Waking Up in Tahiti. Retrospective: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D - “The Magical Place”

Season 1, Episode 11

Air Date: Tuesday, January 7, 2014, 8/7c on ABC

Rating: ★★★★★

“We want you to tell us about the day after you died.” – Raina

Ward (Brett Dalton) and the rest of the S.H.I.E.L.D team scour the world trying to figure out where the people behind Project Centipede took Coulson (Clark Gregg). But when Agent Victoria Hand (Saffron Burrows) is brought in to aid the investigation, she expresses serious concerns about some of the team members and quickly makes some changes.

“The Magical Place” begins with a chase in a skyscraper to capture a mysterious alien artifact dealer named Vanchat (Aiden Turner). What makes the chase enjoyable is this is one of the few times we have seen the agents collectively working as a team, utilizing each of their skill sets to flawlessly pull off a mission. It is obvious Coulson’s abduction is the driving force that brings them together.

The rift between Skye (Chloe Bennet) and the S.H.I.E.L.D leadership continues as Agent Hand questions Skye’s value on the team. With May’s (Min-Na Wen) blessing, Hand kicks Skye off the team and orders her to be debriefed after confiscating her computer. Before that can happen, though, Ward, Fitz (Ian De Caestecker) and Simmons (Elizabeth Henstridge) arrange for her to get away.

Meanwhile, Coulson is hooked up to a mind-probing machine as Centipede group member Edison Po (Cullen Douglas) interrogates him about the mystery surrounding his death. All Coulson remembers is waking up in Tahiti next to a beautiful woman and being served drinks as he relaxes.

Skye continues her search for Coulson by following the money, which ultimately leads her to Lloyd Rathman (Rob Huebel). Skye convinces him she is a S.H.I.E.L.D agent by posing as Melinda May. With his help, Skye is able to figure out where Coulson is and calls in the rest of the team. They arrive just in time to rescue Coulson but not before he learns some disturbing facts about his death.

Once freed, Coulson pays a surprise visit to Dr Streiten (Ron Glass), who reveals to Coulson the real story behind his death and the lengths Nick Fury (Samuel L Jackson) went to in order to bring him back.

So what works?

May’s betrayal of Skye is no surprise given their seemingly rocky past. What I did not see coming, though, is the twist as to why she did it after being confronted by Grant:

May: “All I did was tell Hand the truth. Skye’s no use to us on this plane.”

Ward: “How can you say that?”

May: “She’s not. Not with all these agents here, over her shoulder, monitoring her every move.”

Ward: “You wanted her off the plane?”

May: “Outside the system, that’s how Skye works best…You don’t have to assume the worst of me.”

I really enjoyed how the writers set up that situation because I too found myself assuming the worst of May. It also allowed Skye to blow off some steam by dressing as and pretending to be May

For a show that is basically built around Coulson, seeing him almost on the sidelines was nice; it allowed the other characters to step up while also showing the degrees they go to in order to bring him back.

On to what didn’t work.

Remove the hype and “The Magical Place” is actually a good episode. But, ABC and Marvel have been hyping Coulson’s death long before the first episode aired. In the weeks leading up to “The Magical Place,” fans were told this is the episode where we learn the truth behind his death. Rumors that Coulson was a clone or a robot swirled the internet. Finally, after months of being teased and being told there was a mystery behind his death, we finally learn he simply had really good doctors. That is, if you believe the story we were handed.

As a kid, did your parents ever tell you, for weeks on end, they were going to take you to the water park and when the day finally arrived, it turned out to be the Slip ‘n Slide your parents set up in the back yard? Sure, and much like a Slip ‘n Slide, “The Magical Place” is fun but isn’t the water park we were promised. While a few of the details pertaining to Coulson’s death present interesting story lines for some of the characters in the future, you still can’t help but feel let down by the writers and the studios. Fans were given all kinds of promises regarding answers but in the end, they were given what can only be described as a non-answer that does not fit the months of hype surrounding this episode.

On a related note, how powerful would that scene in the car have been if it were Nick Fury in the front seat explaining his actions instead of Dr Streiten?

What do you think? Is this really the answer or will more mysteries be unlocked as Coulson digs deeper into the events surrounding his death? Leave a comment or tweet me at @StaffaRoadTrip.

For more on the show, go to http://www.agentsofshield.com/.

Follow Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D on Twitter, as well as some of the cast: <Ward> Brett Dalton, <Coulson> Clark Gregg, <Simmons> Elizabeth Henstridge, and <May> Ming-Na Wen

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Greg Staffa

I provide testosterone to the site. You won’t be reading about how nice a actress looks in a dress or how much of a hunk Matt Bomer is in my reviews. I describe colors using words like brown, not taupe. My twitter name is @staffaroadtrip because I love road trips and have done two different 48-state road trips since 2008. My favorite show is White Collar.