Time to Start Recruiting Secret Warriors!

Image Courtesy www.twitter.com/AgentsofShield

It is now confirmed that Coulson and Skye are in the process of assembling a team of super-powered S.H.I.E.L.D. agents to handle… unique… situations!  This team will take its inspiration—and name—from the comic book team known as the Secret Warriors, which was led by Daisy Johnson, aka Quake (aka SKYE in the show), and consisted of the super-powered children of super villains.  In the comics, this team was heavily involved in major events such as the Secret Invasion.  We don’t yet know what they will be doing in the season 3 of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., but my guess is that it will have something to do with the “Terrigen Fish Oil Bomb” that they loosed at the end of season 2.  They may also be involved in the brewing Civil War to some extent.

So who could be on Skye’s team?  Obviously, not every member of the team is going to be someone we have met already.  However, there are several possibilities for Skye’s first recruits.  So in this article I am going to go through all the super-powered “allies” that S.H.I.E.L.D. has encountered and rank them based on their likelihood to join Skye’s Secret Warriors.

The criteria I am looking for are twofold.  First, superpowers are a strong factor in the character’s favor.  Second, the ability to operate anonymously is also something of a requirement.  The absence of one or the other doesn’t automatically disqualify the character, but it does raise red flags.

The ranking scale I am using is 1-5, with “1” meaning “no way in hell” and “5” meaning “already confirmed to be on the team.”

Image Courtesy www.twitter.com/AgentsofShield

Skye – 5

This one is pretty much self-explanatory.  Skye is really the only character that can get a “5” rating, because she’s the only character who is definitively confirmed to be on the Secret Warriors team at this point.

Skye has been one of the main characters for 2 seasons, and the entire second season revolved around learning who and what she is, unlocking her powers, and “meeting the parents.”  Going forward she will only become more important as one of Coulson’s top lieutenants and the leader of the Secret Warriors.

Lincoln – 4

Lincoln is all but confirmed to be Skye’s first recruit to the Secret Warriors, as he was promoted to series regular almost as soon as the series was renewed.  Being an Inhuman with electrical powers, he is extremely powerful, though he still retains human appearance.  However, he may be even more important to the Secret Warriors as an Inhuman Transitioner—someone trained in techniques designed to aid the newly-transformed Inhuman’s body in adjusting to its Terrigenesis transformations.  If the Secret Warriors are called on to track down new, confused Inhumans, his abilities will be doubly important:  first to stun someone who’s freaking out and using their powers uncontrollably, and second to “transition” them so they can be brought into the new Inhuman community.

Mike Peterson, aka Deathlok – 4

Deathlok is kind of on the border as far as the Secret Warriors go.  On the one hand, he is definitely powerful, the kind of cyborg they would want on their side if they are going after a particularly dangerous villain.  On the other hand, between the cybernetic leg, eye-mounted laser targeting system, and body armor, there’s just no way for him to blend into a crowd—even a trench coat probably wouldn’t cover his leg entirely.  However, I’m still calling him a likely candidate because the benefits of having him on the team would far outweigh the risks.  Additionally, his origin story has been tied to Skye for most of the series, and this seems like the next logical step.

I doubt that Deathlok will be going on any covert missions, but he could be the one flying the plane and dropping in when things go south.

Alisha, aka “Ginger Ninjas” – 3

Alisha is the only character that I would say can really go either way.  In the season 2 finale she was fighting alongside Jiaying’s Inhuman team against S.H.I.E.L.D.  However, Lincoln asserts that they are “misled” and not all bad.  Could Alisha have been one of those who was misled into following Jiaying?  It seems possible.  And if that’s the case, Skye might convince her to join a team with other Inhumans (and enhanced humans) to protect the world and help new Inhumans.

Additionally, she is one of the very few Inhumans given a name so far—the others being Jiaying, Lincoln, Raina, Gordon, and Skye.  Likewise, she is also one of the very few Inhumans whose powers were shown—the others being (what a shock) Jiaying, Lincoln, Raina, Gordon, and Skye.  Plus, Mack gave her a codename, so…  I somehow don’t think her story is done just yet.

 

Remember this Photoshop?

