Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D. Season 3 Episode 8: Many Heads, One Tale Recap With Spoilers

Gideon explains to Ward how the octopus is one of the greatest symbols of Hydra. They're speaking over dinner, which includes an actual octopus. Gideon knows that Ward is looking for Von Strucker's family vault, said to hold Hydra's greatest power. Gideon says it doesn't exist, but Ward doesn't believe him. He feels like Gideon purposely sacrificed Werner, leaving Gideon in control of the vault. Gideon exits, and a group of his men enter and attack Ward. Ward takes them out, and interrogates the ones who remain alive.

Rosalind and Coulson watch as Andrew is hauled away to ATCU's containment. Mack notices Rosalind physically comforting Coulson.

Fitz yells at someone for dropping a priceless manuscript. He explains to Simmons that he's brought in every volume on symbolic iconography he could find, hoping to find something on the ram's head symbol on the castle door and Will's sleeve.

Daisy checks in with Lincoln, and they talk about their kiss and their relationship. She reminds him that he can only stay at the base permanently if he's part of Coulson's game plan.

Mack voices his concerns about how close Coulson has grown to Rosalind. Coulson says it's not his business, and he hopes that he can trust Rosalind, but the rest of them will go behind her back.

Coulson announces Operation Spotlight to the rest of his team. They're going to shine a light on every dark corner of the ATCU. He splits them into teams, and May requests Lincoln. He wants to know the ATCU's agenda for the Inhumans, who and how many they have, and how close they are to finding a cure.

Ward continues to interrogate the men. One of them finally reveals that the vault he's looking for is in Germany.

Rosalind arrives for her tour of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s secret base. Coulson sweeps her phone before allowing her to turn it back on, nominally checking for intelligence gathering programs on her phone. Instead they download information from her phone.

The tracker on Andrew's containment unit turns on, and Daisy can use it to track where the ATCU brought him. The ATCU calls the FBI for what they believe is a cybersecurity breach, but it's routed to Mack, who says they're dispatching agents. Those agents are Lance and Bobbi in disguise, with Daisy whispering tech speak into their ears.

Coulson continues to give Rosalind a tour. She gets a call about the security breach. She asks Coulson if the containment unit scanned the ATCU's network, and Coulson owns up to it. She tells her tech man to play nice with the FBI.

Simmons finds that the ram-head symbol is used in a blood-sacrifice.

Ward flirts with a stewardess, then whispers something in her ear. He blows the hatch over Germany.

Fitz traces the symbol back thousands of years, back to pagan devil myths. Simmons is losing hope, but Fitz insists on trying. Simmons gets angry and tells him to stop doing all the right things, and storms out.

Rosalind examines some of Coulson's retro spy gear. Coulson reveals that he was studying history in college and accidently uncovering S.H.I.E.L.D.'s influence when they recruited him.

The ATCU allows Hunter to access a terminal. Daisy gives him a command prompt to type in, and Hunter hunts and pecks his way in. Daisy sends in May, and Lincoln is forced to follow. Mack gives Bobbi directions to an Enhanced Specimen Containment room in the building. Daisy calls Bobbi's phone, which Bobbi uses as to leave excuse to leave and search the building. May and Lincoln take off.

Fitz finds Simmons. She says she's mad at herself for roping him into to this. She wishes he'd be angry. He finally breaks and says that he is. They have it out over how much time they lost because they were too afraid to say anything. Fitz asks if she loves Will. She says yes. They argue some more until finally Fitz kisses her. She kisses him back. Fitz says they're cursed and backs away. Simmons notices the symbol they were looking for in a book that fell open on the ground.

Bobbi continues making her way to the Enhanced Specimen Containment area. Daisy opens the door for her.

Gideon Malick enters a room with Andrew's containment. He tells Andrew that he advises the President's staff, and that they're working with S.H.I.E.L.D. to help him. Gideon notes that nobody has asked if Andrew even wants treatment. Andrew says that all they see is a killer. They seem to agree that S.H.I.E.L.D. has good intentions, but poor methods.

Bobbi says Andrew isn't here. There are no Inhumans, or evidence of cure research. She does find what looks like a stockpile of fish oil pills.

Hunter continues to ramble until the ATCU man leaves. He then notices that Banks has arrived. Daisy uncovers that the ATCU isn't studying the fish oil for a cure, they're forcibly administrating it to their employee. They're trying to create new Inhumans.

Coulson brings Rosalind into a containment room. He tells her she needs to convince him she's not Hydra or she's never leaving this room. He tells her that his people are infiltrating her facility. She admits that Andrew isn't being kept at the ATCU facility.

Lincoln tries to get May to talk to him, and says that he's not apologizing for bringing out Lash in Andrew. May says she's been trying to figure out what to say to apologize to Lincoln for Andrew. Lincoln says he should be thanking her. Daisy tells them that Bobbi and Lance need extraction.

Bobbi runs into trouble and calls for Lance and her briefcase. Lance has to run past Banks.

Coulson says he was tipped off to Rosalind because she knew about T.A.H.I.T.I. She admitted earlier that she didn't know anyone in S.H.I.E.L.D., which means she must have found out about the program from Hydra. Coulson reveals what they know about Enhanced Specimen Containment. She says she knows nothing about it, that its Malick's wing, and that Malick gave her the T.A.H.I.T.I. intel.

Lance reaches Bobbi with the briefcase after she's won the fight. Three more ATCU men enter. One is an inhuman, and levitates the guns on the ground and begins firing. Bobbi pulls out her batons. They're magnetized to her bracelets, and she throws them, taking out the two non-Inhuman men. She takes out the Inhuman, with some help from Hunter. Rosalind calls Banks. He finds Bobbi and Lance, and helps them get out of the building, where May and Lincoln pick them up.

Ward busts into the vault. Malick is waiting for him there. Malick is impressed. Malick wanted Ward dead because he poses a threat. Now he feels like Ward should be his second hand. Malick reveals that Hydra goes back further than the Red Skull, that they're much, much older. He pulls out a container with a small stone that he says has been passed down for hundreds of generations. He says it was cut from a larger monolith and that it's a portal to another word.

Rosalind reveals she met Malick while he was consulting on a program at NASA. Simmons knew she was going to say that, and lays out what they've found.

Malick tells Ward that thousands of years ago an Inhuman was born on this planet that was destined to rule it. It was sent through the portal to a distant planet. Hydra was founded with the sole purpose of bringing the Inhuman back. Hydra has taken different shapes. The Entity has been given different names. They send men through the portal to serve it, and now they're building an army for it when the creature returns. Malick says they're very close. Malick offers to help Ward get revenge, but S.H.I.E.L.D. brought someone back through the portal, and he needs to know how.

Andrew yells, saying he needs to talk to someone about what's going on. Ward appears. Ward begins pumping mustard gas into Andrew pod. Ward says they want to learn how to turn Lash on.