I have watched season 1 a couple times and this episode is one I don’t think fondly on. There is just too much time away from my beloved team. But all of those scenes are not a total waste because they introduce a lovely recurring baddie. Raina really boosts this episode up. I don’t have anything against the Scorch storyline but get back to my babies! It’s time to meet Raina! This episode has everything: Raina, Raina, Raina. Let’s meet Raina.
Okay so Chan Ho Yin is out here on the streets of Hong Kong putting on a magic show. Some teens aren’t very impressed, so he does a big impressive fire trick. Woo. He is approached by a Girl in a Flower Dress. She wants to see the trick again. He’s like okur come back to my place. He’s got Houdini posters. He’s like “I don’t idolize him anymore because he just did tricks.” Okay no duh. But sure …Chan Ho Yin can make fire out of his own hand. He has had this fire power for a few years. Raina believes he has been chosen. He is like aw that’s sweet. But then some guys in hazmat suits are there all of a sudden (how did they get in??) and they capture him.
Ward is playing battleship with Skye. Its kind of part of training – so he can evaluate her thought process. He says she picks stuff up fast. She sinks his battleship. Cool
Coulson makes an innocent comment about Skye fitting in with the team…. I’m sure that sentiment will last all episode… May asks Coulson why he was up so early. He’s says “extra energy” and she suggests they could go a few rounds on some mats downstairs “like the old days” oooo sexy. But no hot mom and dad fighting now because they are interrupted by a twirling red shield logo on the big screen letting them know something is happening.
Chan Ho Yin has gone missing. He was on the register of gifted people that SHIELD has. Agent Kwan is Zoom-ing in from the scene of the disappearance. He seems cool and he speaks Cantonese with May which is neat. They know he was taken by professionals. There is a crack in their data stream caused by … the Rising Tide. Oooo that’s Skye’s OG hacker group. Suspicious much?
Skye is like okay the Rising Tide is huge its not me. She offers to track down who it was.
Raina is talking to the Chan she kidnapped about increasing his power. He’s like wow okay I’m leaving. But wait! Doesn’t he want to be remembered? Huh, Chan? Or should I say, I don’t know, a new superhero name like… Scorch? Raina suggests this new title for him. Is she reading him right? Will he fall for this promise of power from a complete stranger who legit kidnapped him? Okay yes. Yes he will. Absolutely. Poor chump…
Skye is tracking down the Rising Tide hacker that leaked Chan’s info. She found him. It’s this guy named Miles Lydon. He is a famous hacker who once infiltrated the Kremlin. Even Fitzsimmons recognize him.
Ward goes after Miles… but Miles spots Ward (who is standing alone on a street corner wearing all black…) and runs. He runs into an apartment, but someone is already there. It’s Skye! She let him know that SHIELD was after him to help him get away! She starts yelling at him about hacking into SHIELD, but he looks at her all like ‘ooo girl you makin me crazy’ and then they make out and do it.
Afterwards, Skye pulls out the computer chip thing that she retrieved from her van in episode one to store in her bra. Miles makes some vague comments asking if she is ‘making progress on that’ but we the audience still do not know what info is on there. She fusses with him some more about how they can’t stay in contact or else she’ll be caught. Oh about that… May is outside the door to the bedroom holding Skye’s top! How long has she been there?
Now the whole team is in the apartment. Coulson dad is mad mad. He says he knew she was hiding something which is why May was following her. Of course he did…. That Coulson dad.
Naïve Fitz is all ‘aw I thought we were friends why would she do this to us?’ so Simmons has to be like ‘dude, we’ve only known her for four-and-a-half episodes. This guy is very clearly more than a friend.’
They put cuffs on Skye and Miles and take them to the bus.
Raina and Chan are in some bigo fancy lab. He has some special serum injected into him to enhance his powers. Now he can throw much bigger fireballs. He is really into his big balls of fire… too into it….
Miles and Skye are in the Honeycomb prisoner room arguing. Skye is defending what SHIELD does. Fitzsimmons is trying to find dirt on Miles.