Bobbi Morse and Lance Hunter – 2

Bobbi and Hunter seem like they would be shoe-ins for a Secret Warriors team, right?  After all, she’s Mockingbird—an Avenger, Secret Avenger, West Coast and Great Lakes Avenger…—so of course she would be part of an iteration of Fury’s Secret Warriors, right?  Well, maybe.  I wouldn’t count either of them out entirely, especially since Bobbi hinted at the end of season 2 that she wants to move on from S.H.I.E.L.D. proper.  Perhaps joining a team with enhanced people would be a good way for her to work through her demons?

However, I’m putting them as a “2” because of the lack of powers (one of Coulson’s primary motivators for assembling this team in the first place) and because it seemed like Marvel had other plans for the characters at the end of last season.  They might decide to have Bobbi and Hunter join the team, but I’m thinking not at this moment.

Akela Amador – 2

You remember Akela Amador, right?  Coulson’s former protégé from “Eye Spy” (1x04) who had the first cybernetic eye implant the team encountered?  If they replaced the explosive cybernetic eye with a non-explosive one, she might be an interesting addition to the Secret Warriors.  After all, she is an excellent unarmed combatant and can blend into any crowd.  She has standard S.H.I.E.L.D. Operations training.  Plus, she has about the same motivator as Deathlok:  redemption for the crimes she committed under Hydra’s control.

However, I’m putting her down as unlikely because she hasn’t made any sort of appearance beyond a passing mention by Agent Hand since her episode.  Last we knew she was in a S.H.I.E.L.D. prison facility—one which probably fell to Hydra, meaning that she is either dead or brainwashed.  I wouldn’t be shocked if she comes back, but I’m not counting on it, either.

Professor Randolph – 1

If you’re putting together a team of enhanced people to confront major threats, you can never go wrong with recruiting an Asgardian to the team!  Randolph would definitely be a good addition to the team, particularly if he agrees to go back to using the Berserker Staff (assuming they find it again).

However, he seemed quite content with his retirement, and I’m not sure if Coulson would seriously force him to join a team and work for S.H.I.E.L.D. by threatening to tell Thor about him.  That just seems out of character for Coulson, who is more interested in convincing people to do something freely, rather than coercing it out of them.

Donnie Gill, aka Blizzard – 1

I really don’t think that Gill was killed in “Making Friends and Influencing People” (2x03), so it is absolutely possible for him to make a reappearance at some point down the road.  However, I’m putting him in the “no way in hell” category for a couple of reasons.  First, there’s the whole Hydra brainwashing thing:  people have broken away from it, but Gill has had the brainwashing reactivated at least once, and it could be reactivated again.  However, that doesn’t automatically exclude him.  The other reason is that he’s gone pretty far into “angsty teenager” mode, and that just doesn’t scream “team player” to me.  Maybe being part of a team of enhanced people would help him find his place, but I’m not going to hold out much hope for it.

Man-Thing – 1

Man-Thing was mentioned in “Nothing Personal” (1x20), and in the comics he is actually a hero—to the extent that he does heroic things, though the heroes do have some trouble communicating with him.  In the MCU, Hill implies that he was an inmate at the Fridge until Hydra took it over and freed all of the prisoners.  This would suggest that he is now loose.

However, I do not think that Man-Thing will be “suiting up” with the Secret Warriors any time soon.  It’s not because I don’t think he’s a hero or would fight with the heroes.  Rather, it’s because I do not think he would fit the criterion of “Secret” and “Anonymous.”  Simply put, it would be really hard to explain a massive plant monster walking down the street, and anonymity is one of the Secret Warriors’ primary requirements.  He could assist them in extreme circumstances, but I doubt we will see him much on TV—if at all (CGI body and all that).  If he does make any actual appearances in the MCU, I expect it to be on an “Avengers of the Supernatural” or “Nick Fury’s Howling Commandos” (the one with the werewolf, not the French guy) team.

Conclusion

Odds are that most of these characters will not be joining the Secret Warriors in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. season 3.  In fact, it wouldn’t surprise me if only a couple of the characters mentioned actually join the Secret Warriors, and the rest of the team consists of entirely new characters.  However, one way or another, I’m excited to see the Secret Warriors in action!

Who do you want to see join the Secret Warriors?  What villains do you want to see them face?  What are you most excited for in AoS season 3?  Let me know in the comics!

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