#so the daniel sousa that gets pulled out of his own time in season 7 is from the parallel universe that aos takes place in

[all-that-jazz-93]

Finally watching Agents of Shield again for the first time in years

[millennialfangirl]

My Daniel Sousa meta: from AC to AoS with a heavy dose of Dousy

(that absolutely nobody asked for)

I have just been really in my feels over Daniel Sousa lately, so I thought I’d write them down. I am absolutely in love with his character evolution, in particular, what Agents of Shield was able to do with him. I feel like we started off with his character in Agent Carter with a young buck of sorts, trying to prove his worth. There was a bit of inexperience there, a bit of naivete. 

And he had all of these feelings for Peggy Carter that he didn’t know what to do with, but he tried to act on nonetheless. And when it didn’t work out, he ran away, not by going to California, but by jumping into a relationship with someone else before he had properly dealt with his love for Peggy. Outside of his love-life, when you look at him as an agent, he was clearly good at what he did, but he was still learning. Case in point, Samberly took issue with him as a leader because he didn’t take the time to get to know him. Sousa was a good agent, but he was still learning how to be a leader. 

He was also a hero. He was also willing to run into walls, focus on the greater good, even at his own expense!!!! 

I believe he wasn’t just talking about Peggy in that scene in the time loop. I think we was talking from experience. I mean, he risked his life to turn off that portal to the zero matter stuff. He made the sacrifice play. (but more on him focusing on the greater good later).

Jump forward 6/7 years, and our first introduction to Sousa is of a confident man in charge, a man who has earned his stripes, and knows how to be a commanding leader. He’s no-nonsense the moment he realizes the base has been infiltrated, and he remains that way for the first several episodes of the season he is in. 

I feel like his personality in the first few episodes was just Sousa’s leader persona, the man married to his job, focused on the mission, the greater good. He held tight to that persona as long as he could, trying to maintain control of something, anything. He’s still holding tight to it when he lashes out at Jemma and Deke. But when Deke tells him they were all pulled out of their lives, he starts to realize that he’s not the only one who’s not in control. But it’s when he and Daisy are captured that he realizes that this team is giving their all to this mission, even if they are doing the best they can in the midst of chaos. I think he can, not only see their strengths now, but their weaknesses, their humanity. This allows himself to let down his walls, be more of himself. He doesn’t feel the need to be the man in charge who knows everything. He recognizes he’s not the only one fighting for the greater good, even at his own expense.

And we can’t forget about the incredible detective/agent that Sousa is, and proved himself to be over the years. He’s the one who discovered Peggy was helping Stark. His instincts were always right, and he used that big brain of his to get to the truth, JUST LIKE HE DID WITH HYDRA. (and just like he did with the chronicom bomb) 

Y’all, I could cry over the fact that Daniel J. Sousa discovered Hydra DECADES before anybody else, and it led to his death. Not Peggy, not Howard, not anyone else over the years until the events of Winter Soldier, did someone realize that Hydra was still a threat. I can’t imagine the amount of detective work he put in over the years trying to get to the truth about Hydra. How long had he known? How long had he been suspicious of colleagues and missions? A part of me thinks he had been following his hunches since Thompson was shot. I think he followed the clues left by that pin they wore that was actually a Hydra symbol. I feel like Sousa may have lost himself in the job, dedicated himself to ending Hydra, and sacrificed his own personal and love life in the process, for the greater good. As I mentioned earlier, I think Sousa was speaking about himself as well as Peggy when he was talking about Daisy and knowing people like her. He sees his own dedication to the cause in her, and he admires it. And most importantly, he knows how lonely it can be.

(Was he starting to realize he was ready for a relationship? That he was lonely? Is that why he checked his hair before going to meet up with “Peggy” at the beginning of 7x03? Just in case they could pick things up again? I don’t know, but there was something sad about that scene, something lonely.)

But can we talk about Daniel Sousa knowing exactly how to lay on the charm? We should have known from the beginning of his time on AoS. If you look back at the episode where he’s on the train waiting with Coulson, you’ll see the way he confidently flirts with the blonde spy who is trying to get the jump on him. He’s not fooled, not at all. And he plays his part perfectly, acts suave, shamelessly flirts with her, leans in real close to her personal space. These are not the actions of a square incapable of having fun or breaking the rules. These are not the actions of someone who lacks confidence. 

And let’s not forget the fake relationship trope and how AMAZINGLY Sousa played that role. That took some bravado and confidence. He f*cking swaggered up to her like...wut? But the way he looked that man-child Gideon up and down as he walked away...I died y’all.

But the great thing about Sousa, is that being macho and a flirtatious ladies’ man isn’t his true nature. These are not character attributes that he values, but rather, has learned to use over the years when necessary.  I feel like Sousa has had the time and experience from the war, in the SSR, with Peggy, with Violet, and then Shield, to build up his character and his own belief in his abilities, not just as an agent, but as a man who is more than his “aluminium crutch.” He is a hero in his own right, and most importantly, A GOOD MAN. He’s learned to work within the patriarchal society without devaluing women, or himself. 

At his core, Daniel Sousa IS absolutely a SQUARE and a DORK, but not because he has to be, but because he CHOOSES to be. And that is extremely gratifying and sexy. Because that means the minute he learned Daisy reciprocated his feelings, he was able to use that charm and flirt. And he was ready and willing to follow Daisy anywhere, even if it meant breaking the rules. But he’s still holding on to his core values that make him a good man and all those square aspects he holds onto.

