T.V. network marketing tosses around the term “game changer” as if it’s a rag doll.  “Tune in to this week’s exciting ______ .   It’s a game changer!” “Don’t miss tonight’s game changing episode of _____ !!”  “After the final game changing moments of the new _______ , nothing will ever.  Be the same.  Again!!!”

Seldom do the actual episodes live up to such hyperbolic hype.  In terms of games, these ratings-grabbing shows are often on par with switching from Checkers to Chinese Checkers (or as the Chinese call it — Checkers). This week’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., however, shifts the game from Checkers to Global Thermonuclear War (simulated of course).

Nothing truly will ever be the same again for Coulson & Co., as well as the entire M.C.U., because the newest S.H.I.E.L.D. episode is the very definition of a game change.  How so?  Read on to find out, but only if you’ve seen Captain America: The Winter Soldier, for MAJOR SPOILERS LAY AHEAD. (And no, Major Spoiler is not Winter Soldier’s superior officer.)

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There’s a lot going on in Turn, Turn, Turn and therefore a lot to review.  So this week we’ll ditch the recap in order to make room for an expanded critique.  Honestly though, if you haven’t seen the episode yet, then why the hell are you reading the recap?!  It can’t just be for the sparkling wit and incredible insight contained therein.  Or can it?  Hmm…  Regardless, if you have seen the episode and still need a refresher, then click on S.H.I.E.L.D.Wiki and scroll down to episode 17.  Afterward, you can circle back around for some sparkling wit.

So now we know the true identity of the Clairvoyant.  It’s not catatonic Thomas Nash from last week who Ward slayed in cold blood.  It’s Ward’s former S.O. John Garrett.  And Ward is his ward.  His protégé.  His partner in crime.  Whatever you want to call it, it’s a shocking twist.  Both twists are electrifyingly shocking, especially since in addition to Nash we’ve been given two other Clairvoyant suspects in recent episodes — Melinda May and Victoria Hand.

Both women turn out to be red herrings, which is apropos for Vicky given her shock of red hair.  Kudos to the showrunners for flipping fanboy expectations in regards to Ms. Hand.  When last week’s plot ended with her commandeering the Bus in order to kill Coulson, I wasn’t surprised because she turns traitor in the comics.  Since I knew this, I’ve been waiting for her to commit treason in the show, which made it easy for me to see her as the Clairvoyant, more so then a non-comics reader.

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This slight-of-hand (or should I say slight-of-Hand?) comes to a head this time around by way of Victoria testing Simmons and Triplett’s allegiance.  At gunpoint, she gives them a career choice: Join her and serve Hydra, or stay with S.H.I.E.L.D. and die.  Only when Simmons and Trip choose the latter does Vicky show her true colors, which are not bad guy black as in the original source material.  Sometimes veering too far from a character’s origins is a betrayal in and of itself, but not so here.

This episode is great upon first viewing and even better upon second because you can see the little clues that lead up to the big revelations.

After Coulson’s crew reunites, Agent Garrett takes Ward aside to catch him up on new developments that he missed.  He missed a lot, but Garrett only discloses one:

“Apparently Agent Hand is the Clairvoyant.  So chew on that for a while.”

At first you think it’s just screenwriting shorthand.  No need to rehash info that the audience already knows when all you have to do is have Garrett give Ward one update, which implies more will follow off-screen.  But that’s not the case.

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Only upon subsequent viewings can you read between the lines and realize that “Apparently Agent Hand is the Clairvoyant” really means “These dolts suspect her of being the traitor, which wasn’t our plan but it works to throw them off our traitorous scent, so just go with it.”  To drive that subtext home, check out the expression on Bill Paxton’s face.  It deftly conveys relief of not being found out and concern of treading lightly in the future since he too was caught off guard by Hydra’s coming-out party. (That’s the problem with being a sleeper agent — you never know when you’re gonna be woken up.)

Paxton’s double-agent double-meaning Doublemint dialog is just one example of juicy subtext in an expertly crafted script.  As penned by Jed Whedon and his wife Maurissa, the plot drips with subtext throughout.

To fully appreciate the skillful writing (and direction) on display here, go back and rewatch the episode from Garrett and Ward’s perspective.  It’s like watching The Sixth Sense after knowing the twist.  You don’t think all the clues will add up, but they do.  Whichever Whedon was on plot hole duty deserves an Emmy because there are no holes that I’m aware of.

Want another example of succulent subtext?  At one point, Ward voices his concern to Coulson that if Hydra infiltrates the Bus, they’ll come to possess all the O-8-4s onboard that Coulson’s crew has collected throughout the season — everything from Asgardian weapons to Donnie “Blizzard” Gill’s weather-controlling device. (Shame on you if you thought those MacGuffins were mere throwaways.)  The most powerful Object of Unknown Origin that Ward mentions is the one with the dumbest name — Gravitonium.

Last seen in The Asset, the gravity-manipulating Gravitonium (see why it’s dumb?) was shipped off by Coulson, a Level 8 agent, to the classified S.H.I.E.L.D. installation known as the Fridge, as now stated by Ward, a Level 7 agent without Level 8 clearance.  Without thinking, Coulson corrects him by saying, “It’s under the Fridge.  No records.”

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Study the expression on Brett Dalton’s face when he hears this and you’ll realize that Ward was playing dumb to get Phil to disclose the Gravitonium’s true location, a location that Ward will pass along to Garrett, albeit off-screen.

