One article on the subject caught my eye both for its attention to one of the show’s much-heralded innovations -- the use of “pods” in its creatively rich season 4 -- and for the ways in which I realized that the articles’ analysis of the seasons missed the mark. The article traces a trajectory of development from a mostly procedural first season, through a serialized second season, into a subtitled third season, and a “pod-ed” fourth season. What this narrative does not see is the way that the showrunners -- Jed Whedon, Maurissa Tancharoen and Jeff Bell -- have been playing with structure and narrative since the very beginning. In reality, SHIELD has been doing "mini-arcs" with internal, compounding climaxes since the very beginning. It's just experimented with seasonal structure in several different ways.
SHIELD's experimentation with structure can be observed through two lenses: 1) the use of protagonists and antagonists; and 2) gradually more complex narrative arcs from season to season. Let’s explore both lenses. In order to reduce the amount of scrolling, I've divided this into two posts. You can access the second post through a link at the end of this first one. Obviously, there are spoilers for all five seasons of Agents of SHIELD.
1) Protagonists and Antagonists
For the first three seasons, Coulson and Skye/Daisy act as the main protagonists of the show. Other characters may have arcs that influence the plot (particularly Fitz and Simmons), but Coulson and Skye/Daisy normally carry the main arcs for the season. This can be seen both through the enduring themes and questions of each season and through the use of other characters, including antagonists, for each narrative arc.
In SEASON 1 there are interweaving arcs within distinct pods. In the first season, Coulson and Skye’s arcs are mainly interwoven. Both of them are trying to discern a) why they exist and for what purpose they exist; and b) who to trust. Coulson experiences this through his “resurrection” arc, which culminates in the realization that Fury resurrected him in order to eventually make him the new Director of SHIELD. Skye experiences this through her “belonging” arc, which culminates in her receiving her official SHIELD badge (and then lanyard). Coulson’s trust in others is continually brought into question, but he (almost) never wavers. Skye begins from a place of deep distrust, but eventually learns to trust her team, even after Ward betrays them. From this perspective, we can see how both May and Ward serve these larger thematic arcs. Coulson is brought to the point of suspecting May, one of his oldest friends -- demonstrating how much his trust has been tested. Skye becomes so trusting that she falls for Ward, who is eventually revealed to be the true traitor. These “trust” themes both culminate in Episode 17 (“Turn, Turn, Turn”), when Coulson locks May in the interrogation room and Ward is revealed as a member of Hydra.
From this perspective, we can see how the showrunners played with structure even in this first season by introducing and then paying off multiple antagonists throughout these interweaving threads for the two protagonists.
The first episode (“Pilot”), introduces us to all of the main characters, but mainly serves as an introduction to Coulson’s arc through the cryptic mentions of his memory loss, and through the character foil of Mike Peterson, who, through his “how can the little man expect to survive in a world of Gods and Monsters” perspective highlights Coulson’s trust in his team, in SHIELD, and even in Mike Peterson. Coulson sees the good in people, including in Skye, the hactivist. The second episode (“0-8-4”) introduces us to the concept of mysterious items (several of which will tie into Skye’s longer character arc for the series), but also to Skye’s arc for the season, since Skye begins the episode by joining the team and ends it by seemingly betraying them through contacting her old group, the Rising Tide. Throughout the episode, multiple people question her trustworthiness and why she should be on the team.
The next three episodes alternate introducing antagonists and themes for Skye and Coulson. Episode 3 introduces Quinn, a main antagonist for Skye, while demonstrating that she can be trustworthy. Episode 4 introduces the cybernetic eye that will be used to control Mike Peterson later in the season, but also introduces the theme that Coulson seems to be different since his resurrection. Episode 5 introduces Raina, who is an antagonist for both Skye and Coulson during the first two seasons. It also introduces the idea of the Clairvoyant, who will be the overarching antagonist for the season. Thus, these three episodes chart out the main characters who will recur in the final arc(s) of this first season.