In closing, Daniel Sousa is capable of being everything Daisy needs, whether it’s soft and caring, flirtatious, daring, adventurous, or a dork who is ready to pick her up when she falls. 

And I just think that’s really neat. Thanks for coming to my Ted talk.

[theravennest]

Final Predictions before the End

To start, I think SHIELD as an organization (like the TV show) is done after this. The team will likely come back after the Snap and/or after the Blip and have to move forward in that timeline without any chances to go back. SWORD is for sure taking over as the new SHIELD and will feature heavily in the Marvel Disney+ shows so no need to try to keep reviving SHIELD anymore.

Now for the character futures, we’ll begin with the ones I 100% believe will not die:

Daisy

Daisy will be fine. I don’t really have any fear of her dying. I have the idea that Daisy will run a type of community like Afterlife but not necessarily at Afterlife (tho that could happen). Daisy has been dedicated to finding a safe place for Inhumans since S3 so it would be 100% fitting for her to pursue that route. She could also start up her vigilante work again or be a more upfront superhero but that seems a bit unlikely. She’s always preferred the shadows. She could start up the Secret Warriors again as well. She has a lot of choices for her future.

There’s also the rumors about SWORD but those feel like wishful thinking rather than anything concrete and if it did happen I can see Marvel wanting to have fresh new characters instead of holdovers from a 7 season show. However, if it is true about a SWORD show, Daisy is kinda the only one I could legit see moving to it with any hope of success. 

Sousa

Wherever Daisy goes, Sousa will follow. We all know this. But if SWORD does happen and Daisy is pulled into that, it’s 50/50 whether the powers that be keep him as her love interest or drop him. Either way, he’s never going back to his own time so I can see him ending the season trying to discover the future and find his place in it. 

He has an equally strong drive as Daisy to do good. So if she becomes a vigilante, I can see him helping with that. I can see him helping her with an inhuman sanctuary as well or potentially joining a different agency. 

That last is a bit far fetched as he literally has no credible background that would pass a screening. Then again, in a post-Snap/Blip world, maybe things would be easier. He could potentially just...tell the truth or most of it. The world at large knows about time travel stuff after the Avengers brought people back 5 years into the future. And with Steve’s story being such public knowledge, the world could very easily buy a version of his story of being the actual Daniel Sousa time traveled to the future.

Fitz/Simmons 

They will be fine. The blood test is about a pregnancy, nothing bad. The only thing that doesn’t...quite jive for me is Simmons’ reaction in the time loops. It seemed more tragic than “I left my kid with my husband in a relatively safe place while I finished a mission” but I can see them playing it up for a red herring. Maybe it’s cuz I don’t have kids so I don’t emotionally connect the dots there.

May 

She will be fine as well. She’s not dying. They already went to that well in S6 and came back from it. I can see May retiring after this tho. They’ve been planting the seeds since S5 that May was slowing down as an agent and in S6 they transitioned her a lot into training the next generation of agents such as Elena and Davis, etc. I can see her continuing that as well. Or assisting Daisy with whatever Inhuman sanctuary she could potentially build. S7 has been leaning into May mentoring other gifted people using her newfound empathy so the set up is there.

Depending on if Coulson deactivates or not, he may retire with her and they may try to start a new relationship. Even tho it’d be kinda weird like dating your husband’s clone. D:

Elena

Elena will be fine. There is no reason at all to kill her character off especially so soon after her power upgrade. Her future however is pretty intrinsically tied to a couple of outcomes: Mack’s fate, SHIELD’s fate, and maybe Daisy’s fate. If Mack lives, I can see them moving forward with getting married and having kids. She has expressed her desire for that in S5. I can also see Mack retiring after this and leaving spy work but Elena still has a lot of drive to fight so I actually can’t see her retiring any time soon. Maybe Mack can be her house husband while Elena takes up vigilante work under the pseudonym “Slingshot.” Elena could also move to another spy agency or work as a private contractor. Vigilante is my best guess for her, tho.

I can potentially see Elena joining the Secret Warriors if Daisy starts them up again but this option seems less likely to me. I think Elena has moved beyond where she was in S3 and honestly I think there’s still some mixed feelings between the two about the last time the SW were formed and the events of S5.

If Mack dies, she for sure is going to be a vigilante.

---

Now for the characters that are a toss up for me.

LMD Coulson

I’m about 60% sure he’s gonna deactivate. They’ve laid the groundwork. Even before he was a robot, he was tired. Him dying for a final time would be fitting. Maybe it’s time for him to just rest.

On the other hand, they’ve gone to that well before in S5 so I can see them pulling back from doing that again. Additionally, even though LMD Coulson was made from Coulson’s memories, he’s not actually Coulson. They could have him reconcile with that fact and the fact that he’s ageless now to have him find a new lease on life. Maybe have him wait until May dies to finally deactivate so that he can give her the life his human self couldn’t give.

If he does decide to live on, he is for sure retiring and staying with May. I think he’s pretty done with the spy life either way.

Mack

Man...I have a feeling they are gonna kill Mack. It would be a totally unnecessary death but the fear is there. I prefer to have him finally quit for good and go back to being a civilian mechanic. Maybe move back in with his brother while Elena does her thing as a vigilante.

If they do kill him, I will not only be inconsolable, I’ll be spitting mad. That would mark 4/5 major Black characters killed in this show. Just let this man retire, for gods sake.

