Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D: Top 5 Moments from “The End”
It’s quite a relief sitting down to write this final Top 5 post of the season knowing it’s not really “The End.” I was freaking out for a minute there, so the news that ABC renewed Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. for another season made my year. Sure, we’ve got to wait until summer 2019 to catch up with the team, and Season 6 is just 13 episodes instead of 22, but any S.H.I.E.L.D. is better than no S.H.I.E.L.D… right? I honestly feel this might be a great move for the series. After all, Marvel schedules its feature films spring/summer. We’ve got Avengers 4 hitting May 3 and the next Spidey on July 5. The new season of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. will fit nicely in between. Aside from the marvelous renewal news, this season finale delivered in every way possible. I laughed, cried, and was literally at the edge of my seat the entire hour. What more can you ask for from your favorite TV shows? ABC made the right move, guys. This show’s a keeper. Anyway, we’ve got so much to discuss with this season finale so let’s jump right in and go over the top moments from “The End.”
1. Quake vs Graviton
It’s the moment we’ve been waiting for all season, so the Quake/Graviton battle easily takes the top spot. I mentioned before that Graviton came across a bit cheesy, but boy did Adrian Pasdar deliver the goods in his final stand. The instant Fitz mentioned Talbot “absorbing” someone, I knew it was going to come down to Daisy sacrificing herself to save the planet. Was that the change needed to break the loop? I’m still shocked that Daisy somehow survived that body slam from high in the clouds into the concrete. What?!? The way she launched herself at Talbot at the start of the fight was so badass. It was great to hear her try to talk Talbot down, as Coulson suggested. However, Phil knew his old pal was too far gone. He’s literally now in orbit. Eeeek! I can’t say I saw Daisy taking the Centipede Serum to stop Graviton, but that was a fun twist. Funny that last episode it was down to the serum curing Coulson or destroying Graviton and neither of those options came to pass. Robin saying “something’s different” meant the loop had been broken. Perhaps in the past Daisy forced Coulson to take the serum instead of using it herself? Ultimately, things worked themselves out… well, mostly.
2. We Save Lives!
Yeah the decision to step down and let the team’s “moral center” take charge is the most mature thing Daisy has done on this show. If you’ve been following my Top 5s, I’ve been annoyed at the way she bossed everyone around and bent the rules to suit herself. Yo-Yo was being made out to be the bad guy, but she was entitled to her point of view. I loved Yo-Yo’s heart to heart with Coulson, and him saying he would have sided with her. Mack has definitely grown into his own over the past few seasons, and he really does bring people together. Though Daisy Johnson becomes Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. in the comics, our TV version is not ready to lead. Did anyone else think for a moment that Mack’s promotion was going to be short-lived? Hopefully, when the series returns next summer Mack will kick all kinds of ass as Director. If/when Coulson returns (and somehow cheats death again), I hope there’s not conflict between he and Mack. It’s going to be interesting watching that new dynamic unfold.
3. Fitz’s Demise
Yes, I cried a bunch. While I had been expecting Deke to blink out of existence (did he?) and break our collective hearts, I never saw Fitz dying as a possibility. I mean, he and Jemma just got married. Is she already pregnant with Deke’s mother? What do you make of the mention that Fitz is out there in cryosleep somewhere? I realize at the start of this crazy adventure he went into suspended animation for that 74-year slumber to catch up with friends. Does this mean there is a living version of Fitz that Jemma will be searching for next season? Can the team somehow reach Enoch, let him know the time-loop was broken and unfreeze Fitz? All I know for sure, is that there’s no Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. without Iain De Caestecker. They’ve got to bring him back. I don’t want to spoil Avengers: Infinity War for anyone, but it’s also possible the events of the next movie play a part in Fitz’s resurrection. Time will tell… and time-travel is so complicated.
4. May Broke the Odium!
In a way, Yo-Yo zipping off with the Centipede Serum forced Agent May’s hand. Still, I never imagined May would make such a desperate move. Did you? Especially knowing Coulson’s position on the matter, never mind the fate of the entire damn planet at stake. There was a ton of tension leading to that moment when May brakes the Odium, and she defused it in an instant. It was big of her to leave the ultimate decision of taking it up to Phil himself. Their conversation was heart-wrenching, with neither one telling the other they loved them. Which actually made the exchange of “I love you’s” between Coulson and Daisy that much more powerful. Yes, I freakin’ cried again. I wasn’t a #Philinda fan before, but I sure am now. How long do you think those two will be vacationing in Tahiti before duty calls? Man, it’s gonna be a long year.
5. Tahiti… It’s a Magical Place
As I mentioned earlier, this episode didn’t turn out to be a “series” finale since ABC picked up the show for another season, but bringing it full circle to Tahiti was pure perfection. Had this been the last episode ever of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., I can not imagine a more fitting closing scene. By the way, Coulson’s retirement speech proved to be an exceptional bit of acting by Clark Gregg. It was a genuinely emotional moment. The actor doesn’t get enough credit sometimes, but he’s just the man. Gregg is really good at what he does. I am beyond stoked to see him again on the big screen in next year’s Captain Marvel, then (hopefully) back in action on S.H.I.E.L.D. Do you think there’s a chance the series will go on without Coulson? Would you still tune in?
