Wow, that was a lot more than I expected from a time loop episode. I thought it would start them on a path to figuring out how to undo all the time damage done by the Comelyones, but instead it was all about things happening on a personal level.
More and more we're seeing that Coulson, despite his usual air of frivolity, is very unhappy with his current condition, and equally unhappy that he is there because of someone else's decision. This does not bode well for the future of the character. As I've said, this has always been the Coulson Show and I think we're facing the prospect of them ending together.
And then we have that Daisy and Sousa bonding thing going on. I have to say, I did notice some chemistry going on there, but I had it in my head that he was too old for her-- but, thinking it through, that's not really the case. This is a pretty cool development as far as I'm concerned.
And, almost unnoticed among all the other shenanigans, poor Deke was freaking out watching his grandmother die. Deke has levels.
The interminable circle of time loops ranged from agonizing to inappropriately hilarious. The sequence where Enoch repeatedly beat the crap out of everyone cracked me up. Over and over. "Is Deke dead?" "Yes." "Should we be sad?" "No."
But ultimately it was Enoch who saved them all, by very phlegmatically removing his own vital organ for Gemma to use as a spare part. As she and Deke worked out the technical solutions off camera, Daisy and Coulson sat with him while he slowly died in one of the most drawn-out and heartbreaking scenes of all time. He lived an unimaginably long life that was so lonely that he didn't even know he was lonely, but he managed to find friendship before he died-- and his final thoughts were of his best friend Fitz. So much for my hopes that he would be a permanent part of the elite SHIELD team by the end. And, of course, one has to wonder, since he's a robot, why they can't just plug his thingamajig back in, but I suppose there will be reasons.
I guess his premonition that the team would soon come to an end was supposed to be ominous, but it struck me as an obvious red herring. I think things will turn out well for at least most of the crew.
1
