A new threat appears on S.H.I.E.L.D. and the ATCU's radar, in the form of an anti-Inhuman group called the Watchdogs.
Tropes:
- Artistic License – Chemistry: Sodium hydrogen acetate isn't a thing. Hydrogen acetate is a thing; it's vinegar. Sodium acetate is a thing; it's vinegar that's been fully neutralized by sodium hydroxide. Somewhere in between is a thing, but it would be called an acetic acid buffer.
- Brick Joke: Mack finally makes his shotgun-axe combo, by duct-taping a cleaver to his shotgun as a makeshift bayonet.
- The Bus Came Back: Ex-Agent Blake returns after getting his spine broken by Deathlok in Season 1.
- Call-Back:
- Nitramene is used by the Watchdogs, improved by Blake's research.
- The Watchdogs talk about the Avengers in their video, specifically referring to the city falling from the sky. Blake specifically mentions the Chitauri invasion and gets to name-drop Ultron.
- Blake also mentions getting out of the hospital, ready to get back to work, only to find out that S.H.I.E.L.D. wasn't S.H.I.E.L.D.
- Characterization Marches On: At the start of season one, Daisy (or, well, "Skye") was an anti-government anarchist hacker. Now, she's using violence and threats to extract information from (a) civilians she's tracked down through their internet activity and (b) captured combatants, while arguing that the government agency she works for is on the side of good and that the Watchdogs have given up their civil liberties through their membership of the group. It makes sense in context, given her discovery of her Inhuman heritage and the fact that the Watchdogs are trying to incite genocide, but it's still a pretty big change from where she started the series.
- Chekhov's Gun: The plastic dog decoration discussed early in the episode is used by Mack to attack a Watchdogs agent.
- A Day in the Limelight: While he's not the main focus of the episode, Mack gets a little more attention here than he usually does, and we learn a little bit about his past and his family.
- Does This Remind You of Anything?:
- It's probably not a coincidence that an anti-Inhuman hate group ends up going after two black guys who aren't even Inhumans. In the comics, the Watchdogs were explicitly right-wing and racist, and here they seem to have a notable lack of non-white members.
- Their attack on a government building reeks of Ammon Bundy and the contemporary armed occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge.
- Their violent anti-alien speech is also reminiscent of some Donald Trump supporters. In fact, "Illegal aliens" are directly compared to "actual aliens" by a radio station.
- Dramatic Irony: Blake mouths off about "freaks" in front of Giyera, clearly oblivious to the fact he's talking to an Inhuman, and he's being provided weapons and intelligence by HYDRA, who're assembling an army of Inhumans to serve Hive, another Inhuman, in order to take over the world.
- Embarrassing Nickname: Daisy finds out that Mack is known to his family as "Alfie" and gleefully anticipates him returning to duty so she can start using it.
- Face–Heel Turn: Blake has gone from a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent to the leader of the Watchdogs, a terrorist hate group.
- Fantastic Racism: All over the episode, expressed by the Watchdogs and Mack's brother Reuben against the Inhuman "freaks" who are supposedly taking over the planet. This lasts until the latter finds out that the group is so consumed with hatred toward Inhumans that they have no problem killing innocent civilians.
- Foreshadowing: The episode puts focus on the fractures forming within S.H.I.E.L.D., which will finally explode in Captain America: Civil War.
- Hollywood Genetics: Mack's brother... or his distant cousin from another country who is also not actually his cousin?
- Hollywood Healing: Averted. Coulson states that Deathlok broke Blake's spine, but he shows up standing and moving like normal. It turns out that Blake is a paraplegic and now uses a wheelchair, using holograms to create the illusion that he's fine.
- Hypocritical Humor: When Daisy can't understand Mack and Fitz's Technobabble, she calls them the "Nerd Herd". She started the series as a hacktivist, and is still a highly proficient hacker, but explosives and detailed chemical composition aren't her forte.
- Sliding Scale of Idealism Versus Cynicism: Idealist Simmons vs. cynicist May. May reveals to Simmons that she wants to flat-out kill Andrew. When Simmons brings up the vaccine that she and Fitz have been working on and how it could work on Andrew since he's still going through terrigenesis, May shuts her down with a blunt "Don't give me hope, Jemma."
- Jack Bauer Interrogation Technique:
- To get the location of the Watchdogs' hideout, Daisy finds one member who was approached but declined, then starts blasting out his car windows until he talks.
- Later on, when Fitz is about to implode thanks to a nitramene shot to the neck, she tosses around the shooter until he reveals something useful about the weapon.
- Knight Templar:
- The Watchdogs in general are willing to kill innocent civilians for the chance to take out an Inhuman, and Blake specifically is willing to work with HYDRA if it means eliminating alien threats.
