Line #53 Recap/AgentsOfSHIELDS3E2PurposeInTheMachine


1	S.H.I.E.L.D. recruits Professor Randolph to help solve the mystery of the Kree Monolith, while Ward sets about rebuilding HYDRA.
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4	!!Tropes:
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6	* ActOfTrueLove: Fitz jumps into the portal without a second thought just on the hope of finding Simmons.
7	* AffablyEvil: Ward, once again. After forcefully kidnapping Werner Von Strucker and letting Kebo "test" him via torture, he congratulates the young man for passing his test and even brings some tacos.
8	* ArsonMurderAndJaywalking: When Coulson asks what Fitz needs to rescue Simmons, Fitz says that he needs more historical data on the Monolith, experts in Quantum Mechanics and Einstein-Rosen Bridge theory, and a [[TrademarkFavoriteFood sandwich]] would be nice.
9	* BadassBoast: Randolph claims that he could literally go through Fitz if he wanted to.
10	* BittersweetEnding: The team rescues Simmons from the alien world, but she is traumatized by the ordeal, and Werner is seen plotting to get close to Andrew.
11	* BlackmailIsSuchAnUglyWord: Coulson wouldn't call what he does to Professor Randolph "threatening"... well, actually, it is.
12	* BookcasePassage: The portal machine is in a hidden room accessible only from a hidden passage, the entrance of which is built into a wall.
13	* TheBusCameBack: This marks Professor Elliot Randolph's first appearance on the show since season 1.
14	* CardboardPrison: Discussed and Played With. Randolph's prison is very good for keeping human prisoners, but as Bobbi notes, a superstrong Asgardian like Randolph could easily break out anytime, which he soon demonstrates. See PlayAlongPrisoner below for more details.
15	* CatapultNightmare: Understandably, after months on a hostile alien world, Simmons has a hard time not waking up violently clutching a handcrafted weapon.
16	* ChekhovsGun: The flare fired into the portal. Simmons did see it and it led her to where Fitz would eventually rescue her.
17	* ContinuityNod:
18	** Professor Randolph refers to [[Film/AvengersAgeOfUltron cities falling from the sky and Asgardian tolerance to alcohol]]. As a former Asgardian stone mason, he was also drawn to the relevant hidden area of the castle in Glouchestershire because of the impeccable stone work.
19	** Ward brings tacos to his meeting with Werner after Werner passes the first test. This is what Garret did with Ward after Ward passed his first test on the way to becoming a HYDRA agent himself.
20	* CurbStompBattle: Ward utterly ''destroys'' Werner's security team. Only one man even manages to land a hit on him. Said man is promptly shot.
21	* DistinctionWithoutADifference: Coulson says he isn't threatening Randolph. Okay, he's threatening Randolph.
22	* DistractedByTheSexy: Randolph remarks that while he was intrigued by the scriptures in the castle when he came there centuries ago, he was distracted by the dancers, leading Bobbi to roll her eyes.
23	* DrawingStraws: The opening scene is a mid-19th century research group drawing lots (in this case, colored stones from a sack rather than literal straws) to see who will go into the Monolith to see what's on the other side.
24	* EarnYourHappyEnding: Despite the BittersweetEnding for Simmons, Fitz definitely comes out with a clear win. After spending six months on a potentially suicidal search for a way to find Simmons--including crossing the DespairEventHorizon--he finally gets what he wanted: reunited with a still living Jemma.
25	* EekAMouse: When infiltrating a yacht full of bikini-clad girls, the first step is unleashing a sack of rats to disperse the crowd.
26	* EurekaMoment: Fitz has one when Mack says that they're lucky the room's shape didn't cause the machine to shake apart, as he realizes that the room is designed to generate a subsonic frequency to activate the Monolith. As Fitz explains the process, Daisy has one when she realizes that Fitz has figured out she can open the portal.
27	* {{Fanservice Extra}}s: Of both genders in Werner's boat. [[MrFanservice Shirtless, handsome and muscular guys]] along with [[MsFanservice curvy good-looking girls]].
28	* FinishingEachOthersSentences: Fitz is on the receiving end when Daisy realizes he knows how to open the portal without the machine:
29	-->'''Mack:''' You're saying you've figured out a way to fix the machine?\
30	'''Fitz:''' No, I'm saying I figured out that--\
31	'''Daisy:''' We don't have to. ''I'' can do it. I can open the portal myself.