Well, what did you think of “The End”? Did the big payoff work for you, or were you disappointed at all? Did you tear up as many times as I did? Is Fitz alive out there in space somewhere? Will Mack make a good Director of S.H.I.E.L.D? How long will Coulson and May stay in Tahiti? Are you excited about Season 6?
Thanks for joining me this season for these Top 5 moment posts. It’s been a blast sharing my thoughts and love of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. with you guys. I hope its been fun for you as well. See ya in 2019 for more with Coulson and the gang!
Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. airs Fridays at 9 p.m. ET on ABC and CTV.
Yes, the Fitz that went to space is absolutely alive and now has no reason to stay out there. The team has to retrieve him. In addition, season 6 needs to continue Coulson’s story and ought to resolve what happens to Deke. I’m also eager to know whether Robin’s mind is able to rest easier now that her mother survived and “something’s different.”
The Fitz debate I feel is going to be the main hiatus thing because of the time travel aspect.
If it’s a straight path again that Fitz body came back with the team so there should be no body to find in the future; even if there is time would have changed according to Robin so he’s not the same Fitz who went there necessarily – he maybe woke up early due to no threat so he’s different.
If it’s a multiverse then that’s taking a Fitz from a Jemma and makes him interchangeable and is that ok to fans? Some will say yes but for others it might not be a plot they like just as fans aren’t happy with “Arrow” suggesting Black Siren is Laurel simply because they look the same.
Again I feel him returning either way taints the “death” scene in this episode and that just annoys me because they built up death so much over the season but don’t pay it off. If Coulson and/or Fitz dies in the future of the series to me it’ll feel “Meh” because it won’t have the emotional impact an exit here would have but that’s me.
I was disappointed in this finale because they left a lot of cliffhangers and pulled multiple fake outs and in the end did nothing to really payoff everything that came before in a really impactful way. It was a disappointing season finale and would have been a poor series final had it come to that. Maybe I expected to much but while there were some highlights there weren’t enough for me to get excited about anything.
“QUAKE VS GRAVITON” – a good fight which was arguably too short and left us with a cliffhanger because maybe Graviton is dead but maybe he’s not so the resolution was not great for me.
“I loved Yo-Yo’s heart to heart with Coulson” – that was one of the highlights for me if not the best moment because I felt it was needed for some fans but it was also just a great moment and I’m glad we got it. I think if Coulson returns, his death should have totally been on screen if that’s how they’re going, they’ll give it back to him although Mack in charge would allow us to see field agent Coulson again which could be nice. Honestly though I hope Coulson doesn’t return as they put so much emphasis on his death his season and for him to do nothing about the condition it just felt like a let down to me.
Another huge let down was Fitz’s “death”, I use quotes because they sadly tainted Iain’s performance in my opinion; his multiple fake out moments were cheesy but as a whole it was a surprising move and I was going to miss Iain but when they added the line about Fitz still being out there it just bombed that scene for me and I hated it. I really wish they had just committed to him dying as again they built death up so much his season. There’s definitely a case of time travel debates and how Fitz isn’t really there as if this is a straight path that body came back to the past so he’s dead and even if you go multiverse you just took a Fitz from a Jemma and how is that okay? It made Fitz feel interchangeable and I just hated the whole plot.
I did not see the May moment coming, I get why she did it but it also felt out of character; my only rationale is they wanted to cement how broken she was feeling and this is what they chose. I didn’t like it but it’s one of the moments I got them doing to a point. “It was big of her to leave the ultimate decision of taking it up to Phil himself.” – except she didn’t give him his full option set and that I didn’t like; if she really wanted to leave it up to Coulson she shouldn’t have broken the vial.
“Do you think there’s a chance the series will go on without Coulson? Would you still tune in?” – if done right yes it can go on at this point without him; what form would it take, shorten seasons only or a streaming show, I don’t know, but I think there would still be momentum. I would tune in if it’s on TV and the season was well done.
“Is Fitz alive out there in space somewhere?” – I hope not as again it taints Iain’s moment if they say the character is interchangeable.
I saw a lot of suspect finales this week sadly but I have to say AOS easily had the worst in my opinion. I’m not quitting the series over it just yet but I can’t say I’m super excited about S6 either because if they bring back Coulson and Fitz it’ll make death feel cheap on the show and make me question why should I care about any drama they do if they’re not going to commit to the hard endings they set up. If they committed to stuff in a S6 I would just be bitter they didn’t commit her and again you have tainted feelings.
They had an opportunity to do something huge here and punted sadly. The only thing I’m even remotely excited about is what happened to Deke; I’m not saying I want him to be a new team member necessarily but what happened to him would be interesting to learn as that could hint to if this is a straight time path or a branching one.
The list were fun Henry!