Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 20 Times FitzSimmons Ripped Our Hearts Out and Put Them Back Together

It’s amazing looking back over the run of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and seeing how far the characters have grown, and how they have repeatedly made us feel a multitude of feelings while watching week in and week out.

But perhaps one of my favorite dynamics to track — aside from the growing familial dynamics — over the series has been that of Leopold Fitz and Jemma Simmons, or FitzSimmons.

Seeing them grow both as characters and as a pair has been remarkable. As we see Fitz and Simmons willing to go to the ends of space and time, their story has been equal parts heartbreaking and heartwarming.

So, let’s break down, in chronological order, the 20 times FitzSimmons ripped our hearts out and put them back together again.

1. F.Z.Z.T. (Season 1 Episode 6)

We get a good look at their dynamics as partners in science up to this point, and Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Season 1 Episode 2, “F.Z.Z.T.,” highlights just how close Fitz and Simmons have become over the years.

It’s what makes the pair’s argument about deciding to go out in the field, thus ending up with Jemma’s life hanging in the balance in the hour kind of heartwarming in a very FitzSimmons way.

We were just six episodes in, and we already see the beginning of the crazy and life-threatening things that are bound to happen to them. There’s also something there that feels like a hint of potentially more to their friendship.

If only we knew what was ahead for them.

2. Beginning of the End (Season 1 Episode 22)

The containment pod plays a part in quite a few of their big moments (and are my favorite ones as is evidenced by this list). But the time they spend at the bottom of the ocean after Ward ejects the pod from the Bus is one of their most significant containment pod moments and falls into the “bittersweet” category.

We get a few quiet conversations about the cyclical process of life and death, which leads up to the big confession as Fitz reveals that he’s rigged their only life-saving solution for her.

While it’s a beautiful moment because he’s finally telling her how feels about her, there’s no time for Jemma to process it all as their time is running out and it’s time to try to make it out alive, something Simmons is determined to do for the both of them.

It’s a major turning point for FitzSimmons and sets the stage for a whole season’s worth of development and tension.

3. A Fractured House (Season 2 Episode 6)

As Jemma returns from her time undercover at Hydra, she comes face to face with Fitz, and the pair have to eventually deal not only with the damage was done to Fitz, but also her time undercover.

We see a lot of what Fitz struggled with for the first part of Season 2, from trouble with remembering words and phrases to articulate the science in his mind to connecting with the new members of the team. So, to see him fully verbalize the hurt and pain in the aftermath of the pod at the bottom of the ocean is heartbreaking but essential.

They aren’t on the same page, which is honestly painful considering how close they were in the show’s first season, but it feels like a necessary conversation for them to have to move forward.

4. S.O.S., Part 2 (Season 2 Episode 22)

There are a pair of moments during the Season 2 finale that simultaneously was hopeful about FitzSimmons’s future while adding another obstacle in the way. If only we knew then that these massive obstacles — time, space, ocean depths, and even death — would become just par for the course for the pair.

Seeing Jemma bringing up what Fitz said at the bottom of the ocean for it to be revisited post-mission, in a very adorable way, as Fitz asks her to dinner, is a short-lived moment of joy for the 2 before she gets sucked into the monolith.

It’s one of those “they were so close!” moments, and the catalyst for plenty of trauma for not only FitzSimmons but the entire team, for seasons to come.

5. Purpose in the Machine (Season 3 Episode 2)

Both Fitz and Simmons have gone to some extraordinary lengths to save each other throughout the series. But, Fitz’s “plan” of blindly jumping through the monolith to save Jemma is just the beginning of the escalation in their rescue strategies.

Fitz going for it is so beautiful to see and builds on the changes we’ve seen in him since Season 2 began.

It’s also wonderful to see them back together, on the same planet, and sharing the same space, not to mention the joyful smile and sought out comfort the pair find with each other.

Of course, pain and trauma are never far behind for FitzSimmons, especially with the experience of being on a foreign planet.

6. Many Heads, One Tale (Season 3 Episode 8)

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Season 3 offers perhaps some of the best FitzSimmons angst. In the face of saving Jemma from Maveth and learning about Will, tensions run high during their research into a potential rescue mission.

The breaking point comes after Jemma pleads with Fitz. The conversation, as a result, is filled with frustration, heartbreak, and pent up feelings in a deliciously painful declaration and a diagnosis of what their problem is.

Fitz: I can’t hate him. He’s great. Why else would you fall for him? He did everything right!

Jemma: And you dove through a hole in the universe for me.

The pair acknowledge everything that’s keeping them apart, and the careful maneuvering around each other so as not to upset the delicate balance struck since her return.

