Out of everything that transpired in Agents of SHIELD “Uprising” the most surprising was the death of agent May. Or, to be more exact, the “controlled” murder of Melinda May. It was a move guaranteed to go wrong since the main plot line dealt with EMP interference with all things electrical.
While Phil, Fitz and Mack hunted down Yo-Yo and then zeroed in on the EMP device, cities were having their power grid’s shut down and everything was grinding to a halt. It was inevitable that Radcliffe’s lab would be affected.
The move to kill one of SHIELD’s most dangerous agents was to counter her ghostly infection. May was going to die of fear if something was not done to interrupt the brain’s cycled adrenaline overload.
Radcliffe likens the brain to a computer, which it is, and says that to stop the “glitch” in May’s head, she needs a reboot. Jemma reluctantly agrees to kill her friend and colleague and she administers the kill shot.
They have around seven minutes to revive May before irreparable brain damage. Just as they are about to “shock” her heart, an EMP hits the facility and shuts everything down.
Jemma tries CPR but May’s heart is not responding. Finally Radcliffe takes Aida’s power source, which is unaffected by the EMP, and uses it to power the defibrillator.
(The power source is a clean self-sustained source of energy that Radcliffe has been working on. He should be talking to Tony Stark…)
May comes back and Coulson talks to his friend:
Phil: “I hear you’re a little bit more yourself.”
May: “I feel cranky.”
Phil: ” Like I said.”
The death of May was a plot thread that managed to almost take precedence in the episode. Although the EMP problem was clearly going to affect the whole reviving May scenario. the killing of May was still a pretty impressive feat.
Meanwhile Back at the Ranch:
The Ghost Rider and Daisy save Gabe from gang-bangers who target the wheelchair bound youngster. Daisy is injured and Gabe is uncertain about his brother’s new acquaintance.
She still has not worked out that Reyes is not an inhuman. Later, while Reyes is getting Daisy some medication for that fractured arm, Gabe tells her to take off. The kid is very protective of his big brother.
The Watchdogs are behind the power outages and they are claiming to be inhumans. The attacks are a smoke screen meant to turn public opinion against the newly registered group. The blackouts are also used to hunt down and kill any inhumans they find.
Mack confronts Yo-Yo about Daisy, after they get her away from the The Watchdogs and turn the power back on. She is unapologetic about helping Daisy.
Jeffery Mace announces the re-emergence of SHIELD and Senator Nadeer is revealed to be more than a hate spewing politician, she is working with The Watchdogs to kill inhumans. Nadeer’s brother, whom she bids goodbye after leaving the telly on for company, is a Terrigenesis statue, or chrysalis, waiting to hatch.
Melinda May is back but Daisy is alone again, chugging bone healing medication straight from the bottle and outside the umbrella of SHIELD.
Agents of SHIELD this week was a tad predictable. The killing of May, to reboot her brain, was clearly going to go pear shaped and this detracted from the suspense of the scene.
Yo-Yo’s friends turning against her was also pretty much written in the cards. Her surprise was…surprising. Has she not watched any X-Men features? Different is bad. Just ask Donald Trump.
Agents of SHIELD airs Tuesdays on ABC. Tune in and see SHIELD back where it belongs.
CAST:
- Clark Gregg – Phil Coulson
- Ming-Na Wen – Melinda May
- Chloe Bennet – Daisy ‘Skye’ Johnson, aka Quake
- Elizabeth Henstridge – Jemma Simmons
- Iain De Caestecker – Leo Fitz
- Henry Simmons – Alphonso ‘Mack’ Mackenzie
- Natalia Cordova-Buckley – Elena ‘Yo-Yo’ Rodriguez
- John Hannah – Holden Radcliffe
- Gabriel Luna – Ghost Rider. aka Robbie Reyes
- Jason O’Mara – Jeffery Mace
- Mallory Jansen – Aida
- Lorenzo James Henrie – Gabe Reyes
- Parminder Nagra – Senator Rota Nadeer
Mikes Film Talk 