May goes to talk to Coulson like ‘aw bro you must feel so bad about this because earlier in this episode, you were saying Skye was a great team member.’ And He is like ‘yeah on top of that I think she’s still hiding something…. ‘ Yeah. In her bra.
Ward reveals to Skye that Miles has been selling information. Gross. Skye is mad mad. This goes against his whole ‘information should be free for everyone’ deal. Miles sold it to ”some rich girl in a flower dress” who seemed harmless for a million dollars. Yeah Miles… just a harmless person willing to give away a million dollars… that totally checks out. But hold on he’s not totally dumb, he did look into them. He found out they were some ‘eco research lab’ who studied…… centipedes. Then he says “what’s more harmless than that?” Which like, okay Miles there are many things more harmless than centipedes which are terrifying always. But, of course, we know what’s really going on here. These people are not studying centipedes; they must relate to the dangerous Centipede serum from episode one which made people explode!
Cut to Raina talking to evil Dr. Debbie from the Mike incident in that first episode. Raina says that Chan’s special superpower blood platelets are what is keeping the centipede serum from exploding him from within. Dr. Debbie says “drain him” and some ominous music plays to let us know she doesn’t just mean something innocent like ‘make him exercise a lot to drain his energy.’ They are def gonna torch this Scorch.
The team has tracked him down and they are on the way!
Scorch is strapped down as the evil lab ladies are draining his blood platelets. He tries to fireball them, but his own fire burns him now! Raina is all ‘thanks for giving us your gift, boo’
Miles and Skye are breaking up in the honeycomb chamber. Whatev
Coulson meets up with cool Agent Kwan to plan out a rescue. At a locked door, Coulson uses a lil gadget like the one from that one scene in Iron Man and says “I love these things” so that those of us who may have seen Iron Man twelve(12) times will recognize it. Thanks, Coulson. Anyway, the door blows open and May kicks some guards so they can approach Scorch. Kwan is like ‘hey little buddy, we’re gonna get you out of here’ aw that’s sweet, Kwan – oh uh… Scorch burns a hole through Agent Kwan! He has injected himself with the serum! Nooo Scorch! Kwan was chill! Okay Scorch sucks.
He gives a little villain monologue explaining how he got this way. Something like ‘you bend someone so long and they break’ geez. He’s really ‘roided up.
Ward helps Skye break into the lab to hack the system. Easy peasy.
Raina walks past Dr. Debbie like ‘hm this is not your first experiment that blew up on you… I think I’m just gonna beat it and leave you here to die. Bye, bestie!’ Then Scorch burns Debbie alive. Aw Debbie… we hardly knew ye
May runs in and injects him with some stuff. I don’t know what it is (edit: I watched it again. it’s more serum. so he explodes faster. nice). Chan explodes. The lab explodes. Coulson looks sad that they had to kill the guy, so we know we’re still good guys. Ward says Skye may have extracted some useful files on Centipede. Aw cool girl already trying to make up for her mistake.
Coulson puts this mysterious techy bracelet on Miles and says “you may find it hard to use electronic devices for a while” whatever that means.
Skye reports to the principal’s office. He’s like okay lil lady you better tell me what else you’re hiding. So she pulls the chip out of her bra and tells us what’s on it! It is everything she could find on her parents. It’s not much information, just a redacted SHIELD file. Coulson chills out a bit and says ‘maybe I can help.’ But he still makes her put on the same electronics-limiting bracelet that he gave to Miles.
Okay SHIELD logo up. Final stinger on.
Raina is visiting a man in prison. She is wearing another flower dress. She tells him that Dr. Debbie got Scorched. He doesn’t mind. She wants this prison man to “touch base with The Clairvoyant for any insights that can be given on Stage Three.” He says “I like your dress.” She says “I know.” Raina is smooth a.f..
Ooh the clairvoyant. That’s the first time we have heard that name. Pretty important, I’d say.