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Managing editor & film and television critic with a Bachelor's of Arts in English Literature with a Writing Minor from the University of Guam. Currently in graduate school completing a Master's in English Literature.
Our heroes fail to win in their recent battle against the final evil of the universe. Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.‘s sixth episode of its final season is titled “Adapt or Die;” it is written by series writer DJ Doyle, and directed by Aprill Winney.
Some spoilers ahead for those who are not up-to-date with the series or not caught up with this episode. If you haven’t done either, get to that now, then return to this article!
Continuing from the previous episode, Nathaniel Malick (Thomas E. Sullivan) has Daniel Sousa (guest star Enver Gjokaj) and Daisy Johnson (Chloe Bennet) captured in hopes that he takes Quake’s Inhuman abilities. Meanwhile, agents Melinda May (Ming-Na Wen) and Chronicom Life Model Decoy Phil Coulson (Clark Gregg) save Rick Stoner (Patrick Warburton) and the SHIELD headquarters Lighthouse from being taken over by enemy. Chronicoms. What results is an episode-long storyline that focuses on matters going awry during the Chronicoms’ attack.
In an Invasion of the Body Snatchers fashion, Chronicom predictor Sybil (Tamara Taylor) foresees her species gaining the upper hand and the agents losing this battle, thus deviating from the original timeline. She says, “As one branch dies, a new one bears fruit.” She explains to other Chronicom Luke (Tobias Jelinek) that the agents will be divided, overwhelmed, and bent under stress. She releases Chronicom hunters to go after the agents, with Coulson’s life being sacrificed as a consequence. Coulson discovers that his Chronicom LMD self has developed feelings or, as May puts it, “simulated personality.” They realize that the other Chronicoms have mimicked and adapted to this, and creating personalities for themselves in the process. The outcome is a society of deindividuated subjects taking the memories and identities of human beings.
Jemma Simmons (Elizabeth Henstridge) tries to block out her own memories of the past by implanting a device in her brain that suppresses the significant ones from being recalled.
The major theme of this episode is anxiety, specifically death anxiety. SHIELD Director Alphonso “Mack” MacKenzie (Henry Simmons) worries his parents will be killed off by his HYDRA or that organization’s futuristic robot allies, the Chronicoms. May has had enough of Coulson; she tells him that he has died numerous times and she is done with mourning his loss. In his confrontation with Sybil, Coulson tells her that “I haven’t feared death in a long time. The fact is dying is kind of my superpower.” Sybil argues on thing when she says, “Humans have limited amount of [time] and therefore fear death. They act irrationally to prevent themselves or others from experiencing death. Chronicoms cannot die. Time has no consequence.” On the other hand, Coulson counters this statement:
Time is limited, which means sacrifice comes at a real cost. Not just data [but] heart and pain and blood and sweat and tears. All the good human stuff, and we will never give up.
So far, “Adapt or Die” is an episode that is unique from the others of this season. The agents’ timeline has been branched out into another dimension but they still have hope in changing it. As Mack says, “If I can’t fix one thing, you fix another.” The episode plays around with its writing and storytelling aspects by looking at what is not done as often, which is developing their characters in ways that fans have never seen before. Nathaniel Malick cites a HYDRA higher-up: “Discovery requires experimentation.”
8/10
What do you think? Have you seen this series? If not, do you plan to binge it sometime in the near future? Let us know! For more Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., action, science-fiction, and Marvel-related news and reviews, follow The Cinema Spot on Twitter (@TheCinemaSpot) and Instagram (@thecinemaspot_).
Managing editor & film and television critic with a Bachelor's of Arts in English Literature with a Writing Minor from the University of Guam. Currently in graduate school completing a Master's in English Literature.
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