Written by: Monica Owusu-Breen & Jed Whedon

Directed by: Kevin Hooks

Plot: Coulson and May uncover startling information about Skye’s past, while the team is swept into a storm at S.H.I.E.L.D. Academy.

Review:  “No more secrets.”

That is what Agent Coulson has decided in this episode. I can’t say I blame him. After realizing that he was forced back to life by the organization that he has dedicated himself to , Phil is still pretty upset about the situation.

There is something about that statement that I feel is the new motivation for both Coulson and the rest of the episodes in this season.

But before we get into that, lets look at what the rest of the episode has given us.

We got to see a bit of the S.H.I.E.L.D. academy, (at least the Sci-Tech division) and we even got a taste of the history of S.H.I.E.L.D. it self. (which you already knew about if you already saw the really awesome Agent Carter short film in the Iron Man Three Blu-Ray.)

The “A” plot this week concerns some cadets and a possible  murder attempt. One of the suspects is Donnie Gill, played by Dylan Minnette. Dylan was a real surprise in this episode, and he kinda comes into a nice tradition of  guest stars in this show who really left a great impression in their episode. Dylan really brought a grounded, and relatable approach to his character, a character that could have been unbearable due to all the angst that was written into him.

Of course, since you already had seen the episode already, you saw that Donnie was the one who created the crazy weather machine. And you know that by the end of the episode, Donnie has somehow gained freezing abilities.

Yep, it looks like Coulson’s team accidentally created yet another super villain.  See, in the comics, Donnie Gill is also known as Donald Gill who was also the Iron Man villain Blizzard.

Of course, he probably won’t look like that if he returns. (which is a shame.)

Wow, at the rate that Coulsons team is going, they might accidentally just create the entire Masters of Evil team for the Avengers to fight.

All joking aside, while I did like the “A” plot  overall, the real enjoyment for me came from the “B” plot.

Here, Coulson and May are tracking down the surviving Agent who was involved in the protection and dropping off of Skye.  May, who normally is very critical of Skye, is strangely willing to investigate deeper into Skye’s case. The why makes sense. May points out that Skye has truly proven herself thanks to the events of the last episode, and to do a case so that Phil is distracted and wouldn’t continue to brood about his situation any further.

It’s here that Coulson declares that he will no longer keep any secrets. He’s tired of it. And he’s tired of withholding secrets about anyone on the bus, including Skyes.

This fantastically leads into the episodes biggest laugh for me in which May just surprisingly lets it out in the open that her and Ward have been sleeping with each other.

When they catch the Agent that they were looking for (and FINALLY using LOLA’s flying capabilities, even if it was just for a bit) we learn the truth about Skye.

Skye wasn’t just a kid who lost her parents…Skye was a “084”. This was introduced in the second episode of the show, as a “084” was code for an object of unknown origin. Which means that SKYE was the object of unknown origin.

Wow, did not see THAT coming. And the best thing? Coulson told her!

“No more secrets.”

So what does that mean? Does it mean that Skye has powers? Did Skye’s parents have further connections to something bigger?

Whatever it ends up being, it actually gives Skye a far more interesting backstory, one that both Coulson (and me, the viewer) would like to know more.

If Coulson sticks to the “No more secrets.” mantra, this really forces the characters to no longer hide behind the easy answer of “I just can’t tell you guys what’s wrong…because of my SECRET”.

No, that can’t be the answer any more.

Coulson will get the truth, and after learning about him and Skye’s “truth”, I think it shows that he is motivated by no longer fearing it. If Skye can keep going, knowing what she knows, then so can he.

This newly motivated Phil could just be the kick in the pants this show needs.