For the episode named after Melinda May, see Melinda |
For alternate versions of Melinda May, see Melinda May's Character Hub |
- "You two have been through a lot. But now it's been a year, and if last year has taught me anything, it's that life isn't meant to be lived alone."
- ―Melinda May to Yo-Yo Rodriguez[src]
Professor Melinda Qiaolian May is a highly-skilled S.H.I.E.L.D. operative, nicknamed the Cavalry. A veteran pilot and soldier with years of experience and a good friend of Phil Coulson, she withdrew from field duty after an incident in Manama, Bahrain which left her mentally damaged. However, she returned to the field when Nick Fury asked to her to secretly assemble a team for Coulson and to monitor his recovery process. She worked with the team on all their missions. When the HYDRA Uprising began, her true role on the team, to be Fury's eyes and ears on Coulson, was discovered, leading to a rift between her and the team. Feeling unwanted, she left, searching to find out the truth behind Coulson's resurrection. She found the truth and brought it back to Coulson. She helped the team stop John Garrett and went with the team to the Playground to help restart S.H.I.E.L.D., under newly promoted Coulson.
As Coulson's unofficial deputy, May helped Coulson in fighting the forces of HYDRA led by Daniel Whitehall and dealing with Coulson's growing obsession with the alien writing. Following the Battle for the Kree City in which HYDRA was dealt a heavy blow and Skye obtained superhuman abilities, May helped them all to deal with the situation the best they could. When another S.H.I.E.L.D. faction led by Robert Gonzales emerged and occupied their base, May helped Coulson to escape, but later accepted a position on Gonzales' board. When the two factions united, May became a member of Coulson's council of advisors. Following the Jiaying's Vendetta and the Kidnapping of Bobbi Morse, she retired from S.H.I.E.L.D. for a short time to be with Andrew Garner.
May's retirement would be short-lived, however, as Lance Hunter would request her help in getting revenge on Grant Ward by killing him. Though the duo would be unsuccessful in that mission, May would fully return to S.H.I.E.L.D. to stop Ward and a newly-discovered HYDRA cell led by Gideon Malick from bringing HYDRA's founder, an Inhuman named Hive, back to Earth. During HYDRA's campaign, May would also face a new threat in the form of an Inhuman named Lash, who was killing other Inhumans. May would soon discover that Lash was her partner, Andrew Garner, and would make the difficult decision to shoot him, though he would survive. HYDRA's plan to bring Hive to Earth would culminate in Ward's death at the hands of Coulson, though Hive would possess Ward's body and return to Earth. May would work against Hive as he plotted to turn the Earth's population into Inhumans loyal to him, a plan that would end in his death as well as that of Andrew Garner's.
Following the relegalisation of S.H.I.E.L.D. and the appointment of Jeffrey Mace, May was given the task of rebuilding and training the new STRIKE team. During one of her missions, she was touched by Lucy Bauer, a person with ghost-like powers, causing her to have a mental breakdown that would've lead to her death. Jemma Simmons and Holden Radcliffe managed to save her life at the last moment. Prior to S.H.I.E.L.D. victory on Eli Morrow, May was incapacitated and kidnapped by Aida and was replaced by an LMD of herself. After several escape attempts, May's mind was trapped inside the Framework, a virtual reality where she lived as a HYDRA agent. With the help of Daisy Johnson and Simmons, May finally escaped the Framework, only to face the threat of the now-organic Aida. May and her team managed to kill Aida; however, S.H.I.E.L.D. was now an illegal organisation once again. May and the team would go to a diner to have a meal before being arrested; however, a mysterious man would capture them and send them through a monolith to the year 2091.
May and the others found themselves in the Lighthouse, a bunker used to contain the rest of humanity following Earth's destruction. May was captured by the Kree, who ruled over the station, and sent to Earth's surface. There, she would be saved by the man who sent her to 2091, a Chronicom named Enoch who had sent them there as part of his plan to prevent the destruction of Earth. On the surface, May would meet Robin Hinton, who had been raised by May in Hinton's past. May and her team would successfully return to the present, and immediately begin work on preventing the destruction of Earth. However, they would come into conflict with another HYDRA cell lead by Air Force General Hale, an alien Confederacy, and Glenn Talbot, who had infused himself with Gravitonium and gained superpowers. As this transpired, May and her team would learn that Phil Coulson was dying as a result of a deal he made with the Spirit of Vengeance to defeat Aida. S.H.I.E.L.D. would be forced to kill Talbot, succeeding in preventing Earth's destruction. May would retire from S.H.I.E.L.D. again to be with Coulson during his final days. May would be there as Coulson peacefully passed away.
May returned to her service within S.H.I.E.L.D. under Alphonso Mackenzie's directorship, who assigned her to the new STRIKE team. Later, S.H.I.E.L.D. encountered mercenary group led by Sarge who had an incredible resemblance with Coulson. With May's strong desire to find out about Sarge, S.H.I.E.L.D. apprehended Sarge and temporarily allied with him in the fight against Izel, a non-corporeal entity that seeked to help her species invade the universe. Eventually, May found out that Sarge was an entity from a non-corporeal dimension that possessed a replica of Coulson's body which corrupted his memory. May, together with Mackenzie and Sarge, headed to the Temple of the Forgotten to stop Izel from unleashing her realm's powers on Earth; however, Sarge took Izel's side and killed May, throwing her body into her realm. Due to the nature of Izel's realm, May survived her fatal injury and managed to kill Izel in the fight before Jemma Simmons put May in a cryo-freeze chamber to save her.
May was taken onto the Zephyr with the team, which then travelled through time to 1931. Though May was left in the Zephyr to recover, she would escape the cryo-chamber prematurely and meet a new LMD of Phil Coulson. Upon her escape, she would realize that she was no longer capable of feeling emotion but could feel the emotions of others when touching them, which she would later discover was due to her time spent in Izel's realm, where emotion did not exist. May would be debriefed on the team's new mission: travel through time to prevent the Chronicoms from altering the past to erase S.H.I.E.L.D. from history. May's new empath powers would be vital in helping the team detect Chronicom impersonators of real humans as the team jumped through the decades. Though the Zephyr would be stranded in 1983, Leo Fitz would arrive to bring them back to 2019 to fight the Chronicom fleet. May and the Coulson LMD would defeat the Chronicom leader, Sibyl, finally putting an end to the Chronicom threat. After the team's victory, S.H.I.E.L.D. would be rebuilt and May would retire from field work to become a teacher at S.H.I.E.L.D.'s new school, the Coulson Academy.
Biography[]
Early Life[]
Childhood[]
- "May used to be different. She was always quiet, she was just... she was warm. Fearless in a different way. Getting in trouble, pulling pranks, thought rules were meant to be broken."
- ―Phil Coulson[src]
Melinda May was born to William and Lian May. At age seven, she became an ice skater and admired the famous ice skater Dorothy Hamill, winning many awards in competitions. However, she found the ice was too hard when she fell, so at the age of 12, she became a martial artist, where the floors were padded.[3]
Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.[]
- "Did you really think I was gonna leave your defenseless ass behind?"
"Yes. Yes, I 100% did."
"I let you sweat a little. But... I didn't want to make you wait around forever." - ―Melinda May and Phil Coulson[src]
May eventually joined S.H.I.E.L.D., believing that the agency was the best defense of the United States of America and the world against any possible threat. During school, she took a dance class which she dropped two weeks later so that she could graduate and get actual field assignments.[5] Trained by the best S.H.I.E.L.D. had to offer, May became an ace pilot and a weapons expert, a soldier who could perform above and beyond the call of duty. She was one of the few S.H.I.E.L.D. agents who had more black belts than Natasha Romanoff,[11] whom she met and befriended.[5]
May met Phil Coulson during a mission in which the two were paired up together.[12] During the mission, their commander sent them to a coffee shop in Sausalito on a retrieval operation without an exit strategy. May wound up in the bay for five hours until Coulson eventually fished her out.[5] May often dated several men at this time, but ended the relationships constantly as she found difficulty in dating civilians, due to the secretive nature of her job. May and Coulson were sent another mission where they had to pose as husband and wife, where Coulson took a long time to unhook May's bra, much to her amusement.
After developing a romantic interest in Coulson, May asked to be assigned to aid Coulson during his mission to retrieve an 0-8-4 from Russia. After she successfully managed to steal it from the SVR, May returned to save Coulson and informed him that she was dating a psychiatrist. May still retained her feelings for Coulson, and she smiled as Coulson suggested that they could get together if her current relationship did not work out.[13] May ended up falling in love with the psychiatrist, Andrew Garner, and the two eventually married and eloped.[14] They bought an apartment together. It was small, had one futon, and got cold in the winter. They would cuddle up next to the heater.[15]
Coulson would describe May as warm, fearless and not afraid to break rules. May was quiet, but not above pulling pranks on her fellow agents.[16] She also met Alexander Pierce, one of the leaders of S.H.I.E.L.D.[1] As rookie agents, May and Coulson often talked of being able to pick their own operations and to call their own shots without the bureaucracy and red tape.[17]
The Cavalry[]
- "Forgot I was working with 'The Cavalry'."
"Don't ever call me that." - ―Grant Ward and Melinda May[src]
In 2008, May, Phil Coulson and a team of agents were dispatched on an "Index Asset Evaluation and Intake" (or "Welcome Wagon") mission, investigating Eva Belyakov, a newly discovered powered individual with superhuman strength. They tracked Belyakov to Manama, Bahrain, where things immediately spiraled out of control; Belyakov, aided by various Bahrainian gangsters that she seemed to be controlling, took a young civilian girl and every dispatched S.H.I.E.L.D. agent except for May and Coulson, hoarding them inside of a warehouse.
As she was unable to call in any backup, May took it upon herself to solve the problem. She went in by herself with only a knife, crossing off the controlled gangsters and Belyakov herself. However, she learned that the girl, revealed to be Belyakov's daughter Katya, was the one controlling people using a sensory manipulating ability. May witnessed the girl use her powers to kill the remaining gangsters, May slowly backed up, trying not to earn the same fate. She felt her hand touch a gun that was on the ground. Knowing what she needed to do, she told Katya that everything was going to be okay, before she shot her. After hearing the gun shot, Coulson rushed in, only to find May sitting on the floor with Katya's corpse stretched out in her arms. Coulson told her that she needed to "let the girl go". The incident scarred May mentally and earned her the nickname "The Cavalry" within S.H.I.E.L.D., a designation she despised.[2]
May never spoke of what happened during the incident, but it changed her. The warm, rule-bending nature of her personality seemed to be gone, despite Coulson's efforts to draw it back out. Her marriage with Garner also slowly fell apart as a result of her distance, eventually ending. Soon, May withdrew from combat duty, retreating to a desk-bound administrative position within the S.H.I.E.L.D. bureaucracy.[16][2]
The story of "The Cavalry" became a legend at the S.H.I.E.L.D. Academy, with the story growing bigger and more inaccurate with each new class.[16]
Coulson's Team[]
Back in the Field[]
- "I gave you a second chance when I assembled this team and–"
"I assembled this team."
"What?"
"I evaluated what was needed and I gave the assessment to Fury, and he gave you the parameters for your unit." - ―Phil Coulson and Melinda May[src]
May was approached by Nick Fury himself and ordered to be his eyes and ears on the newly resurrected Phil Coulson. May's orders were to report to him directly if Coulson showed any side-effects or dangerous behavior after his treatment with the alien GH.325 drug. Fury believed that given their shared history, Coulson would recruit her for his new team.
