The pacing of the show was something it really struggled with in the first half of season 1, only rectifying it once it tied into Winter Solider. That momentum carried it to the season finale, and it continued apace until the mid-season finale. After that, however, it ran into some of its old problems, with a few episodes that meandered and were really just filler, and then having a bit too much rushed towards the end of the season. This is a show that clearly needs a lot of momentum behind it to keep the storylines interesting and the action ramped up, and when it loses that then its very noticeable. It wasnt just coming back from the mid-season break, but also the the Age of Ultron tie-in and one or two other moments that stalled things, and meant it did have the occasional struggle.