On Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Parting Shot it all ended in tears for Bobbi, Lance and the rest of their “former” team and Malick staged a coup. This was another of those “reach for the tissues” episodes where viewers who cared sat swallowing and dabbing their eyes as Lance Hunter and his ex Bobbi Morse take one for the team.
On the bright side, Parting Shot did prove that Malick on his own, i.e. sans Hive, is not all powerful. The leader of Hydra can be defeated despite his overwhelming wealth and dedication to the cause. It also allows the characters of Morse and Hunter a chance to leave properly for a spin-off; Marvel’s Most Wanted.
This episode was flashback heavy, although this did stop over halfway through the proceedings. At the start, Lance and Bobbi are in cuffs and in an interrogation room, being questioned by a Russian security type (from Central Casting) who promises he will get answers. Bobbi, sweetly asks for a cheeseburger with curly fries…crispy. While Lance maintains his “looking for mushrooms mate,” story.
Coulson’s team rush to see what Malick is really up to in Siberia and they discover another inhuman, a Russian General who is to helping Malick overthrow the Prime Minister. This new threat initially appears to be able to control his shadow. Later it is revealed that he can control a dark matter version of himself.
General Androvich is there only to kill Prime Minister Olshenko but he too is stopped, but not in his inhuman state. Androvich’s weakness is his human form.
The coup is stopped but at the cost of losing Morse and Hunter. Malick is defeated but, at the end of the episode, we find that he is not down. His daughter Stephanie (Bethany Joy Lenz) makes an appearance and this young woman is definitely a “daddy’s girl.”
Stephanie wants to meet Hive and Malick tells his daughter that he is still “gathering.” The head of Hydra also admits he does not know what Hive (the real Hydra head) is planning.
Before that prologue moment, however, Phil Coulson tries to save his two S.H.I.E.L.D. agents but has to cut them loose. His other option, desk duty after a name change, is turned down by both Bobbi and Lance. Phil does manage to get the charges dropped and the Russians let the two go.
Afterward, Morse and Hunter are in a club drinking beer and discussing what to do next. Hunter says that the spy community will never trust them again and they prepare to leave. A bar waitress drops off a drink. It is from, she says, an admirer who asks not to be revealed.
The couple spy Gemma as another drink arrives. Soon all their former team-mates are spotted. Bobbi wells up and so too does the viewer.
Bobbi: “It’s the Spy’s Goodbye.”
Coulson’s core team is being whittled down and now only Daisy, who was really a new recruit and not part of the original group of agents, May, Gemma and Fitz remain. (Mac is another recent addition.)
It is interesting to note that the “spy’s goodbye” ritual of buying a drink for the departing member, only consisted of, what appeared to be, one drink from each of the team. Surely, two drinks would have been more appropriate as two S.H.I.E.L.D. members are leaving. It seems that of the two, Bobbi will be deeply missed and Lance will not. (Or vice versa?)
Either that or the spy trade pays really poorly and no-one could afford to buy both Morse and Hunter a drink apiece. (Although surely Coulson could have coughed up enough for two…) Regardless this farewell sequence brought on waterworks from at least one viewer no matter how many drinks were bought.
Both Nick Blood and Adrianne Palicki wil be missed. Blood’s English slang, “muppet” and so on was a breath of fresh air and the loss of Palicki as a strong positive female character is just distressing.
Still, the fight goes on and Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. will carry on regardless also the news is that, once again, there will be a huge big-screen tie-in with the upcoming Captain America: Civil War. The series airs Tuesdays on ABC.
Mikes Film Talk 
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