Afterlife (episode)

## Marvel Cinematic Universe

*"The official name is Chinese, I think. Lai Shi... doesn't exactly translate. So we just call it 'Afterlife.'"*
―Lincoln Campbell to Skye**[src]**
***Afterlife*** is the sixteenth episode of the second season of *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.*

## Synopsis

As Robert Gonzales makes his move, Coulson must do whatever it takes to protect the future of S.H.I.E.L.D. Meanwhile Skye's journey to control her powers takes a surprising turn when she meets the enigmatic Inhuman named Lincoln.

## Plot

Skye awakens two days after the events at the Retreat in the Inhuman settlement called Afterlife, where Lincoln Campbell uses his medical knowledge to give Skye an acupuncture treatment to stabilize her body's chemistry after Terrigenesis. Though Skye asks Gordon to let her friends know that she was alright, he says that he needs permission from the elders to do something like that. Campbell offers to teach her how to control her powers, but Skye is reluctant in displaying them.

Meanwhile, Coulson and Hunter steal a car from Honest Eddie's Car Dealership. They drive to the Retreat and set up there, salvaging a security camera from the debris Skye's shockwave left. The tape shows Skye blowing away two agents, and a man appearing in a blue flash and teleporting her away. Coulson expresses his shock and disbelief over S.H.I.E.L.D. and Skye, before making a plan.

Coulson sets off an alarm that informs Robert Gonzales of his location and tells Lance Hunter that with the coming back-up, they are capturing a Quinjet. Gonzales' men take a long time to break down the high security door. Once they do, they are greeted by Hunter and Coulson playing cards and Coulson signals for them to be quiet. Confused, one of the men goes to grab Coulson but his hand goes right through him. They realize they are Holographic Cards. Coulson and Hunter sneak out the back only to be surprised by Quinjets that turn off their reflective panels and reveal themselves in plain site. Though the plan did not go as smoothly as Hunter would have liked, the back-up, Michael Peterson, arrives and saves them from Gonzales' men.

Meanwhile, Melinda May is offered a position on Gonzales' board of leaders in his faction of S.H.I.E.L.D. Leo Fitz and Jemma Simmons trick Bobbi Morse into thinking Simmons is betraying Fitz. Simmons works her hardest to open up the Toolbox for Morse while a betrayed Fitz leaves the Playground for good. Simmons is unable to get it open.

In Afterlife, Lincoln shows Skye the facility. He takes her to the edge of the mountain overlooking the valley. They bond as he shows her his electricity powers by making her float. As they talk, he accidentally reveals that someone else from the Ancient City is here. Skye marches into the "abandoned" room to find Raina. In an argument, Skye starts to make the room shake to bring rubble down onto Raina. Skye is stopped by Jiaying, the leader of the settlement. Jiaying does not reveal that she is Skye's mother, but does offer to be her mentor in training in how to use her powers. Skye asks Lincoln if Jiaying ever offers to be a mentor. Lincoln tells her never. Later, Jiaying sees Calvin Zabo and thanks him for keeping his promise to reunite her with their daughter, but she says that he is not permitted to see Skye.

On an escaped Quinjet, Hunter meets Peterson and Coulson reveals the next step to his plan to take back S.H.I.E.L.D.: recruit Grant Ward. Meanwhile, Fitz gets in a cab and opens up his bag. He takes out the Toolbox revealing that Simmons helped him take the real one, the Toolbox at the base is fake. He also takes out his favorite sandwich that Simmons prepared for him and starts eating it.

## Cast

**Main Cast:**

* Clark Gregg as Phil Coulson
* Ming-Na Wen as Melinda May
* Chloe Bennet as Skye
* Iain De Caestecker as Leo Fitz
* Elizabeth Henstridge as Jemma Simmons
* Nick Blood as Lance Hunter
* Adrianne Palicki as Bobbi Morse

**Guest Stars:**

* Kyle MacLachlan as Doctor Calvin Zabo
* Henry Simmons as Agent Alphonso Mackenzie
* Dichen Lachman as Jiaying
* Jamie Harris as Gordon
* Luke Mitchell as Lincoln Campbell
* Ruth Negga as Raina
* Stoney Westmoreland as Honest Eddie
* Edward James Olmos as Agent Robert Gonzales
* J. August Richards as Mike Peterson/Deathlok
* Craig Johnson as Tango Romeo Delta
* John Forest as Robbie (uncredited)

## Appearances

### Locations

* South Carolina
	+ Honest Eddie's Car Dealership
* Afterlife, Nepal
* Playground
* Retreat
* S.H.I.E.L.D. Academy (mentioned)
* China (mentioned)
* Cincinnati, Ohio (mentioned)
	+ Cincinnati Memorial Hospital (mentioned)
* Kree City (mentioned)
* Bahrain (mentioned)
* Triskelion (mentioned)
* Mexico (mentioned)
* Chicago, Illinois (mentioned)

### Events

* S.H.I.E.L.D. Civil War
	+ Ambush at the Retreat
	+ Theft of the Toolbox
	+ Attack on the Playground (mentioned)
	+ Chase of Skye (mentioned)
* Resurrection of Phil Coulson (mentioned)
* Rescue in Bahrain (mentioned)
* World War II (mentioned)
* HYDRA Uprising (mentioned)

### Items

* I.C.E.R.
* Toolbox
* Inertial Confinement Laser Barrier
* Quake Gauntlets
* Electronic Battering Ram
* Holocom
* Howling Commando Gear
	+ Holographic Cards
* Backscatter X-Ray Eye Implant
* Forearm Rocket Launcher
* Cybertek Prosthetic Leg
* S.H.I.E.L.D. Lanyard
* Terrigen Mist (mentioned)
* Diviner (mentioned)
* GH.325 (mentioned)
* Vibranium (mentioned)
* Rubik's Cube (mentioned)

### Vehicles

* Bus
* Quinjet
* 2010 Jeep Rubicon Wrangler
* S.H.I.E.L.D. SUV
* *Iliad*
* Taxicab

### Sentient Species

* Humans
* Inhumans
* Kree (mentioned)

### Creatures

* Tigers (mentioned)
* Butterflies (mentioned)

### Organizations

* S.H.I.E.L.D.
	+ Phil Coulson's Faction
	+ Robert Gonzales' Faction
* Strategic Scientific Reserve (logo)
* HYDRA (mentioned)
* Howling Commandos (mentioned)
* Nazi Party (mentioned)

### Mentioned

* Terrigenesis
* Index
* Tomas Calderon
* Anne Weaver
* Nick Fury
* Katya Belyakov
* Hulk
* Vin-Tak
* Antoine Triplett
* Robert Gonzales' Father
* List
* Grant Ward
* Abraham Lincoln
* *The Love Boat*
* Chicago-style pizza
* Butch Cassidy
* Sundance Kid

## Trivia

* Lance Hunter compares himself and Phil Coulson to Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. In the 1969 film *Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid*, the Sundance Kid was portrayed by Robert Redford.

## Videos

Marvel's Agents of SHIELD 2x16 Promo "Afterlife" (HD)Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Season 2, Ep. 16 - Clip 1Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Season 2, Ep. 16 - Clip 2
## References

The Marvel Cinematic Universe Wiki has a collection of images and media related to **Afterlife (episode)**.
## External Links

* Afterlife on Wikipedia
* Afterlife (episode) on IMDb
* Afterlife (episode) on Disney+
* Afterlife on Marvel Database