What I’m Watching: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D: Season 2, Episode 2 “Heavy is the Head” (C+)

A friend asked me earlier this week why I’m still watching this show, and I’m honestly not sure. It probably wouldn’t be too hard for me to part with this show given that Tuesday nights are probably my most crowded TV evening at the moment aside from Sundays, but I’m not sure how quickly I can actually give up on it. It’s not that the show’s storyline is continuing to draw me in, since the pieces left by Hydra are far from compelling at this point. I guess there’s something to be said for Coulson actually being flanked by plenty of backup in the form of his cloaked ships, but that’s still not reason enough for Talbot to stop pursuing S.H.I.E.L.D. as an enemy, which is a major distraction to all the actual bad guys the ragtag agency has to deal with. Mack working to help get Fitz back on track was somewhat interesting, but I don’t know how long the show can sustain Simmons as nothing more than a hallucination. Her return would certainly not be welcomed by her former colleagues, who seem entirely resentful of her untimely departure from their ranks. Raina is not a character I’m particularly fond of since she oozes a sort of confidence that isn’t becoming, and it looks like she’ll now be a major player on a side wholly different than Hydra. Who she brings with her is far more interesting, and that’s Kyle Maclachlan, who is likely playing Skye’s father. His presence makes this show possibly worth returning to, though I haven’t made up my mind about whether to watch next week’s episode. Since this show tries to incorporate so much awkward and often poorly-timed humor, I think it’s worth mentioning that TVGuide.com included it on their entertaining list of 13 Times ABC Show Titles Made Us Say WTF.