32	* GoThroughMe: Fitz threatens this when Professor Randolph wants the portal destroyed. Randolph points out that he easily could do it literally, but is wary enough of Coulson and Bobbi that he won't try. Plus, he's not so heartless as to deny them a chance to save Simmons.
33	* HeroismIncentive: In exchange for helping rescue Simmons, Randolph wants Coulson's promise that they will destroy the Monolith after she's saved. It's not that big a deal, as Coulson says that he'll sleep better at night with the Monolith destroyed.
34	* HistoryRepeats: Last season started with Fitz severely traumatized and recovering. Now it's Jemma.
35	* HollywoodScience: Carbon dating can only date organic substances (such as wood and bone) back to 50,000 years or so. It cannot date inorganic substances (like silicon dioxide) back to 5 billion years or so. Admittedly, it's Bobbi who uses the term "carbon dating", so perhaps it's her mistake.
36	* HumanSacrifice: Randolph originally went to the castle in 1853 after hearing rumors about "journeys to the stars". After getting a partygoer drunk enough to admit that only "ritualistic killings" were happening, Randolph dismissed it as "half-baked Satanism" and assumed that the stories were just a fabrication to entice new sacrifices.
37	* HypocriticalHumor: Coulson claims that he's trying to [[DefiedTrope defy]] SigilSpam with their cars, only for Bobbi to point out that he hasn't done so with their jets. Coulson admits [[RuleOfCool he thinks it's cool.]]
38	* IdleRich: Werner von Strucker was coasting through life living on the money his father made as a HYDRA leader until Ward came along.
39	* IJustWantToBeNormal: May tells her dad she wants to have a normal life, but he points out that she's always carrying a gun or looking over her shoulder expecting the worst.
40	* ItWasWithYouAllAlong: Accessing the Monolith could be done with Daisy's powers, though it explodes when she's done.
41	* MinorInjuryOverreaction: One of Werner's bodyguards manages to get a punch in on Ward. [[DisproportionateRetribution Ward's response is to shoot him in the chest.]] The look on Ward's face, coupled with the fact that he took care of the rest of the guards non-lethally, indicates that the hit just pissed him off.
42	* MythologyGag: Doctor Garner tells Daisy he's aware she wants to develop the Caterpillars, her "ComicBook/SecretWarriors".
43	* TheNotSecret: Coulson was fully aware of Fitz's off-the-books missions to track down information about the Monolith, and Bobbi's covering for him while he was away.
44	* AnOfferYouCantRefuse: Coulson threatens to turn Randolph over to ATCU unless he helps them save Simmons.
45	* OhCrap: Professor Randolph is mildly alarmed that Daisy is an Inhuman, noting it's been centuries since the last time he heard the word.
46	* OverlordJr: We're introduced to Wolfgang von Strucker's son, Werner, and while he first appears to be IdleRich, Ward is able to peel away his spoiled rich kid shell to reveal the potential HYDRA leader he was born to be.
47	* PlayAlongPrisoner: Professor Randolph could easily escape prison, but he likes how accommodating Norway's prisons are and it's in his best interests not to draw attention when aliens are under such scrutiny these days. When he is convinced to leave, [[SuperStrength he casually rips the entire cell door off its hinges]].
48	* PrimalFear: Coulson realizes that Randolph is terrified of portals, out of fear that he might be taken back to Asgard by one, and that the only reason he agreed to help was because he wanted to confirm the portal's existence.
49	* PsychicNosebleed: Daisy gets a nosebleed when the portal machine is activated, as her power enables her to acutely sense the intense vibrations being generated by it.
50	* RagnarokProofing: PlayedWith. The portal machine (and the hidden door to said portal machine) still works after about a century or so of neglect, but it falls apart a few minutes after being activated.
51	* RealityIsUnrealistic: Norwegian prisons ''are'' much nicer than US prisons. They're so much nicer, in fact, that the prison depicted is actually a lot ''worse'' than Norwegian prisons. They're more like dorms you're not allowed to leave. No barred doors or bare concrete blocks.
52	* {{Revenge}}: Hunter leaves the team to get started on the hunt for Ward, and talks May into joining him. Coulson tells Hunter to make sure Ward dies.