Episode 6 takes a breather from Coulson and Skye to focus on a Simmons adventure and Fitz' affection for her, though Coulson gets to wax poetic about his death, and demonstrates his newfound willingness to break with protocol in order to preserve the lives of the team that he trusts. Episode 7 introduces the larger theme of trust in the institution for both Skye and Coulson, as well as Victoria Hand, who will represent SHIELD. But, in reality, it is a showcase for Fitz, who goes on his first adventure with Ward, carrying along a sandwich made by Simmons. Episode 8 fleshes out the character of Ward. Episode 9 fleshes out the character of May. So, now, after nine episodes, all of the main characters and themes for the season have been introduced.
Episodes 10, 11 and 12 then cap off the first "pod" of the season by bringing back Raina, Peterson, Victoria Hand, the Clairvoyant, centipede, and the cybernetic eyes. Thematically, the episodes also highlight both Coulson’s resurrection and Skye’s untrustworthiness again. Episode 12 brings back Quinn, as well as does the work of tying an 0-8-4 into Skye’s story, before introducing the main thrust of the second half of the season -- the hunt for the Clairvoyant.
From this point on -- except for episode 15 (“Yes Men”), which pauses to once again flesh out both Ward and May -- the show is effectively serialized, and NOT procedural, with an ongoing narrative about the hunt for the Clairvoyant and the fallout that comes from discovering who the Clairvoyant is. The Clairvoyant becomes a foil for Coulson and Coulson’s trust in SHIELD, while also bringing together the other antagonists, who mostly act as antagonists for Skye (Ward, Quinn, Raina). Throughout the second half of the season, Coulson and Skye’s arcs are continually referenced and intertwined -- Coulson through the fallout of his trust in bringing Peterson onto his team and through Coulson’s mistrust of May; Skye through her initial growing relationship with Ward and eventually realization of his betrayal, as well as the sacrifices she makes in order to become an Agent of SHIELD (in order to belong).
From this perspective it is clear that Season 1 actually did contain at least two pods (though I will later argue for three). The first might be called “Beginnings” or “The Status Quo.” It felt like a “procedural” for the first nine episodes because the show was introducing all of the players and concepts and themes slowly, through seemingly disconnected events. But really, starting with Episode 10, the show becomes more and more serialized, with characters introduced earlier in the season coming back on a regular basis. Episodes 10 and 11 cap off the first pod, while Episode 12 paves the way for the second (and third). This format is the most like other superhero shows, particularly The Flash, though I would argue that SHIELD’s seeding of people and concepts and payoff of those people and concepts is much better than The Flash.
In SEASONS 2 and 3 -- which are generally divided into two large pods -- instead of being intertwined, either Coulson or Daisy dominate while the other recedes. This becomes noticeable based upon who the antagonist(s) are for each pod. In season 2, the antagonist for the first pod is Daniel Whitehall, who Coulson kills in episode 10; the antagonist for the second pod is Jiaying, who dies in episode 22. Daisy’s father and Ward act as secondary antagonists throughout the season, and occasional secondary anti-heroes, sometimes helping and sometimes hurting the main team. In season 3, Ward/Hive is the overall antagonist, though the person for whom he is the antagonist switches halfway through the season, along with his character/identity/personality. The other antagonists for the first pod revolve around Coulson – first Rosalind Price, then Lash (who is related to both May and Coulson), then Ward, who becomes Coulson’s antagonist because he killed Rosalind Price. This is why it is Coulson who kills Ward in the first arc. Ward then becomes Hive, who is Daisy’s antagonist for the second half of the season. Hive is killed along with Lincoln at the end of the second arc; both of these characters were related to Daisy. Notice, incidentally, that both the second and third seasons contain mirroring actions for Coulson and Daisy. In both seasons, their antagonists die. In season 2, Daisy's father kills her mother in order to save her. In season 3, both of their lovers die (Rosalind and Lincoln). Once again, Daisy's antagonist (Hive) is killed by someone who loves her (Lincoln).
