Clark Gregg reprises his role as Coulson from the film series, and is joined by principal cast members Ming-Na Wen, Brett Dalton, Chloe Bennet, Iain De Caestecker, Elizabeth Henstridge, and Nick Blood.

In Austria, 1945, Nazi scientist Werner Reinhardt is experimenting on the mysterious Obelisk, forcing test subjects to touch it and noting how it turns them into stone.

Agent Bobbi Morse, while interrogating captured Hydra member Sunil Bakshi, realizes that Whitehall and Red Skull are connected in some way, even though the latter has been dead for 70 years.

Then, in 1989, Reinhardt was ordered to be released by Hydra agent Alexander Pierce, and on returning to Austria, found the same young woman who was unaffected by the Obelisk, who seems to have not aged a day.

Director Phil Coulson, and Agents Skye, Leo Fitz, and Antoine Triplett hack into a satellite feed to search for the alien city.

In October 2014, Marvel announced that the eighth episode of the season would be titled "The Things We Bury", to be written by DJ Doyle, with Milan Cheylov directing.

On the potential interactions between Grant Ward and "The Doctor" introduced at the end of the episode, she said "We have a few uneasy alliances between characters on the show this year.

"[2] In October 2014, Marvel revealed that main cast members Clark Gregg, Ming-Na Wen, Brett Dalton, Chloe Bennet, Iain De Caestecker, Elizabeth Henstridge, and Nick Blood would star as Phil Coulson, Melinda May, Grant Ward, Skye, Leo Fitz, Jemma Simmons, and Lance Hunter, respectively.

[1] It was also revealed that the guest cast for the episode would include B. J. Britt as Antoine Triplett, Adrianne Palicki as Bobbi Morse, Henry Simmons as Alphonso "Mack" Mackenzie, Reed Diamond as Werner Reinhardt / Daniel Whitehall, Tim DeKay as Senator Christian Ward, Kyle MacLachlan as "The Doctor", Hayley Atwell as Peggy Carter, Simon Kassianides as Sunil Bakshi, Lou Ferrigno Jr. as Agent Hauer, Al Coronel as Agent Rivera, Dichen Lachman as the young woman and the Doctor's wife, Eijiro Ozaki as prisoner, Alexander Leeb as scientist, and Willem Van Der Vegt as officer.

[3][4][5][6] Hayley Atwell reprises her film role as Peggy Carter again in the season ahead of her own series, in flashback sequences that include mention of Red Skull and his death, both depicted in the film Captain America: The First Avenger, and Alexander Pierce, who appeared in Captain America: The Winter Soldier.

[11] James Hunt gave a mixed review of the episode at Den of Geek, focusing on its place in the series and where the overarching storylines were moving at that point.

"[14] Conversely, Joseph McCabe of Nerdist gave a very positive review, saying "the machinations of the show's writing staff are much appreciated" – in reference to the complexities of the Ward brothers' relationship – while calling MacLachlan "the standout performer in [the] episode".

has a stronger narrative direction, more complicated character relationships, and a deeper connection to Marvel lore in its second season, but it still has trouble delivering the intrigue expected from a TV series about secret agents in a superhero universe."

[15] Alan Sepinwall of HitFix was positive about the overarching storyline elements that were revealed and developed in the episode, and praised Palicki's performance.

He ended saying the episode "had the added benefit of strong scenes like Whitehall's transition to the modern day, Bobbi's interrogation, or Coulson's confrontation with the Doctor, though I can't imagine the hour leaving behind many memorable impressions a few months, or even weeks, down the line.