Favorite Characters: Alphonso Mackenzie (Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.)

Who doesn’t love Mack?  I’ve liked him pretty much from the first, and one of my most unshakeable Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. beliefs (along with May and Bobbi being too awesome for words) is that I always want more of him than the show gives me.  Despite his two-seasons-and-counting on the show, he still has a tendency to feel like a second-tier character, there to support others more than have stories of his own.  It feels like we’ve finally made a little headway this season, but I’m still eager to see much more of Mack (Mack-related spoilers.)

A topnotch engineer, Mack comes to Coulson’s team as a mechanic and quickly proves how valuable he is.  He has a sharp understanding of the ins and outs of machines, which comes in handy given how often their vehicles and other equipment get damaged on missions.  He also has enough tech-savviness to be an essential colleague for Fitz, who struggles with communicating after his injuries at the end of season 1 – Mack is able to follow Fitz’s train of thought where he’s trying to take it and bridge some of the gaps between Fitz’s knowledge and his speech difficulties.  And though he initially backs off from Coulson’s suggestion that he expand his scope within the team and become a field agent, citing that he doesn’t like violence, he eventually becomes a strong agent in the field, working with Daisy to approach Inhumans in season 3.

That last point is a development I like a lot, because we see Mack’s wariness of alien stuff through much of season 2.  I suppose that, even though he’s a S.H.I.E.L.D. veteran, he spent much of that time in an engine room or a garage and didn’t have as many encounters with the bizarre and unexplainable.  So, when he starts to see that stuff close-up in season 2 – the lingering effects T.A.H.I.T.I. has on Coulson, the emergence of the Inhumans – it freaks him out.  Plus, like Simmons, he’s also hit really hard by what happens in the Kree temple, and that only amps up his distrust of anything alien.  In light of all that, it’s great to see him learn to recognize the full range of Inhumans:  that, just like anyone else, they can be good, bad, or something in-between.  I really like his partnership with Daisy and how close they become.

In general, Mack is just a pretty excellent guy.  He has a lot of compassion and empathy for others, he’s good at reaching out to those who need it, and he’s incredibly loyal.  Season 4 was his biggest foray to date into character development.  Through his newish relationship with Yo-Yo (who’s totally awesome, by the way – Mack/Yo-Yo forever and lots more Yo-Yo in season 5, please!), we start getting hints of things about Mack that he’s never shared with the rest of the team.  Namely, that he had a daughter (Hope) from a previous marriage who died shortly after her birth.  When he and other members of the team are plugged into the Framework in late season 4, the “one regret” it corrects for him is Hope’s death, and for a few shining moments, Mack is an absolutely lovely father in the midst of the dystopian Hydra-ruled hellscape.  It’s wrenching to see how wonderful Hope is – nicknamed “Sparkplug,” she’s inherited her father’s mechanical knowhow, is filled with curiosity, and still manages to maintain a little innocence (thanks to Mack’s papa-bear protection of her) despite the aforementioned hellscape.  With Hope, he see just how deep Mack’s love and loyalty runs.  Even upon learning that Hope doesn’t really exist and he’s in a fake world that’s slowly flickering out, Mack refuses to leave her, and it’s only through the most herculean of efforts that Yo-Yo is able to convince him to save himself.  When Mack is on your side, he will never give up on you.