The shocking origin story of Robbie’s transition into Ghost Rider is revealed as the lives of Coulson and the team hang in the balance.

Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. is much improved after a rather dull previous episode as it really focuses on the origin of Robbie as Ghost Rider and stopping whatever happens with the Darkhold.

As the new Director looks for Robbie and Daisy to arrest them we’re given flashbacks as Robbie recounts what happened on the day he turned. It’s a really solid story as we get the same story from his and his brother’s perspective. It’s a really good way to go about it as we get where Robbie’s guilt comes from.

What I think is really solid though is all of the winks and nods the episode gives fans of Marvel. Robbie’s origin involves a certain motorcycle riding character. We’ve been told he made a deal with the devil, but it’s not the devil you’d expect. I know I got super excited to see it on screen and something I wasn’t expecting. There’s also references to Agent Carter and the Dark Force from the second season. It’s another nice wink that makes that series a bit more relevant. Finally, we get a Roxxon reference!

All of that, plus adding in some twists and turns and the episode is one of the strongest of the season by a long shot. What’s impressive is it was able to do all of that but also really move the story along the way. We have motivation for why folks want the Darkhold and some solid confrontations. A lot is packed into the episode and it all comes together smoothly as well as feeling like nothing gets short shrift.

This was a nice bounceback from last week’s episode which had me falling asleep. More of this please!

Overall Score: 8.15