They set up a whole story line where he and Elena basically gave birth to Flint and adopted him. I’mma need them to follow through on that.

Deke

I’m about 80% sure he’s going to die. A small part of me can see him surviving but I just can’t help but think of the weirdness of him watching his mom grow up and potentially see himself when he’s born.

My guess is if the Fitz/Simmons’ kid turns out to be his actual mom, he dies. If she’s biologically his aunt after all the time travel changes, he lives.

---

General Predictions/Hopes

Fingers crossed that we somehow see Hunter and Bobbie one more time.

We’ll prolly get a Ward cameo but I don’t care one way or the other if we do.

We won’t see Trip again but we might get a shout out.

We’ll get a Mike Peterson shout out. I hope we get another cameo since he was so pivotal in the first season. Maybe after the timeline is reset we discover that all the horrible stuff that happened to him in S1 didn’t and he’s safe with his son, Ace.

I need, absolutely need, a Robbie appearance. Like, please god give me this.

Last shot of the episode will be Daisy flying off in Lola with Sousa in the seat next to her.

That’s all I can think of for now. I will see y’all on the flip side.

[sueboohscorner]

#AgentsofShield Season 7 Episode 9 "As I Have Always Been" Recap and Review

Daisy wakes up and gets out of the healing pod. She talks to Daniel and then goes to the command center of the plane. They are currently in a very pretty death trap. We get the title card floating in that death trap.

The Quinjet is going haywire, but Yo-Yo is working on fixing it. It’s radiation.

Deke comes in to tell them that they are stuck in a time storm and hurling toward a vortex that will most likely make as if they never existed, but he isn’t entirely sure.

Mack then gets blasted by one of the radiation flares and is blinded. He’s taken to Simmons. Enoch comes in to fix the time drive, but Simmons wants to help Mack first.

There is a fire that Daisy puts out and then they jump again.

She wakes up again and goes to command to find out the time drive has overloaded. She’s in a time loop, and we get the title card again. The Quinjet’s flight systems are fried, and she keeps Mack from being blinded by closing the door. She goes to see Simmons to tell her about the time loop. Cue Enoch and the fire.

She wakes up again. Daniel is still asleep, and so she goes to “wake up” LMD Coulson. He knows that she’s in a time loop and he’s irritated with her. She’s died 14 times. They’ve done the loop 87 times that he’s aware of. She doesn’t always wake him up. They can’t fly out of the vortex because the radiation has fried the navigation. They need to fix the time drive, but time is the one thing they are running out of. Every loop they are getting closer and closer to the vortex.

Daisy tells the team that they’re repeating time.

Deke goes to see Simmons. He tells her about the loop. If they take out her implant, then she might remember how to fix the time drive. LMD Coulson and Daisy eavesdrop. Once the loop resets, her implant will still be in place, so all in all it will work out.

Simmons asks Daisy to prove that they are in a time loop, which she does. She then goes to remove the implants, starts coughing, and dies in a locked room.

The next time Daisy goes into the room with her and they both die from a gas leak.

It was too clean to be accidental. Someone is willing to kill to make sure the implant is never removed. The obvious suspects are Simmons, Deke, and Enoch. Since Simmons died, she’s less of a suspect. All of them deny any involvement. Why would they murder their friends?

Yo-Yo might be fast enough to get the implant out of Simmons, but it takes too long to get her out of the Quinjet.

Daisy notices something weird about the scanner. In order to test it, she wants to use it on herself. Daniel won’t let her. If she dies, she’ll forget everything. If he dies, the loop will reset. I cannot tell you how much I literally adore him, though I will several more times. He uses the scanner and dies.

She tells LMD Coulson all of this in the next loop. He starts on a rant. He hates having to watch them die over and over again. It’s soul crushing, but he’s not even sure he has a soul. She tries to say that of course he has a soul and she has had to watch him die over and over again, but he says it isn’t. He’s a machine that will watch every single person he loves die because he was programmed that way.

That’s it. Enoch was programmed without his knowledge to protect the implant by any means necessary. Once they realize this, Enoch begins to choke Daisy. She quakes him.

After Daisy wakes up again, she asks Daniel why he cares. He simply says, “because you don’t.”

They try to get the implant out without Enoch knowing. It doesn’t work.

Daniel tries to distract Enoch long enough for them to get Enoch out. It doesn’t work, but it is completely adorable.

Simmons asks Enoch to let them. As it turns out, countermanding that order is password dependent.

They try to use everyone to beat him. That doesn’t work.

Daisy is going nuts and she tells Sousa everything. He doesn’t seem fazed and she asks him why. He is fazed. He just doesn’t show it. She asks why he always helps her without even being asked. He says that he knows her type. Some of his favorite people, stab me with a rusty fork, are her type. They are the type that focus on the greater good at their own expense, the type that pretend to be loners but always end up surrounded by a team, and they run full tilt at the walls that come up. He’s the person that picks people back up when they hit those walls. I love him.

After her therapy session, they use subterfuge to trap Enoch in another room while they take out the implant. They aren’t fast enough.

This time Daisy kisses him. I was on the fence about this ship, but I may have been pulled on board by this.

Even with that distraction, they are fast enough to get Simmons’ implant out in time. Enoch can help with the time drive. He has something which is relatively equivalent to the human heart. If they take it out to fix the time drive, it will kill him. She then starts to sob.

