Ever since a certain blue alien made an appearance on ‘Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.‘, fans have been speculating that the Kree and the Inhumans would be involved in the show somehow. More theories started popping up when ‘Inhumans’ was officially announced as a Marvel Studios film scheduled for 2018. But now without even saying the actual word, the ABC series that ties into the Marvel Cinematic Universe has officially kicked off Phase Three even before ‘The Avengers: Age of Ultron’ hits theaters thanks to their winter finale this week. But just in case you’re still trying to sort things out from Tuesday’s episode, executive producers Jed Whedon and Maurissa Tancharoen have made some comments that shed light on where we stand with Skye, her father, and the bigger picture.
In an interview with Marvel.com, Whedon and Tancharoen address the game-changing revelations in the latest installment of ‘S.H.I.E.L.D.’, starting with the major development that Chloe Bennet’s Skye is actually Daisy Johnson (AKA the hero known as Quake) and her father, the mysterious doctor played by Kyle MacLachlan that turns out to be Calvin Zabo (AKA the villainous Mr. Hyde). Here are their comments on when this plan was actually put into action:
Daisy Johnson AKA QuakeJed Whedon: It was somewhat of a moving target early on, in that we knew Skye would be an orphan and would uncover secrets about her past. We had an idea of what we wanted some of those to be that found their ways into the storyline, but exactly who she was we landed on early last season, or midway through last season. We started setting it up early in the beginning of last season.
Maurissa Tancharoen: As we always do, we pulled from what exists in the Marvel Universe and put our own spin on it. We had always had our eyes on Daisy Johnson, and therefore her father and her whole history. We sort of planted that throughout the first season and a half. You knew the story of her parents and the havoc they caused, the massacre in the Hunan province in China. We lay in things like that, and over time you put the pieces together. But of course Daisy’s powers aren’t really activated until that moment you see in the Winter Finale.
Jed Whedon: There are parts of it that move away from the story in the comics, but partially that’s because we’d invented our own way [of getting there]. We also wanted it to be a surprise to the people who are familiar with the comics, but [it’s] also because we’re tying it to a larger world. [It’s] not just her origin story, it’s the origin story of a bigger, other world.
Another huge development from Skye’s Terrigenesis (the process that turns a human into an Inhuman) is that Agent Antoine Triplett perished in the chamber when the Diviner opened to revealed the Terrigen Crystals. Naturally, fans are extremely upset by this loss due to their love of Trip, but the showrunners aren’t taking this death lightly and it will resonate for some time, especially with the newly christened Daisy:
Calvin Zabo AKA Mr. HydeJed Whedon: We need to establish that there are stakes in our world, and there can be real consequences. But mostly for us it was for the mixed emotion of that moment, which we’re very proud of. Our whole goal is to have the audience feel something, and to be able to feel excitement and despair at the same time made it seem more powerful to us. It makes for a more complicated journey for Skye going forward, because it’s not all fun and games.
Maurissa Tancharoen: Yeah, she has the weight of Trip’s death so closely associated with the moment of [gaining] her power. Juxtaposing those two images, seeing her break through the petrification [looking] so awesome and heroic in that moment, and then to see her eyes welling with tears as they land on Trip as he crumbles to the ground…we wanted that loaded and complex moment in the origin of her power.
Jed Whedon: And this is something that she may not understand right away. What happened in there, it would be complicated anyway to understand. Now it will be very emotionally complex as well.
Man, look at this glorious, wonderful mess we have here. Who knows what state Skye (I guess we should start calling her Daisy?), Raina, Cal, Coulson, and the rest of S.H.I.E.L.D. will be in when we return to the show after ‘Agent Carter’ wraps up. Plus, a whole new set of questions have arisen. As the first Inhuman in the MCU, will Quake factor into ‘Inhumans’ when it comes out? Could she follow in her comic book counterpart’s footsteps and become the Director of S.H.I.E.L.D.? Will she become an Avenger? What about a Defender on Netflix? There are so many possibilities for Skye and everyone else involved in ‘Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.’, so share your thoughts and theories in the comments below.
‘Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.’ starring Brett Dalton, Ming-Na Wen, Iain De Caestecker, Elizabeth Henstridge, Chloe Bennet, and Clark Gregg airs on Tuesdays at 9:00pm on ABC.