Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. episode review: "Purpose in the Machine"

Season 3, episode 2

This week's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. isn't quite as exciting as the premiere, but it has more than enough exciting plot developments to keep the story going.

Massive spoilers for Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. follow. 

In last week's episode of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., a lot happened. New organizations. New characters. New threats. For all the plot threads set up there, though, "Purpose in the Machine" is largely concerned with just one of them: Simmons and the Monolith. In the final scene of the previous episode, we discovered that Simmons is, in fact, still alive, and the the Monolith merely transported her to another world. Here, with the help of the Asgardian Elliot Randolph, they ascertain that the Monolith is actually a portal to another world, and travel to an old castle in England in order to find a way to bring her back.

At first, Simmons' time in another world seemed like it would be a major story arc in season 3, but it's resolved by the end of the episode, albeit with lasting effects. Simmons' disappearance was the cliffhanger that ended season 2, and it's just a little bit disappointing to have that issue resolved so soon into the season. While there was still plenty of tension in the meantime, it's not as high as it might have been if Simmons was rescued mid-season instead. Nonetheless, it's still exciting to see a major character return to the main cast after her absence in the previous episode, and the rescue effort is more than entertaining enough. Regardless of any lost potential from the early closing of that story arc, surviving alone on a strange planet has clearly traumatized Simmons, and with her relationship with Fitz growing, that could make for some great drama later on.

Skye, now going by her real name, Daisy Johnson, proposes the idea of having the Inhumans work with S.H.I.E.L.D. to help aid the world, effectively becoming a superhero team. For now, this subplot doesn't amount to much, but while it's not terribly exciting as it appears in this episode, it has the potential to grow more interesting in the future.

A little more immediately interesting is the reappearance of Melinda May, who's laying low for most of the episode but is back in action by the end. Her own scenes provide an interesting dynamic with her father, and eventually even reveal some depth in the form of May admitting to wanting a normal life. I do hope that this comes up again later, because it appears to have been unceremoniously dropped as of the end of the episode. There, she joins forces with Hunter, who has left the main S.H.I.E.L.D. group to hunt down and kill Grant Ward, who makes his first appearance this season in this episode.

Hydra has always been a big driving factor in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., although some of season 2's best episodes came after it had temporarily been erased from the picture. Still, returning Hydra to the spotlight under a now-empowered Ward allows the latter to finally ease fully into being a villain. He still had sympathies for S.H.I.E.L.D. in season 2, but after they understandably rejected him throughout all of that season, he's currently poised to re-emerge as their latest adversary. There's a lot of potential in this, and it will be exciting to see what becomes of it. In the meantime, he's recruited the son of Baron Strucker, a former Hydra leader, who quickly proves his worth to Grant by killing a man sent to torture his banking info out of him. He's currently undercover, which will surely make for some great plot moments in the future.

Coulson, meanwhile, appears to be darkening somewhat. In order to get Elliot to help S.H.I.E.L.D. with the portal, he directly threatens the Asgardian, perhaps showing a shift away from his idealism in season 1. This character arc is doubtless due to the events that transpired in the previous two seasons, which had him go through all sorts of trials which would understandably leave him a changed man. What, if anything, the writers intend to make of this fact, however, remains to be seen.

Although "Purpose in the Machine" features a lot of set up for future story arcs, and although it resolves some other arcs too quickly, it's still a thrilling, enjoyable episode of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. with fun dialogue, interesting plot developments, and a nice amount of action to keep things lively. It's a step down from the premiere, to be sure, but it's still an episode that shows a lot of promise for the future. Let's just hope that more plot threads are picked up next time.

Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. airs at 10:00 PM MST on CTV.