Daisy asks Simmons and Enoch to meet her in the LMD lab. They are less than one kilometer from the vortex. She tells them about Enoch. Simmons protests, but Enoch just pulls it out with absolutely no qualms. Simmons and Deke go fix the time drive while LMD Coulson and Daisy stay with Enoch.

Enoch explains that he didn’t understand the feeling of loneliness until he met the team. He is afraid of feeling lonely when he dies. LMD Coulson tries to explain that he isn’t alone. He and Daisy will be there with him until he dies. That is what scares Enoch. Eventually, he will go through it alone. LMD Coulson explains, as only he can, that that feeling is temporary for the person dying. It’s harder and more lasting for the people that survive. Enoch apologizes to Coulson. Daisy thanks Enoch. Enoch tells her that while her friends will live, this will be the team’s last mission. It’s as if he’s speaking to us and not to Daisy. Daisy and LMD Coulson explain to him that every living being encounters the cycle of life, which means that he is not alone in experiencing it. He dies as they jump successfully away from the vortex.

Nathaniel is training Kora, who has also transitioned to traditional villain garb. She also knows about Daisy.

My heart is broken about a million different things at this point. Of course this is the episode where I’m on vacation and don’t have any tea on hand. Poor sweet Enoch. We should have known. After all, his last words are the episode title and I thought beforehand that they were something he would say. 9/10.

[florida3exclamationpoints]

Hey fam here's a deep dive of AoS 7x04 including justification of the time travel by a branching timelines believer and lots of Peggy Carter love & appreciation

I definitely feel better about this whole situation now that we've seen 7x04 than I did when we just had the preview. But still. Ughhhhhh I'm just. Conflicted.

They're not sticking to Endgame's time travel rules at all and ik some people didn't like Endgame's time travel but I don't really have issues with it. And even still there's the debate of whether or not Steve (does this debate expand outside Steve arguments? Idk but you get it) is in a branched timeline. Personally, I think he is. For people who think he's not, Shield's time travel, especially with Sousa, is probably easier to take. But for a while I was willing to go with the theory, my own theory idk if it's been mentioned here or not, that since they're using a different time travel method in AoS, and one that was invented by space robots Chronicoms, then they have different rules that limit them to a looped timeline. But now, idk does bringing Sousa into it disprove that?

So he was supposed to die. That's in the history books. They saved him. Which means we're in a loop that can be altered. Ok fine, but that's only because we're using Chronicom time travel. Tony Stark time travel still created branches. So what branch are we in? We have two choices right? Timeline A, which we see throughout the entire MCU, and timeline '49 B, the one Steve created when he went back to Peggy. If it's in the history books that Coulson and the team read that Sousa died, I would assume we're in timeline A. But where's Peggy? Personally I'm not the biggest peggysous stan (basically I ship steggy and in timeline A where she can't get him back, as long as she's happy I'm happy. If that means Daniel, great.) but I'm sure those who are aren't super happy with Shield basically confirming that they didn't make it. I'm sure the only reason they did that was to be able to pull him out of 1955 so I'm not really mad at it. If they had just had him pop in real quick in the 50s and left him there I would have rathered they leave it ambiguous but since that's not what they did I'm not too bitter.

Anyway, I saw a close up of the fake id they made for Jemma when she was undercover as Peggy. It listed her rank as 'agent.' You could say that's a prop mistake but I also noticed that no one has referred to her as 'director.' But she absolutely should be. Correct me if I'm wrong, but Peggy was the first director right? That's always what me, my brother, and my dad, aka everyone in my household who are Marvel fans, thought and we're pretty sure they said it at some point somewhere. And in the Agent Carter one shot (which admittedly has a lot of continuity issues anyway but i think the principle of it stands) Howard said about Peggy "tell her she'll be running Shield." I've always gotten the impression that she was director from the time Shield launched. If someone could give me solid proof that she was or wasn't I'd appreciate it. But as long as there's no proof I'm assuming that she was. That's what I'm going with in the rest of this post anyway lol.

Overall im just confused as to what the writers think they're doing lol. From what I've seen, they started shooting season 7 two months before Endgame premiered so it was written even further before. That sucks because at the time of the writing they didn't know they had all of this to deal with. At least I assume they didn't know bc it seems like there's no communication behind the scenes since no one got dusted before and now we're messing around with time travel. But I also wonder if Endgame hadn't premiered by the time they were shooting the 50s episodes. I have no idea though. If it had, were there changes? Did they have to take out mentions of Peggy, or did Enver maybe act it with the Steggy ending in mind? Because I personally don't want the writers or anyone thinking that Steve was always in a loop therefore this season is jumping around in the same loop and Daniel was left by Peggy for Steve. I can deal with a looped timeline in AoS bc of the Chronicoms and them being in a loop of timeline A but I'm gonna be annoyed if they try to imply that that's not what's happening. But again it was written before Endgame came out so I don't think they'll really go that far.