But perhaps the most significant moment for the pair is their very first kiss coming as the heated conversation ends with a question and a painful answer.

Fitz: We’re cursed.

Considering the pair’s journey together, both by each other’s side and torn apart, it feels like an appropriate description at times.

7. Chaos Theory (Season 3 Episode 7)

After hearing about what Jemma went through and her determination to go back, Fitz gets a glimpse at Jemma’s time on the alien planet, including some of her final messages to him.

It’s bittersweet in the way he attempts to nonchalantly bring up what he saw, coming to conclusions why she said those things on the video only for Jemma to shoot that theory down.

Add a sunrise and a quiet moment that is part-peaceful and part-angsty, and you’ve got a perfect entry for this list.

8. Closure (Season 3 Episode 9)

Fitz and Simmons probably break a record for most abductions, and this episode lands them right in Ward and Malick’s grasp as they are the only two to have found a way back from Maveth.

Ward’s knowledge about what makes the pair tick leads to a manipulative move that leads to Fitz agreeing to lead the Hydra team to Maveth — and unbeknownst to Ward, Will.

Simmons’ plea to Fitz to let them take her leads to another heartbreaking moment in a string of heartbreaking angsty moments as he explains his reason for agreeing.

Fitz: I’m not strong enough to live in a world that doesn’t have you in it.

Simmons: Come back to me.

There’s no shortage of emotions at the moment, and the pair play it exceptionally well.

9. Spacetime (Season 3 Episode 15)

A lot happens on Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Season 3 Episode 15, “Spacetime,” from introducing Charles Hinton and his daughter, Robin, a young girl who will become incredibly important to Daisy dealing with the visions she got from Charles.

But in the middle of it all, we get a sweet moment that cuts through the staunch cynicism that time can’t be changed (again, an essential plot point in about a season and a half) courtesy of FitzSimmons as they look up at the aftermath.

It’s a quick scene, but it kind of plays with an aspect of their relationship as Jemma tells Fitz that no matter what happens, some things are inevitable.

10. The Team (Season 3 Episode 17)

Sometimes FitzSimmons aren’t the source of pain or angst, and their moment during Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Season 3 Episode 17, “The Team,” is one of those times.

Without any idea of the looming betrayal at the hands of swayed Daisy, FitzSimmons take stock in the aftermath of the attack on the SHIELD base. They realize that 10 years is a long enough time to wait and share a second kiss with a build-up that only FitzSimmons can play.

It’s a quiet moment between the pair, filled with sweetness and giddiness that makes the moment so light and funny as Jemma tells Fitz that now is the time and Fitz jokes in turn about space and what he’s got right in front of him.

There’s no heartbreak infused at the moment, and not an ounce of angst or sadness: just pure happiness and love.

11. The Singularity (Season 3 Episode 18)

It’s a moment three seasons in the making, done in peak FitzSimmons fashion and so tooth-achingly sweet.

From the conversation between Jemma and Fitz comparing the trajectory of their relationship and the next step in it as “crossing the event horizon” to the moment they finally take that next step is a nice reprieve from the insanity that surrounds them.

Their conversation is honestly my favorite; the shy looks, the eagerness, and the realization that the time for overthinking their relationship is over and is done so well and is so very FitzSimmons that it just brings a smile to my face.

12. The Man Behind The Shield (Season 4 Episode 14)

Life as an official couple during the first half of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Season 4 provides quick glimpses into Fitz and Simmons’ relationship beyond their work for the agency.

There’s also a vulnerability between them that we also got to see play out, especially when it comes to Fitz’s issues with his father and the insecurities that come with it. His insecurities multiply in the face of Aida going out of control.

It’s the perfect opportunity to see a sweet, quiet moment of assurance from Jemma.

Jemma: You make things from the genius of your mind and the kindness of your heart.

It echoes sentiments the rest of the team have mentioned throughout the series, and it’s lovely.

13. Self-Control (Season 4 Episode 15)

As the team enters the next arc is perhaps one of my favorites stories in the series, we get the first of many devastating FitzSimmons confrontations during Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Season 4.

In the face of the L.M.D. discovery, Jemma soon learns that Fitz is one as well. Elizabeth Henstridge and Iain de Caestecker do a fantastic job playing the shock, fear, and grief of the moment they find themselves in.

Then seeing the way Fitz just goes into full L.M.D. mode is a bit of a gut punch.

It’s another entry in the FitzSimmons heartbreakers hall of fame.

14. Identity and Change (Season 4 Episode 17)

The Agents of Hydra arc is wild, frustrating, thrilling, and extremely painful to watch. Yet it is an absolute favorite for those same reasons.

