Wednesday, May 11, 2016

The Geekcap: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. "Emancipation"


At a nondescript bar, Coulson watches a new report recount a story regarding the Sokovia Accords. The law has passed under 117 countries, and Steve Rogers is now missing. May arrives to offer her condolences to Coulson on both the disappearance of Captain America and the death of Peggy Carter. With the Accords up, the government is going to be more interested in their work with Inhumans, leading to Coulson having a conversation with General Talbot. Talbot comes as a representation of the president who is now interested in learning about SHIELD’s activities. Coulson argues against the regulation method with the government’s hands in the matter and also reminds Talbot that not all of the Avengers were on board with them either. Still, as an appealing gesture to Talbot, Coulson allows Talbot to see their base which is present directly under the bar.

Daisy continuously hacks into the SHIELD database despite Fitz’s attempts to keep her out. In the middle of one session, she spots Lincoln trapped in the pod and wonders what he did. Hive interrupts her as she is locked out of the system once again. By tracking SHIELD, Hive is forced to constantly move in order to carry on with Radcliffe’s experiments. The doctor takes the rest of Daisy’s blood that he needs and states that the next experiment is ready. All they need are some test subjects.
Lincoln continues to wait in the pod as May gives him his meals. He still asks to be freed only for May to shut him down after his behavior. Since Lincoln’s immune system is still compromised, he’s better off in the pod. May advises that instead of trying to escape, he should try to stay straight, especially with Talbot on the base now.

Meanwhile, Fitz and Simmons work on the systems with Fitz being forced to Daisy-proof the computers rather than work on a new Hive solution. Fitz remarks that it would be easier with Mack, but Simmons remarks that he is still shaken up about what happened with Daisy. Even there, they believe that their work is useless. May, however, comes in and instructs them on working to fight against Hive. Though Hive is a parasite, May believe that if he is made up of humans, two of which they knew, he must have some drive. Now, they have to be on the offense.

Coulson gives Talbot a tour of the base. Coulson states that he will allow Talbot onto the base for exchange of keeping their Inhuman team secret. For additional collateral, Coulson introduces Talbot to Elena Rodriguez, who has returned to help after hearing about Daisy’s turn. Coulson explains that Elena has been working on her own against the Mexican cartel, meaning that her name on a list would be a price on her head. Talbot maintains that it is only for protection which Elena considers naïve. However, Coulson lets Elena demonstrate her powers by having her stealing Talbot’s pin before his eyes.

At a training facility, two men train a group of Watchdogs. While the Accords have regular people assured that the enhanced people are regulated, the Watchdogs believe the only solution is to take the Inhumans out head to head. From a report originally taken by the ATCU, they now believe they can find one.

Secretly, in the pod, Lincoln manages to make contact with Daisy. Together, they create a loop to fool the security feed while they continue to talk. They both admit to missing each other, especially since Lincoln admits he was only on SHIELD for her. Daisy states that she offered him a chance to escape, but he refused. Now, Lincoln states he only wants to be with her. Before they can talk further, Daisy informs him that the feed is about to be cut, ending their conversation. Lincoln is then reintroduced to Talbot by Coulson.

Elena finds Mack in the kitchen avoiding the team. She questions why he’s not doing anything since she came back all this way to help Daisy. He admits that he feels dismayed at the situation with Daisy and doesn’t want what happened to her to happen to anyone else. Elena helps to fix his brace and helps him sit down. He then asks her if she ever felt hopeless despite her faith with the threat of Armageddon upon them. She replies that he needs a beer and recalls a phrase from home: evil preys on the weak because it fears the strong. The only way evil succeeds is if they give up and run.

Elena: You need a beer and some faith.

Talbot explains to Lincoln the concept of registration which involves them assessing his strength and danger level. Lincoln accepts the concepts if it allows him to leave, but Coulson is still less warm to the option. Talbot questions that if Lincoln truly wanted to leave he could just take them all out right now. Since he doesn’t, Lincoln advises them to work with him.
Continuing the tour, Coulson finally reveals to Talbot their last Inhuman: a recaptured Lash. Talbot is furious that Coulson has a creature like Lash in their grasp without any oversight. Finally, Talbot asks about Daisy. Coulson states that she’s on a field mission, but Talbot reveals that he found footage of her with Grant Ward in a town that recently experienced a flying saucer invasion. Coulson asks why Talbot went to this trouble if he already knew Daisy was loose, but Talbot wanted to learn the details of the other Inhumans. With Daisy on the loose, Coulson agrees to fill him in on the rest of story.
The Watchdogs trace their lead to an Inhuman down an alley. There, they find James who takes a fiery chain and whips the fighters. Hive emerges and reveals that he orchestrated the hunt to capture them and ultimately turn them into what they hate.


In Coulson’s office, Fitz, Simmons, and Coulson explain to Talbot everything, including the alien planet and Hive’s powers. With Hive being able to control other Inhumans, Talbot becomes firmer in his belief for the Accords, preventing super-powered people from being taken behind their watch. With Hive planning to create his own Inhumans, the threat is even more serious. Coulson reminds Talbot that they prevented Hive’s plan by eliminating the Kree threat, but Simmons recalls that there is still some Kree blood Hive could use: the GH-325 in both Coulson and Daisy.
Hive and James then arrive with the Watchdogs as a new batch of test subjects for Radcliffe. With their change, Hive states he will free the Watchdogs from their hatred. They lock the group in a bin and flood the container with Radcliffe’s new formula. Outside, they hear the screams of the Watchdogs before they are immediately silenced. Radcliffe states that they simply need to wait.