This is what's really annoying me. Do they seriously think Peggy's not director? Are they saying Peggy's not director? Because they want me to believe that Daniel noticed that Shield had been infiltrated by Hydra and Peggy didn't and then one of three things happened. 1. He told the CIA but not Peggy, 2. He told Peggy but she didn't believe him, or 3. He told Peggy and she looked into it but didn't find anything. I take issue with like all of that. In scenario 1. Daniel Sousa personally knows the Director of Shield and, regardless of any awkward breakup they may of had, doesn't tell her that her government organization may be hijacked by freaking HYDRA? In scenario 2. The Director of Shield is told by the Chief of her LA branch and an agent that she worked alongside for a considerable amount of time that her government organization may be hijacked by Hydra and she doesn't listen to him, because, what, they had a messy breakup? In scenario 3. The Director of Shield, Margaret Elizabeth Carter, has reason to believe that Shield is infiltrated by Hydra, she investigates, and finds absolutely nothing out of the ordinary? None of those sound even almost reasonable. So are they not mentioning that Peggy is director because it makes Daniel's storyline more believable and convenient or am I missing something? I've lost hope that she might make an appearance but I'd appreciate some Director Carter content even in passing mentions or at least tell me who the Director is if it's not her.

Also, Daniel's death, real or not, is gonna hurt her really bad and I'm not a fan of that. I'm glad I didn't have to watch him die and I'm excited to see more of him but it's really gonna mess with Peggy. We've already seen her struggle with feeling like everyone she gets close to dies and even though at this point she's married and maybe has kids, that doesn't take away from what they had in Agent Carter, that goes beyond the romantic and into the fact that he was one of the few men who showed her even the smallest amount of respect. It's gonna hurt her and I don't like when she's hurt. Also also, I don't care about whatever Coulson said about his death being ruled an accident, Peggy is a critical thinker and 100% would have looked into it. Especially as the Director of Shield if I keep saying that maybe AoS will hear me or it'll become canon lol she wouldn't let that slide.

Basically what I'm saying is: I can talk myself into the time travel making sense, I just did lol, but while I love Daniel and getting to see him again and continue to see him in the coming episodes, it stretches the imagination a bit too far concerning Peggy and his dynamic with her. Either that or I have to be to ticked off at the writers for not knowing that Peggy is director in 1955. Or I have to be ticked at the entirety of Marvel for not making Peggy director as soon as the thing was up and running. But. That doesn't mean that this hasn't been a good season so far, it's been pretty great. And I'm very excited to see them in the 70s. And to see Daniel in the 70s. And to see my man Enoch make another appearance. I have my issues but I'm still highly enjoying all of this absolute tomfoolery sldjskdjksksjk that is all

[aion-rsa]

Agents of SHIELD Season 7 Episode 6 Review: Adapt or Die

https://ift.tt/2BvClUP

This review contains spoilers for Agents of SHIELD.

Agents of SHIELD Season 7 Episode 6

Failure is such a powerful narrative tool, mostly because viewers don’t expect things to go so spectacularly wrong even when the heroes are technically winning. Such is the case with this week’s Agents of SHIELD which has Daisy barely escaping with her life and Coulson sacrificing himself, achieving measures of success indirectly despite heavy losses. Even Mack foiling the Chronicom’s infiltration by jettisoning his fake parents is a victory of sorts even though the supposed rescue mission itself was an obvious bust. Such stories make for the perfect season midpoints as the characters face the most overwhelming odds yet, framing what will presumably be their seemingly impossible comeback in the back half.

At first, the Mackenzie family reunion seemed too easy, and Yoyo warning the director that he was walking into a trap by even trying to free his parents seemed to be an unwarranted concern. “Where are all the guards?” viewers might have wondered. “Why were they able to just walk in there and get all the way to the hangar?” Even the trust Mack was able to build with his father by likening the locked door to a brake caliper initially seemed almost too casual, like a misplaced emotional moment while they were on the run. But of course the trap was being laid by Chronicoms posing as Mack’s parents, and there was no way we could have foreseen the ultimate outcome since the doppelgängers weren’t acting robotic.

In that sense, Agents of SHIELD linked its various story threads by slowly revealing discoveries that could be applied across situations, especially with regard to May’s ability to sense the emotions (or lack thereof) of others. Additionally, Coulson’s epiphany about the Chronicoms’ learned emotional response was brilliantly couched within his overdue conversation with May about her disinterest in his LMD resurrection. May’s empathic powers led to Stoner being able to trust his captives as they saved him from a faceless death, but they also resulted in Mack having to watch his own mother’s face as he pushed her out of the plane, a trauma that almost overshadows the victory of stopping the Chronicom ruse.

Thank goodness Sousa and Daisy were on board Z1, though, since their arc was a bit desperate at times. Daisy’s delirious mutterings reminded us that Nathaniel’s transfusions were similar to what Daniel Whitehall did to her mother to steal her powers, but although Quake’s powers were not as stable or restorative, unfortunately for young Malick, the bone-cracking results (and the piece of glass Daisy secreted away) allowed Sousa to carry Daisy off, an escape that would have otherwise been in doubt. And was there something more to Sousa’s decision to stay with the team as a result? Was that a spark of growing fondness in Daniel’s eyes? We would not object!

Sybil the Predictor gave Coulson a similar opportunity when she spoke so openly to him in the virtual interface. The Chronicoms have been victims of their shortsightedness with regard to humanity before, but there’s great ignorance in thinking that humanity’s mortality would allow the immortal sentient machines to wait them out and take over the planet, which Coulson’s inspirational speech does a great job of illustrating. But even if the audience was on board with death being Coulson’s superpower — and the origins of Agents of SHIELD as a series reinforce that idea — no one could have expected his explosive solution to the lockdown and the awakening Hunters.