To aid in her mission, she put together a team of agents that may be necessary to treat or act on Coulson, selecting Jemma Simmons, Leo Fitz and Grant Ward. Coulson was then given specific mission parameters and was maneuvered into picking May's choices.[18] As expected, Phil Coulson came to the office where she worked and asked her to join his team. Still haunted by her past experiences in the field, she was genuinely reluctant to return to combat, but she agreed when Coulson told her that he just needs her to "drive the Bus." Upon arriving on the Bus, a surprised Ward asked if it was really the Cavalry, to which May told him not to call her that. As May walked away, Ward asked Coulson why she would only be driving.
May and her new team were called in to investigate a man who jumped from a tall building to save a woman. May drove Fitz-Simmons to the site where they investigated. May studied the crater that Peterson made when he fell. Meanwhile, a hacktivist group named the Rising Tide were leaking S.H.I.E.L.D. information including Peterson. Coulson tracked down one of their members, Skye. After a brief introduction, Coulson surprised everyone when he allowed Skye onto the team. Later, the team found out that Peterson was infused with an unstable version of Extremis. He could explode at any second. Coulson tasked May and Skye to go to Skye's Van and send encrypted audio. While they were there, May was knocked out from behind by Mike Peterson, who had his son.
May woke up to find that Peterson had kidnapped Skye. Eventually, Skye was able to secretly contact Coulson, sending him her location. May took the upper levels of Union Station only to find that Skye was being attacked by a mercenary. May easily incapacitated the enemy, saving Skye. May then watched as Coulson gave a speech to Peterson, stalling him enough for Ward to sedate Peterson before he exploded.[17]
In the following days, Skye had officially joined the team. S.H.I.E.L.D. sent them on a mission in Peru to investigate an 0-8-4. May stood guard while Fitz-Simmons investigated the item. May noticed something in the forest and talked with Ward as they inched closer to the commotion. Ward, who noticed it too, then caught the man off guard. He pulled a mercenary out of the forest only to be surrounded by many more who were spying on them. Before they could fight, Coulson stopped them, as he had recognized the leader, an old friend named Camilla Reyes. As they caught up, the team was attacked by rebels. They were chased until they got to the Bus. May lifted off with Reyes' group with them.
Later, May was in the cockpit when a member of Reyes' squad, Perez knocked her out with gas. May woke up in shackles next to Ward, Skye, and Fitz-Simmons. She learned that Reyes had turned on them to get the 0-8-4. As the team tried to think of a plan, May dislocated her wrist in order to get out of her restraints. The sound scared Fitz. May then sneaked behind Vilca and knocked him out. She then popped her wrist back in place before helping the rest of the team. The plan that they eventually thought of was for Fitz to use the D.W.A.R.F.s to activate the 0-8-4 which would blow up the side of the plane. They were able to do so, causing some members of Reyes' squad to fly out of the hole. Skye plugged it using a safety raft. May then flew the team to the Slingshot to drop off the 0-8-4 and arrest Reyes. May sat with Ward for a brief moment and told him that he should be Skye's S.O.. Coulson later apologized to the angry May who still didn't want to see action.[19]
On the Sidelines[]
During the action in Malta, May initially assumed that she would be on the strike team to rescue Franklin Hall, to her dismay. When Coulson informed her that he was going in with Grant Ward instead, May expressed doubt, stating that fieldwork and specialist work were two different things. During the operation, May was frustrated at being stuck at the backend of the op, where she could not do anything to help her team. Upon Coulson's return, May informed him that she would report the next time combat duty came up.[20]
New Actions[]
- "You told me that you were ready for combat. That you had my back."
"Don't ever doubt it." - ―Phil Coulson and Melinda May[src]
After a easing her way back into combat, the team engaged on a woman, Akela Amador, who was Coulson's old student. Amador had seemed to be working for the enemy. After closer examination, they realized she had a Backscatter X-Ray Eye Implant. May offered to watch her through her eye feed while everyone slept. While watching, May saw Amador look at a file that contained her location. May acted quickly and went to the location. Amador woke up, but didn't look at May. She explained that if her handler sees May then Amador is either forced to kill May, or May kills her. Amador then turned off the light so that she can use her eye to see in the dark. Coulson then ran in and sedated Amador. After the team completed Amador's mission for her and cut out her eye. They let her walk, but she still had to pay for her crimes, which Amador was happy to do as long as she was free. As she walked out, she asked May what was wrong with Coulson, which confused May.[21]
In Hong Kong, Index listed pyrokinetic Chan Ho Yin was captured by A Girl in a Flower Dress who was a member of the Centipede Project. As it turned out, Chan's location was leaked by a Rising Tide hacker, Miles Lydon. They chased Lydon, but he escaped. May somehow found his location, but saw that Skye was there with him, as they were friends. When Skye came out, May was waiting for her. Skye tried to explain herself while Lydon tried to say that he didn't know anybody was in danger. Despite being angry, Coulson knew he could use Lydon's help to save Chan. When they got there, Chan had been changed, thinking he could be some sort of hero. He started to use his powers against the S.H.I.E.L.D. team, killing Quan Chen, May tried to get him to calm down by speaking with him in Mandarin. However, this tactic didn't work and caused Chan to cause even more wreckage. Seeing no other way, Coulson told Lydon to hack into the vents to point them out of the building. May then injected Chan with a dose the Centipede Serum, causing an explosive overdose. The smoke from the explosion was sent through the vents into the air.[22]
Briefly after the Hong Kong event, the team got a call of an anomaly where Adam Cross was murdered. They arrive only to find that Cross' corpse was floating in the air. Simmons examined the corpse until it emitted a lightning shock then fell to the ground. On the Bus, May interrogated Cross' friend while Simmons examined the corpse. She found out that the body emitted unworldly amounts of electricity. Fitz came in and told them he tracked the beginning of another anomaly. When the team got to an old barn, they found Frank Whalen's corpse floating. Skye found out that both victims were fire fighters. They went to the local fire department and found a man named Tony Diaz. They suspected something was off with Diaz. When Coulson followed him, he explained that Whalen, Cross, and him were cleaning off a Chitauri Helmet that they kept from the Battle of New York. Simmons realized that it was a virus. Coulson then told everyone to go before Diaz set off the electricity. Coulson talked to Diaz in his last moments. May waited outside until Coulson came out slowly. The team watched as Diaz died.
Later, Simmons was trying to create a vaccine in case the virus spreads. Coulson found out that Simmons was infected. Everyone, including May, waited while Fitz-Simmons tried desperately to create a vaccine. However, their last try did not work. Not wanting to take the plane down with her, Simmons knocked Fitz out so that he couldn't stop her. She then jumped out of the plane. Fitz woke up to find that the serum did work, it just had a late reaction. He tried to get her, but Ward jumped out of the plane with a parachute and saved Simmons. Afterwards, a curious May asked Coulson to remove his hirt, showing his scar that killed him. May told him that he definitely died, and no one could go through that alone.[23]
She lived up to her nickname of "The Cavalry" when Grant Ward and Leo Fitz were stranded in the middle of a hot operation without an extraction plan along the South Ossetian border. She piloted the Bus without authorization into an active hot spot where she and her team rescued their team-mates.[24] One day, the team got a call of two enhanced individuals who were rampaging through a forest. The team concluded that the source of the enhancement was the Berserker Staff, an Asgardian weapon. Coulson met with Norse Mythology expert, Elliot Randolph, to learn more. Randolph explained that an ancient Asgardian warrior stayed on Earth long ago and hid his berserker staff in three locations after splitting it in three pieces. The two individuals and their group had found one. The team went to Seville to find the second. While searching, Ward found Randolph in the tunnels with one of the pieces. Ward touched the staff which messed with his mind, making him very angry and unhinged. Randolph was brought in for interrogation where he revealed that he was the Asgardian who stayed. He went to get his pieces and hide them again before it was too late. He also explained that the staff infuses whoever it touches with memories of their past which cause anger.
They went to Ireland to find the last piece. While at a church, Randolph was stabbed by one of the paganists. As Coulson helped Randolph, Ward picked up a piece of the staff and fought many members of the enemy group. He then collapsed in anger and fatigue. May walked over to him and picked up the staff, she then connected all three pieces, making her power even stronger. She easily took down all of the members and carefully put the staff back onto the ground. Ward asked her how she was able to control her anger. May explained that the vision she saw, was the memory she sees every night, referring to the Bahrain Incident. Afterwards, she slept with Grant Ward as they both dealt with their own past that night.[25]
Hunting a Ghost[]
- "You can't undo what's been done. That will be with you forever. But trying to hold on to this life, clinging to the person you thought you could be, that's hell. And you're dragging her down with you. You have to let go before my people come and make you do it. If you care about her, and I know you do, let her go. Let the girl go."
- ―Melinda May to Tobias Ford[src]
After her night with Grant Ward, May was getting dressed and found out the team was called in to perform an Index Asset Evaluation and Intake report on Hannah Hutchins. Hutchins had been involved in an explosion that killed four people at the StatiCorp Facility, the community blamed her despite he protests that she didn't do it. Most recently, Hutchins was at a gas station that had exploded, the reports believed she could have some telekinetic power.
On the Bus, Ward finally arrived, but May reminded him that he was late. Upon arriving at Hannah Hutchins' House in Batesville, Utah, Hutchins was being harassed by her neighbors. Once someone threw an egg at her, an unmanned police car somehow drove towards a citizen on its own. Phil Coulson jumped in front of the man to save him. Seeing this, a police officer pulled a gun on Hutchins. Ward tried to deescalate the situation, but May shot Hutchins with a Night-Night Gun to make it easier.
Despite May's actions rubbing Skye the wrong way, they brought Hutchins into the holding cell of the Bus. May explained to Hutchins why she had to sedate her, which Hutchins agreed with since it saved the citizens' lives. Hutchins then claimed that it wasn't her who was doing it, but she was being punished by God for the explosion. Coulson briefed the team on the explosion. Among the four people who were killed was a man named Tobias Ford. Later, the team began noticing that weird things had been happening on the Bus. Suddenly, the power cut out. May jumped into the cockpit and was forced the ease the Bus into a minor crash landing.
Afterwards, May walked to the cell only to find Skye talking to Hutchins through the wall. May told Skye that Coulson needed her. Skye began to protest, but May said it was an order. As Skye left, she told May to not hurt her more than she already has. May stopped in her tracks as Skye left. While guarding Hutchins' cell, May felt a presence sneaking up on her. She looked to see what looked like a ghost behind her. She recognized him as Tobias Ford and quickly moved away before he could hit her with his wrench.
Knowing that there was a connection with the explosion, May brought Hutchins outside to a barn. She explained that she was only using her to get Ford out and away from her people. May then left Hutchins standing in the barn and she hid. Eventually, Ford appeared in front of Hutchins, who recognized him right away and began sobbing. May then attacked him and engaged in a fight. Ford disappeared and then reappeared further away. May asked Hutchins to tell him that she doesn't want to hurt him. Ford then fell to his knees, crying. He explained that he loosened some bolts on the machine that exploded so that Hutchins would keep visiting him. He was in love with her. With the explosion, he was caught in between dimension. Every second, he was being dragged furthur towards hell. He asked for forgiveness so that maybe he wouldn't be dragged down anymore. Hutchins reminded him that only God could forgive him. May told Ford that he cannot undo what has already been done. He is dragging Hutchins down with him, he needs to let go. May told him to "let the girl go" just as Coulson said to her after Bahrain.
