TV REVIEWS: FTN Reviews Agents of Shield Season 6 Episode 6: Inescapable

At this point in the season, I honestly no idea what is going on and what the season is trying to accomplish. Because just when we get a really good feeling that things are turning around and getting good…we get “Inescapable”. Which had all the promise in the world, and instead…it turns into a comedic mind romp that started out cute but ended up with me shaking my head in disgust and annoyance.

So, let’s start with the good parts. FitzSimmons are back together! YAY! Finally, definitively, and in the correct timeline to boot! This was good! And that opening with them being together and Fitz proposing (again) was adorable. And them using the Mind Prison or whatever you want to call it to enjoy each others company, eat sweets, and just have fun was great.

And to be fair, some of the “scene changes” in regards to the power of the Mind Prison were fun. Such as when Simmons reverted to her 7-year-old self. That was funny, as was Fitz’s reaction to it with his high-pitched scream. At points, “Inescapable” played like a greatest hits of sorts in regards to the FitzSimmons mythology, including revealing when they got connected in Shield Academy, when they were contacted by Coulson to be on his team in Season 1, that was fun stuff. But then…it just went off the rails…

Now, to be fair, I am NOT mad at how Fitz learned about everything. His future self’s death, the death of Coulson, that was fun stuff, and very impactful (which is why this review isn’t getting a negative score despite my feelings about the quality overall). But, when the “dark sides” of both Fitz and Simmons showed up? Yeah, that was bad.

Leopold, as he is apparently called now definitively, came back to…torture Simmons because…reasons? Oh, because “revenge”. Right…that makes sense… Or how about the fact that Simmons apparently was told as a child to lock away all her angry feelings in a music box…which got opened to reveal a Simmons monster? Because…that makes sense…?

Don’t get me wrong, both Fitz and Simmons have been through things that would break most people’s minds, I don’t deny that. But to “visualize” it all in this way is just…well…weird, and wrong. And completely out of left field in regards to the Simmons Monster. Oh, and then they conveniently forget that they’re in a mind prison that can project anything they want…yet they each forget that conveniently when they get caught, and only remember that when they’re getting hurt severely…ok…

And as for that “blowup” in the containment unit (with a nice callback to Season 1 I admit) where they were shouting “you’re the cause of all my pain!” was just…dumb. And inaccurate. But mainly dumb. Which brings me to the final nail in this coffin…what was the point of it all? To prove that FitzSimmons were meant to be together? Didn’t we know that…in…you know…SEASON 1???? Two at most?!!?!?

The problem with “Inescapable” is that it really didn’t do anything meaningful except focus on FitzSimmons way too much, and then having Enoch (somehow…) free them by taking “bold action”. Which I would’ve loved to actually see instead of just being told about it.

And then when the post-credits scene brought us back to the real storyline of the season, it was honestly one of the best scenes of the episode! As well as rendering the whole episode pointless by Mac mentioning that he bet that they already broke out of the prison. Well yeah, we all knew they would, that’s what’s sad.

In the end, “Inescapable” is continuing the trend of Agents of Shield Season 6 by having a lot of potential, but wasting it in very odd ways. I don’t know what to expect anymore, but I hope it’s better than this.