"Afterlife" originally aired on ABC on April 7, 2015, and according to Nielsen Media Research, was watched by 4.24 million viewers.
They see through surveillance footage that Skye had accidentally brought down a section of the forest when confronted by agents Bobbi Morse and Tomas Calderon, part of a faction of S.H.I.E.L.D.
Skye awakens in a mountain hideaway with Chinese décor called Afterlife, which is a place where people like her are brought to be safe, and to be chosen/prepared for the transformation.
As explained to her by Lincoln Campbell, her transitioner, she is a unique case in that she was transformed without being chosen or prepared, and that she did it in a Kree temple with a Diviner, rather than in the controlled environment and under the elders instruction.
To her dismay, Campbell informs her that the transformation is irreversible, but he is confident that she can learn to master her abilities, as he once did – he can electrically charge anything, which first caused him to almost burn down Afterlife, but now allows him to do many things, including levitate objects.
However, reinforcements arrive in the form of Agent Mike Peterson, a man turned into a super-powered cyborg by Hydra, who takes out the rival S.H.I.E.L.D.
This is stopped by Jiaying, who offers to be her guide and help her master her abilities, if she chooses to stay, though she does not reveal that she is Skye's mother.
In March 2015, Marvel announced that the sixteenth episode of the season would be titled "Afterlife", to be written by Craig Titley, with Kevin Hooks directing.
"[2] In March 2015, Marvel revealed that main cast members Clark Gregg, Ming-Na Wen, Chloe Bennet, Iain De Caestecker, Elizabeth Henstridge, Nick Blood, and Adrianne Palicki would star as Phil Coulson, Melinda May, Skye, Leo Fitz, Jemma Simmons, Lance Hunter, and Bobbi Morse, respectively.
[1] It was also revealed that the guest cast for the episode would include Henry Simmons as Alphonso "Mack" Mackenzie, Ruth Negga as Raina, Kyle MacLachlan as Cal, Edward James Olmos as Robert Gonzales, Jamie Harris as Gordon, Dichen Lachman as Jiaying, Luke Mitchell as Lincoln Campbell, Craig Johnson as S.H.I.E.L.D.
The different artists were once again chosen to create the teaser posters, based on their previous work and how it connected to the themes and emotion of the intended episode.
[8] IGN reviewer Eric Goldman gave the episode an 8.2 out of 10 "great" rating, saying "A lot continues to change on SHIELD, and I'm genuinely curious what the team dynamic will be like when this all plays out, which is a fun place for the show to be."