History Recap / AgentsOfSHIELDS1E8TheWell

** It looks like the way Thor described a bilge-snipe to Coulson.

** Early on, we get a hint that both Skye and May were EatingTheEyeCandy. Both agree (insist) that Thor is dreamy; [[InsistentTerminology Not handsome, dreamy.]]

Coulson and his team deal with the aftermath of ''Film/ThorTheDarkWorld'' by cleaning up after the battling titans and searching for any Asgardian tech they may have left behind. Meanwhile, a Norwegian paganist hate group has already found an item that's been hidden for centuries--the Berserker Staff, which gives anyone who touches it SuperStrength by drawing on their hidden rage. The paganists want to take Earth back from the gods by [[AGodAmI becoming gods themselves]], so they use the staff to create a small army of berserkers. To stop all this, Coulson's team seeks the help of Professor Elliot Randolph (Peter [=MacNicol=]), an expert in Norse mythology who is more than meets the eye. Along the way, Ward touches the staff and falls victim to its power, becoming emotionally unstable as he's forced to remember a traumatic incident from his childhood.

** Regular humans gaining power from an Asgardian weapon is similar to Thor's first appearance in JOURNEY INTO MYSTERY #83, when Dr. Donald Blake found Thor's hammer. Blake was not established as Thor in a human form for a few issues.
** The Berserker Staff seems to be the in-universe's equivalent of The Wrecker's crowbar. http://www.comicvine.com/wrecker/4005-2252/. It grants great physical strength, the wielder can share the power with others, and this episode's antagonists become a literal wrecking crew. Also, like Wrecker and his team, the villains are physically powerful but lack real fight skills.

* CatapultNightmare: Coulson experiences this after dreaming about "Tahiti", in which his masseuse uses the "magical place" phrase.

** Simmons is still dealing with aftereffects from her near-death experience in "FZZT". She hesitates to investigate or approach alien artifacts.

Coulson and his team deal with the aftermath of ''Film/ThorTheDarkWorld'' by picking up after the battling titans, searching for any Asgardian tech they may have left behind. Meanwhile, a Norwegian paganist hate group has already found an item that's been hidden for centuries--the Berserker Staff, which gives anyone who touches it SuperStrength by drawing on their hidden rage. The paganists want to take Earth back from the gods by [[AGodAmI becoming gods themselves]], so they use the staff to create a small army of berserkers. To stop all this, Coulson's team seeks the help of Professor Elliot Randolph (Peter [=MacNicol=]), an expert in Norse mythology who is more than meets the eye. Along the way, Ward touches the staff and falls victim to its power, becoming emotionally unstable as he's forced to remember a traumatic incident from his childhood.

* TheAtoner: The episode makes it clear that this is a big part of Ward's and May's back stories.

* ContinuityNod: The beginning of this episode has Coulson's team doing cleanup at [[Film/ThorTheDarkWorld Greenwich University.]] Coulson also explains that Professor Randolph was consulted about Mjolnir during the first movie.
** Likewise, we are [[OnceAnEpisode reminded once again that Coulson got stabbed and knows the Avengers.]]
** Ward is still ''very angry'' at Skye for what she did in "The Girl in the Flower Dress". However, most of the anger he expresses is probably amplified by the Asgardian staff.
** And Simmons is still dealing with aftereffects from her near-death experience in "FZZT".
** Coulson suggests that Randolph relocate to Portland, noting that it has a great philharmonic. One is reminded of the cellist he dated before she moved there, mentioned in ''Avengers''.

* {{Expy}}: The Norse-anarchists are clearly meant to be the MarvelCinematicUniverse version of [[TheMightyThor the Wrecking Crew, a group of DumbMuscle criminals given Asgardian powers by accident]]. Rather than a 4-men group of dimwitted thugs who just want money, [[AdaptationalBadass they're now an entire cult obsessed with using the Berserker Staff to become new gods]], and only lost because Ward and May are actually trained in combat and just got better with the Berserker Staff.

** Ward. Shirtless.
** Early on, we get a hint that both Skye and May were EatingTheEyeCandy. Both agree (insist) that Thor is dreamy. [[InsistentTerminology Not handsome. Dreamy.]]

* AGodAmI: The Norse-Pagan group wants the staff to become gods, seeing this as the only method to combat the god-like beings coming to Earth.

* ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice: Professor Randolph gets stabbed with his own staff, but his accelerated healing allows him to survive after Coulson stifles the bleeding for long enough.

* MythologyGag: Regular humans gaining power from an Asgardian weapon is similar to Thor's first appearance in JOURNEY INTO MYSTERY #83, when Dr. Donald Blake found Thor's hammer. Blake was not established as Thor in a human form for a few issues.
** Also, the Berserker Staff seems to be the in-universe's equivalent of The Wrecker's crowbar. http://www.comicvine.com/wrecker/4005-2252/. It grants great physical strength, the wielder can share the power with others, and this episode's antagonists become a literal wrecking crew. Also, like Wrecker and his team, the villains are physically powerful but lack real fight skills.
** And one to actual Norse mythology. Randolph says that he worked as a mason in Asgard before becoming a warrior. A stone mason plays an important role in the birth of Odin's eight-legged horse [[http://www.pantheon.org/articles/s/sleipnir.html Sleipnir]].
* NoOntologicalInertia: Played straight and subverted with the staff. The strength wears off within days if it's not being held. The rage, however, is more or less permanent since the user has to cope with their memories to deal with it.

