other things. Seriously, if Grant is such a monster, then kill him already! Don’t let him go on for more seasons than it is necessary! Even Angel was Angelus for just one season of BtVS (more or less.)

The same can be said about the other deceased – or otherwise departed – characters. Now the Inhumans of Afterlife are leaderless; Skye and Lincoln can take charge of them and the other Inhumans. Hooray?! Probably not, and not quite necessary. Sure, as the alien angle continues to develop further in “Agents” the part-alien Inhumans will continue to grow in importance (unlike Hydra?), so Skye’s connection to them will grow in importance too, yet this mass destruction of ‘secondary’ characters is overkill. Until “S.O.S.”, “Agents” had killed off relatively few people, and never at once, so this? “S.O.S.” is a game changer for sure, and towards something more and more grandiose. Will this be a good thing for the show or not? We will learn this only in the future.