Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D. Winter Finale: Director Jeffrey Mace Suits up for First Time

Agents Of SHIELD Tonight's episode of Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D. concluded the first half of Season 4 with a winter finale that'll remain on fans' minds for quite some time. Between all the easter eggs and comic book nods dropped in the episode, no one was expecting the director of S.H.I.E.L.D. to get directly involved with the action but it turns out, director Jeffrey Mace was ready and willing to suit up alongside his S.H.I.E.L.D. comrades.

Up until now, director Jeffrey Mace has only worn a business suit and there's no been call for Mace to become an agent or directly involved with any physical confrontations but it appears as if Mace has other plans in mind since he suits up in quite a unique armored suit.

From what we can see in Mace's suit, it looks like a lot of time was put into making it which is why Mace suiting up is definitely indicative of what's to come in the next half of Season 4. Otherwise, Mace's call to action in tonight's episode could have just seen him suited up in a bullet proof vest, but he was outfitted with an entire suit that also has a signature S.H.I.E.L.D. insignia in it, unlike any we've seen in either a Marvel film or television series. All that means is there's bound to be more development towards Mace becoming more like his comicbook counterpart, the Patriot.

Keeping the nature of Mace's suit in mind, he may continue to suit up as an agent alongside Coulson and the rest of the S.H.I.E.L.D. more often. As long as Mace (Jason O'Mara) continues to be a part of Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D., there'll likely be situations for Mace to suit up alongside Coulson. Who knows, the next time an uncontrollable threat rears its ugly head, Mace might be suiting up in something with a little more stars and stripes in it.

On the other side of that potential scenario, it's quite possible Mace suiting up was a one-time event but it's much likelier that director Mace will become more of an active field agent when we consider how Mace's character appears to be building up the role of hero, rather than simply the director of S.H.I.E.L.D.

Is Mace on his way to becoming The Patriot?

Mace's uniform from tonight's winter finale is also of some interest. While the uniform looked like an average S.H.I.E.L.D. agent suit, Mace will probably have a custom made suit for the next time he's needed out in the field. Mace's next suit will likely share more similarities to his Patriot costume than S.H.I.E.L.D. attire.

Mace's uniform from tonight's episode did possess a similar layout to Jeffrey Mace's Patriot suit in terms of the elongated wings on the SHIELD insignia in the middle of the suit. The suit unveiled tonight was a far cry from the comic-book version of the Patriot so hopefully Mace's next suit has a bit more color and perhaps a bit more patriotic

Regardless of what kind of uniform Jeffrey Mace wears next, it'll be interesting to see how his character develops from this point on. Now that Mace has seen some action, he could potentially give up his position as director for a spot as an agent. If director Mace sees that he can do more good as an active agent than as the director of S.H.I.E.L.D., Mace could wind up resigning from his post as director to become more like his comicbook counterpart, the Patriot.

What did you think of Jeffrey Mace suiting up alongside the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents? Did you expect Jeffrey Mace to get directly involved in tonight's winter finale?