Marvel's Agents of SHIELD Series Finale Review

The latest game news from IGN - one of my fave channels ever - check it out Warning: The following review contains spoilers for the Agents of SHIELD two-part series finale.  [poilib element="accentDivider"] After seven seasons, and a notable full split from the MCU around the time of Avengers: Infinity War, Marvel's Agents SHIELD wrapped up its massive (and sometimes overstuffed) saga with a two-parter that was all about giving us a warm send-off for this tight-knit, ragtag family. Yes, surprisingly, everything smoothed out just fine for the SHIELD team, which was somewhat unexpected given the show's habit of dealing out somber tragedy on a regular basis. Of course, the ending couldn't exactly repeat the dour, but also appropriate, ending to Season 5 -- back when the writers were crafting a possible series finale because they had a strong suspicion it was the end -- where Coulson died for real. That felt like a true bookend. Continuing two seasons past that, things had to go down differently. The fans love the characters and the cast loves each other, so there was no reason to not send us out with a big love fest. In fact, the final ten minutes or so of "What We're Fighting For" was dedicated to giving us closure and a big "where are they now?" epilogue. Seeing the core team (absent Deke and Sousa), still intact, with no members having perished during the final showdown with the Chronicoms and Nathaniel Malick, all sitting around in a virtual reunion, it became apparent how little the rest of the season meant. That's not meant to be a dig, really, but just a way of noting that it didn't really matter, overall, who the villains were, or what the threat to the planet was. The series has been all about these characters for years now and the rest of it's just "big bad" dressing. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=marvels-agents-of-shield-the-many-lives-and-deaths-of-phil-coulson&captions=true"] Of course, without this year's cross-time caper, Sousa wouldn't have gotten swept up into the mix, which has been a big boon for the show, but Fitz returned (yes, they really did save his big Deus Ex Machina moment for the finale) and basically told the team that basically everything they'd just been through (including Mack losing his parents) didn't count because he was now back from the Quantum Realm to switch them all over to the original timeline just seconds after they initially blipped out of it. Their main goal had been (unknowingly to them) to get Daisy's sister, Kora, who didn't even become a plot point until more than halfway through the season. Nothing undercuts the adventure like having someone come in and say "it doesn't matter what you did, it only matters what we do now." That being said, this final season has still been entertaining, even if the revelation in the finale worked to undermine most of it. I guess that's the risk you run when you're dealing with time travel, resetting timelines, and temporal tinkering. It's nothing we didn't already experience to some extent back in the second half of Season 5. Still, given all this, "The End Is at Hand" -- which featured Mack, Daisy, and Sousa rescuing Simmons and Deke -- and "What We're Fighting For" were both rollicking affairs filled with action, heart, and humor. Daisy even got to have a final Quake-tastic battle with the anti-Quake, Nathaniel, as a cool one-on-one super battle. And their fight even came with a death tease when it seemed like Daisy would actually go out swinging, sacrificing herself for the team. But she was saved, Kora blasted Sibyl's Chronicom army with empathy (sure), and the entire evil plot to conquer Earth was undone. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/04/28/agents-of-shield-season-7-official-trailer-exclusive"] Though as much as these two episodes featured spirited action, as well as a fitting send-off for young John Garrett (played by Bill Paxton's son, James), the focus here, for a show that's arguably lingered on a few years after it gave us a fitting finale, was on the characters and their fates. What really mattered was the interpersonal interplay between them: Daisy and Sousa finding love; Daisy being able to redeem the sister she never knew existed; Fitz and Simmons actually getting a "happily ever after" (and not just in the end, but in a time pocket that we never even knew about - and that Simmons had made herself forget about - where they had years together and a child). Oh, and then there was Deke staying behind in the changed timeline to run SHIELD and/or be a rock god. These were the heartfelt character moments that truly fueled these final two episodes. It was interesting to see Coulson and May not wind up with each other in the end, given the fan fervor around them, but that just plays into the whole idea of not wanting to repeat Season 5. Plus, Coulson's new life as an LMD created enough of an emotional barrier/buffer to help us detach. Coulson, May, Mack, and Yo-Yo all still remain part of SHIELD at the end of the finale, though: Mack and Yo-Yo as the Director (with a Fury-style trench coat) and the top agent, respectively, May as an instructor, and Coulson as a recruiter (who still gets to zoom around in Lola!). Fitz is retired, Simmons is partly out, and Daisy is now part of some sort of galactic diplomatic mission (which probably also connects to SHIELD). Plus, she's found love with Sousa and family with Kora. When a show's gone on a bit past its sell-by date, this is the type of ending you want, because those still watching SHIELD are the die-hards who've stuck with the series and probably don't care too much about its original MCU ties. That's not to say that viewers won't appreciate the occasional Easter egg or callback to when the show was tucked more snugly into in the nest of Marvel's larger movie-based narratives, but the real draw is the world the show has created for itself now. With that in mind, this was the right way to go out for all involved.

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