With those words, Ford lets go of Hutchins, fading into hell. Coulson, who was watching from a far, walked up to May and asked her what she said. She told Coulson that she repeated what he told her after the Rescue in Bahrain. Finally having a little closure over Bahrain, May opened up a little bit and decided to prank Leo Fitz just like old times. She put whipped cream on Fitz's hand as he slept so that when he woke up, he would get whipped cream on his face. May listened from the cockpit as Fitz blamed everyone else on the Bus.[16]
Hunt for Centipede[]
When Phil Coulson decided to focus all of the team's efforts on bringing down the Centipede Project, he brought Mike Peterson, now in training to become a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent to assist in their fight against the enhanced Centipede Soldiers. She assisted Peterson, Coulson, and Ward in infiltrating the Centipede base in Oakland. Discovering Peterson was a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, Raina and Edison Po kidnapped Ace Peterson using him to convince his father to bring Coulson to a hostage exchange. During this time, May helped Coulson find information on Skye's parents. Skye asked her for the information she found and May snapped at her, causing Skye to rip up her life's work.
When Centipede took Coulson, she called in backup, but the backup failed to arrive before Coulson was taken and Peterson was apparently killed.[26] May knew Skye could assist better finding Coulson when she wouldn't be on the Bus, so she advised to Victoria Hand to let Skye be free during the investigation. Skye found Coulson's location, and his team went to rescue him. After they fought the Centipede Soldiers they saved Coulson and brought him back to the Bus.[27]
Skye's Story[]
- "I'm tired of secrets, so I'm glad we're here. We need to root out all the secrets."
"Agent Ward and I have been having sex..." - ―Phil Coulson and Melinda May[src]
In order to learn about Skye's history May and Phil Coulson traveled to Mexico City, Mexico, where they tracked down former S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Richard Lumley, who had been involved with Skye's case and fell off the grid soon after. While on watch for Lumley, May talked about how she thought Skye had proven herself. However, Coulson called her bluff and said it was just to distract him from his kidnapping. Coulson said he was tired of secrets which led May to admit that she and Grant Ward were having sex. The comment was looked over by Coulson, who had found Lumley. Upon chasing him down, he and May engaged in a breif fight before Lumley realized they were S.H.I.E.L.D. agents and agreed to comply.
Lumley told them the story of an op from long-ago involving an 0-8-4. As it turned out, the 0-8-4 was a little girl, Skye. Soon after returning home, the other agents involved in the op began to be eliminated until only he and Linda Avery remained. Avery took steps to hide Skye in the foster care system, making sure she would never be in one place for too long, before being murdered herself. May, shocked from the story, urged Coulson not to tell it to Skye.[28]
Flying into the Eye[]
Afterwards, May and Phil Coulson got a call from their team saying that they needed to save two students, Donnie Gill and Seth Dormer, who were in the eye of a storm that they created with the Atmospheric Moisture Freezing Device. In order to get to them, May flew above the clouds and into the eye of the storm. When they got there, Dormer was struck by ice and was killed, but May got everyone else out safely. Later, May asked Coulson if he heard her reveal the truth about her and Ward. Coulson said that he trusted her judgement. He then admitted that he told Skye about their discovery. He was amazed that she didn't want to stop and saw it as a new beginning.[28]
Tracking Cybertek[]
- "We both know personal urges can adversely affect tactical decisions."
"Hmm. That's why I don't have any. You should do the same." - ―Grant Ward and Melinda May[src]
In order to track Cybertek, the team went on an Italian train to intercept a huge package from Ian Quinn. May and Grant Ward posed as a couple on the train while Phil Coulson and Jemma Simmons were family members and Skye and Leo Fitz were a couple as well. Ward asked the butler where their seat was while May walked right past him. In their room, May got dressed into her tactical gear and got on top of the train. With thermal goggles, she could see the enemy's footprints made with Simmons' charcoal trap.
May radioed to Ward, but found that the comms were down. She was suddenly shot at by Cybertek men and used a parachute to get off the train. When she landed, she saw that Coulson and Ward were frozen on the ground by some form of the Night-Night Gun sedative. She hot wired a near by car, but was caught by Luca Russo, who gave them the mission in the first place. As it turned out, he was with the enemy and tipped them off. May was knocked out and woke up hanged by a rope to the roof of a facility, Russo woke her up with a bucket of water. Russo then took a knife and stabbed May in the shoulder, she then used the knife to cut herself free and ran. She found Russo approaching Coulson at the Bus and threw a knife at Russo, killing him. She explained to Coulson what had happened.
Later, Coulson informed her that S.H.I.E.L.D. found the train while he disinfected and stitched her wounds. They stopped at the train to search for Fitz-Simmons and Skye. When they walked inside, they found Simmons, who had just woken up from the same sedative and she shot a Night-Night Gun at them. Coulson got her to calm down, then she realized it was them. Fitz turned on his tracker, leading them to Ian Quinn's Villa. They found Fitz out front, who told them that Skye went inside. They all rushed into the villa and found Quinn, with blood on his hands. Quinn taunted Coulson about Skye which prompted Coulson to punch Quinn and go after her. May arrested Quinn then heard Coulson yelling in the basement. They found Skye with two bullets in her chest, bleeding out, and unconscious. Simmons ordered everyone to put her into the Hyperbaric Chamber. When they did, Skye let out a breath, but was in critical condition. Ward left the room angry while Coulson watched over Skye. May let Ward know that it wasn't his fault.[29]
Agent Down[]
- "I think we need to do everything humanly possible to save Skye. But we need to acknowledge that doing so might give the Clairvoyant exactly what he wants."
- ―Melinda May to Phil Coulson[src]
The team brought Skye to the S.H.I.E.L.D. Trauma Zentrum where the doctors operated on her. Phil Coulson tried to call Nick Fury regarding Tahiti and his resurrection in Bethesda, but he wouldn't pick up. The doctor came out and said that Skye was on life support and they had to decide whether they should euthanize her. The doctor recommended that they call her family, to which Coulson replied saying that they were her family. May then stormed out of the facility and into the Bus. She entered the holding cell and started punching Ian Quinn. He struggled to tell her that she can't because he was defenseless, to which May said that Skye was defenseless. Coulson barged in and got May out.
Coulson explained to Leo Fitz and Jemma Simmons how he was resurrected and told them to do research in hopes that he could use it on Skye. While piloting the Bus, Grant Ward sat down in the cockpit. Ward talked about how helpless he felt. Suddenly, May got a call from S.H.I.E.L.D. saying that they violated the mission for not handing over Quinn. They were then boarded by John Garrett and Antoine Triplett. After hearing about the information, Garrett agreed to help Coulson in saving Skye. Simmons reported to May saying that Coulson was never treated in Bethesda like they thought. After hearing this information, Coulson gave then more files about a "miracle drug" that saved his life. Fitz-Simmons decoded the files and found a map to the Guest House.
Coulson, Ward, Fitz, and Garrett entered the Guest House while May, Simmons, and Triplett watched Skye. Suddenly, Skye's heart beat started spiking, May tried to help, but couldn't do anything about it. Simmons rapidly did chest compressions on Skye to keep her heart going. Fitz ran up and gave Simmons the drug. Ward told May to get in the air, once Coulson and Garrett were on board, she flew away while the Guest House exploded from an intruder fail safe. Coulson ran in just before Simmons injected the drug yelling to not give her it, but it was too late. Coulson seemed to be spooked by something he saw. Skye's heart rate then spiked once again, but stabilized. May remarked that they did it, but saw that something was wrong with Coulson. She asked Garrett what happened, but he said he didn't know.[30]
Working with Lady Sif[]
- "I always say if I need a gun, I'll take one. We'll need these. When you're up against people who are being controlled, sometimes it's hard to distinguish friend from foe. This way, we can take out either."
- ―Melinda May to Grant Ward[src]
The team suddenly faced the arrival of a new visitant on Earth. Lady Sif arrived through the Bifrost Bridge. Upon seeing that she helped at the Battle of Puente Antiguo, May told her men to stand down. Sif explained that a prisoner named Lorelei had escaped Asgard during the Sacking of Asgard. Lorelei had the ability to mind control men. In order to not harm those who were under her sway, Leo Fitz developed even stronger Night-Night Guns. May walked in to test the guns, but Fitz was showing them to Ward. Fitz pointed a gun, which accidentally happened to be at May before she pushed it out of the way and tried her own. They went to Death Valley to stop Lorelei, only to be attacked by swayed men. Lorelei left with Grant Ward in her possession.
Later, May walked in on Sif sharpening her sword. May asked if she could hold it, to which Sif gave her the sword. May briefly swung the sword before giving it back. Sif agreed that May preferring to use her hands in combat was admirable. May talked to Sif about Ward. Sif warned May that he would not hesitate to kill her. Phil Coulson suddenly walked in to tell them they located Lorelei.
May searched the hotel room, but didn't find Ward nor Lorelei. Coulson asked May where she would run to if she was Ward, but she said she wouldn't run, but take out her threat. They suddenly heard pounding upstairs. Ward and Lorelei had hijacked the Bus. May ran through the living quarters and found Lorelei greeting her. The Asgardian backhanded May across the room. May got up to find Ward and Lorelei. Ward then pointed a gun at May, who tried to get Ward to snap out of it. Knowing Ward and May's relationship, Lorelei kissed Ward. Lorelei then told her that Ward admitted who he loved, and it wasn't May. May then decided to fight Ward. After the fight, Ward and May found themselves on the ground with Ward's gun pointing at May. Ward pulled the trigger, but May had removed the rounds. Ward then woke up because Lorelei was stopped by Sif. May still wouldn't back down until Sif confirmed it was true. May then punched Ward one last time.
As Sif left, May began to ran dagnostics to check damage on the Bus. Coulson asked if she was okay with what happened with Ward, May then asked if Coulson was okay with the Guest House. They both agreed they need to let go of their feelings. In the cockpit, Ward apologized, but May broke off their relationship instead, knowing that it has gotten in the way of their mission. While Ward left, May told him that he was more honest with Lorelei then he was with himself.[31]
Secrets Revealed[]
- "Someone who could repair your body, a technician who could reprogram your brain, and a specialist to help me put you down if it had to be done. But I didn't do it for Fury. I did it for you, to protect you! I... You mean a lot to me. A lot. To hear you were dead..."
- ―Melinda May to Phil Coulson[src]
May managed to overhear a conversation between Phil Coulson and Skye, and she used a secure phone to contact Nick Fury and told him that "Coulson knows" about the source of the GH.325.[31]
Later, the team prepared for a mission to find the Clairvoyant. May witnessed Victoria Hand, Felix Blake, Jasper Sitwell, John Garrett, and Coulson make Skye an official S.H.I.E.L.D. agent. In Macon, Georgia, May and Blake searched for the Clairvoyant. Blake was suddenly attacked from behind by Mike Peterson, who now went by Deathlok with many robotic upgrades. Deathlok stomped on Blake's chest, putting him in critical condition. May turned the corner and shot at Deathlok, but had to run before he shot a missile at her. Back on the Bus, Blake was taken to a hospital and Hand transferred Jemma Simmons to the Hub with Antoine Triplett. However, they did find a possible Clairvoyant, Thomas Nash.
