Week 22: Shadows, Heavy Is the Head

Shadows: Lots of new teammates, almost none of them given time for a proper introduction; I couldn't name any of them yet if I tried. The Quinjet heist and subsequent Fitz reveal were neat; I didn't see it coming. Welcome back Carter! Creel's superpower is neat, and by that I mean his superhuman ability to guess what street the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents will be driving down long after their escape from the military facility (long enough to sever a limb with a knife at least). Giving him a ball and chain at Talbot's capture was a nice nod to his comics equivalent. Still, despite a lot going on here, it didn't feel like the episode cohered around any idea; this season premiere is just table-setting for later. (4/10)

Heavy is the Head: Ugh. The show's fully back on its bullshit. General Talbot is the worst element here, a J. Jonah Jameson-like villain who exists solely to be wrong about the heroes at every turn and to be a manufactured obstacle for them; his methods and his stated motives make zero sense, especially considering all of the legitimate criticism he could level at S.H.I.E.L.D. if he wanted. Then there's Hunter, who quintuple-crosses (!) with no apparent conviction to a cause other than honoring a dead friend, and yet Coulson offers him a permanent job despite being betrayed by Ward so recently and having serious trust issues on the team. Raina is once again operating from the shadows for a mysterious benefactor; does this show really not have the imagination to do anything else with her? And Fitz's story is a Hollywood portrayal of brain damage that seems many miles removed from the real thing, among other problems. I liked a few small details here, including Coulson's line about budget restrictions ("We're lucky we still have the George Foreman Grill"), but there was precious little to like here. (2/10)

Am I being too hard on this show? There's a long way to go.