Which Agents of SHIELD Characters Return to the Present?

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. season 5 has been an absolute triumph, transforming a superhero TV series into an outer-space science-fiction story. The show stranded Agent Coulson and his team in a harsh dystopian future – one in which the world itself had been shattered like an egg. Little by little, the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents have realized that they’re trapped in a strange loop in time. They are destined to return to the present, but it is their own actions that will literally destroy the Earth.

In ‘Past Life,’ the moment finally came. Flint used his Inhuman powers to trigger the Monolith, transporting S.H.I.E.L.D. back in time. Crucially, though, the episode ended before revealing whether or not the team actually returned to their own time. Although the time loop itself seems to indicate they do, the disturbing truth is that there are terrifying questions about certain characters. Meanwhile, surprisingly, they may actually have picked up a new recruit. So, which members of S.H.I.E.L.D. have gotten home, and whose future is in doubt? Let’s run through the team.

COULSON
Phil Coulson was mysteriously absent in flashback scenes through ‘The Last Day,’ prompting some fans to worry that he wouldn’t make it back to the present. The older Yo-Yo’s words imply that he gets back home, though, but that he’s dying after his scrap with Kasius’ Inhuman. In fact, it even seems S.H.I.E.L.D.’s attempts to save Coulson are an important part of the end of the world. Coulson is clearly a crucial player in this time loop, so it’s safe to say he got back to Earth.

DAISY
Along with Coulson, Daisy is one of the characters we can be certain made it back to the present day – even if she didn’t exactly want to do so. Daisy knows what the future holds, and now she has to work out how to avert it. At the same time, she’ll have to deal with the fact Coulson forced her to go home unwillingly, literally shooting her. It’s worth remembering that, in real terms, Daisy has actually only recently rejoined S.H.I.E.L.D.. Season 4’s events seemed to only take place over a few weeks, and for the S.H.I.E.L.D. team (bar Fitz) there was no break between Seasons 4 and 5. It’s possible Daisy will run once again, attempting to flee from her destiny.

FITZ
It’s certain that Fitz makes it back. He’s an important part of the time loop; if Fitz doesn’t return to the present day, the machine to send them home will never be built. That also means most of the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents stood before the Monolith will survive the journey, hopefully relatively unscathed.

MACK
Mack’s fate was the most questionable of them all. At some point, the loop seems to involve his death; worse still, it may be that he died in ‘Past Life.’ The elder Elena spoke of Mack dying running from flames – and he ran from an explosion towards the Monolith. He was also the furthest from the Monolith when it triggered. Finally, none of the flashbacks in ‘The Last Day’ featured Mack.

Thankfully, Mack seems to have made it home OK. He’s visible in the trailer for the next episode, and there’s no evidence of an injury. For now, Mack has dodged the bullet. But time is still in a loop, and S.H.I.E.L.D. may yet lose the man who’s become their heart and soul.

MAY
As with Fitz, May is an important part of the time loop. She simply has to return to the present, in order to bring up Robin and ensure the future comes to pass. ‘The Last Day’ showed viewers some beautiful, touching flashbacks in which May looked after Robin. May seems to have understood that Robin’s own manipulation of events created the time loop in the first place. It was Robin who set this whole arc in motion, when she prophesied that the S.H.I.E.L.D. team would be sent to the future. Her visions have shaped this entire loop, and her prophesies told S.H.I.E.L.D. how to return.

Robin’s final words were apparently to tell May how to return to the present. But did she reveal anything else? It’s possible May could have the knowledge to change the future.

SIMMONS
At first glance, Simmons’ future seems to be secure. After all, she’s a part of the time loop too, and played a key role in building the time machine that tapped into the Monolith’s power. One scene in ‘The Last Day’ showed Fitz furious that Robin had just prophesied Simmons’s death. It clearly implied that she was still alive.

Simmons is visible, although, not prominent, in the trailer for the next episode. To fans’ relief, she doesn’t appear to be injured in any way; there had been some concern that the explosion could have reached her, perhaps even crippling her. With Fitz and Simmons now engaged, it’s going to be interesting to see how the S.H.I.E.L.D. team deal with this ever-budding romance.

YO-YO
Glimpses of the past in ‘The Last Day’ have already assured viewers that Yo-Yo will go back to the present. She plays an important part in the loop, riding out Earth’s destruction in the Lighthouse. By the time the Kree arrived, Yo-Yo had lost hope, and she went out to confront them. Elena died there; but, as ‘Past Life’ revealed, she was resurrected time and again. The final resurrection was in ‘Past Life,’ where the older Elena met – and warned – her younger self. The crucial thing to remember is that everything the elder Yo-Yo said was, according to her words, a part of the loop.

But if Mack’s survival isn’t guaranteed, why is Yo-Yo’s? She was closer to the Monolith, perhaps close enough. It’s also possible that her super-speed kicked in instinctively, and she ran ahead of the explosion at the last second. If that is the case, it would explain the bitterness we saw in the loop. After all, her powers saved herself, but not the man she loves.

DEKE
Surprisingly, it looks as though Deke will actually be back in the present day. At least, that seems to be the case if Chloe Bennet’s Instagram is anything to go by; Jeff Ward is apparently still on-set, so the character may not actually be dead.

But how could Deke survive the explosion? He was stood next to a fragment of the Monolith, and that could have sucked him in just as easily as Flint’s recreated Monolith picked up the Agents. Intriguingly, Deke wasn’t visible in any of the flashback scenes in ‘The Last Day,’ so it might be that he’s a disruption in the loop. As a result, Deke could actually be a key player in averting the Earth’s destruction. ‘The Last Day’ saw Deke show remarkable faith in Daisy, and this could yet be her salvation.

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This half-season has ended how it always had to, with the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents transported back in time. But, with several levels of the Lighthouse destroyed when the Monolith was triggered, it’s far from guaranteed that the whole team made it home. Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. is going on a brief hiatus for the Winter Olympics, so fans will have to wait till March to learn just who survived – and what the cost of getting back really was.

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. will return on March 2 on ABC.