Board Thread:Episode Discussion/@comment-112155-20160120062619/@comment-996391-20160120105233

It seems pretty clear to me "The Council" leads the American branch of HYDRA. They are using the ancient HYDRA symbol (which is completely unknown to the authorities so it can be freely shown in public) they are incredibly powerful (they orchestrated the Wall Street Crash of 1929), they have people everywhere (they want Chadwick to become a Senator), and they are interested in deep science. Wouldn't be surprised if it turns out that Vernon Masters is one of them. He wants Thompson to become a member of a new agency (probably S.H.I.E.L.D.), which could explain that S.H.I.E.L.D. wasn't just infiltrated by HYDRA, it was founded by HYDRA.