Coulson was confused as May heard 6 rounds shot from Blake, but his magazine held 1 bullet in one and 5 in the other. Coulson realized that they could track Deathlok with this because they were Fitz's tag rounds. They tracked Deathlok to a facility and pursued him. They followed him into the basement where they found Thomas Nash, the Clairvoyant. Nash was paralyzed and talked out of a computer, Nash said he surrendered.During their conversation, Nash talked about Skye and how he forced Ian Quinn to shoot her. This prompted Ward to lose control and shoot Nash, killing him. May then pointed her gun at Ward until he handed over his own. Afterwards, May got a message from headquarters saying that Fury needed to talk to Coulson at the Triskelion.
Fitz discovered the phone line that May used to contact Fury while he was trying to talk to Simmons at the Hub. This made tensions even higher. He told Skye, who told Coulson, while he was interrogating Ward to see if he worked for the Clairvoyant. May hunted for Fitz to shoot him with an I.C.E.R. when Coulson and Skye surrounded her at gunpoint demanding answers. Suddenly the plane was rerouted to the Hub by Victoria Hand.[32]
During her interrogation, May explained that the line went to Nick Fury, who wanted constant updates on Coulson's progress after his resurrection. Coulson previously realized that the Clairvoyant was inside S.H.I.E.L.D. and didn't trust May despite their history. May said she wasn't the Clairvoyant and was just following orders. Coulson then sedated her to get it over with and dragged her into the holding cell with Ward. Meanwhile, Garrett entered the Bus and the team found out that there were secret HYDRA agents inside S.H.I.E.L.D. all along. May woke up to see Ward who questioned her. May said she didn't want to talk about it. Ward started berating May, but she brought up how Ward shot Nash. He told her it was to protect the team, but May said it was to protect Skye. She then told him he killed the wrong man. The team arrived at the Hub so May called Fury to prove herself. The voice on the other end told her that Fury was dead. May was then shot through the window.
Coulson stitched up May and argued with her. May admitted that she created the team herself with specialists that would help or kill Coulson if needed. As HYDRA entered the Bus, the team broke free by cutting through the floor. They Skye and Ward went on their own to blow up the processing center. While the others went to the control room. Garrett walked in holding Coulson, Fitz, and May prisoner to trick the guards. Coulson and Garrett then sedated the guards. Garrett pushed Coulson to kill Hand, which he refused. Garrett listed reasons why he should including how Raina tortured him. Coulson stood in shock and realized that he never told anyone that. He then realized that Garrett showed up right after, Garrett has to be the Clairvoyant. Many guards ran in and Garrett told them that Sitwell taught them what to do in the situation. The HYDRA guards then shot the S.H.I.E.L.D. guards and Garrett uttered the HYDRA phrase.
Soon enough, Coulson, Fitz, and May were restrained by Garrett who explained how HYDRA was able to stay inside S.H.I.E.L.D.. Garrett offered Fitz a spot on HYDRA, but Fitz just broke down crying. Garrett then walked away and ordered his guards to kill them. However, Ward and Skye successfully blew up the processing room which gave the three heroes enough time to catch everyone off guard. May took down many guards and was about to be shot when Fitz shot the guard with the gun. Fitz then passed Coulson the Thunderstick and he used it to defeat Garrett. Hand walked in and said she heard everything. The team then watched as Garrett and HYDRA was taken out of the Hub, with Triplett angrily yelling at his old boss. Coulson brought Ward away from everything to tell him the news about his S.O.. Ward went with Hand to take Garrett to the Fridge.[18]
Leaving the Team[]
- "I was here for Coulson. But he can't see past me lying to him."
"I get why you did it. When you get orders, you don't question 'em. You follow 'em... No matter the price."
"Yeah, well, this price was too high. I lost him. Coulson doesn't want me here." - ―Melinda May and Grant Ward[src]
The team soon got a call from General Glenn Talbot, who told them he was on his way. To avoid arrests, the team and Antoine Triplett left the Hub. Suddenly, Phil Coulson's badge started flickering with coordinates. Coulson believed that it was Nick Fury sending a location despite news of his death. The coordinates brought them to a snowy forest where they found nothing. Coulson threw his badge in anger, only for it to get shot by a hidden gun. They entered the facility: Providence. They were greeted by Eric Koenig, who told them that the Fridge was overtaken. Skye quickly called Grant Ward and heard that he was safe.[33] May participated in a lie detector test and passed. She then left her team and arranged to have her mother Lian pick her up in Canada, 500 miles from her mother's home. Lian gave May contact information for Maria Hill, with whom she wanted to talk.[1]
May found Hill under surveillance by various agencies after the downfall of S.H.I.E.L.D. After subduing Hill's tails, the two talked. May did not believe Hill's statement that Nick Fury was dead. She did obtain a clue concerning the leader of Project T.A.H.I.T.I. and dug up Phil Coulson's gravesite to find the answer. Hill told her that Grant Ward was an HYDRA member. May found the team in Los Angeles in a hotel, where Coulson forgave her for her secrets, and she revealed to him a report that Coulson himself had made to Fury where he resigned as leader of Project T.A.H.I.T.I., asking Fury not to use it.[34]
A Woman Scorned[]
- "Reminds me of the old days."
"You were never on top." - ―Grant Ward and Melinda May[src]
The next morning, Coulson's Team had a meeting on how to find John Garrett and retrieve the Bus. After the meeting, May and Skye talked candidly about Grant Ward and how to focus their emotional pain effectively. May offered to be Skye's new S.O. May and Coulson went undercover as unemployed S.H.I.E.L.D. scientists seeking work with Cybertek in Palo Alto to get files pertaining to Deathlok. Eventually, Coulson's team learned of the old S.H.I.E.L.D. base that became the Barbershop Headquarters of HYDRA in Havana, Cuba. When they arrived, however, May and the others became surrounded by Centipede Soldiers and Kaminsky carrying the Berserker Staff.[4]
May quickly relieved Kaminsky of the Berserker Staff as the others fought and Skye uploaded a computer program that allowed her to find Garrett. When Coulson ordered her to "bring the house down," May destroyed the support beams of the headquarters, causing the building to collapse and burying her opponents.
The team went to the Cybertek Manufacturing Facility in New Mexico and May and Skye entered through an opening created by Coulson and Antoine Triplett. Inside, May battled Grant Ward, enraged about his betrayal. The fight spilled over into the neighboring construction site, where she used a nail gun on Ward's foot and broke his larynx, winning the fight.[35]
Meeting with Nick Fury[]
After the defeat of Garrett, she, Coulson, and Nick Fury had a meeting, discussing Project T.A.H.I.T.I., S.H.I.E.L.D.'s founding principles, and Fury's status. She witnessed Coulson become the new Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. and went with the team to meet Billy Koenig in the Playground.[35]
The New Beginning[]
- "We can't just let him go, Coulson!"
"Creel isn't working alone. And I want to know who he answers to. Drop back in surveillance mode now. That's an order, Agent May!" - ―Melinda May and Phil Coulson[src]
The team changed a little bit. Coulson was officially director for a few months and Jemma Simmons had left to visit her parents. May and the team sent a birthday message to her on her day.[36] Coulson tasked Melinda May, Antoine Triplett, and Skye to act as back-up for Isabelle Hartley, Idaho, and Lance Hunter, who were attempting to buy information from a former S.H.I.E.L.D. agent when they were attacked by Carl Creel, who stole the information on an 0-8-4 that they sought. When May returned to the Playground and had a meeting with Coulson, she reminded him that she was to watch over him and keep him out of field missions, but he was making her job difficult by constantly being away.
May then fought Creel when he attacked Glenn Talbot and assisted in Talbot's kidnapping. May told Skye to stay with her as they, Triplett, and the others went into a Government Storage Warehouse that had the Obelisk. When the operation went badly due to Creel's interference, May led Skye and Triplett to fulfill the second half of the mission: to obtain a Quinjet, so that the new S.H.I.E.L.D. could travel undetected. As Triplett and Skye escaped in the cloaked vehicle, May took a motorcycle for her escape. [37]
May saw the crashed SUV Lance Hunter was in and helped him escape it before pursuing Creel on the motorcycle. When she could have shot him from behind, Coulson told her to stand down because she was among civilian traffic. May yielded and followed Creel to a restaurant where he accidentally killed a waitress who had touched him before he escaped.
May returned to the Playground where she and the other field agents met with Phil Coulson and witnessed his conversation with Raina to learn that the Obelisk could be tracked. However, she was knocked unconscious by an I.C.E.R. fired by Lance Hunter. Later, May confronted Coulson about going into the field to stop Creel and why, after eighteen days, he had not released his urge to write the Words of Creation. Upon her prompting, Coulson yielded and began to carve the symbols on a wall in his office. Meanwhile, May documented the incident.[38]
The Moroccan Mission[]
- "And for the record, experience doesn't make it any easier to cross someone off."
- ―Melinda May[src]
May continued her training of Skye in firearms, but advised her that killing is not an easy task. They were then interrupted by Hunter and Mack, the former asking if Skye attended the S.H.I.E.L.D. Academy to settle their wager; May reminded Hunter that she had not, otherwise he would have known better than to shoot them. Hunter tried to apologize again but May refused to take it, telling him to wait.
She accompanied Skye and Hunter to Morocco in pursuit of Blizzard. While there, she and Hunter were told that HYDRA had brainwashed Gill, so no HYDRA agent should contact him. As Hunter was aiming to shoot the agent talking to Gill, May recognized the agent as Jemma Simmons, Coulson's mole in HYDRA. She shot Hunter with an I.C.E.R. to save Simmons, but this alerted Gill to their presence. May and Hunter were then trapped in the freighter when Blizzard froze the door. When they returned to the Playground, May admitted to Skye that she had known Simmons was Coulson's mole. She also told Hunter that she and he were now even for when he shot her with an I.C.E.R.; however, she was only speaking for herself.[39]
Double Trouble[]
- "You and your small band of S.H.I.E.L.D. compatriots, there can't be many of you left. Who's running your operation? Where are you based?"
"Currently? About five feet from kicking your ass." - ―Sunil Bakshi and Melinda May[src]
Posing as Heidi Martin, May accompanied Coulson to a fundraiser for Santa Maria de las Flores in Miami, Florida to obtain a 500 year old painting with the Words of Creation inscribed on its back. Following Glenn Talbot, who was truly a disguised Sunil Bakshi, to his hotel room, May discovered the brainwashed Agent 33 working for HYDRA. As they fought, May was distracted by Bakshi and rendered unconscious. Agent 33 then used the Photostatic Veil to copy May's face.
When May awakened, she was tied to a chair with Bakshi threatening to torture her for S.H.I.E.L.D.'s secrets. The commotion of Coulson's and Agent 33's struggle outside the room distracted Bakshi enough for May to escape. Then she challenged Agent 33 who continued to wear May's face. After a prolonged fight, May electrocuted the HYDRA operative and exited before backup soldiers could arrive. After calling the real Glenn Talbot to inform him of HYDRA's latest scheme, May and Coulson talked about May's plan if Coulson went insane from the effects of GH.325. Though she told him that she would care for him, Coulson ordered her to put him down instead. May just nodded her head.[5]
Revelations[]
- "Stand down, Skye."