53	* RevengeByProxy: May's father was injured in a hit and run, and May believes that Ward might've been behind it, hence why May is looking after him. While that goes unconfirmed, having Werner infiltrate Andrew's class is clearly intentional.
54	* SecretTestOfCharacter: Ward has Werner von Strucker subjected to brutal interrogation in an attempt to force the turning over of the entire von Strucker family fortune. Werner eventually fights back and subdues his interrogator, which Ward reveals is what he'd hoped would happen because it proves that Werner is worthy to be in HYDRA.
55	* ShoutOut: Bobbi compares the secret Monolith lab they find in the castle to "[[Literature/TheDaVinciCode the bunker under the Louvre]]." When Randolph [[YouHaveGotToBeKiddingMe asks if she's joking]], the smirk she gives him ([[LeaningOnTheFourthWall and possibly the viewers]]) leaves him wondering whether or not she's being a {{Troll}}.
56	-->'''Randolph:''' All right, great. Now I'll have to ''check.''
57	* SigilSpam:
58	** The Hebrew word for "Death", seen last episode, is used in the castle to mark secret passages and other dangerous places. Lampshaded when Coulson admits to having the S.H.I.E.L.D. logo removed from his vehicles because it draws too much attention, only for Bobbi to point out he didn't do it for their jets. Coulson admits he couldn't help himself.
59	** Ward has continued HYDRA's tendency to do this as well.
60	* SinkOrSwimMentor: Ward is this to Werner von Strucker, getting him to man up by putting his life in danger.
61	* SleepCute: After Simmons wakes up from a nightmare, she notices Fitz asleep next to her bed. She goes over to [[LapPillow lay her head on his lap]].
62	* SocialDarwinist: Ward starts spouting such beliefs, feeling that HYDRA fell because most of the prior leadership got where it did because of money rather than on personal merit. He makes it a point of recruiting those that have proven themselves through their own work for the new HYDRA.
63	* SuddenlyShouting: Fitz when the machine in the castle causes the Monolith to open:
64	-->'''Fitz:''' It's staying open. Light! I need more light! I NEED SOME BLOODY LIGHT!
65	** Later, after Andrew calls May to inform her that Simmons was rescued, she informs Hunter:
66	--->'''Hunter''': Fitz! You absolute BEAUTY!
67	* SteamPunk: The portal-managing technology in the hidden room in the English castle. It was constructed by aristocrats during a previous era.
68	* SuspiciouslySpecificDenial: Randolph has zero intention of seeing any portal except to destroy it. He says the following:
69	-->'''Randolph:''' Why come to me? I'm no interstellar travel expert. I've never even studied gravitational lensing or zero-point energy fields or quantum-harmonic oscillation theory.\
70	'''Bobbi:''' [[LampshadeHanging And yet you know all of those words you just said.]]
71	* TakeMyHand: Fitz reaches out to Simmons on the alien world in order to pull her back.
72	* TryNotToDie: Bobbi tells this to Hunter as he heads off to infiltrate HYDRA. Coulson tells Hunter to make sure Ward ''does'' die.
73	* {{Understatement}}: "My mom created a halfway house for Inhumans, and it was not enough."
74	* UnflinchingFaithInTheBrakes: Ward demonstrates the resolve of his new recruits by having them line up in a parking garage while he speeds around in a sports car, confident Ward will not hit them.
75	* WhamShot: Werner transferring to Andrew's class at the end.
76	* WhenSheSmiles: When Hunter insists on taking May out for beers to celebrate Fitz rescuing Simmons, he says, "Smile for once in your damn life!" As he says this you can see a very subtle but present smile on May's face, and it is indeed transformative.
77	* WhyDontYouJustShootHim: Averted with Ward as soon as one guy manages to land a punch on him.
78	* XanatosGambit: Ward's torture treatment of Werner von Strucker. If Strucker passes his test, then he gets a new student to mold into a proper HYDRA leader. If Strucker fails, then it would be culling out the weak and he'd be several million dollars richer thanks to the kid's bank passwords.
79	* YouOweMe: When Randolph's being uncooperative, Coulson reminds the professor that he saved his life.

Context Recap / AgentsOfSHIELDS3E2PurposeInTheMachine