Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: Love in the Time of Hydra (2x14)

Okay! Let's jump right in to the plot on this one.

May's ex-husband Garner recommends that Skye be taken off active duty. Coulson is hesitant to do this, but he does - he takes Skye out to a safe-house in the woods, where she will be safe, and others will be safe from her. Coulson reveals to May that he feels uncomfortable with the way this is all being handled. Fitz and Simmons also have their own conversations about all of this. Simmons gave Coulson something to calm Skye down and make her powers less strong. Simmons says she wants to help get Skye back to normal, but Fitz points out that Skye has changed, probably for good. He accuses Simmons of handling change poorly, with both Skye and with himself. He says that Simmons is the one who has changed the most.

Meanwhile, we finally catch up with Ward and Agent 33. The two of them have decided to take charge of their own lives for once. They hunt down the man who invented the face mask thing that allowed Agent 33 to take on May's appearance. He fixes the mask for Agent 33, which will allow her to take on any appearances she chooses, including her own appearance (although she'll still have her scarring). Using Agent 33's newly fixed mask, Ward and Agent 33 infiltrate Talbot's office. Agent 33 looks like Talbot's wife. Even after Talbot figures out that there's a spy in his midst, he's unable to find the culprit. Agent 33 and Ward break Bakshi out. Bakshi reveals Agent 33's true name to her: Kara. Then, Ward and Kara brainwash Bakshi to use him for their own purposes.

Finally, Mack introduces Hunter to some other members of the "real" S.H.I.E.L.D., including Robert Gonzales (played by Edward James Olmos). This other branch of S.H.I.E.L.D. depends on openness and honesty. They weren't thrilled by the way that Fury, and now by extension Coulson, ran things in secrecy. Hunter wants no part of it, and even after Bobbi tries to talk to him, he decides to run off. Bobbi realizes that the time has arrived: she is going to strike against Coulson's team now.

I guess in terms of complaints, I'm just not quite sure what this whole Ward and Kara thing is about. I was seriously weirded out by Agent 33 adapting herself to look like Skye so that she could give Ward what he wanted, and I didn't really understand why they went after Bakshi in the first place. More than anything, I couldn't get a handle on Ward's character in this episode. He seemed pretty mellow and compassionate to Agent 33's situation. Maybe that's an interesting way to go, but I hope he stays firmly in the villain arena. I don't really have any interest in seeing Ward with a redemption arc. At this point, I feel some skepticism about what they're doing with Ward and Kara. But maybe I should wait and see what's next.

Similarly, I'm a little bit skeptical about this whole S.H.I.E.L.D. vs. S.H.I.E.L.D. thing. It's one of those things that I'll have to wait and see more of before I make a final judgment, though.

The good stuff in this episode is too numerous to count.

First of all, it was so cool to see Chloe Bennet and Ming-Na Wen getting to act as Agent 33. What a cool challenge for these two actors! (Side note - I just got to see Chloe Bennet at Emerald City Comicon, and she's amazing!)

The scenes with Talbot were played, oddly, as rather humorous. At first I didn't think it would work, but it ended up being quite funny, and it cut through a lot of the heavier drama in the episode very nicely.

Coulson and Skye's relationship was interestingly explored. Skye understands why Coulson the Agent has to remove her from duty and keep her separate, but it's hard for Skye to understand why Coulson the father-figure is abandoning her. There's such an interesting history between these two, and it's touching to see how much Coulson cares for her.

Fitz and Simmons are totally breaking my heart, but I love the angst so I'm totally thrilled. Fitz is the only one who has been treating Skye with any real understanding since all of this started, and I think it's really important for her to have him in her life. Now that she's isolated from Fitz, and from everybody else that gave her comfort, I have a feeling it won't be good. Simmons certainly has changed, and I think it all goes back to her fear of losing Fitz. She never properly handled what happened to him, and now we have another one of her close friends going through this traumatic and extreme change. Simmons wants to put everything back the way it was. She has yet to accept, as has Fitz, that they can't go back to how hey used to be. They need to move forward and adjust to the changed circumstances.

I think I'll leave it there. This season is really heating up, but I'm starting to get a bit impatient for some culmination. A lot of this second half of the season feels like buildup.

8/10