Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. “Turn, Turn, Turn” 

Well, this is somewhat of a pickle. While I assume you’re all smart enough to know that what follows will contain spoilers for Captain America: The Winter Soldier, I’m still in a bit of a bind as to how much exactly to spoil for the three people on the planet who haven’t hoofed it over to their local multiplex to see the number one movie in the world. And may I just add, I do not think I am a fan of this film/television show tie-in approach to entertainment. I hope it doesn’t become a thing. While I, of course, was planning on seeing TWS, I don’t appreciate being coerced into a viewing on a pre-determined timeframe orchestrated by television and movie executives who decided I needed to see it between Friday and Monday or else have my Tuesday night show wrecked. I live in the middle of nowhere and a trip into the Big Smoke for something even as mundane as a movie requires some deal of prep, cost and planning. Are you going to cover my mileage, Marvel, for bullying me into making an extra trip into the city with the whole family? Yeah. I thought not. I do not like this thing. Don’t become a thing.

The name of this week’s episode is “Turn, Turn, Turn,” which could have easily been a reference to the amount of turncoating our characters, and therefore, the entire SHIELD organization did. Nobody was shocked at all when Agent John Garrett (Bill Paxton) turned out to be hailing HYDRA all along. It’s a common trope to have an old friend show up and be the one who ends up stabbing you in the back, so plenty of fans saw this coming. Still, the writers kept us guessing until the final turn.

A little more surprising was the reveal that Ward, our Ward, that big plank of two by four, has been with HYDRA all along, as evidenced when he shot Victoria Hand and two other SHIELD agents who were escorting Garret to the SHIELD Fridge, where they store all their goodies. That one caught me by surprise, I’ll admit. Mostly, frankly, because I didn’t think Ward could be that interesting.

But I’m more inclined to think of the classic Byrds song, ‘Turn, Turn, Turn.’ For everything there is a season, and SHIELD’s season (no pun intended) seems to be over, and HYDRA’s is beginning (the rise of the logo at the end of the episode was inspired). A time to build up, a time to break down. HYDRA has been building itself up secretly in SHIELD for decades, and is now breaking SHIELD down to stand on its own.

Before the reveal, there was considerable time spent focusing on Ward and Skye’s romantic relationship in this episode, even going so far as to agreeing to a drinks date and a kiss (that had less chemistry than if you took your lunch out of its brown paper bag, drew a face on it, and then proceeded to make out with your lunch-bag puppet).

It makes a sort of sense that Ward would be Hydra, if anyone on this team was. Garrett was his SO, so there was plenty of time for him to get his HYDRA-infected claws into Ward. Also, Ward is dumb as a sack of hammers. Most importantly, though, Ward is not a fan favorite. At all. If you read any boards, the Ward dislike is pretty universal, so why not go with that and turn an already disliked character into a villain? It might even help him develop some much-needed charisma. Remaining on the team while being a HYDRA agent and seducing Skye? That has my interest. A time to love; a time to hate. Turn, turn, turn.

Marvel’s Agents of S.H.E.I.L.D. airs Tuesdays at 8/7c on ABC.