| "The Laws of Inferno Dynamics" | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. episode | |||
| Episodeno. | Season 4 Episode 8 | ||
| Directed by | Kevin Tancharoen | ||
| Written by | Paul Zbyszewski | ||
| Cinematography by | Allan Westbrook | ||
| Editing by |
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| Original air date | December 6, 2016 (2016-12-06) | ||
| Guest appearances | |||
| Episode chronology | |||
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| Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.season 4 | |||
| List of episodes | |||
"The Laws of Inferno Dynamics" is the eighth episode andmid-season finale of thefourth season of the American television seriesAgents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Based on theMarvel Comics organizationS.H.I.E.L.D., it followsPhil Coulson and his team of S.H.I.E.L.D. agents as they work with theGhost Rider to defeatEli Morrow. It is set in theMarvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) and acknowledgesthe franchise's films. The episode was written byPaul Zbyszewski, and directed byKevin Tancharoen.
Clark Gregg reprises his role as Coulson from the film series, and is joined by series regularsMing-Na Wen,Chloe Bennet,Iain De Caestecker,Elizabeth Henstridge,Henry Simmons, andJohn Hannah. Recurring guest starsGabriel Luna andJosé Zúñiga portray the Ghost Rider,Robbie Reyes, and his uncle Morrow, respectively. The episode serves as the last in the first "pod" of episodes for the season, subtitledGhost Rider.
"The Laws of Inferno Dynamics" was originally broadcast onABC on December 6, 2016, and, according toNielsen Media Research, was watched by 4.49 million viewers within a week of its release.
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Tracking downEli Morrow, as well as mercenaries he has recruited,S.H.I.E.L.D. corner them in a warehouse, but afterElena "Yo-Yo" Rodriguez is injured in an explosion,Robbie Reyes enters the building alone. He discovers that Morrow has built a highly unstabledemon core to make himself even more powerful, despite its potential to destroyLos Angeles in a nuclear explosion. The danger is increased by a series of tremors throughout the city, andLeo Fitz deduces they are being caused by Morrow, who is not creating matter from nothing after all, but is stealing energy from the Hell dimension, causing inter-dimensional disturbances. Morrow impales Robbie on carbon spikes, trapping him inside the demon core, and defends his actions, insisting he deserves godlike power after being underestimated and condescended to throughout his life.
Phil Coulson reveals toJeffrey Mace thatAida is an android. Despite his anger atHolden Radcliffe's deceit, Mace hasMelinda May bring in Radcliffe and Aida, sending them into the warehouse to rebuild their portal generator under the demon core, so as to send it to the Hell dimension. WhileDaisy Johnson tries to contain the tremors, Coulson confronts Morrow and reveals the true nature of his abilities to him, distracting him while May,Alphonso "Mack" Mackenzie, Rodriguez, and Mace get into position. The agents attack Morrow and his men, and Robbie traps Morrow with him in the demon core as Fitz,Jemma Simmons, Radcliffe, and Aida send it to Hell. Johnson releases the energy she has absorbed from the tremors and is launched into the sky, resulting in her landing in the middle of a gathering of journalists covering the crisis.
Mace subsequently tells the press that Johnson was undercover as a vigilante combatting theWatchdogs on S.H.I.E.L.D.'s behalf. He also revealsEllen Nadeer's blackmail to the other agents. Mack and Rodriguez begin a relationship, while Coulson reassures Johnson about Robbie's fate, revealing he knows ofa previous Ghost Rider who escaped from Hell. He also confides that he had hoped Johnson would one day become S.H.I.E.L.D.'s director. Sent by Mace to retrieve Radcliffe'sLife Model Decoy (LMD) work from his home, S.H.I.E.L.D. technicianNathanson discovers a captiveMelinda May, who was abducted earlier by Aida and replaced by an identical LMD that possesses May's memories and personality, but lacks awareness of its true android nature. To keep her secret, Aida murders Nathanson.
In November 2016, Marvel revealed that the eighth episode of the season, andmid-season finale, would be titled "The Laws of Inferno Dynamics", to be written byPaul Zbyszewski and directed byKevin Tancharoen.
Main cast membersClark Gregg asPhil Coulson,Ming-Na Wen asMelinda May,Chloe Bennet asDaisy Johnson / Quake,Iain De Caestecker asLeo Fitz,Elizabeth Henstridge asJemma Simmons,Henry Simmons asAlphonso "Mack" Mackenzie, andJohn Hannah asHolden Radcliffe were confirmed to be starring in the episode.[1]
Also revealed was the guest cast for the episode, includingNatalia Cordova-Buckley asElena "Yo-Yo" Rodriguez,Jason O'Mara as DirectorJeffrey Mace,Gabriel Luna asRobbie Reyes,Mallory Jansen asAida,Patrick Cavanaugh asBurrows,José Zúñiga asEli Morrow, Blaise Miller as AgentNathanson, Coleen Sullivan as reporter and Steve Suh as Peng.[1] Cordova-Buckley, O'Mara, Luna, Jansen, Cavanaugh, Zúñiga, and Miller reprise their roles from earlier in the series.[2][3][4]
"The Laws of Inferno Dynamics" was first shown in the United States onABC on December 6, 2016.[1] It began streaming onNetflix, along with the rest of the fourth season, on June 15, 2017.[5]
In the United States, the episode received a 0.7/3 percent share among adults between the ages of 18 and 49, meaning that it was seen by 0.7 percent of all households, and 3 percent of all of those watching television at the time of the broadcast. It was watched by 2.37 million viewers.[6] Within a week of its release, "The Laws of Inferno Dynamics" had been watched by 4.49 million U.S. viewers,[7] just above the season average of 4.22 million.[8]