Read more

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Agents of SHIELD Season 7: The Legacy of Daniel Sousa

By Michael Ahr

TV

Agents of SHIELD Season 7 Episode 5 Review: A Trout in the Milk

By Michael Ahr

That unexpectedness permeated this week’s Agents of SHIELD, including the explanation it provided for Simmons’ strange behavior this season. Deke could be forgiven for misunderstanding Enoch’s intentions since his kind is responsible for all their woes. It was unclear even to the viewers what was going on unless they freeze framed the computer display which described what the implant was doing. There was already plenty of tension surrounding the repairs needed to the Zephyr, but somehow even more drama was provided by the reminder that Fitz was somewhere where he could see all of the moves the Chronicoms made.

Whether Deke can keep the secret of Simmons’ dangerous knowledge or the memory surfaces again, there’s a sense of foreboding even before Daisy is seen recovering in the medical pod. In fact, this dread leads perfectly into the biggest shock of them all: that Deke and Mack have been left behind in an unknown era between 1976 and the present! Agents of SHIELD has pulled us deeper and deeper into its time travel tale in season 7, and even though, like May, we have full confidence that Coulson will somehow live again and that Mack and Deke will find their way back to the team, the consequences raise the stakes again and again, week after week.

The post Agents of SHIELD Season 7 Episode 6 Review: Adapt or Die appeared first on Den of Geek.

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[millennialfangirl]

Take My Hand (take my whole life too) - a Daisy/Daniel post S7 oneshot

Fandom: Agents of Shield

Pairing: Daisy x Daniel

Rating: G

Word Count: 3033

Author’s Note: Here’s a little post season 7 oneshot. Just some ideas I had for how the series could end for our lovely ship. I’m sure the next episode it will get ‘Jossed’. 

Take my hand (Take my whole life too)

Daisy found herself alone, sipping on the last of her champagne. Sounds of laughter fill the backyard where the small reception is taking place. She’s filled with happiness for May and Coulson, but as she stares across the patio, eyes lingering on Sousa as he plays with little Diana Fitz-Simmons, she can’t help but feel a deep well of sadness. May and Coulson have known each other for two decades, and they’ve just now settled down and committed to a life with one another. It makes her hurt for all the missteps and loneliness that her pseudo-parents took to get here. 

 It makes her hurt for herself, and the man she’s just starting to realize means more to her than she’s comfortable with. 

 The sliding of a chair brings her out of her melancholic reverie, and a warm hand settles on her shoulder. Without thinking, she leans her cheek on it as she continues to stare out across the party.

 “Do you want to talk about it?” Coulson prods. 

 Taking in a deep breath, Daisy exhales her sigh. She doesn’t want to dampen his night, but she knows he won’t settle until she’s given him something. 

 “It took so long for you to get your happy ending.” 

 That’s all she says, and she thinks it’s enough to convey all the things she’s feeling. 

 Coulson follows her gaze, his thumb rubbing soothing circles on her shoulder. He has easily put two and two together over the past few months as he’s watched Daisy stumble and dance herself around Agent Sousa. 

 “You’re wondering if it’s worth it?”

 She nods, a hand reaching up for his to pull it down with hers as she turns her body to face him. He’s so happy right now, which should be answer enough to her concerns. The burdened weight of years of sacrifice have lifted from his face and posture, replaced with soft laugh lines and warm eyes. A mist settles over her eyes when she remembers that she had lost him once upon a time before traveling to the past, and fixing that one wrong that cut deeper than all the others. He was flesh and bone once again, and he was happily married with a gold band on his finger. He’ll be able to grow old with May instead of having to watch her die one day. 

 “Happiness seems tenuous at best. Our life takes it away so often, why risk it after so many years of not getting to this place?”

 “I get it, I do,” he admits. He takes a swig from his bottled beer and sets it back on the table. His fingers fiddle with the bottle wrapper as he gathers his thoughts. 

 “We took a long time, and yeah, sometimes I wished we hadn’t. I wish we’d figured things out sooner, but I have to believe that it gave us the foundation we need to make it last, that otherwise we would have started something we couldn’t finish.”

 “You know more than anyone what I’ve lost. I know what you’ve lost. I don’t know if I can survive losing someone else.”

 The smallest tear squeezes out as she admits her fears. Coulson wipes it away immediately, and then tucks a few stray hairs behind her ear. 

 “You can survive anything. You’ve always been capable of so much more than you know. It’s the very reason you deserve your own happiness. I know you’ll get it one day, because there’s no one that deserves it more than you...except maybe a displaced WWII veteran,” he pauses with a soft chuckle as he glances back at the dark-haired man shuffling a toddler around on his feet.

 Mirth fills his eyes as he returns his gaze to Daisy, her face burning red while she pointedly stares at the ground. 

 “And when you do, you’ll know. The bones will be good, and the time will be right. Every couple is different. Your happy ending might be a lot closer than you think.”

 Daisy scoffs.

 “Nice. Subtle.” 

 Coulson gives her that dad look. 

 “People arrive, so we celebrate, and people leave us, so we grieve. We do what we can with the time in between,” he pauses and gives her a knowing look. “For a sentient chronicom, Enoch understood the crux of humanity. Life can’t be just the things we lose.”

 “I’ll try to keep an open mind,” she begrudgingly acquiesces. 

 He looks mollified as he leans back in his chair, crossing his arms. She’s reminded of how lucky she is to have him back in her life, to have someone who cares enough about her wellbeing to have this conversation. As they sip their drinks under the night sky, she thinks back on their first night of freedom at the rundown motel after Hydra was exposed. Even then, with half of a chocolate bar, he was trying to take care of her. Not for the first time, she wonders what her life would have been like, and what choices she would have made if she had had a father figure like Coulson in her life all along. Would she have chosen people like Myles and Ward?