Among the more painful aspects of the arc is Mack’s story with Hope and FitzSimmons’s tumultuous turn in the Framework.

Jemma’s unflinching stance that the Doctor, aka Leopold, can be saved despite what everyone’s telling her is just another example of their unwillingness to give up on each other.

But the moment Leopold shoots Agnes after his conversation with Radcliffe is heartbreaking with a just a hint of something as a quick shot shows that the moment Jemma screams his name, something washes over his face.

It’s a good one — a horrifying, angsty one. But a good one, nonetheless.

15. Farewell, Cruel World! (Season 4 Episode 20)

There’s something about this final FitzSimmons framework scene that devastates you, no matter how many times you watch it.

Seeing the Doctor pointing the gun directly at Jemma as she tries to explain Aida’s involvement in keeping him in the Framework and Jemma’s purpose in bringing him back is brutal as he shoots at her.

But through it all, she’s unwilling to accept that this Framework version of himself is not the man he truly is.

It’s a fantastic, angsty, heartbreaking end to the Framework pod of the season and is impeccably acted.

16. The Return (Season 4 Episode 21)

With the Framework arc beginning to wrap up, there’s a scene that sets the tone for where Fitz and Simmons find themselves after everything they encountered while trapped in the wild Hydra-led hallucination that Aida had them in.

It continues the course with the angst and the heartbreak but becomes an affirmation in the face of Jemma’s doubts about the effects of Fitz’s time in the Framework.

It’s a fantastic scene, and it was something Jemma needed to hear, offering some relief from the fear of how much has changed.

17. Fun and Games (Season 5 Episode 6)

After 4 episodes, a thrilling reveal, and a look back on what he was up to during the team’s time in space, this hour brings Fitz back to the team out in the future and immediately handing fans a fantastic FitzSimmons reunion.

Hearing his proposal to Jemma, even though she couldn’t hear it, was lovely and a spot-on summary of how far they’ve gone for each other. The moment she’s able to see him for the first time in space, makes your heart melt.

Their reunion scene and the opportunity they got to be part of a trio of kickass agents escaping is so fun to watch, with a bit of comedy in the mix.

It is another example of their sweeping, epic love story that spans time and space.

18. The Real Deal (Season 5 Episode 12)

The 100th episode of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. was the perfect hour to commemorate the series: it was big on emotion, honored some of the show’s origins, and gave us a happy event and a massive development.

With the news of time running out for Coulson, it was lovely that the bright spot for everyone was the FitzSimmons wedding.

After 4 years of seeing them grow as individuals and together, countless separations, space, and time getting in the way, Fitz and Simmons made their way down the aisle in front of most of the team.

The fact that it’s in the depths of the Lighthouse but still in the open air, with a picturesque backdrop, really emphasizes that point. The vows were sweet, and Coulson’s words as he’s officiating is solidly heartwarming.

It just feels like such a hard-earned moment for FitzSimmons and only a brief respite as more pain follows them for the remainder of the series.

19. The Devil Complex (Season 5 Episode 14)

Like I said, brief bits of happiness for these two are hard-earned before big gut-wrenching moments accost them. In this case, it’s a devastating discovery that Fitz’s psychic split caused The Doctor’s return and some tough decisions made.

While the team starts to show signs of cracking apart around this episode, Fitz and Simmons’ future is in doubt as he questions whether they can even stay together in the face of what he did to Daisy to get close up the breach.

Fitz: I don’t know where this leaves us.

The fact that it doesn’t get any easier for them as the season rolls on make this moment heavier.

20. Inescapable (Season 6 Episode 6)

This one has to be my favorite containment pod moment of all. While trapped in Sibyl’s mind prison, FitzSimmons end up dealing with a lot of their unspoken issues and traumas, bouncing from devastating to sweet to wildly hilarious, as this version of Fitz learns of his death, his wedding, Leopold’s reappearance, and Jemma’s Id.

It’s a fantastic FitzSimmons bottle episode that airs out a lot of their past traumas, but it’s their time in the containment pod after being chased by their Ego and Id, that is the highlight.

Their bickering that inevitably turns into revisiting all the things that have happened to them,  how much they love each other, and what they will do to save each other every time is peak FitzSimmons and just so hilarious and heartwarming.

If you’ve watched Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., you know exactly what they’d do for each other and the fact that there’s no limit. But hearing them rehash their relationship from the moment they decided to join Coulson on the Bus to this scene is fantastic.

You can watch the full scene here. 

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Did your heartbreaking or heartwarming FitzSimmons moment make the list? Will the pair be getting a happy ending? Share some of yours in the comments below!

The Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. two-hour series finale airs Wednesday, August 12 at 9/8c on ABC.

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