Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Season 4; Agents of Hydra

Agents of Hydra was the third and final story arc of Season 4

 Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Season 4; Agents of Hydra

Final story arc of season 4 does not disappoint

Do you remember the Star Trek episode, Mirror Mirror? The writers of Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. do. In that episode, the crew visit a parallel universe where they meet the evil versions of themselves. That's exactly what happens in the third and final major story arc of season 4, "Agents of Hydra". This is familiar territory for Marvel, while it was D.C. Comics that first added the concept of parallel worlds to the pop culture landscape with the now infamous "Flash of Two Worlds" storyline, it was Marvel that ran with it in a regular comic called What if..? that explored alternate versions of it's heroes and villains. In tribute to that monthly comic that ran from 1977-1984, the first episode of this story arc is named, appropriately, "What if...".

Following on the heels of the "LMD" story arc, AIDA has captured most of the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, and has them unconscious, living in a virtual world connected directly to their brains. It's up to Quake and Simmons to enter the Framework - think The Matrix - and find some red pill to snap them out of it. There they find a Neo-Nazi America (shades of another Star Trek episode), ruled by AIDA and a Josef Mengle-esque Fitz.

Like the arc where Simmons was on another planet, this arc is shot with a limited color palette and also tends to get a little relentlessly dark toward the middle. But at times it's also a very incisive commentary on the state of America today. And if that's not enough, it also features some great acting by all the primary cast members in twists on their usual characters.

***1/2 out of *****