Back at the pod, Lincoln reconnects with Daisy and agrees to escape if they can be together. Daisy concocts a plan using the things in his pod to help fool the alarm system and allow him off the base without alerting the team. With Daisy’s expertise, Lincoln is able to escape the pod and make his way down the hall. In Coulson’s office, Talbot once again argues to put the president in the loop of the Inhuman problem, but Coulson states that by the time they go through the red tape, Hive’s plan may already be complete. Lincoln makes his way through the base. He is almost spotted by May, but Daisy provides a distraction to lead him to another exit.

Fitz and Simmons explain that Hive has everything he needs to create a new Inhuman army if he uses Daisy’s blood. Furthermore, with the knowledge that Hive had stolen some kind of technology from the ATCU, he might be able to improve his plan. Coulson questions why Hive would be willing to sacrifice Daisy for a few Inhumans. With her knowledge and abilities, she could be worth 100 Inhumans. Fitz states that Hive might be able to make that many with Daisy. Unfortunately for the team, their argument against Talbot’s registration becomes even more undercut when discover Daisy’s loop trick. Meanwhile, Radcliffe and James then open the container to find that, among the cocoon crests, the Watchdogs have changed into deformed creatures.

The base begins an emergency lockdown to stop Lincoln’s escape. Mack returns to help Fitz and Simmons seal the base. However, he reminds the two that Daisy could still help Lincoln escape by manually controlling the quinjet. Mack then runs to stop Lincoln, but Lincoln is insistent on returning to Daisy. He shocks Mack off and runs to the jet.

Hive observes the new Inhumans. Despite their deformities, they quickly follow his orders. He then orders them to take Radcliffe who begs to be given another chance. However, Hive is satisfied with the results since they are still quick to follow him. Radcliffe states that they are merely abominations of his work, but Hive just states that they are part of the Inhuman race, part of him.
Lincoln informs Daisy that he is in the jet ready to be taken to her location. She assures him that they can escape together, but Hive reappears to reveal that Daisy lied to capture him for Hive. Hive shows her Radcliffe’s results, made by his parasites and her blood. However, he wants more. In order to achieve that, they may need to drain her completely.


To the team’s dismay, they watch the jet take off as they come to Mack’s aid. However, May returns with Lincoln in tow, revealing that Lincoln is not be taken to Hive. They question what was sent to Hive instead, but May responds that desperate times call for desperate measures. The jet arrives for Hive to greet it, only to have the sole inhabitant be Lash.

Lincoln explains to the team that he and May created a plan against Hive. Lincoln managed to convince Daisy that he wanted to escape while May managed to portray the plan as escaping from the base, even though Coulson managed the plan the entire time. While he did not mean to hurt Mack, Lincoln set the quinjet to take off with May making sure that Lash was onboard, knowing that Hive would be waiting to meet with the jet. May and Lincoln both believe that if every Inhuman has a purpose, Lash’s purpose might be to kill Hive.

Talbot: Who in tarnation names these things?

Lash manages to fight off Hive by blasting away his parasites and wounding him temporarily. Hive sends the newly-turned Inhumans against him, but Lash takes them out one by one. Radcliffe and Daisy soon hear the fight, leading Radcliffe to try and help them escape. Daisy, however, tries to fight against Lash for Hive, but she then succumbs to her blood loss and falls. Lash comes to her and, instead of killing her, uses his powers to draw out and destroy the parasitical influence inside her. With Daisy now free from Hive’s influence, Lash carries Daisy back to the quinjet. Suddenly, Lash is stabbed by James’s fiery chain. Daisy blasts back James but sadly watches Lash die before her eyes. She then radios the base from the jet to say she’s coming home.

Daisy returns to the base in handcuffs flanked by guards, though the team is ultimately glad to see her. Simmons immediately takes her to the lab to diagnose her condition. Talbot questions whether or not this could still be a trick by Hive, but Mack replies that they just need to have a little faith. Lincoln deduces that from Lash’s death, his mission was not to kill Hive but to protect Daisy. Simmons, however, replies that whatever protected Daisy wasn’t Lash.

Simmons then arrives to state that Daisy seems to have been cured from Hive, though she is still weak from the blood loss and withdrawal. Otherwise, the agent should make a full recovery. Unfortunately, from the information Simmons has gathered from Daisy, she and Fitz believe that Hive is planning a massive shockwave to infect the planet and create more of the Inhuman monstrosities. Then, Talbot reveals that the item stolen from the ATCU was a warhead, exactly what Hive needs to complete this plan.


In Mack’s room, the agent is visited by Elena. She remarks that now he seems to have found some faith. With Daisy back, he should be happy, but Mack still has some doubts. To help him, Elena gives him her cross necklace, reminding him to keep the faith. 

SHIELD Notes

  • Mack is now in possession of Elena's cross necklace. Does this mean anything towards Daisy's vision?
  • James, who became Hellfire, finally used his signature fiery chain.
  • The newly-turned Inhumans actually resemble a race from the comics known as the Alpha Primitives. These were a slave race created by the Inhumans themselves and only fitting since Radcliffe referred to them as the Alpha test.
  • Who really names these things I wonder?

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