"Were you not listening? If I don't go out there Simmons is gonna die."
"Coulson has a plan."
"He also carves alien writing into his desk, so maybe his judgment is not what it used to be."
"I said stand down." - ―Melinda May and Skye[src]
When S.H.I.E.L.D. learned of a massacre in which the U.S. Navy's anti-HYDRA task force was affected by a weapon resembling the effects of the Obelisk, May assumed it to be in HYDRA's possession. As she, Skye, Antoine Triplett and Lance Hunter went to Phil Coulson for information, Skye spotted Coulson scribbling the alien writing into his desk. When asked for his source on the writing, Coulson remained tight-lipped. As everyone else left, May advised Coulson that keeping Skye in the dark would not end well. May later barged into Coulson's office in the middle of his argument with Skye, who had discovered Coulson's condition, announcing that Raina was calling them again and wanted to meet.
Coulson agreed to meet and brought May, Skye and Hunter along as his lookouts. While Hunter sat on restaurant floor, May and Skye watched through the kitchen window. After Raina entered the restaurant, she and Coulson had a debate about the Obelisk before Coulson questioned what she had up her sleeve. Raina then revealed that she discovered Jemma Simmons working undercover at HYDRA and threatened to expose her if Coulson does not allow her take Skye. When questioned why, she revealed that she knows Skye's Father. Though May insisted that she was lying, Skye said that Grant Ward said Raina knew her father and it could not be a coincidence. Coulson then refused the bargain, prompting Skye to attempt to go out and surrender herself; May blocked her, ordering her to stand down. Though Skye insisted that Simmons' life was on the line, May claimed that Coulson had a plan and was forced to restrain her. Coulson allowed the situation with Raina to play it out, showing that he had a plan and was not going to be threatened by Raina.
With her leverage gone, Raina was forced to confess that she was trying to reclaim the Obelisk from Skye's father to spare herself from Daniel Whitehall's wrath. After injecting a tracker into Raina's leg and getting Skye's father's location, Coulson sent her off. May then took note that the address Raina gave was only a few blocks away. She then signaled Coulson to switch off their earpieces to privately discuss what Richard Lumley told them about Skye, suggesting that her father was the one whom the ex-agent feared. They then noticed that Skye had gone ahead and managed to catch up with her. They found the condemned building deserted, save for two corpses, one killed by a scalpel and the other by brute force. This causes Skye to label her father a monster. Back at the Playground, while enjoying Simmons' return, May informed a confused Triplett that Bobbi Morse was Hunter's "she-devil ex-wife" he always complained about.[40]
Mission Commander[]
Attack on the United Nations[]
Melinda May led Bobbi Morse and Lance Hunter to Okinawa, Japan when they discovered that the Splinter Bombs used in an attack by HYDRA hired mercenaries on the United Nations were created there. During the flight, Morse asked May whether she still spoke to her ex-husband; May did not say a word. May's team though arrived too late to save Noelle Walters' team from being killed by those same mercenaries. Their leader, Marcus Scarlotti, killed Walters personally. When the team did arrive, May fought Scarlotti unarmed as he used his personal weapon, the Rope Dart Knife. She eventually knocked him unconscious for Glenn Talbot to take him into custody as Talbot gave his condolences to May on losing six agents.[41]
The Hunt for Grant Ward[]
- "We don't have the resources for this. We should call in outside reinforcements."
"No. If Ward saw them coming, he'd take them all down with him."
"So, what's the plan?"
"Get a fast, clean shot." - ―Bobbi Morse, Melinda May and Lance Hunter[src]
May was field commander of the mission to capture Grant Ward after he escaped federal custody. She told Skye that if Coulson began carving the symbols while she was away to monitor him. While she was flying the Quinjet, Antoine Triplett and Bobbi Morse both answered to her when he failed to capture Ward in Philadelphia and her cover was blown in Atlanta.May had to stay focused on her assignment when she learned that Phil Coulson was using the Theta Brain-Wave Frequency Machine.
In Boston, May gathered her field agents, including Lance Hunter, to raid the Goldbrix Tavern to capture Ward. There she found three dead HYDRA agents and Sunil Bakshi in a back room, tied to a chair and unconscious. Returning to the Playground with Bakshi, May witnessed Coulson ask Hank Thompson to join the organization. She then assembled with the other senior agents when Coulson gave them a new mission: find the city that matched the Words of Creation before HYDRA can.[42]
Interrogation of Sunil Bakshi[]
- "Vault D, not the only vault; Agent Carter buried a lot of things here."
- ―Melinda May[src]
May was in charge of the Playground while Coulson, Antoine Triplett, and Skye went to find the city. She told Coulson that Christian Ward wanted his own people to find his brother because S.H.I.E.L.D. was politically toxic. Attention was given to Sunil Bakshi and Bobbi Morse's interrogation of him in Vault D. During the session, Morse wondered how Daniel Whitehall was connected to the Red Skull, so May revealed the keys to Vault B, where the Strategic Scientific Reserve kept its files. During their research, the agents learned that Whitehall was around during World War II as Werner Reinhardt, but they could not discern how he kept his youth.[43]
Detaining Raina[]
When the Bus returned from Australia after finding the location of the city that matched the Words of Creation, May was among the assembled agents that Phil Coulson prepped to enter the city. However, Coulson learned from Billy Koenig that Agent 33 was assigned by HYDRA to retrieve Raina in Vancouver. So May became the mission commander of a team to protect her. Sam Koenig was looking forward to see her. News aired of the investigation into the death of Senator Christian Ward; May told Skye that S.H.I.E.L.D. did all it could to help him. Coulson put Skye on May's team so that May could supervise her.
In Canada, May shot two HYDRA agents in a van, then used that van to hit two more operatives as they approached Raina when she attempted to surrender. Aboard the cloaked Bus, everyone was wondering how May felt about Agent 33 having May's face. Skye came to her in a panic, talking that Coulson needed to be warned before he entered the city, but communications went down as four HYDRA Quinjets surrounded the plane. Grant Ward traced Raina through the signal emitted by her tracker. May led the agents, guns drawn, in surrounding Ward as he entered the Bus. Ward promised that the quinjets would not fire, killing everyone, if Raina and Skye came willingly. Skye convinced May to allow her to leave.[44]
Battle for the Kree City[]
- "Know what we could use?"
"Another fifty men?"
"I was gonna say a dozen. But I like your idea better." - ―Phil Coulson and Melinda May[src]
May managed to save the rest of agents from an attack by the HYDRA Quinjets with a smart maneuver to cloak the Bus and eject the pods inside the plane to make HYDRA pilots believe they managed to destroy them. Arriving at San Juan, May told Phil Coulson what happened. In the Bus May blamed herself for letting Ward take Skye, but Coulson told her that her actions saved the others and that Skye would be fine as she had trained her into a fully capable field agent.
When Coulson learned that HYDRA was in the Ponce de León Theater, May, Morse, Hunter, and Coulson prepared for the Battle for the Kree City. May landed the S.H.I.E.L.D. Quinjet upon the roof, and she and the agents went down firing as HYDRA operatives came up. When she reached the Plasma Drill at the bottom, she attempted to stop Coulson from going into the Kree City, but Coulson was determined to save Skye and to see what all of the writing meant. When Morse and Hunter came, May told them to flee before the bombs that Antoine Triplett set could explode. She was over the hole as an earthquake shook the area.[45]
Tricking Sunil Bakshi[]
- ""You'll never take us alive!"? Really? A little over the top, don't you think?"
"I only had a day to come up with this whole thing. Besides, if I let you write the script, no one would say anything." - ―Melinda May and Phil Coulson[src]
Upon their return from the Kree City, the senior agents were stressed due to Antoine Triplett's death. All of them reacted differently. May aggressively punched the punching bag. Phil Coulson called a meeting to discuss what he wanted done with Sunil Bakshi and how he planned to make HYDRA pay for Triplett's death. During the meeting, Alphonso Mackenzie and Coulson began to argue. Mackenzie argued that none of this would've happened if Coulson didn't go searching for it. May told Mackenzie to remember his rank when speaking to Coulson. This statement was not liked by Lance Hunter who began arguing with May. Ultimately, Coulson stopped the argument and also partially understood Mackenzie.
May and Coulson began transferring Bakshi to Glenn Talbot's custody when the S.H.I.E.L.D. SUV she was driving was hit by a truck filled with mercenaries. May and Coulson engaged in a firefight while protecting Bakshi. She was shot by a mercenary and left for dead. Coulson exclaimed that they will never take him alive and was shot as well. The mercenary, who was actually Lance Hunter, left with Bakshi. However, all of this was planned to lead S.H.I.E.L.D. to HYDRA's new superior since Daniel Whitehall was dead. May returned to the Playground and visited Skye in her quarantine. She saw Skye bleeding and asked what happened. Before Skye could answer, Leo Fitz assured May that everything was fine. May went to call Coulson, who was visiting Mrs. Triplett. After, May attended the vigil the agents had for Triplett.[46]
Protecting Skye[]
May and Skye sparred together, but May sensed that her student was holding back. When Leo Fitz interrupted the session, May challenged him but Skye asked him to leave, saying that she was fine.
Phil Coulson and she went to Portugal to retrieve Sif, who had lost her memories but was seeking something called "Kava". Skye found on YouTube a video of Sif fighting a man; May showed the video to Sif but it did not help her. While talking to Sif, May complemented the Asgardian on her skills as a warrior. Eventually, the man was apprehended and revealed himself to be a Kree named Vin-Tak. He came to Earth because a Diviner had been activated and he wanted to destroy the Inhuman who had transformed. Vin-Tak told them that he caused Sif to lose her memory using his Truncheon. He used the device on Sif again, curing her amnesia.
May continued to listen as Vin-Tak further explained the origin of the Inhumans. When Skye was questioned about what she saw in Kree City as Raina transformed, she became nervous and caused the Playground to shake. May, Coulson, Sif, and Vin-Tak all realized Skye was an Inhuman. Sif and Vin-Tak both decided that Skye needed to be destroyed; May and Skye ran with them in pursuit. May took Skye to Vault D and activated the Inertial Confinement Laser Barrier to be alone with her. May tried to talk Skye into using the calming techniques that they had practiced; however, Skye could not stop herself from causing the quakes.
When Sif used her sword to break the barrier, Skye used May's I.C.E.R. to knock herself unconscious to keep from harming anyone. May used that act to get Sif to stand down, showing that Skye was not harmful to those she considered her friends. May and Coulson escorted Sif and Vin-Tak away from the Playground so that the Bifrost Bridge could take them to Asgard. After they were gone, she and Coulson remembered how the first mission of Coulson's Team involved Skye and wondered if it was fate that brought everyone together.[47]
Reunion with Andrew Garner[]
- "I'm recommending Skye leave S.H.I.E.L.D. altogether. It's too much for her to deal with... emotionally, physically. She needs to be somewhere safe to do that."
"She is safe, with us."
"You really believe that? After Bahrain? You better than anyone knows how badly this can end."
"We're as close to a family as Skye has." - ―Andrew Garner and Melinda May[src]
With it known that Skye was an Inhuman, Phil Coulson and May put her on the Index. A psychological assessment was a requirement for Index candidates, so May went to Culver University to request the assistance of ex-S.H.I.E.L.D. consultant and her ex-husband Andrew Garner. He told May that he would assist Skye, not her, not S.H.I.E.L.D. While in his office, she noticed a picture frame, but did not ask about it.
