'Agents of Shield' Season 7 Episode 5: Bruce Banner was saved by the agents even before he became an Avenger
Spoilers for 'Agents of SHIELD' Season 7 Episode 5 'A Trout in the Milk'
One of the major highlights of this week's episode of 'Agents of SHIELD' was the birth of Project Insight. The global surveillance initiative by SHIELD was actually introduced in 'Captain America: The Winter Soldier'. Over the course of the film, it was revealed that Hydra had infiltrated SHIELD and this was their idea of eradicating potential threats to their organization. In the episode, the agents discover that the timeline for Project Insight was moved up and Hydra was 40 years ahead of their schedule.
Daisy Johnson (Chloe Bennet) and Daniel Sousa (Enver Gjokaj) hack into Project Insight's system only to realize that Bruce Banner was one of Hydra's targets and they intended to kill the future Avenger while he was still a child. When Sousa asks her what she found while hacking her way into Insight files. "Wait, Bruce Banner?" a shocked Daisy remarks.
When Sousa says he had no idea who Banner was, she explained, "That's because he's just a kid now, but in a few decades, he becomes an Avenger... It's a good thing." In addition, Victoria Hand, Nick Fury and Peggy Carter were also listed as the targets to be taken out once Insight was in the air. While the agents were able to ultimately foil the project and save the start of a messy timeline where none of these characters existed, it still remains interesting to see who brought back Project Insight to life again.
Fan speculations say Robert Redford's Alexander Pierce might have been the man to bring it back up. As for Bruce, this is a great way to add some history to Hulk's character, who has been an integral part of the Avengers. In the 2014 timeline, Insight's notable targets included Tony Stark, President Ellis, Stephen Strange and Maria Hill. According to Fandom, there were at least 715,854 individuals targeted by Hydra at that point.
What are your thoughts on 'Agents of SHIELD' adding a new layer to Banner's storyline?
Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Season 7 airs on Wednesdays at 10 pm ET/PT on ABC.