I’ve been urging Marvel fans to be patient with the ABC series Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., mostly out of loyalty to the brand.  And Coulson.  But the first half of season 2 was…trying.  We KNEW they were getting to something big, something important, but the pacing was difficult to follow with enthusiasm.  The mid season return last night changed that.

While yes, I still can’t really stand Skye (I’m not sure if this is on Chloe or on the writers), I am highly curious to see how they deal with her Inhuman awakening.  Last night’s episode was well paced, entertaining, engaging, and hit all the notes I was hoping it would.

If you missed the episode, the team is dealing with many harsh realities. They are currently trapped underground, Trip was killed during the temple collapse, and Skye….well, we all know there is something drastically different about Skye now.”The realities of the world they’re living in now are starting to become much more complicated,” executive producer Jed Whedon said when speaking to the press ahead of last night’s episode.

This is a scene of a status meeting that doesn’t quite go well, and Skye beginning to ‘Quake’:

There is also a moment in the episode where Fitz has to make a decision to not to reveal the HUGE difference in Skye’s readings.  Simmons has a bit of a character departure, sounding like the beginning of Friends of Humanity there for a minute.  Knowing how passionately against anyone being non-human, Fitz lies. De Caestecker, the actor behind Fitz, theorizes his character having gone through his own change via a brain injury, he might have more sympathy for Skye.

“He’s like, ‘let’s just take a second,’ ” said De Caestecker. “At that point I think he feels like he’s the only one that really understands what she must be going through, that change.”

I want to know who the heck they’re setting Raina up to be, her character design is fantastic, and the effects top notch.   “Harder to charm when someone’s like, ‘Ow, you’re poking me,’ ” says Whedon.

Agents of SHIELD will deliver three guest stars during the rest of the season, not counting Jaimie Alexander returning as Lady Sif next week, with Edward James Olmos,  Drea de Matteo and Blair Underwood announced. We don’t know much about these guests, although we did get word that De Matteo will play someone “on the index” described as “a dark character” by Loeb, though Whedon said she is more “misunderstood” than dark.  We know that EJO will be playing a character named Robert Gonzalez, and that Blair Underwood will be playing Agent Mae’s ex husband.

S.H.I.E.L.D. actually suffered a ratings fall from their mid season finale, you can check the score on TVByTheNumbers.

The one scene I’m the most curious about (aside from Rania being rescued by a BAMFing Nightcrawler wanna-be) was the tiny model of Lola that Mack made coming to life during the wake. The toy Lola scans Coulson’s office, and uncovers “Fury’s toolbox” hidden inside Coulson’s desk.  What all did Nick hide in that kit?

All in all, it was a very strong return for the series, and I’m actually optimistic about the rest of the season.  Good job Agents, keep it up.

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. airs on Tuesdays on ABC, check local listings for times.