Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: Beginning of the End (1x22)

That was one of the best hours of television I have ever seen.

I'm dead serious. That was phenomenal. If someone had told me after the first few episodes of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. that I would be saying that about its Season One finale, I wouldn't have believed it. But here we are. Let's start with a plot summary.

So, we see Quinn trying to sell the super soldiers to some important US military figures, when suddenly Garrett shows up, spewing all sorts of god-complex-like nonsense about power and such. He ends up killing one of the military men.

Meanwhile, Coulson, May, Skye, and Triplett all mount an attack on Cybertek. They use Skye's information gathered by the Trojan Horse thing to disable a lot of Cybertek's defenses and get in to their inner offices. While May fights Ward and Coulson tries to hold off Garrett and Deathlok, Skye manages to find Mike's son, Ace.

Fitz and Simmons are trapped at the bottom of the ocean. They manage to come up with an escape plan, but Fitz insists that Simmons save herself using a burst of oxygen. There's only one, so Fitz will sacrifice himself so she can be saved. He tells her that he cares about her as more than a friend, and after she tearfully embraces him, he blows the glass out of their box. Simmons grabs Fitz and brings him to the surface. Fury swoops in like the bad ass that he is, and saves them both, although Fitz is barely alive.

Fury arrives to help Coulson. The two of them fight Garrett, but it's Mike Peterson who delivers the final blow, once he realizes that Skye has Ace.

After Garrett has been defeated (he tries to resurrect himself but Coulson gives him another killing blow), things start to move forward. Mike, unable to face what he's done, goes off to try and redeem himself in the eyes of his son. Ward and the other Cybertek people are placed under arrest. Simmons reunites with the rest of the group. Fury appoints Coulson as the new Director of S.H.I.E.L.D., telling him to build it back up.

We see Raina show a picture of Skye to a mysterious figure, saying that Skye is this figure's daughter. Later, we see Coulson start to write tons of crazy symbols on the wall, much like Garrett had been doing earlier. It seems that whatever mental degeneration was happening to Garrett is starting to happen to Coulson, too.

I kept that summary pretty succinct, which is frankly a miracle. I could go into so many more details. If I had to find any tiny little flaws in this episode... well, I'd be hard pressed. I suppose I'll say that while I found Mike Peterson's actions in killing Garrett to be awesome and redemptive and so wonderful, I did think it was a little silly that he then left. What is Ace supposed to do now? Isn't the best thing he could do for his son to be there for him? The only reason this is upsetting me is that it feels like maybe this is supposed to be the end of the Mike Peterson arc, and it didn't feel very satisfying to me.

But honestly, let's not waste time nitpicking. This episode was full of so much awesome, I certainly won't be able to capture it all. Let's get started.

Fitzsimmons. Oh my God. I cannot even explain to you how adorable they were. And how heartbreaking it all was. Simmons just completely loses it when she realizes she's going to lose Fitz. She kisses him all over his face, again and again, and hugs him, and sobs, and... and... ugh. And the look on Fitz's face as he presses the button... his eyes are all watery and he is so very willing to die knowing that Simmons will live. I really enjoyed Simmons' little speech about how every part of them used to be a part of something else, and will be a part of something again in the future. It was such a beautiful way for a scientific mind to contemplate the afterlife. I'm really worried about Fitz, of course. We didn't get to see him again after Fury had pulled them out of the water. He's alive, but maybe with permanent brain damage?

And then there's May. She kicked Ward's ass. It was so, so, satisfying. The best parts of their interactions? Ward is at one point on top of May holding her down, and he says "reminds me of the old days," to which she responds "you were never on top." Damn. And then later May sweetly explains to Coulson that Ward is "having trouble speaking. I think I fractured his larynx." To which Coulson replies, mildly, "oh, good." It's so satisfying to see May get comeuppance for the way she was treated, but at the same time, her fight with Ward wasn't just a personal vendetta. It needed to happen for their larger plan.

I continue to be impressed by how interesting Skye has become to me. She doesn't have the physical prowess of a lot of these other characters, and so her bad ass moments don't come through physical fights. She uses her brain and her knowledge of the larger picture to ultimately save the day: if she hadn't known to find Ace, Deathlok may never have finished off Garrett.

Speaking of Garrett, what an awesome death. Or should I say deaths? First Mike Peterson takes him out, and then, in a brilliant inversion of a tired trope, Garrett rises again, more powerful than ever, only to have Coulson take him out for good.

And let's talk about Coulson for a moment, shall we? Firstly, I love that Coulson used the same weapon he used on Loki to fight Garrett. Nice way to come full circle. Then there's all the sass between him and Nick Fury... as Garrett goes on and on about how he can see the universe, Fury remarks: "you didn't tell me he'd gone this crazy." So funny.

Even with the extra adorable-ness of the Fitzsimmons scene, I think the moment that really tugged at my heartstrings the most was the conversation between Coulson and Fury. Coulson expresses his anger about being brought back to life, and Fury says that it was an emergency situation. Coulson says that the emergency was supposed to only be the death of an Avenger, to which Fury says "exactly." Fury's affirmation of Coulson's role as an Avenger was extremely satisfying and fitting for his character. And it doesn't stop there: Fury then tells Coulson to rebuild S.H.I.E.L.D., making him the new Director. This is so satisfying and perfect in every way.

But then of course I'm extremely worried about Coulson... it seems that the serum is effecting him in ways we haven't seen yet. This is the sort of thing May was supposed to be looking out for earlier in the season, and now it finally seems to be happening. Something's wrong with Coulson! Oh no!

There are a few other things I want to comment on... while the mystery of Skye's origins have never been the focal point of the show for me, and I used to think this plot like was unnecessary, I'll admit I really admired the twist of Raina knowing where Skye's parental unit is. I want to know what's next. I mentioned that I had some problems with Mike Peterson leaving, but I really loved the way it was words from his son that brought him back, and allowed him to do what needed to be done. Nice symmetry from the pilot episode to this first season finale.

I'll leave it there, even though I'd love to rave some more. This episode was stunning, and was filled with so many jaw-dropping moments. The surprises just kept on coming, and they were wonderful.

10/10