Ever wonder where S.H.I.E.L.D. agents go after they die? “They’re all hanging out having coffee at Warehouse 13,” Eddie McClintock theorized after he crashed the “Guests of S.H.I.E.L.D.” panel on Friday at 7PM in the Westin Peachtree Ballroom. Death, superheroes, resurrection, and shoelace romance were recurring themes in this lively panel that included B.J. Britt and Edward James Olmos.
In the Marvel Universe, no one is safe. Agent Triplett, played by Britt, and Robert Gonzales, played by Olmos, had crushing deaths while Vin-Tak, played by McClintock, is being held in an Asgardian prison. Britt was broken the news of his character’s demise when he was called up into the office. [Insert McClintock’s foreboding “dun, dun, dun.”] When he walked into the room and saw all of the producers, all Britt could say was “How does he die?” He held it together in the room, but, once he made it to the car, it was all sobs from there. Several of the cast members called Britt on his way home, but “I couldn’t answer because I couldn’t talk and cry and drive,” he mourned.
Death is so rampant on the show that one fan asked if there was a support group. Olmos and Britt quickly jumped up into a loving embrace to console each other. After a moment of silence, McClintock broke in with “I’ve never wanted to die so badly in my life.” Unfortunately, we may never have a Post Traumatic S.H.I.E.L.D. Death—P.T.S.D.—support group. Olmos dejectedly stated that there is “no support. There are no jock straps out there … We need the shoelace.”
A Marvel panel is not complete without talk of who the actor’s dream superhero role would be. For Olmos, it would be Thor with the big hammer. McClintock exclaimed it would be the Hulk because “I’ve kind of got the protruding post-orbital ridge. I’m like two chromosomes from Australopithecus.” Britt said that Triplett is the dream and that he sounds like his character when he seductively voices “come on girl, you know I love you.” McClintock quickly interjected, “We call that the panty dropper.”
When asked if they could be resurrected, in one form or another, the answer was a resounding yes, and in any form. Britt was keen on the idea of Triplett coming back in any form, including a shoelace. Triplett would make a very handsome shoelace; one that has a lot of love to give and one that is very long. When asked who the shoelace would be getting with, he cheekily replied, “Who he’d be tied with.” One hand couldn’t tie that shoelace.
S.H.I.E.L.D. isn’t all death and explosives, though. Learning lines in Kree at the last minute is not for the faint of heart. Or for the modest. McClintock said that, while he normally comes to set reasonably prepared, that day he felt like he was standing naked on a block of ice. You can imagine the shrinkage that would cause.
As for the actor’s future, Olmos can be heard as the voice of Gayo in the animated film El Americano: The Movie that is slated for release next year. Britt reprises his role of Paul Patterson, Jr. on season three of BET’s Being Mary Jane. As for McClintock, he’s looking for pool cleaning jobs and comes complete with “a fetching leopard G-string”.
