Orientation

"Orientation" is the first and second episodes and two-part season premiere of the fifth season of the American television series Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Based on the Marvel Comics organization S.H.I.E.L.D., it follows Phil Coulson and his team of S.H.I.E.L.D. agents as they are transported to a future in which the Earth has been destroyed. It is set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) and acknowledges the franchise's films. The first part was written by Jed Whedon and Maurissa Tancharoen and directed by Jesse Bochco, with the second part written by DJ Doyle, and directed by David Solomon. Clark Gregg reprises his role as Coulson from the film series, starring alongside Ming-Na Wen, Chloe Bennet, Iain De Caestecker, Elizabeth Henstridge, Henry Simmons, and Natalia Cordova-Buckley. This marks Cordova-Buckley's first appearance as a series regular, after recurring in previous seasons. A fifth season was ordered in March 2017, and filming began that July. Several new recurring guest stars were announced beginning in August, including Jeff Ward, Eve Harlow, and Pruitt Taylor Vince, who are all introduced in the episodes. The episodes serve as the beginning to the first "pod" of episodes for the season. "Orientation" originally aired on ABC on December 1, 2017, and according to Nielsen Media Research, was watched by 4.27 million viewers within a week of its release. The episodes received very positive reviews from critics, with many generally highlighting the cast's performances, the introduction of new characters, and felt it was a promising start to the season. The futuristic space setting was especially praised for being "ambitious" and thematically different. "Orientation: Part 1" won a Hollywood Post Alliance Award for Outstanding Visual Effects - Television (Over 13 Episodes) at the 2018 Hollywood Post Alliance Awards, and was nominated for a Visual Effects Society Award for Outstanding Visual Effects in a Photoreal Episode at the 16th Visual Effects Society Awards. Plot