Warning Spoilers Ahead

In the aftermath of the events chronicled in the feature film Thor: The Dark World, Coulson and The Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. pick up the pieces — one of which threatens to destroy a member of the team.

Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. in the eighth episode of the series we get a bit more of what the series should be as it ties in directly to the latest hit Marvel movie, Thor: The Dark World. With a piece of Asgardian technology on Earth, there’s a mission to retrieve it from a bunch of rabble rousers and at the same time a lot of discussion as to what exactly Thor and his people are. It’s laid out simply, they’re aliens and primitive man didn’t know any better, so they called them gods.

We also get a bit more insight into Ward’s character and a hint at the trauma behind him. Through flashbacks we see some vents in his childhood that clearly had influence on the character today. It’s a nice way to give characters depth and move the story forward. And with that there’s also hints there’s a lot Melinda May, played by actress Ming-Na Wen, has more going on for the rather quiet character.

As a whole, this is one of the better episodes of the series tying into the Marvel movie universe much more closely and working with more of Marvel’s tools, instead of sticking to a new monster of the week episode. While it doesn’t dive too deep into the mythology of Thor’s world (the weapon and a character aren’t familiar to me), it felt a lot more tied in and done so organically.

This is a good example of what we should be seeing more of, an entertaining episode that does a lot to fill in the world and characters.

Director: Jonathan Frakes Writer: Joss Whedon, Jed Whedon, Maurissa Tancharoen, Brent Fletcher
Overall Score: 7