“But Steve, none of this is confirmed in objective dialog.  Doncha think you’re reading too much into subjective facial expressions?”

Am I?  Fast forward to the final scene where Agent Hand flies Garrett off to prison, along with Ward who “volunteered” to accompany her.  That prison is located in the Fridge.  Once the pilot confirms that the jet’s course is locked, Ward kills him — plus Victoria — and frees Garrett.  The episode concludes with the newly-revealed Hydra duo en route to the Fridge.  Despite not being blatantly stated, it’s safe to assume that the next episode will see them going after the Gravitonium. (Okay, no more Gravitonium.  It’s hard to type that word without laughing.)

Coulson and Hand each accuse the other of being the Clairvoyant.  This may sound forced but it’s not.  The espionage genre is full of double-crosses.  As exciting as they are, they can feel contrived if not handled well.  Even Alias, as good of a show as it was, got to the point where the showrunners ran out of cast members to turn into double agents.  So they turned them into triple agents.  Eventually the series devolved into spy vs. spy vs. credibility as everyone conned everyone else.  The Office and How I Met Your Mother fell into a similar rut.  Keep a series on air long enough and by the finale every character will have implausibly hooked up with each other in various combinations.  Joey heart Rachel anybody?

In this case, though, the writers give perfectly sound reasons for Hand to suspect Coulson.  Those reasons are every transgression he’s performed over the course of the season, from recruiting enemies like Skye in End of the Beginning to not reporting crimes committed by his former protégé/former fling in O-8-4.  With evidence like that, it’s natural for Hand to suspect Coulson of being the villain, and natural for her to want to kill him.  In turn, that “kill him” mandate is why Coulson suspects her of villainy.

These motivations feel real because they didn’t come out of nowhere.  Or out of necessity to make a complex plot cohesive.  They’ve been there all along, planted in each installment, and now they’re paying off big time.  They’re believable enough to even make Simmons doubt her boss’ loyalty.

Hail Hydra!

I could go on praising the superior storytelling of this “game changing” episode.  I could geek out over the possible Black Panther allusion in the form of Hydra factions seizing control of S.H.I.E.L.D.’s east African headquarters (and something called the “Treehouse”).  I could replicate the chill that ran down my spine upon seeing the familiar S.H.I.E.L.D. logo replaced by a Hydra symbol during the closing credits.  Brrrrr.

Instead I’ll point out how much this series has improved since its wobbly beginnings.  Let’s go back to Grant Ward one more time.  Ward went from being the least interesting of the non-Coulson characters to the most interesting in a single episode.  Revealing himself to be a traitor of the highest degree adds plenty of edge to a bland exterior.  Nevertheless any series can do that, especially one seeking course correction after less-than favorable public reaction.

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. is not correcting its course.  It’s been planning this from the get-go.  That’s why The Well filled us in on Ward’s abusive upbringing, a past that forced him to compartmentalize in order to survive.  That compartmentalizing is exactly what an inside man needs to do his job.  To get close to teammates without actually getting close.  It should work, but does it?

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One would think so given Ward’s cold, blank stare after murdering Agent Hand.  But then we think back to an earlier scene where Ward told Skye he wants to finally take her up on her offer to discuss his past, an offer made nine episodes ago.  What could this possibly have to do with his master plan?  If he ends up not being a baddie, if it turns out that he’s been brainwashed or blackmailed, then could this attraction to Skye and her ability to make him open up be his salvation?

Transforming a boring two-dimensional character into a living breathing human is what makes this a truly great episode in a series of increasing quality.  Is it a perfect episode?  No.  I’m not so much a fan of the Peter Berg-inspired wrap-up, replete with slow-mo, moody rock tune, and lack of dialog.

I’m also not a fan of Marvel neglecting to warn viewers of impending spoilers.  For whatever reason, the House of Ideas has been wrecking their own surprises of late.  First they exposed the Winter Soldier’s identity during the Assembling a Universe special that aired weeks before the film’s release. (Sure, fanboys already know it, but not fanboy wives.)  Now they’re not giving audiences a chance to see Cap 2 before diving into this follow-up chapter.

Throughout the season, A.B.C. has aired a new episode followed by weeks of repeats until the next new episode.  Nothing destroys narrative momentum — particularly on a freshman series trying to hook fans — more than the start/stop stutter of reruns.  It’s been frustrating and has cost the show viewers.  Winter Olympics notwithstanding, A.B.C. could’ve avoided this.  If not, then it would’ve been better to do it now rather than before.

Now is when viewers could use a break.  Despite the 95 million grossed by Cap 2 during its opening weekend, not everyone has seen it.  A couple of S.H.I.E.L.D. reruns in between last week’s lead-in and this week’s lead-out would’ve helped. (Note: I may have accidentally invented the term “lead-out.”)  Instead, audience members will have significant plot points ruined for them by seeing Turn, Turn, Turn before The Winter Soldier.

However, aside from that (and the Berg thing), Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. has evolved into a superb series.  I’m glad I hung on during the rough patch, even if it was just to review it for this website.  Global Thermonuclear War (simulated) has successfully replaced Checkers, which is better than it sounds.

NEXT UP: What’s the capital of Rhode Island?  Providence.  It’s also next week’s episode.