Episode 9 ("Repairs") opens with a clerk at a "Roxxon" convenience store & gas station,
in Batesville, Utah, reading a newspaper about an explosion at a particle accelerator lab,
with a front page photo of the lone survivor.
Just then, that survivor, Hannah Hutchins, enters the store and tries to buy some milk. But the
clerk was friends with one of the people who died in the accident, and he apparently
blames Hannah for the man's death. When she tries to leave, he blocks her way.
Suddenly objects from the store shelves begin hurling themselves at the clerk, in what
appears to be a Carrie-like instance of telekinesis on the part of Hannah.
When an entire shelf topples on him, the clerk panics and runs from the store.
As Hannah cringes in a corner, the mayhem continues, climaxing with
the explosion of the gas station tanks just outside the convenience store.
Most of the time, "S.H.I.E.L.D." shoots on location, but for this episode,
they fell back on that old staple of the Hollywood film industry: the movie ranch.
They shot this at Middleton Ranch, at 6201 Soledad Canyon Drive, in Acton, CA.
(It was formerly known as the "Agua Dolce Movie Ranch".)
Acton is a small town located on the road between Santa Clarita and the
Mojave Desert communities of Lancaster & Palmdale.
( I first encountered the town when I tracked down the remote location of
Dexter's family home, in that hit show's Season One finale. )
Besides the modern gas station and the convenience store sets, the small ranch also includes an
old-fashioned 1930's gas station (called "Gilmore Gas"), a cafe/diner, a garage, and a small house.
Not to mention the striking desert/mountain scenery in the background.
They added fake "Roxxon" signs, of course, to the generic set.
You can read more about the ranch at their website.
And more about the gas station set on this page.
Here is a photo of the set from the Middleton Ranch website:
And a night shot of the convenience store set:
Here is a Google StreetView of the gas station & store,
as seen from Soledad Canyon Road.
