FitzSimmons vs. Leopold and Samara Simmons in the latest Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.

Thanks to some dangerous Chronicom tech, Fitz and Simmons finally got their long-awaited reunion within a Matrix mind world of their own creation. It made for an interesting, and extremely clever, way to finally bring these two back together and fill in the gaps from last season's time-travel adventure.

Spoilers ahead for "Inescapable," the latest episode of ABC's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., which aired Friday, June 20, 2019.

"You said there would be paradoxes. This is one of them." - Simmons

Well, that was a trip. The Chronicoms basically did a mind meld between Fitz and Simmons to allow them to share their ideas at the speed of thought. But that Chronicom tech had apparently never been tested on humans, and instead we got a fascinating tour through their broken, damaged psyches — and it manifested in some terrifying, easter-egg-y twists. This version of Fitz, who has yet to experience the psychic break we saw last season where he's still processing his alternate life as Hydra leader Leopold while he was in the Framework. That manifests in this alternate personality literally coming to life, chasing them down and eventually trying to lobotomize Simmons.

As for Simmons' demons, they turned out to be a bit more literal. Going back to childhood, Simmons has put all her sadness, anger, and fear in a little box in her head. Well, that box falls off the shelf, and what comes out is basically Samara — remember, that creepy murderer monster girl from The Ring? — played by Simmons. Complete with a bone knife and the speed, strength, and agility of a legit horror movie monster. Looking back at the past six years, it's easy to forget just how much trauma these two have been through together. The near-death experiences, the searches for one another, the time spent marooned on alien planets, or lost in space (and time).

It's also an opportunity to catch this version of Fitz up on what he's missed since he hopped into the cryo-chamber headed for a future that no longer exists. Thanks to Simmons' shared memory, he gets to literally see his own lifeless body, and planning for his wake. He learns that future version of Fitz already proposed and married Simmons. His life had literally moved on without him. He died a hero in a life he never lived, and only gets to hear about it.

This was a chance to process not just everything they've been through, but exactly why they've been through it in the first place. All that pain and sadness was a battle to be together. A battle for love itself. And after a knockdown, drag-out fight, trapped in a containment pod and literally surrounded by their brokenness outside the door, they remember why they do it all.

They're broken, sure. But they're broken together. They're unstoppable. Because they're FitzSimmons. They also have some butt-kicking friends like Mack and Daisy, too, to help even the odds.

Assorted musings

ABC/Marvel

Just when it seemed like Enoch had betrayed his bestie, he realizes the Chronicoms obviously don't have Fitz and Simmons' best interests at heart and makes a play to break them out of custody. Hopefully the trio are hitching a ride back toward Earth as you read this.

Getting a peek at the fallout from last season was also a great touch. We see those quiet moments of the team grieving Fitz's death, and a near-death Coulson before he took his final stop in Tahiti. We also go further back, getting a look at awkward, college-age Fitz (few characters have come so far in six years). There's also the moment they were recruited to Coulson's OG team, and the awe they have for the famed agent is clear.

Line of the night: "I have taken bold action.” -Enoch

After-credit scene: The entire episode is, wisely, spent focused on Fitz and Simmons. This is making a case for one of the best episodes of the year. But the post-credit scene helps set up the pending clash. Daisy updates Mack that Fitz and Simmons are alive, but captured. Mack tells Daisy the world-destroying threat has made its way to Earth. But he leaves out the little detail that their leader looks exactly like Coulson. We'd expect that to come up pretty soon.