Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D: Providence

"You don't seem like her type."

"I'm everyone's type."

This should be a great episode: evil Ward, more Bill Paxton goodness.. sorry, evilness, and Coulson going off the rails a bit. Yet it never quite catches fire. The arc stuff is good, but as an episode it feels a bit like a link in a chain.

We begin with the team on the run, with all traces of their existence erased. Suddenly, there is no SHIELD any more, something which hits Coulson hard in particular. Suddenly there's just the team, plus Trip, and he's only there at Jemma Simmons' insistence. The wife, incidentally, is predicting some Simmons-Trip action in the fullness of time, and she was right about Skye and Ward.

Meanwhile, Ward's mannerisms look suddenly evil as he hobnobs with the delightfully dastardly Garrett, springing Rayna and equipping her both with a new flower dress and a new Centipede project, complete with the "Jesus juice" that revived Coulson. Not only that, but at the end they unveil Ian Quinn and Gravitonium. The countdown to the season finale starts here.

The gang, meanwhile, are being led on what may be a wild goose chase to a piece of Canadian tundra by Coulson, who insists that the coordinates he's been sent are from Nick Fury. Everyone has some level of doubt, especially May, and they only tag along out of loyalty. There's a touching interaction here between Fitz and Simmons: he's besotted with her, but to her he's just a friend. Unlike Trip...

When they reach the spot there seems to be nothing, and it's quite a powerful moment to see Coulson desperately come close to breaking down: "We are not agents of nothing. We are agents of SHIELD!" But fortunately there is a base there. And Coulson (but only Coulson) is told that Fury is alive...

 We end with Wards return to the base, and only we know he's a baddie. This is a charges situation, especially given the sparks between him and Skye which can now develop into actual dating. Skye was obviously a little besotted by their phone call earlier in the episode. Her heart is going to get broken...