REVIEW: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. "Absolution"/ "Ascension"
Shock! Thrills! Death! Or at least that’s what the promotion would have you believe. Granted, if you got rid of the exclamation point, I might actually agree with them. The two-part finale under extremely low expectations comes out on top. Under regular expectations, I’ll get back to you on that.
It somewhat surprises me that my older reviews used to be more of recaps mixed with reviews when now they just fill me with nothing but exhaustion. The situation would probably be different if Agent Carter had fewer than three two-parters, but now I can get right to the basics. Plus, it helps narrow down the severely limited pictures I have to use in an article about a season finale where every other second is a spoiler or red herring for the next.
Like almost always, I’ll start with the good parts. After a string of seemingly endless episodes, SHIELD once again has episodes that only feel like an hour. Sure, there are two of them at this time, but it’s a quality that the show remembers from time to time, especially for their finales. I won’t deny that it’s more enjoyable to watch a two-parter of SHIELD than a two-parter of Agent Carter because this show is decent at tension. Then again, Agent Carter isn’t exactly a high bar for standard.
Either way, I enjoy the classic good vs. evil fighting with none of the lousy plotting we had to deal with for “drama.” I like including fight scenes when there are the obvious people to root for to win. I like that they seemed to have worked on some things like the shotgun-axe and the full reveal of Hive, which incidentally wasn’t too shabby. Heck, I like that they gave Daisy some choice into how she feels even if it’s the most melodramatic superhero guilt trip that has to happen. Hey, she’s a legitimate superhero now, so that includes all the lousy parts inbetween the leaping buildings in a single bound.
And the other thing. Wow, Lincoln is dead, in a no way is it possible for him coming back kind of dead. Even more surprisingly, I actually managed to care when he was going. Hold on, readers, this does NOT excuse however I felt about Lincoln since season two. He was still boring compared to the others and an even worse partner for Daisy (but again low bar). Still, there is no greater way to give some character sympathy than actually killing them off and letting the rose-colored glasses do the rest. Then again, it probably wasn’t rose-colored glasses so much as actually feeling that they would kill someone interesting instead. I feared for Mack until the previous episode, marked Simmons following all the happy moments with Fitz, and honestly thought they would bail on the idea altogether. Yet, here we are.
The reason why I spend a whole paragraph on that one thing is because this that sums up my reactions towards these episodes. A constant expectation of something horrible followed by a surprise when they don’t do that. As with Lincoln, none of that makes up for the belief that something awful would happen because for a good show I should be anticipating good things instead of dreading bad twists. The show can probably never back away from that anymore.
However, in my incredibly low standards for this episode, I find myself enjoying more things than usual. Fitz and Simmons might have actually gone on their vacation. May, Mack, and Elena (who is still going by Yo-Yo) live to appear another day. Daisy is finally, though indirectly, referred to as Quake as she now makes a living as a vigilante from SHIELD. Despite the totally miserable background of the situation, the show’s on better footing now then when the season began.
Also, Ward is dead. This episode may shoot up to at least number ten in the top ten episodes for that reason alone. Sure, this show has the awful habit of bringing people back from the dead since that was the purpose of the show in the first place, but the episode didn’t even leave any remote hints. Should he return, if he returns, there is absolutely zero chance of a redemption story, an antagonist story, anything that even slightly hints at using him more as his own character. Will that stop those crazed followers on the Internet? No, but having canon on my side usually eases the process.
In the long run, this episode felt less like a finale than the others though. Sure, it hit all the regular beats in ending the seasonal plots, crossing off the villain, and setting up the next season’s plot. However, it felt slightly disconnected, much like the season as a whole. Maybe it would have helped if they went with the Part 1 and 2 title like last year, but that wouldn’t have changed the story much. Maybe it’s because I wasn’t nearly as invested in these problems as the previous seasons. Last season had a good year of build-up in questioning Daisy’s past and the spectacle of superpowers. This season expected me to care about Lincoln. See the conflict there?
But there you have it. Season three is done. Was it all worth it? Probably not. The plots were lackluster, and the finale is simply a method of finally providing the sweet relief of ending them. From that, though, I get a little happiness. I’m not sure if that’s what the show intended, but ending lousy plots is the only way to try a new one. With Daisy on the run, a new director on board, and being down to six (without Bobbi and Hunter) main characters now, the future’s looking better. Also, all those crackpot theorists can finally rest assured in seeing that the LMD’s are actually things now. That’s a win to someone.
