Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. was filled to the brim with endearing relationships, from the complex bond between Philinda (Phil Coulson and Melinda May) to the tragically romantic FitzSimmons, the show had plenty of great “ships.” Of course, there was also the sweet romance between Mack and Elena (Yo-Yo). By the series’ end, the two ended up in some interesting positions, and Henry Simmons and Natalia Cordova-Buckley have some thoughts on how things panned out.
In the final moments of the series finale, Mack and Yo-Yo still appear to be romantically linked but are also working together. Mack has remained the head of S.H.I.E.L.D. and is seen heading up the operation from a helicarrier. Meanwhile, Yo-Yo has also remained with the organization and has become one of Mack’s top agents. She also heads a small team that includes S.H.I.E.L.D. agents Piper and Davis (who’s been revived as an advanced LMD).
During a roundtable for the show’s series finale, both Henry Simmons and Natalia Cordova-Buckley opened up to CinemaBlend and other outlets about their character’s endings. Cordova-Buckley was happy to see that Yo-Yo ended up with her own team of agents, as she believes it’s a position the fan favorite speedster was made for:
I thought it was appropriate for Yo-Yo to become a leader of her own squad, and she's kind of been building up to that position and she's finally there and she's happy with who she's with and they're more settled within the institution of S.H.I.E.L.D. You know, the President and the First Lady.
Yo-Yo’s proven on more than a few occasions that she can take charge when called upon, so it does only seem right that she would join Mack in taking on a leadership role. Speaking of Yo-Yo’s partner, Cordova-Buckley also thinks Mack is the perfect person to lead S.H.I.E.L.D. due to his iron-clad moral fiber and serious dedication to his job:
I think Henry brings something to that character that I've never seen in another director. And there's a morality and an ethics code that Mack had that superseded I think everyone's. It wasn't about doing the right or wrong thing. He just was always so congruent with his values and would never derail from them or have any sort of protagonism about being a director and it's the first time I've ever seen in any of the directors of SHIELD, that I've seen someone have that unselfishness about being the head and it's almost his downfall a little bit too, right, he ends up breaking up with Yo-Yo because of that. But I still love that about that character, about making a director that is so un-individualistic and ego driven. It was just wonderful. So that kind of director.
Henry Simmons was also happy to see that Mack remained a bigwig within the massive organization. However, his one hope is that Mack won’t be a leader that seeks to hold power for himself, but one that allows his colleagues to work and grow:
The one thing I really wanted, and I don't know if they went there, was I wanted Mack to be the kind of director where, he was always out in the field. He was with the other agents where he was just like he delegated. He wasn't a man that tried to establish power. Man was a man that delegated power. We all work together. You know, listen, I like in the very first episode where you see me as director, I'm listening to people's ideas. I'm asking for ideas and things like that. Because I think those make the best leaders when they don't try to rule everything with an iron fist in and feel as if they know everything. It's a leader that allows people to operate in their own strengths and allows them to do their jobs without interfering. Those make the best directors and I don't know if they really got there. The writers, I mean, maybe I don't know. But that's, that's what I hope comes across for Mack.
Mack was definitely a hands-on kind of director, but he still didn’t mind heading up things from behind the scenes from time to time. Based on how the character was handled, I would think the producers envisioned him to be the kind of leader Simmons hopes he’ll be.
Mack and Yo-Yo experienced a considerable amount of growth throughout the series, and the final season would only give them more internal and external obstacles. But what’s most satisfying is that both ended up together and are still working towards the greater good.
Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. is available to stream on Netflix.