She brought Garner to the Playground, but asked him to allow her to speak to Skye first before his interview. May revealed to Skye that Garner was her ex-husband; this made Skye want to meet him to try to learn of May's past. After the interview, May and Garner had an amicable talk that Leo Fitz, who had not previously known that she was married, noticed made her smile and laugh. The conversation was interrupted by the Bus shaking; May awakened the sleeping Skye to stop the tremors.
Meanwhile, Coulson and Bobbi Morse were dealing with a prison break orchestrated by Calvin Zabo to release David Angar. When Zabo and his Slicing Talons were located in Manitowoc, Wisconsin, May quickly took the Bus to that location to backup Coulson, despite Garner and Skye being on-board. May told them to remain as non-combatants, but Skye insisted on helping; May decided to use Skye's relationship with Zabo to her advantage.
May brought Skye at gunpoint to the location of Zabo's and Coulson's confrontation; this caused Zabo to hesitate and explain his motives. Before David Angar could attack, Zabo was teleported away. May told Garner to take Skye off the battlefield as she ran to fight Francis Noche. She kept the super-strong villain from making contact as best as possible, but all fighting stopped when an earthquake started.Back at the Playground, May told Skye that she would do everything she could to help her. Garner decided not to rejoin S.H.I.E.L.D.; as May escorted him off the grounds, he decided not to rejoin with her as well, because of the person in the picture frame.[14] May gave Garner's recommendation that Skye be relieved from field assignments to Coulson. They discussed that May was having difficulty working with Skye because May did not want to repeat what happened in Bahrain. Coulson assured her that she could adapt.[48]
Suspicious[]
- "Hunter didn't resign or take a leave of absence. He went AWOL."
"Yeah, a broken heart will make a guy do dumb things."
"So will money and opportunity." - ―Melinda May and Alphonso Mackenzie[src]
Alphonso Mackenzie returned to the Playground without Lance Hunter; when May asked why and if he saw Bobbi Morse while he was out, Mackenzie lied, telling May that he had not. May then called Phil Coulson and asked him to return from a S.H.I.E.L.D. Safe House where he had taken Skye. May and Coulson spoke with Glenn Talbot about his difficulties with Grant Ward and how, with assistance, he released Sunil Bakshi. Turning their attention to more immediate matters, Coulson asked May if she believed Mackenzie's alibi; they did not and decided they would confront him.[48]
S.H.I.E.L.D. Civil War[]
Deputy Commander Duties[]
- "You have to go. Now."
"FitzSimmons."
"I'll take care of them. Without you, there is no S.H.I.E.L.D. They know about Skye, Phil. Find her." - ―Melinda May and Phil Coulson[src]
May found Bobbi Morse in Phil Coulson's office with the Toolbox in her hand, and she drew her gun on the intruder. Morse said that she could give an explanation, but then jumped through the window, hoping to escape. May pursued Morse and the two fought viciously; Morse activated an EMP to escape May in the resulting blackout. May found Leo Fitz in the blackout of the Playground and the two found Coulson. The three compared notes; Alphonso Mackenzie was on the run and Morse had used a Vibranium tracking device to find the Toolbox. May remembered that Mackenzie was given the blueprints of the Playground earlier,[46] but Coulson assured her that no one knew the facility better than they did.
Searching Morse's locker for where Morse would go if she left the base, May found a gas mask in a hidden compartment; she immediately realized that Morse was not leaving, but inviting an invasion. May hid in the shadows as agents loyal to Robert Gonzales invaded the base. She listened as they discussed capturing Skye; May called Skye at the Retreat and warned her of the coming threat. Shooting Gonzales with an I.C.E.R., May freed Coulson from his containment and sent him away through a hidden passageway before guards surrounded her. She chose to surrender.[49]
Robert Gonzales' Proposal[]
- "Tell me, Agent May... Are you loyal to Coulson or to S.H.I.E.L.D.?"
"They're the same." - ―Robert Gonzales and Melinda May[src]
Two days later, May sat silently as Robert Gonzales attempted to interrogate her about the whereabouts of Phil Coulson or Skye, both of whom having escaped capture. He attempted to break down her loyalty to Coulson, reminding her of her previous directive to monitor Coulson for Fury and her subsequent order to terminate Coulson if he went insane, all because he could not trust himself. When he questioned if she was loyal to Coulson or to S.H.I.E.L.D., May responded that they are one and the same. Gonzales countered that Skye injured seven agents with her powers. May defended her protege, insisting that the Diviner, not Coulson, was responsible for Skye's powers. Gonzales deconstructed that fact by reminding her of how GH.325 drove Coulson to the Kree City, but May defended that they went to stop HYDRA because it was their job, and argued that it is what S.H.I.E.L.D. should be doing instead of wasting their time on a witch-hunt. Gonzales held up the file of May's actions in Bahrain to remind her of the dangers of individuals with superpowers; this still did not make her talk. She promised Gonzales that Coulson would eventually face him on his terms.
Later, Gonzales took May aboard the Bus to the Iliad. He passed her his gun and told her to shoot him if she believed he was a traitor to S.H.I.E.L.D., if not, to hear his proposal. He asked May to join the leadership of his faction of S.H.I.E.L.D. as an advocate for Coulson, so that when he was captured, someone could understand and defend Coulson's motives against the other leaders. May gave Gonzales back his gun, saying that it was just for show; Gonzales emptied the clip and chamber of the loaded gun to show that he was deadly serious. May began to contemplate.[50]
Return to the Playground[]
- "You're worried that I don't understand your choice. Well, sometimes that's the price of doing the right thing. No one will understand, and it hurts like hell."
- ―Melinda May to Bobbi Morse[src]
Aboard the Iliad, May was asked by Bobbi Morse and Anne Weaver if she could tell them about Deathlok and about Theta Protocol, but May gave only a little information about it. Morse and Weaver explained to her the massive investment of Phil Coulson on Theta Protocol and that the reason why they wanted to open the Toolbox was answers. May asked them if she could become the person in charge of the Playground and investigate those accusations.
On a Quinjet back to the Playground, Morse realized that May had no idea about Theta Protocol. As May returned to the Playground, she was greeted warmly by Jemma Simmons, whom May asked to assist her. They discovered that Coulson was commissioning Simmons to upgrade Deathlok without her knowledge, was having clandestine meetings with Andrew Garner, and was spending a lot of money. With growing concern, May ordered Simmons to open the Toolbox.[2]
Finding Phil Coulson[]
- "I can't believe what I'm hearing. You're on their side."
"It's not about sides. It's about the truth." - ―Jemma Simmons and Melinda May[src]
In Coulson's office, Simmons revealed to May that she worked on a fake Toolbox and the real one was with Leo Fitz. May told Simmons that she would handle it, and she told Bobbi Morse about Simmons' action. When she told Simmons what she had done, May asked Simmons if she could hack into Mike Peterson's hard-drive and see, through him, where Phil Coulson was. Simmons agreed to the question but with disappointment over May's actions.
May tried to convince her that her actions were the right thing to do in order to reveal Coulson's secrets. May, Simmons, Morse and Alphonso Mackenzie were in Coulson's office when Skye called. May asked her where she was and Skye told her she was with Calvin Zabo. May signaled to Simmons to locate Skye's location. Skye told May that she would not stay with Zabo much longer and S.H.I.E.L.D. needed to retrieve him before he hurt someone. Morse suggested that she take a team and retrieve Skye and her father. Later, Simmons succeeded in hacking Peterson's hard-drive and they saw that Coulson was with Grant Ward.[51]
Attack on the HYDRA Facility[]
- "Someone had to run the base while you were gone. Having a seat allowed me to keep you safe."
"I was fine on my own."
"Seems that's how you operate best."
"What the hell is that supposed to mean?"
"That you've been lying to me ever since S.H.I.E.L.D. fell." - ―Melinda May and Phil Coulson[src]
Phil Coulson returned to the Playground with Grant Ward and Agent 33. Later, May, Coulson, Ward, Robert Gonzales, Bobbi Morse, Anne Weaver and Oliver had a meeting about Coulson's plan to infiltrate the Arctic HYDRA Research Facility, destroy it and rescue Deathlok with the help of Sunil Bakshi, a spy in the facility. Gonzales' board voted on whether or not to approve Coulson's plan. Before May made her vote, she spoke with Coulson about his previous lies and his meetings with Andrew Garner, but Coulson told her that the meetings with Garner were only for counseling on his alien writing compulsions. He assured May he would apologize to her at length after they had saved Peterson and the other powered people. May agreed to Coulson's plan and joined his infiltration team.
When Coulson, May, Jemma Simmons, Leo Fitz and Ward boarded the Bus, they heard a loud noise. May immediately pointed her gun toward Ward, but he said it had not been him. Skye appeared; teleported from Afterlife to assist their mission. On the way to the base, Coulson asked Ward to give the team the information about the base sent by Bakshi. As Ward was speaking, he quickly stopped and tried to explain his actions as an undercover HYDRA agent, but none of the team members were convinced of his choice. Near the base, HYDRA spotted the Bus' location and sent missiles to shoot it out of the sky, but the team escaped with a Quinjet and entered the base.
Once they were inside the base, the team regrouped with Sunil Bakshi and were split into two groups: Skye, Simmons, Ward and Bakshi went to save Mike Peterson; and May, Coulson and Fitz went to take down the defense system, so Robert Gonzales' men could destroy the base. May defended Fitz while he hacked HYDRA's system. When he succeeded, she looked for Coulson and found him hacking into another computer. She ordered him to leave, and once he had finished, he did. When the team saved Peterson and Lincoln Campbell, May informed Gonzales that they had succeeded in their mission.[52]
One S.H.I.E.L.D.[]
During a meeting with Phil Coulson, Robert Gonzales, Bobbi Morse, Anne Weaver and Oliver on the Iliad, Coulson revealed that Theta Protocol was a hidden Helicarrier which, during the events in Sokovia, was activated and used against the threat of Ultron. Coulson suggested that the two factions unite into one S.H.I.E.L.D. where he would be Coulson and Gonzales' council would act as his advisors.[53]
Jiaying's Vendetta[]
A New Threat[]
- "This man teleported onboard, Skye. He's clearly very dangerous."
"Well, same could be said about you, May. I heard about what happened to that little girl in Bahrain." - ―Melinda May and Skye[src]
Later, May and Bobbi Morse spoke about how things had gone back to normal, but May did not believe that. May asked Morse if she thought that if she forgave Coulson, Lance Hunter would forgive her. Soon after, the ship's alarm was triggered and May and Morse found the invaders, Gordon and Raina in the cargo hold, where the Monolith was. However, Gordon teleported himself and Raina before they could be captured.
May was present in a meeting with Phil Coulson and his council, who discussed the new parties and the Monolith. Coulson and May returned to the Playground and asked Skye if she knew what the Monolith was, but she said neither she nor Lincoln Campbell knew what that was. May watched as Coulson asked more about the new group, but Skye only said they wanted to be left alone. Coulson asked how they should call them; Skye said they called themselves Inhumans. May claimed that the Inhumans were very dangerous, but Skye retorted that the same thing could be said about May. Skye told May that Jiaying had told her the story of what happened to the little girl and her mother in Bahrain, and revealed that the two were Inhumans.
