# Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D S02E03: Making Friends And Influencing People (open spoilers) **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 8, 2014, 4:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/agents-of-s-h-i-e-l-d-s02e03-making-friends-and-influencing-people-open-spoilers/700731 "2014-10-08T04:04:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2014, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/agents-of-s-h-i-e-l-d-s02e03-making-friends-and-influencing-people-open-spoilers/700731/21 "2014-10-14T23:42:48Z")
Uh-oh. If that’s the secret we have a potential anti-Banner on our hands. The angrier he gets, the more coherent. ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2014, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/agents-of-s-h-i-e-l-d-s02e03-making-friends-and-influencing-people-open-spoilers/700731/22 "2014-10-14T23:43:14Z")
Yeah, I noticed that. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2014, 3:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/agents-of-s-h-i-e-l-d-s02e03-making-friends-and-influencing-people-open-spoilers/700731/23 "2014-10-15T03:15:59Z")
> [@RikWriter](#): > > Isn’t he the guy who made the animated Lord of the Rings movie? History’s greatest villain! ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2014, 3:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/agents-of-s-h-i-e-l-d-s02e03-making-friends-and-influencing-people-open-spoilers/700731/24 "2014-10-15T03:26:59Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > uh-oh. If that’s the secret we have a potential anti-banner on our hands. The angrier he gets, the more coherent. FITZ IS SMARTEST ONE THERE IS!!!l! ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2014, 3:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/agents-of-s-h-i-e-l-d-s02e03-making-friends-and-influencing-people-open-spoilers/700731/25 "2014-10-15T03:37:55Z")
I have to admit, it kind of annoys me that HYDRA needs to engage in brainwashing techniques. Isn’t that likely to mute or destroy the talents/initiative/imaginations of the people they’re trying to recruit? I think it’d be more interesting and morally ambiguous if HYDRA didn’t have to be quite so comic-bookish evil, if they had lots of people working for them purely voluntarily for the benefits and paychecks (and with generous enough compensation, I can’t imagine they’d need to _force_ people to work for them), while perhaps there’s an inner cadre of hardcore cultish true believers who are setting corporate policy toward, y’know… evil, while the paycheck-chasers are there for the banality. Heck, this Agent 33 woman gets mind-zapped and at the end of the episode she’s delivering memos. I sure hope HYDRA didn’t go to all the trouble just for an easy-on-the-eyes gofer. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2014, 3:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/agents-of-s-h-i-e-l-d-s02e03-making-friends-and-influencing-people-open-spoilers/700731/26 "2014-10-15T03:45:17Z")
> [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](#): > > FITZ IS SMARTEST ONE THERE IS!!!l! FITZ MATHS! heh ---
**Author:** ![emarkp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/3be4f8/32.png) [@emarkp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/emarkp)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2014, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/agents-of-s-h-i-e-l-d-s02e03-making-friends-and-influencing-people-open-spoilers/700731/27 "2014-10-15T15:57:24Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > Uh-oh. If that’s the secret we have a potential anti-Banner on our hands. The angrier he gets, the more coherent. Heh, I think it was just that the speech wouldn’t have been as effective if it had been broken up. Having spent time with someone who had a serious stutter, I was amazed when sometimes he’s speak just fine for a while. Sometimes he was less coherent when emotionally stressed, sometimes more. ---
**Author:** ![FlyingDragonFan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c89c15/32.png) [@FlyingDragonFan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FlyingDragonFan)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2014, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/agents-of-s-h-i-e-l-d-s02e03-making-friends-and-influencing-people-open-spoilers/700731/28 "2014-10-15T20:57:01Z")
Yeah, I was also kind of thinking that, that from a storytelling perspective a smoother speech would have more impact. ---
**Author:** ![gonzoron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a6a055/32.png) [@gonzoron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzoron)\ **Post date:** [October 16, 2014, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/agents-of-s-h-i-e-l-d-s02e03-making-friends-and-influencing-people-open-spoilers/700731/29 "2014-10-16T15:28:27Z")
> [@Bryan\_Ekers](#): > > FITZ MATHS! Chuckle. Solid episode. Loved Fitz/Ward. Loved Simmons/Coulson. Loved Fitz/Coulson. Very cute that they remembered Simmons’ last disastrous attempt at undercover work and lampshaded it. Mack is growing on me, though Hunter isn’t really. Something amazing has happened, however… I realized after watching that I don’t roll my eyes at Skye anymore. Somehow, I’ve come to accept her as a competent part of the team, and not just the tag-along “kid sister.” Who knew? Nicely done, show. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/agents-of-s-h-i-e-l-d-s02e03-making-friends-and-influencing-people-open-spoilers/700731.md?page=1)