 She does know that Daniel’s unlike anyone she’s met before, and she doesn’t just think it’s because he’s a man out of time. There’s a goodness and steadfastness that is woven through him like the suits he still insists on wearing. Somewhere in there is a joke about how girls fall in love with men like their fathers. There are a lot of differences between Daniel and Coulson. There are also a few similarities. Apparently Daniel is the original Agent Suit, and apparently he also likes to take care of her. After going through countless time loops that proved over and over the type of man Sousa is, she’s doing her best to accept the help, and maybe let down her defenses a little bit. But accepting help is one thing, and jumping heart first into a relationship is another. They’ve barely been able to catch their breath since defeating the chronicoms, much less have any time to see if their feelings were more than surface level. 

 A small wrapped box is placed in front of her on the table, bringing her out of her conflicting thoughts.

 “I got something for the new Director. Something every Director of a super top-secret spy organization should have,” he finishes with a grin, looking so much like the adorable nerd he is. 

 “Um...this is your wedding day. I’m pretty sure I’m supposed to be the one giving you a gift.” 

 Coulson merely shrugs. Daisy starts pulling the string on the wrapping paper.

 “It’s also the first day of my life as a civilian.”

 She can’t help but laugh as the dark blue paper falls revealing a simple wooden box.

 “I don’t think you’ll ever be just a civilian.”

 Her wide grin drops from her face when she sees the familiar keys nestled in the now opened box. She looks up at Coulson with wide eyes, words of refusal already in her mouth.

 “No, I--” but he doesn’t let her finish. 

 “Yes. It’s time to pass the torch. She deserves to keep going on adventures, not sit in my garage,” he insists, closing his hand over hers, folding the keys into her palm. 

 ****

 She watches as Coulson steps in, lifting Diana into his arms, swinging her around in a half waltz. Daniel laughs with his hands on his hips in mock anger. Daisy looks away before she gets caught staring, and instead looks to her phone for a distraction. She flips through her photo album, gazing at candids from the small ceremony. Eventually she lands on the infamous picture of Daniel in an alley from literal decades ago. 

 “Looks like I could use a new dance partner.”

 In an instant her phone is fumbling out of her hands, falling hard on the patio underfoot. Her face burns red with embarrassment as her brain tries to catch up to what he said. She blindly reaches for the phone while looking up at him.

 “Dance partner?”

 And she wants to slap herself in the face for her lack of finesse.

 Daniel leans down a bit, holding his hand out for her to take.

 “Let me try that again. May I have this dance?”

 And Daisy doesn’t think she’s ever felt a rush of butterflies quite like that before. No one has ever asked her to dance with them. There weren’t many school dances she actually went to, and all the boys she’s been with before...well dancing wasn’t their style, at least not the kind with soft music and romantic lighting. She’d had a lot of experience with thumping bass, dark rooms, and wandering hands. 

 She likes to pride herself on the growth she’s made, the woman she’s become. She wears her independence like a badge of honor, but in that moment staring at Sousa’s hand, she feels young and completely smitten. 

 Unprepared. Unprepared is what she is, but it can’t be that different from sparring, right? She’s nothing if not ready for a challenge.

 Sousa takes the hand she places in his, and a large grin spreads across his face. It takes her breath away. 

 “I don’t exactly know how to do this,” she admits, embarrassed. 

 “Do what? Dance? No way.”

 Daisy nervously places her hand on his shoulder like she’d seen in the movies, while their fingers spread and squeeze into a firm hold with each other. He feels solid under her touch.

 “True story.”

 “Well, we’ll just have to fix that. Just follow my feet. When I step back with one foot, follow it with your opposite. When I step to the side, just go with me. When I step forward, you step back.”

 “So it is like fighting,” she mumbles mostly to herself. 

 “Hmm?”

 “Nothing.”

 And it’s not so bad after the first couple of awkward shuffles. Eventually they find a rhythm, and Daisy’s surprised to find she’s enjoying the moment. She stops staring at their feet long enough to relax and watch the people around them, her people. She’s lost in thought while staring at Mack and Yo-Yo swaying to the music, arms wrapped tightly together.

 Sousa clears his throat. “It was a beautiful wedding.” 

 “Long overdue, and exactly what they deserve.”

 “You really love them.”

 “More than anything. They’re my family.”

 “You’re lucky to have them. And they’re lucky to have you.”

 “I’m so sorry, Sousa. You must feel so alone,” she responds guiltily.

 “I don’t feel so alone. Not right now. It’s hard to feel alone when I’m dancing with a real-life superhero.”

 “If I’m a superhero, it’s only because of people like you.”

 “People like me?”

 “People who save people like me, who follow us into the dark, and pull us back out. People who roll with the punches and have good hearts. Solid people.”

 “If I didn’t know any better Director Johnson, I’d say you were still trying to sweet-talk me into the Co-Director position.” 

 “That works too.”

 Sousa looks at her skeptically before Daisy continues.

 “So, what do you say? Ready to accept the position?” 

 With that, he is distracted. He chews on his lip in thought.

 “You know I want nothing more than to help you, help SHIELD...It’s just hard for me to imagine being that useful in the 21st century. I’m so behind on modern technology and culture. I worry that I’ll be more of a burden.”