May and Coulson were in the hangar, and she told him she missed the Bus. Coulson told May that Jiaying was Skye's mother, but May did not respond. Coulson wanted to apologize to May, as he had promised, but May did not want to talk about it. She revealed what really happened to the little girl in Bahrain and the choice May had to make to save the agents' lives. May also claimed that Coulson had lost control when he carved the Words of Creation. Coulson said he had control, but May said that Skye was a living proof that he had not. The next day, after S.H.I.E.L.D. found the Inhumans' settlement, Coulson and the council planned Coulson's meeting with the Inhumans' leader, Jiaying, and finding a solution to their conflict, but Robert Gonzales claimed that he should go to meet her because Coulson was too close to Skye.[53] He gave the example of the Ultron's creation by Tony Stark, and how the Avengers had let one man do whatever he wanted.[54] Coulson asked for May's opinion, and she said that Gonzales should go.[53]
Ambush in Afterlife[]
May flew Gonzales and Anne Weaver to the Inhumans' base with a Quinjet. She walked with Gonzales until he entered to meet Jiaying. She saw then Calvin Zabo arrested by S.H.I.E.L.D.. Skye asked her where Coulson was, but May told her there had to be someone objective to meet her mother. Skye said that Gonzales sent people to kill her a few weeks ago, but May said that he was a much better person than she thought. May told Skye she hoped her mother was everything Skye had wanted her to be.
As a seeming peace-keeping gesture, Jiaying handed over Calvin Zabo to S.H.I.E.L.D. to be punished for his many crimes before beginning with discussions with Robert Gonzales. Once Skye had dropped off her father and as Zabo was being handcuffed and searched by Anne Weaver and her team, May informed Phil Coulson that the Inhumans had turned over Zabo. Not quite understanding what this could mean, Coulson told her that they would deal with that later.[53]
War Started[]
May informed Phil Coulson that Bobbi Morse had not arrived yet nor answered her. Coulson asked how Skye was, and May replied she was disappointed that he did not meet Jiaying. Jemma Simmons came and said that Robert Gonzales had allegedly shot Jiaying. Coulson asked her where Gonzales was now, but Simmons did not know. He ordered the agents to find Gonzales and rescue him, so May ordered the agents to be prepared to take off when she returned and warned them about Calvin Zabo, who might be somehow involved.
May found Skye fighting against an agent, so she ordered her to stand down; Skye claimed that May needed to stand down, after Gonzales shot her mother. May asked where he was so they could fix this, but Skye said it was too late for fixing; May needed to take her people and get away from there. May said she would leave after she found Gonzales, but Skye did not let her keep going and eventually, the two fought each other. Skye used her Inhuman powers to knock May out.
May awoke in a Quinjet to the singing of Calvin Zabo. She joined the argument of Coulson, Simmons and Anne Weaver about whether or not Gonzales attacked Jiaying. After Weaver cut off, Coulson said he could not believe Skye turned against them; May said he did not see Skye attack her. Coulson understood Skye's confusion and Simmons asked why Jiaying had invited S.H.I.E.L.D. only to attack them. Coulson said that he did not know why but maybe Zabo did.[55]
Kidnapping of Bobbi Morse[]
After they returned to the Playground, Coulson discovered that the attack of S.H.I.E.L.D. on Afterlife was actually an order of Jiaying to her men to attack their home, so her people would think that they declared war on them. Lance Hunter and Leo Fitz then entered and said that Bobbi Morse was taken by Agent 33, disguised as May, on a Quinjet which landed in Spain. Hunter asked for a pilot, and May volunteered to join him. Coulson followed with them and their team and realized that Grant Ward left Agent 33 for this reason.
May said that she was planning to kill Ward once and for all. Hunter and May found where Morse's Quinjet landed and they saw signs of a struggle in the plane. May comforted Hunter by saying that Morse could handle herself against Ward. While they flew there in their Quinjet, Hunter discovered that Morse's phone was back in service and it should not be a problem to find her location. May said that it could be a trap, so Hunter asked if she was ready. May said she had an opportunity to kill Ward, so she was all in.[55]
Tricking Grant Ward[]
May, Lance Hunter and their team raided the building where Bobbi Morse was held. May took two agents to search for Morse while Hunter took only one. During her search, she came across Agent 33 and started shooting at her, but Agent 33 avoided her shots. May noticed that Agent 33 had stolen a radio from a knocked out agent, so she had an idea how she could make Grant Ward kill Agent 33.
She then issued a call on the radio for all agents to move to the south side of the building and only lower their guard once they saw her face, knowing that Agent 33 listened to this call. An agent near to her said that only Hunter was left and May responded that Agent 33 didn't know that. Eventually, her plan worked and Ward killed Agent 33 as she had disguised herself as May. May found Hunter holding Morse while she was badly wounded and bloody. She helped him to take her to the Quinjet.[56]
Hijacking and Retaking of the Iliad[]
Before they landed in the Playground, Bobbi Morse stopped breathing, so May resuscitated her. Once they landed, she and Lance Hunter brought Morse to a room for surgery by Jemma Simmons. As she saw Morse recovering but still in a coma, May made a phone call to Andrew Garner. As soon as he answered the call, May said that he just wanted to hear his voice. Garner knew that something was wrong, saying that May had not made a call like this since Bahrain. He asked her how bad the situation was, and she responded that there was no way it was ending well. She also said that there was a lot she had not said that she wished she had. Garner said that he had too. He asked her to do good and to get home safe.[56]
The Inhumans hijacked the Iliad and captured most of the crew,[55] and a distress signal was sent from the ship to all of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s channels around the world. Phil Coulson organized a squadron of Quinjets to fly to the ship and shut down the Inhuman threat. May was with Coulson and Leo Fitz in one of the Quinjets along with Calvin Zabo, although May told Coulson she had doubts of bringing Zabo on the mission. Coulson responded that Zabo had lived among the Inhumans so he knew what they were going into and he could be useful for them. Fitz recognized a code being included in the distress beacon, which Coulson knew was a message from Skye warning them they were going into a trap. Coulson ordered the other Quinjets to fall back while his own continued on.
As they landed on the ship, Fitz said that another message from Skye had came saying there were synthetic Terrigen Crystals and they must go to the room which controls the ventilation of the ship. Zabo said that Jiaying's plan was to gas the ship with the Terrigen Mist and kill all of the agents. Coulson and Fitz went to find the Crystals while Zabo went to find Jiaying. May went to the ventilation control room. On her way, May came across with Lincoln Campbell and they teamed up to save Skye from Alisha Whitley's duplicates. Once they saved her, Skye went to find Jiaying while May and Campbell continued fighting Alisha and her duplicates, until they succeeded in knocking her out. Skye and S.H.I.E.L.D. were able to stop Jiaying's plans, leading to the deaths of Jiaying and the teleporter Gordon.[56]
Time Off from S.H.I.E.L.D.[]
- "It's time May rediscover the world outside of S.H.I.E.L.D. Don't you think?"
- ―Andrew Garner to Phil Coulson[src]
With the Jiaying's Vendetta finished, Andrew Garner spent a few days in the Playground for Phil Coulson's evaluations. They agreed that May should take time off from her duty as an agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.; Garner revealed that they will travel together. May then asked Coulson, for the first time in her life, for a confirmation for timeout from S.H.I.E.L.D.; Garner and Coulson discussed this and Garner said that was time for her to rediscover the world outside S.H.I.E.L.D.. May then emptied her locker and took her gun with her, just in case.[56] Coulson felt that he lost his right hand as well as his left, when May did not return from vacation after a few months of absence.[57]
Vacation with Andrew Garner[]
- "What would you say if I didn't go back to S.H.I.E.L.D.."
"You're serious?"
"At least not right away." - ―Melinda May and Andrew Garner[src]
May and Andrew Garner did their vacation in Maui. On the last scheduled day, Garner took an impromptu picture of May as she watched the sun set. They began talking and she decided that she wanted to continue to be on vacation in order to continue the rekindled spark between her and Garner. Garner agreed and asked May if they could exclusively date again. Suddenly, Garner refused to see her[15] and returned to teach in Culver University. She also got a call from Phil Coulson and he told her that Jemma Simmons had been swallowed by the Monolith.[3]
Father-Daughter Times[]
- "It was an accident, and I'm here to help him get back on his feet."
"Yeah? Is that why you nearly decapitated me for dropping by? Why you're making anonymous calls to old C.I.s? Part of you wonders if it was Ward going after the people you care about." - ―Melinda May and Lance Hunter[src]
May heard that her father, William May, had broken his hip in a car accident. May was afraid that Grant Ward was involved in the accident, so she went to guard him in his house in Sun City, Arizona. She covered her motive from her father by saying she was with him to help him recover his hip, although her father knew she was hiding something. They played golf and William commented on her hits.
May said that he needed to work his hip. William revealed to her that he did not believe that she was with him only to help him recover. He knew something was not right because she returned from her vacation with Andrew Garner to spend time with him. May kept her silence, so he said that he would figure out by himself what was the reason. Later, May and her father looked at an old picture of her, at the time she was an ice-skater, and they talked about her childhood. Suddenly, May saw a man coming to the door. May picked up a knife, surprised the man and neutralized him, but she saw that it was Lance Hunter.[3]
Lance Hunter's Request[]
- "I just want to have a normal life, Dad, away from S.H.I.E.L.D. I want to see if I can."
"Normal? With a handgun in your golf bag? Trying to protect me from some unfinished business that follows you like a shadow?" - ―Melinda May and William May[src]
May and Hunter sat in the yard, and after Hunter explained how he found her and the rumors of May's departure from S.H.I.E.L.D., he said that he needed her help to find and kill Grant Ward. May initially refused, saying that her father needed her. Hunter was aware of the accident, and he knew that May was concerned that maybe Ward was behind it and that is why she was with him. May asked how he was going to kill him and he responded that he will climb the ranks of HYDRA until he was close enough to Ward to put a bullet in his head. He told her where he was going to be if she changed her mind to join him.
May then returned to the house where her father asked if Hunter's visit was an unfinished business. May remained silent, so he knew she meant yes. May said that she wanted to know if she could have a normal life without S.H.I.E.L.D., but her father said that it was not possible if she always expected an attack. May eventually decided to join Lance Hunter in his campaign for vengeance against Grant Ward for the Kidnapping of Bobbi Morse. May then took a phone call from Andrew Garner, where he informed her that Jemma Simmons had been rescued and was safely returned to Earth. May relayed the information to Hunter, who praised how smart Leo Fitz was and insisted that he and May celebrate over a beer.[3]
Revenge on Grant Ward[]
Fight Club[]
- "How 'bout I do you a favor and not tell anyone that a tiny little Asian woman kicked your ass."
- ―Melinda May[src]
May accompanied Hunter, under the alias "Gina", to a bar to meet Spud, an associate of Hunter who worked with HYDRA in the United Kingdom; their cover was selling weapons to HYDRA and wanting to meet its leader. Upon meeting her, Spud felt that "Gina" looked too good for the likes of Hunter. May wanted to talk business, but the men insisted on drinking first. Eventually, after they were so drunk they could hardly enunciate, May was allowed to tell Spud that she and Hunter had powerful weapons that they wanted to sell. Spud informed them that to get an audience with the leader, they needed to win in the fight club that was established for new members to prove themselves.