Within these first three seasons, Fitz and Simmons generally operate within their own subplot, of which they are both the protagonists. Their character arcs for these first three seasons are generally season-long, instead of being divided up within the larger 2 or three pods of the season. Season 1 - Arc 1: bickering – episodes 1-6, culminating in Fitz showing genuine care for Simmons when she is infected; Arc 2: teammates – episodes 7-13, because their relationship is in stasis (they are simply working well together), there is no “culminating moment"; Arc 3: Fitz’ affection – episodes 14-22, a wedge begins to be driven between the two characters, starting with Simmons and Triplett flirting a bit in Episode 14, culminating in Fitz expressing his love for Jemma in Episode 22. In season 2, their arcs match up a little bit more with the main arcs. Simmons returns to the team in Episode 5 (the middle of the first arc, but the end of the first mini-arc - see the next post). She and Fitz are a major focus in Episode 6 (notice a pattern from the first season). But their story doesn’t really move forward, just like the first season, until Episode 22, when they agree to go out to dinner. Season 3 includes a more defined arc for the characters, as Simmons' experiences on Maveth directly drive he plot as they enter the monolith to save Will. Though they fade into the background for the second half of the season, their arc progresses in lockstep with the progression of the pods in the season -- they kiss in Episode 17, the same episode that closes out the “Secret Warriors” pod (see the next post).
In SEASON 4, one might say that there are really three protagonists, one for each pod, and they are protagonists who have not been focused on before. For the first two of these new protagonists, one of the former “main” protagonists (Coulson and Daisy) act as the secondary protagonists. For the last of these new protagonists, it is Fitz and Simmons who are brought to the forefront. Pod 1: Ghost Rider with secondary protagonist of Daisy. Ghost Rider is truly the protagonist of this pod. But, Daisy also goes on a journey. She begins the arc separate from the team and ends the pod by joining the team again in an official role. Pod 2: LMD May with secondary protagonist of Coulson. The pod technically begins with the very end of Episode 8, in which it is revealed that May is an LMD. It ends with Episode 15, when the May LMD dies in order to let the others go. Pod 3: Fitz and Simmons. Fitz is technically the antagonist of this pod. Because of the switch-up in protagonist, the subplot protagonist position that used to be occupied by Fitz and Simmons is taken up by Yo-Yo and Mack, whose character arcs thread through the nine episodes in which Yo-Yo guest stars.
SEASON 5 feels messier than Season 4 because it returns to interweaving protagonists, but this time with Fitz and Simmons occupying shared space alongside Daisy and Coulson, and Yo-Yo and Mack once again serving the role that Fitz and Simmons used to fill. One might also say that there are two pairs of protagonists, who each have a set of sidekicks. Coulson and Daisy drive one plot, with May and Deke as sidekicks. Fitz and Simmons drive another plot, with Yo-Yo and Mack as sidekicks. Deke and Yo-Yo both flip back and forth between the sets of protagonists, while Mack and May generally stick with the paired protagonists for whom they serve as sidekicks. Nevertheless, this more complicated set-up may be why season five has felt less successful and narratively tight compared to Season 4 (just as Season 3 was less narratively tight than Season 2, because, as we will explore below, the showrunners are playing with even more “mini-arcs” and the main antagonist – Ward – switched the person he was antagonizing half-way through the season, just as the antagonists for season five seem to have switched too often). The antagonists have a messy relationship with everyone, but Kasius is more of an antagonist for Daisy, Simmons and Yo-Yo, while Hale and Talbot are more antagonists for Coulson. One might even say that Kasius is a primary antagonist for the secondary protagonists of Yo-Yo and Mack, who, along with Simmons, end up facing him at the end of the first pod. One could also argue that Fitz is the antagonist for the middle pod of the fifth season (see the next post).
The next post examines the second lens -- plot, instead of character.
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