Wednesday, 12 April 2017

S.H.I.E.L.D., Identity - April 11

The adventures of Jemma, Daisy, and the others in the framework-Hydra-land continue!

The good sides/aspects/etc. of this scenario? As I wrote about the previous episode – solid acting work, very impressive plot, and a very emotionally intense one. The bad? It is trickier…

Not so long ago I was privy to another ‘Hydra – Nazi or not’ argument involving the AoS, of course. One side stated succulently that Hydra was ‘Fascist’, not ‘Nazi’, which is important, (and for them it probably was). The other stated just as precisely that it did not care, but - which is important for us - it did not care about AoS either. Maybe Hydra was not Nazi, but AoS presented it as Nazi, but AoS itself is not exactly a great prize or the most accurate show either, you see?

Let me clarify. Before the latest mid-season hiatus, I assumed that Grant’s return would cause a controversy between his fans and anti-fans – I was wrong. There is no controversy, because even fewer people care about the entire AoS than before. For, the fans in general have figured out by now who is pro-Ward, who is anti-Ward, and peacefully coexist with each other, mostly by mutual avoidance. This is true for the more regulated sites, like the ones who deal with AoS fanfiction (and fanfiction in general). Conflicts still occur on less regulated sites, like the Tumblr, but this isn’t my point – my point is that even less people want to defend AoS and its’ values than they did before. In S3 Hydra was not actually truly Nazi – it was utilized by Hive, who was an alien monster, but certainly not a German one. AoS is trying to turn back the clock…only it does not; in ‘Identity’, for example, Radcliffe had clearly and purposefully mentioned the same Hive. What gives?

No, this is not just a rhetorical question – AoS clearly has no idea where it is going anymore. If anyone is interested in conspiracy theories, I can spin a long yarn about how AoS initially had a straightforward plotline, as ‘Blindspot’ does, or ‘Time’ did, but it went wrong somewhere between S1 and S2, so now they are in a mess – but it is unnecessary and redundant, these days. The way to resolve this is to start anew…which, again, AoS did with the Ghost Rider mini-arc…and then promptly abandoned for the framework Hydra-world. Fine. The only question unanswered with why Grant Ward and not Robbie Reyes in a different role/ID? Alternatively, did Luna want to be just the Ghost Rider, period?


…Either way, neither of these questions can be truly answered by watching AoS. So far, bringing Dalton/Ward back has paid off as more viewers are, well, viewing the show. Will this be enough to bring Ward back as a regular character in the future seasons? (And preferably not as a villain – this was done, remember?) We will just have to wait and see…

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