"Toldja" – Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. S06E07 Review

We're back to the Shrike this week. No mention of Barry and "Gesundheit", and the mysterious ruins in Guatemala.

"Toldja" primarily exists to establish the Shrike as a major threat. So far, we've only seen them possess and/or kill the occasional human. Now we get a hint of their world-destroying power, with a fairly impressive Cube-like extension of spikes. Also, the mystery of Sarge vs. Coulson continues. The episode doesn't answer any of the questions that have been raised, like why Sarge has the same DNA as Coulson. Is he a clone, or from a parallel universe/timeline, or something else? None of that is answered or even addressed this week. Mack confirms Sarge's DNA is the same as Coulson, but that's about it.

We also get a little bit of Anthony Michael Hall as Mr. Kitson. So if you're a fan of National Lampoon's Vacation or The Breakfast Club or The Dead Zone (he's been in other stuff, but does anyone remember him on Warehouse 13?), there's that. He shows up long enough to provide a minor obstacle for Fitz-Simmons and Enoch, but it's a pretty forgettable appearance.

On to the plots. On Earth, Sarge and Snowflake have been captured. Sarge is all full of "I'll be in charge here soon" and "You can't hold me for long". It turns out his buddy, Jaco, is part-dragon. I did like Winston James Francis' dialogue about his family: Francis made the character a bit more human, even if he's an alien. It also helps establish why he's a member of Sarge's crew. What the deal is with Snowflake, I still have no idea.

Deke is along for some reason, and he provides most of the excuse for exposition. First, Deke tries to impress Daisy with how he's now some kind of tech guru. And then, Mack flatters him into helping them hack Sarge's tech. Once Deke does, they track down two more of the Shrike-infested. Melinda, Yo-Yo, and their teams easily capture them. However, after they're brought back in the Zephyr, they unite and start sprouting spikes. That's the Cube part I was talking about earlier, as spikes shoot out everywhere and eventually break the containment module.

At the Lighthouse, Mack asks Sarge for help and Sarge agrees... if Mack gives Sarge his truck and his people. Rather than see Yo-Yo and Melinda killed, Mack agrees. This somehow puts Sarge in charge of S.H.I.E.L.D., which wasn't part of the deal, but oh well. It turns out the Shrike don't handle cold well. Sarge tells the team that, and Melinda depressurizes the cargo bay. The cold freezes the Shrike spikes and they shatter off into the upper atmosphere.

Off on Kitson, Enoch teleports himself and Fitz-Simmons back into the House of Games casino. A patron takes the teleportation device and accidentally teleports himself away. Kitson has the trio picked and has Fitz-Simmons participate in a game of execution with a thief. However, a mystery woman, Izel, (Karolina Wydra) has been prowling around. She sticks a knife against Kitson's back and tells him to make sure Fitz-Simmons win. Kitson has a remote-control device to shock the thief, getting him killed. And that's the last we see of Kitson.

Izel tells the trio she's heading to Earth and needs them on her new crew. The woman has deep pockets, so she essentially buys their old ship and once Fitz-Simmons repair the jump drive, they're heading for Earth. Enoch says that now that his mission is complete, he has to go help his people. I wouldn't think they'd be that happy to see him after he killed the hunters that came after him. I suppose we'll find out. I'll be sad to see Joel Stoffer go: he was the best part of the Fitz space adventures. An episode without Enoch is like... an episode without Enoch.

And that's it for this episode. Sarge is now in charge of S.H.I.E.L.D, and Fitz-Simmons are heading back to Earth.

"Toldja" was a fairly average episode: there were some bright spots: Jaco's bit of personal background, anything with Enoch, Clark Gregg as almost-too-smug Sarge, and upping the stakes a bit by showing how dangerous the Shrike are even if they aren't inside of someone's body.

I'm still not warming to Season 6 Deke. Odd, since I was okay with him last season. This year he just doesn't seem to fit well in the present with the rest of the team. A fish out of water, as it were. Maybe that's why he's only appeared in two out of seven episodes so far: the creative team figured he wasn't a good fit, either. It also seems like Jeff Ward has a developed an "Oh, aren't I clever?" look to direct at the camera on occasion. And finally, I thought they already had Marcus (Barry Shabaka Henley) as a science consultant. So they replaced their replacement tech guy with another replacement tech guy? Or maybe Marcus is biology (formerly Jemma) while Deke is more technology (formerly Fitz)? I wish they'd clarify that. Deke doesn't seem to do anything that any of the agent/computer/technician guys could do.

(My apologies, by the way: I mentioned last week that I didn't know why Jemma called Fitz a grandfather, and had forgotten that Deke was their grandchild rather than their child.)

Overall, "Toldja" was a decent episode. It was more of a placeholder than anything: we could pretty much figure Sarge/Coulson was going to come out on top. And that Fitz-Simmons would get back to Earth somehow. The execution was fun and suspenseful in turns, but nothing radical.

But that's just my opinion, I could be wrong. What do you think?