Ascension (Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.)

"Ascension" is the twenty-second episode, and second part of the two-part

Clark Gregg reprises his role as Coulson from the film series, and is joined by series regulars Ming-Na Wen, Brett Dalton, Chloe Bennet, Iain De Caestecker, Elizabeth Henstridge, Henry Simmons, and Luke Mitchell.

"Ascension" originally aired on

Plot

Following directly on from "

In April 2016, Kevin Tancharoen revealed that he would be directing the season's finale, and was "just starting to dive into the treatment and the outline and the script and everything and just getting into it".^[1] Later in the month, Marvel announced that the episode (the twenty-second of the season) would be titled "Ascension", and would be written by executive producer Jed Whedon.^[2]

Writing

Actress Chloe Bennet said ahead of the episode's release, "This is the end of a chapter—more than a chapter; this might be the end of the first book of S.H.I.E.L.D. This finale feels like the end of something bigger and the beginning of a whole new tone for the show. It's completely nonstop. It's shocking and it's also just really sad."^[3]

With the series having been teasing the impending death of a major character, in the possession of a golden cross and S.H.I.E.L.D. jacket at the time, the executive producers confirmed that the season's final episode would feature the death. They revealed before the airing of the episode that they would "play a game of hot potato" with the items to keep the identity of the dying character a mystery for as long as possible. Actor Clark Gregg said of the cast's experience with this aspect of the script, "We were very aware when someone would pick up the cross. There's a lot of sleight of hand with the cross. You don't want to be the last person holding the cross." Whedon discussed the cross as a symbol in the script, saying, "We like that the hot potato of death is this delicate little cross. We're fighting the devil; it's a question of faith." He also admitted that "some of the potato-tossing in the finale is just to mess with viewers": "Some of it's pretty meaningful as it passes hands, and some of it's painful for the audience."^[3]

After the episode reveals

In April 2016, Marvel revealed that main cast members Clark Gregg,

"Ascension" was first aired in the United States on ABC on May 17, 2016, as part of the two-hour third season finale.^[2]

Reception

Ratings

In the United States the episode received a 1.0/4 percent share among adults between the ages of 18 and 49, meaning that it was seen by 1.0 percent of all households, and 4 percent of all of those watching television at the time of the broadcast. It was watched by 3.03 million viewers.^[10]

References