Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. - Season 5, Episode 10 Review
Its an episode very much designed to resolve key plot-threads from the previous nine episodes, resulting in a rather peculiar installment of the series that probably flows much better when watched immediately after the previous episode (and vice-versa). The plot's already in motion, meaning that we have little time to 'get in' to the episode before things start kicking off. However, due to the nature of the story, its not as 'epic' as some big episodes have been in the past. I recently discovered that ABC had actually slashed the budget for the show, hence why the series has relied on the same sets for these first ten episodes of Season 5, which in retrospect makes a lot of sense. There's virtually no location work, and everything is pretty much set-bound, aside from the occasional exterior CGI shot of spaceships flying around. It's been very well-handled by the production team, but it certainly makes me think about what's happened to Agents of SHIELD over its four and a half season run.
Kasius finally met a grisly end in this episode, 'muted' by Simmons and stabbed through the chest by Mack. Its a fitting end for the character, but I was somewhat disappointed to see his conflict resolved in a punch-up between him and Mack. Kasius has been such an interesting villain because he doesn't do that sort of thing, so seeing him drugged-up and beating on Mack just felt like a far too conventional showdown for his character.
I'm also not entirely sure what to make of this future prophecy stuff in the show. Seeing armless future Yo-yo warn her past self of her inevitable fate, and warning about the team trying to save a dying Coulson seemed like the show was trying to build on the suspense we already had surrounding the team's return to present day. The whole "the future is inevitable" has grown a little tiring, although Daisy's determination to stay in 2091 seemed like the first bit of common sense we'd really had surrounding all this time-travel malarkey.
Daisy knows that she'll have to use her powers again in the future, and that'll set off the chain of events leading to her destroying Earth. It also makes sense that Coulson wouldn't let her stay, and do whatever he could to bring her back, no matter the cost. Coulson was for a long time a father figure to Daisy - even if this has been disappointingly downplayed in recent episodes - so seeing him trying to save her from the dystopian future seemed very fitting from a character perspective. I also think that in setting up Daisy as fearing her powers the season is establishing an element of suspense to be explored in future episodes. I just wish the script and performance had really helped to showcase Daisy's sense of guilt. I couldn't really get a sense of that on-screen because it never felt like a full character beat. While Daisy's quips are part of her character, I think she needed a moment of emotional honesty. Perhaps that's what her character has been lacking recently.
So...yeah, I didn't love "Past Life", but its in a very awkward position. It's not much of a satisfying standalone episode, and its faults could easily be overlooked if the season as a whole ends with an overall sense of satisfaction. Despite not being perfect, I look back on Season 4 as a great season because the whole thing had a very strong ending. It managed to keep a certain amount of momentum, with even its weaker episodes not really detracting from the overall narrative. Season 5 is clearly attempting something very similar, giving me hope that by the end of the season I'll look back on this episode in a much more positive light because I knew it was leading to something much more spectacular.
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