- On the other side, Daisy, a target of these murderous bigots, considers participating in the group to be tantamount to forfeiting one's civil rights, and has no problem using the Jack Bauer Interrogation Technique on them.
- Leeroy Jenkins:
- Daisy gets carried away with trying to find out what's happening in the Watchdog's compound and going after Blake, resulting in Fitz getting nitramene attached to him, and Mack and Reuben nearly killed after Mack is mistaken for an Inhuman.
- Coulson scolds Lincoln for doing this in previous episodes during his briefing. If he wants to be a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent then he has to stop "going nuclear" and start following orders.
- Malevolent Masked Men: The Watchdogs wear creepy helmets that are evocative of a vicious dog.
- The Man Behind the Curtain: Blake uses holograms to appear whole and healthy, but is actually crippled.
- The Man Behind the Man: At the start of the episode, there are suspicions about how the Watchdogs went from online hate speech to domestic terrorism. At the end of the episode, it is revealed that Malick and HYDRA are arming them with weapons and intel to achieve a different agenda, and Blake has organized them.
- Meta Twist: It can seem pretty odd that the scene of Daisy and Mack spying on the Watchdog meeting makes such a big deal about how they can't actually see Blake, when we already saw him clearly. Turns out the actual twist is that he's addressing the meetings remotely since he's still paralyzed.
- Mistaken Identity: The Watchdogs target Mack, thinking he has Daisy's powers, because the two were positioned in such a way that the witness only saw Mack and assumed the powers were his.
- Mythology Gag:
- Daisy mentions that Damage Control will clean up the mess at the end of the episode, likely planting the seeds for the upcoming spinoff.
- A news report at the beginning of the episode briefly mentions gang wars in Hell's Kitchen.
- "Not So Different" Remark: Blake is ready to admit that he does what he does out of hate, and rightly points out that Coulson has also done things driven by hate (namely: killing Ward).
- Oh, Crap!: Lincoln and Coulson realize that Blake wanted an Inhuman to be involved in the attack on the Watchdog compound.
- Only Sane Man: Mack once again plays this role in regards to the reckless approach Daisy takes.
- "The Reason You Suck" Speech: Coulson rather bluntly informs Lincoln what his shortcomings are while on their way to investigate Blake.
- Revealing Cover-Up: Imploding an entire building sure makes a statement, but Coulson realizes there must have been a greater motive behind the attack. Sure enough, the trail leads to Malick having taken something just before the building was hit.
- Right-Wing Militia Fanatic: The Watchdogs are a downplayed example compared to their comic counterpart (who are more focused on "Un-American behavior" and use torture to brainwash people to behave how they want), but elements are still there; they're xenophobic, paramilitary, and very anti-government. It evidently doesn't end with just aliens though, as one member is shown listening to a radio host rant about both actual aliens and human immigrants, indicating their conservative values still stand.
- Secret Test of Character: Discussed and played straight. Lincoln complains that his time in S.H.I.E.L.D. seems to frequently consist of tests when asking about his evaluation to Coulson. Later on, Coulson orders Lincoln to lethally zap Blake. Despite his reservations, which he voices, he does it (though not quite as lethally as ordered), revealing "Blake" to be a hologram. Coulson even critiques him afterwards, but ultimately praises him for acting correctly.
- Sigil Spam: The Watchdogs like tagging their targets with their symbol.
- So Proud of You: After spending the whole episode berating Mack for not spending enough time with his family (since he thought Mack was a simple insurance adjuster), Mack's brother, Reuben, expresses awe when Mack gets both of them out of the house alive and questions Daisy about what Mack does with S.H.I.E.L.D., clearly proud of the fact that Mack has dedicated his life to saving the lives of others.
- Spotting the Thread: Coulson identifies the hologram Blake is using because it doesn't move from the spot it's in and there's a communication lag which is preventing "Blake" from interrupting as much as he would normally.
- Sticky Bomb: The nitramene bombs the Watchdogs use can stick to both buildings and someone's neck. Successfully suspending the nitramine in a gel form is a notable innovation.
- Third Line, Some Waiting: Mack, Daisy and Fitz track the Watchdogs to their hideout, followed by Mack and his brother fighting off several Mooks; Coulson and Lincoln go around to Blake's safehouses for a Secret Test of Character and discover that Blake is using a hologram to communicate; while by contrast May and Simmons have a couple of conversations about Garner/Lash but really don't get anywhere on actually tracking him down.
- Unwitting Pawn: Blake and the Watchdogs think they're protecting mankind, but are being used by HYDRA to further their own plans.
- Villain Has a Point: Blake brings up several of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s and the Avengers' mistakes, which have cost the world much in property damage and lives lost.