* NotHimself: Ward, throughout the episode while he's under the influence of the staff. Played with in that he at least acknowledges something's wrong with him.
* OneDegreeOfSeparation: Subverted. After being exposed as an Asgardian, Randolph is asked if he knows Thor. Randolph points out that he was a mason who became a common foot soldier. When would a guy like him get an opportunity to hobnob with the Crown Prince?
** Given that Randolph is supposed to have been on Earth for at least a thousand years, Thor was probably still a baby when he left Asgard, anyway.
* PlayAlongPrisoner: Randolph while being interrogated. Once he knows they know he's an Asgardian so there's no point pretending anymore, he casually snaps off his handcuffs.
* Really700YearsOld: Professor Randolph, since he's actually an Asgardian.

* RepressedMemories: The staff brings out Ward's long-forgotten memory of the first time he truly felt pure, unbridled hatred: his older brother telling Ward to leave their younger brother trapped in the bottom of a well. What May saw when she used the staff is unknown, but she had better control over the staff because she hadn't repressed those memories. Coulson briefly contemplates trying it himself, but decides against it. A nicely done scene, in that Randall correctly guesses that Coulson doesn't want the power, but the memory:

* ShoutOut: The ArcWords of a previous Whedon series show up: [[{{Dollhouse}} "Did I fall asleep?" "For a little while."]]

* [[SufficientlyAdvancedAliens Sufficiently Advanced Stonemason]]: He's not even the fancy "I'm an architect and my job is all management" kind of stonemason. Professor Randall spent thousands of years breaking rocks.

* TranquilFury: May is able to pick up the reformed staff, kick ass, then put it down with very little change in attitude. She explains that she is always reliving the memories the staff brings forth.

* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: Many people thought this episode would revolve around the Jotunheim beast featured in the second post-credits sequence of ''Film/ThorTheDarkWorld''. Not only does the beast not show up, it isn't mentioned whatsoever, despite the team visiting London at the beginning of the episode. For all we know, the beast could still be making a mess somewhere.

Coulson and his team deal with the aftermath of ''Film/ThorTheDarkWorld'' by picking up after the battling titans, searching for any Asgardian tech they may have left behind. Meanwhile, a a Norwegian paganist hate group has already found an item that's been hidden for centuries--the Berserker Staff, which gives anyone who touches it SuperStrength by drawing on their hidden rage. The paganists want to take Earth back from the gods by [[AGodAmI becoming gods themselves]], so they use the staff to create a small army of berserkers. To stop all this, Coulson's team seeks the help of Professor Elliot Randolph (Peter [=MacNicol=]), an expert in Norse mythology who is more than meets the eye. Along the way, Ward touches the staff and falls victim to its power, becoming emotionally unstable as he's forced to remember a traumatic incident from his childhood.

** Randolph is openly admiring of Simmons, both for her intelligence and her looks.

* Expy: The Norse-anarchists are clearly meant to be the MarvelCinematicUniverse version of [[TheMightyThor the Wrecking Crew, a group of DumbMuscle criminals given Asgardian powers by accident]]. Rather than a 4-men group of dimwitted thugs who just want money, [[AdaptationalBadass they're now an entire cult obsessed with using the Berserker Staff to become new gods]], and only lost because Ward and May are actually trained in combat and just got better with the Berserker Staff.

* ShoutOut: The ArcWords of a previous Whedon series show up: [[{{Dollhouse}} "Did I fall asleep?" "Only for a little while."]]

* RepressedMemories: The staff brings out Ward's long-forgotten memory of the first time he truly felt pure, unbridled hatred: his older brother telling Ward to leave their younger brother trapped in the bottom of a well. Coulson briefly contemplates trying it himself, but decides against it. A nicely done scene, in that Randall correctly guesses that Coulson doesn't want the power, but the memory:

* ContinuityNod: The beginning of this episode has Coulson's team doing cleanup at [[Film/ThorTheDarkWorld Greenwich University.]] Coulson also explains that Professor Randall was consulted about Mjolnir during the first movie.

* HumanAliens: Professor Randall is Asgardian, but looks and acts like any other human.
* ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice: Professor Randall gets stabbed with his own staff, but his accelerated healing allows him to survive after Coulson stifles the bleeding for long enough.

* BarehandedBladeBlock: Professor Randall, being an Asgardian, can not only catch a blade barehanded but bend it like a paperclip.

** And one to actual Norse mythology. Randall says that he worked as a mason in Asgard before becoming a warrior. A stone mason plays an important role in the birth of Odin's eight-legged horse [[http://www.pantheon.org/articles/s/sleipnir.html Sleipnir]].

* OneDegreeOfSeparation: Subverted. After being exposed as an Asgardian, Randall is asked if he knows Thor. Randall points out that he was a mason who became a common foot soldier. When would a guy like him get an opportunity to hobnob with the Crown Prince?
** Given that Randall is supposed to have been on Earth for at least a thousand years, Thor was probably still a baby when he left Asgard, anyway.
* Really700YearsOld: Professor Randall, since he's actually an Asgardian.

* AGodAmI: The Norse-Pagan group wants the staff to become gods, seeing this as the only method to combat the god-like beings coming to Earth.

Coulson and his team deal with the aftermath of ''Film/ThorTheDarkWorld''.

The eighth episode of ''Series/AgentsOfSHIELD''.

** And Simmons is still dealing with afteraffects from her near-death experience in "FZZT".

** Early on, we get a hint that both Skye and May were EatingTheEyeCandy. Both agree (insist) that Thor is dreamy.