 Daisy’s hackles raise at his blatant disregard for his worth. 

 “You think you’d be a burden? You’re a brilliant detective and strategist. You’re the guy that figured out Hydra’s involvement in SHIELD before anyone else, and was willing to give his life to stop them. You’re the guy that saved me from Nathaniel Malick. You’re the guy who took every time loop in stride and helped me break that time loop. You’re the guy that I…”

 Daisy stops herself mid-sentence, almost saying something that she can’t take back. Something she’s too afraid to voice. Sousa looks down at her, hanging on her every word as she pauses. She shakes her head as if to clear it of her runaway thoughts. She decides to go with a much more palatable truth.

 “You’re the guy I trust to have my back,” she finishes with a gulp. 

 For a moment she thinks she’s gone too far. He’s staring at her intently like he’s trying to crack a code or needle an interrogation suspect. After what feels like an eternity, he finally speaks up. 

 “Well, Director Johnson, how can I say no to that vote of confidence.”

 She releases a nervous laugh. “You can’t. That’s the point,” she says with a satisfied smile.  

 “No, I suppose not,” he says with a twinkle in his eye that she has become increasingly fond of. 

 They settle into a comfortable silence as a new song comes on. Neither one of them make to leave the makeshift dance floor, so they drift into the opening tunes of Elvis Presley’s “Can’t Help Falling In Love.” 

 It’s soft and whimsical, and Daisy can’t help but let her mind wander to the man in front of her. He makes her feel things she doesn’t remember feeling before, not even with Lincoln. She’s hyper aware of how perfectly their hands fit together, and the gentle touch of his fingers on her waist. She has to physically stop herself from leaning forward and resting her head on his shoulder, to seek out the comfort she remembers from the barn. She wonders if he would follow her lips willingly just like he had in the time loop.

 She thinks he might always look like he stepped out of a classic, black and white, Hollywood film. 

 As if he can read her thoughts, he pulls her a little closer, their arms wrapping around each other a bit more than what’s expected of two colleagues or platonic friends, but not quite as intimate as Mack and Yo-yo. She can’t stop the next words out of her mouth, because they’re simply true and pure. 

 “This is nice.”

 Because it is. It’s so nice, and she’s still struggling to accept that she deserves to feel something this good. 

 With a knowing smile, he hums in agreement before gently turning her out, guiding her into a slow spin. When she steps back into his arms, neither one hesitates in drawing in a bit closer. The world is spinning around them, but he’s her only focal point. His kind eyes with slight crinkles, the touch of gray around his temples, the mole just below his Adam’s apple...the softness of his lips.

 “You look beautiful tonight.” 

 And if that doesn’t take her breath away. When was the last time someone called her beautiful? She’s heard plenty of other adjectives: strong, stubborn, leader...destroyer. She wants to be all those things, and beautiful too. 

 “Thank you,” she responds quietly, not quite capable of meeting his eyes.

 Then he says her name softly, prompting her to look up. The way he says, “Daisy,” instead of Agent Johnson, the way he’s asking for the answer to a question he doesn’t even know...she’s sure she knows the question.

 It probably sounds a lot like, “Why does this feel so right? Why do your arms feel like home? Would it be alright if I kissed you?”

 And her answer would be, “Because your favorite people are people like me. Because you’ve held me close before. Please, kiss me again.”

 She never told him about the time loops. She never wanted to take away his free will. But right now she’s ready to tell him everything. She’s ready for a kiss that can never be erased. 

 An alarm starts blaring from her wristwatch, and the two of them jump apart. She can see several other members of their team all stop what they’re doing and look to their phones and smartwatches. 

 Daisy knows the night is over and duty calls. She’s surprised the whole wedding wasn’t interrupted, but she can’t help but feel angry nonetheless. 

 “Want to catch a ride with me?” she asks the suddenly sullen looking man out of time.

 His face lights up with a smile, and he gestures to her to walk in front of him. 

 “After you, Director.”

 She can feel his eyes on her as they make their way to the tables where she picks up the keys to Lola along with her belongings. It doesn’t feel like he’s leering. It feels protective and comforting, just like someone who’s got her back. 

 Coulson hugs her tightly, and May wishes them luck as they head out to chase down their next mission. It should feel sad, leaving them behind, but it somehow feels right. They’re her family. They’ll always be there for her, but now it’s time for her to lead, and she has one hell of a right hand to help her out.

 As they make their way to the parked car, red and shiny in the moonlight, Sousa can’t help but ask, “What’s an 0-8-4?” 

 He must have taken a moment to read the alert sent to his phone.

 “It’s an object of unknown origin. Probably alien. Think you can handle it?” she asks, and she can’t help but feel a thrill of excitement for the unknown.

 “I’ve traveled 70 years into the future, I don’t think much will surprise me now.”

 At that, she laughs out loud as she slides into the car.

 “You might be right. Alright, last chance. Sure you want in?”

 “Positive. I’m where I need to be.”

 The way he looks into her eyes when he says it lets her know he means so much more than just the next mission. 

 “That’s good to hear. Now buckle up, I just might surprise you now.”

 “I’m counting on it,” he says with an excited grin.

  Daisy can feel his stare, even as they rise above the trees, Lola taking flight. Without looking at him, she takes his hand in her own. 

 If her cheeks turn red and her heart beats harder, well at least Coulson’s not there to notice it.