Waiting for the established time, May offered to fight instead of Hunter; Hunter noted that a small Asian woman with remarkable fighting skills would get the attention of Grant Ward too soon. May then offered to train Hunter; he planned to tire out his opponent, but he took the brass knuckles May had. Discussing her relationship with Andrew Garner, May revealed that she was not the one who left him in Maui. Entering the warehouse where the fights occurred, May and Hunter noted that the fights were to the death. When Hunter entered the fighting circle, Spud was his opponent; he began beating Hunter mercilessly.
May found herself surrounded by three huge men led by Tat, who insisted on buying her drink. Though she refused, they made their desires clear. May took the three to an adjacent room, then proceeded to demonstrate her superior fighting skills on them. She, needing to keep her cover, told them that they would be embarrassed if they let it be known that a little Asian woman beat them. May returned to the fight circle in time to see Hunter use the brass knuckles to kill Spud and gain entrance to its higher levels.[6]
Backup[]
- "If I don't call off my men in the next 30 seconds, Dr. Andrew Garner, the ex-Mr. May, is a dead man. All you have to do is put your weapons down, and I'll let you go."
"Son of a bitch. You're lying!"
"I'm not. Give you my word, May." - ―Grant Ward and Melinda May[src]
A week later, Lance Hunter got an assignment from Kebo. He had no idea what the assignment was or where it would be; May berated Hunter for going to a mission ignorant. The two agreed that they both wanted Grant Ward dead; however, Hunter was going to have his revenge, no matter the cost.
May went to the Playground and alerted Phil Coulson that Hunter was in a situation too deep for her to handle alone. Coulson assured her that he would assist when needed; he also wanted to know if his working with Andrew Garner was what caused her not to return. May was not considered about that, only that Hunter was in danger. May noted that Coulson was not wearing a tie; showing her his prosthetic hand, Coulson said he was stilling learning.
Garner caught May as she was leaving; he wanted to talk, but May had few words. Garner told her that he had a good time with her in Hawaii. Garner explained that it was his fault that things did not go well, but May insisted he just did not love her. He told her he was to blame for why they separated again; May agreed, citing that it was payback for when she had left him herself years ago. Garner asked her to dinner, but she refused and left.
May followed Hunter to his rendezvous with Kebo and killed five of the eleven HYDRA operatives surrounding Hunter as he attacked Grant Ward. During the assault, May called Coulson, but he said he was twenty minutes away and recommended that they escape; Hunter refused and pressed the attack. Ward revealed that he had Andrew Garner surrounded, but he would release him if Hunter allowed Ward to escape. Once again, Hunter refused, despite May's concern for her ex-husband. Ultimately, Ward escaped, leaving May angry.[58]
Return to S.H.I.E.L.D.[]
- "Are you back?"
"Yeah, I'm back." - ―Phil Coulson and Melinda May[src]
May and Lance Hunter returned to the Playground, timely enough to see Andrew Garner in a gurney and being helped by S.H.I.E.L.D. medics. May asked Garner how he survived the assassination attempt; he revealed that Phil Coulson had sent an agent to tail him, who engaged the HYDRA operatives who pursued him. Garner then told a tale of how he escaped. Deciding to allow the medics to care for him, May left Garner and ran into Hunter who had wished to see Garner; May adamantly refused to allow that. Coulson exited the room and saw the conversation; he took Hunter off the assignment for his failure and emotional issues.
May went to where Bobbi Morse was doing her rehabilitation routine and attacked her. Morse and May fought until Morse pinned her. May congratulated her on passing her test for combat readiness; Morse said that she was not medically cleared, but May dismissed her excuse. When the women saw Coulson, he asked May had she returned to the agency; May declared that she was back.[7]
Search for Werner von Strucker[]
- "you're better today because now you have experience."
"What Ward did... you think that was just experience?"
"That can make you stronger. Let it. 'Cause next time, talking our way out may not be an option." - ―Melinda May and Bobbi Morse[src]
May revealed to Bobbi Morse that she had researched the attack on Andrew Garner and had learned that Werner von Strucker was one of its participants. She also had learned that Strucker had activated a bank account in the Cayman Islands. After assuring that Morse knew how to speak Mandarin Chinese and that Leo Fitz had made appropriate aliases for them, May and Morse went to Grand Cayman Island.
There, May pretended to be a socialite who only spoke Mandarin and had Morse as a translator; in reality, May and Morse were communicating secretly. The two met Jerome Deschamps who left them alone in the bank vault. As they were going through Strucker's lock box, an alarm was activated and Deschamps returned with security. May, in Mandarin, told Morse to prepare for battle, but Morse tried to talk her way out of the situation. One of the guards was not fooled and a fight to escape the bank happened anyway. Later, May chided Morse for hesitating in battle and told her that she was better now than when she was in S.H.I.E.L.D. Academy because Morse now has the "experience" from the incident with Grant Ward on her side.
May and Morse discovered that Strucker was in a Penthouse in Lisbon, Portugal. The two kicked in the door and saw Kebo torturing the young man. Kebo remembered May from the Attack on Grant Ward she performed earlier, stabbed Strucker, then attempted to escape. Morse gave pursuit while May fought and defeated the other HYDRA operatives.[7]
Andrew Garner's Secrets[]
Finding Out About Lash[]
- "That's not true."
- ―Melinda May[src]
May removed the restraints that were holding the gravely injured Werner von Strucker and demanded that he reveal the location of Grant Ward. Strucker started to breathe heavily and, upon hearing Ward's name, told May that he was trying to follow directions and feared Ward because he failed in his Attack on Andrew Garner. May requested to know the truth about the incident and Strucker slowly told her of how Andrew Garner transformed and killed his HYDRA teammate before Strucker barely escaped; May was in disbelief. When asked what Garner was, May answered that she did not know.[7]
Confronting Andrew Garner[]
- "I saw your flight logs. I tracked your movements. You were within 30 miles of at least five Inhuman deaths."
"Why are you looking at my flight logs?"
"I pulled your medical files, too. Your blood work was deleted."
"Maybe Simmons accidentally–"
"You thought you covered your tracks, but you didn't." - ―Melinda May and Andrew Garner[src]
Returning from Lisbon, May struggled to believe that her husband was Lash. She realized that she could check Werner von Strucker's story, immediately searching for Garner's flight records. She learned that Garner had been within thirty miles of several Inhuman deaths. May went to the lab and found Garner's medical file, but could not find his blood samples, all but confirming von Strucker's story. Asking where Garner was, she learned that he was in a different S.H.I.E.L.D. facility reassessing Joey Gutierrez. May immediately left to find him.
At the Cocoon, May pushed her way past several guards and interrupted Garner as he was interviewing Gutierrez. She ordered the others from the room, and told Garner that von Strucker was alive, and that he had told her that Garner was Lash. She also informed him of her search into his records. As May confronted him, Garner grew unstable, drew an I.C.E.R., and shot May unconscious.[15]
Kidnapped[]
- "I've thought about my death enough times. The different ways that I could go. I just never thought it'd be you. I never knew why you married me. I was never as kind and empathetic as you. That's why it was so easy for me to walk away, why I gave up on you. I lost something when I left you. I won't do it again. But you have to stop this."
- ―Melinda May to Lash[src]
May awoke in an old building at Culver University, chained to a water tank. Immediately, Andrew Garner ran to her side and apologized for her treatment, saying that he had needed to get away from S.H.I.E.L.D. to explain. May listened as Garner explained when and how he had undergone Terrigenesis, and his first transformation into Lash. She asked if Garner would have killed Joey Gutierrez; he assured her he would not have. May and Garner reminisced about their relationship, and the two shared a kiss, only to be interrupted by Phil Coulson.
May assured Coulson she was all right, then watched as Coulson informed Garner that he wished to bring him in safely. Garner explained to Coulson that he had only done what he needed to do; suddenly, the lights flickered and burned out. May watched as Lincoln Campbell entered, angrily claiming Garner had torn his friends apart and had no right to do so. Garner, in a rage, transformed into Lash as May watched, sadly accepting what her former husband had become. As Garner and Campbell fought through the building, Coulson gave May a file, which she used to escape her chains.
Following the battle, May blocked Garner's path just as he was about to kill Campbell. May begged Garner to stop and asked that he kill her, noting that she never would have thought he would be the reason she died. May told Garner that she had never known why he had married her, and assured him that she would not walk out on him again. Her words caused Garner to revert to human form, and as he stood before her, May shot him in the chest, knocking him back into the Containment Module and closing the door just as he transformed back into Lash. May watched as gas from the chamber sedated Garner.
With Garner sedated and safe, Rosalind Price offered May the chance to have Garner put in a medical coma to slow his transformation. May asked Daisy Johnson what she would do; Johnson replied that she would take the chance. May told Price to do it, then walked away.[15]
Apologies[]
- "I've been trying to figure out what to say, because I do want to apologize... to you. For Andrew. He killed your friends in cold blood, tried to kill you. I'm sorry. I should've known."
- ―Melinda May to Lincoln Campbell[src]
May returned to the Playground saddened and angry. She attended a meeting and listened as Phil Coulson described Operation Spotlight. Learning she was in charge of extracting Lance Hunter and Bobbi Morse, she requested Lincoln Campbell as her partner in the mission.
On the Zephyr One, May listened as Hunter and Morse infiltrated Endotex Labs, and left to extract them in a Quinjet with a reluctant Campbell following. In the Quinjet, she tried to find words to apologize for Lash's killing Campbell's friends, only to have Campbell confront her over her silence. May told Campbell that she was sorry for Lash's killings and that she should have known. Campbell told her that he should be thanking her for shooting Lash; he was interrupted by a warning that the extraction needed to be sped up. May increased the Quinjet's speed. At Endotex Labs, May successfully extracted Morse and Hunter, along with Luther Banks, who had helped them to escape.[59]
Back to the Field[]
Attack on the HYDRA Castle[]
- "There are a dozen Inhumans in this compound that we can't leave behind."
"Yes, you can. They're dead. Lash or Andrew... honestly, I'm not sure there's a difference anymore... he killed them all." - ―Lincoln Campbell and Melinda May[src]
After Rosalind Price was assassinated by Grant Ward, Phil Coulson interrogated his original team members in order to find a weakness in Ward. May expressed her condolences to Coulson and was asked about her intimate moment with him. May told him that the had not talked so much. As Coulson went to find and kill Ward, he appointed Alphonso Mackenzie to the acting Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. by the time he was missing. Mackenzie asked about May opinion about Andrew Garner's evaluation on Lincoln Campbell, but she replied that she was not sure whether Garner had written that or Lash.
She saw satellite photo of the HYDRA Castle, where Leo Fitz and Jemma Simmons were held by Ward and Gideon Malick. Mackenzie, knowing he was outmanned and outgunned, did not know what to do, so May told him that she thought he knew what to do, implying to activate Caterpillars project. May listened to Mackenzie as he tried to convince Campbell and Joey Gutierrez to join their mission and stopping HYDRA. After they agreed, May complimented his speech.[60] On their way to the castle, Daisy Johnson discovered that HYDRA brought to the compound dozen Inhumans inside Suspension Gels. May thought that Garner might be there as well. Mackenzie suggested that two teams would enter the castle, one for finding Fitz or Simmons and the second to secure the portal chamber. Johnson also discovered an aqueduct which led straight to the castle.
As they entered the aqueduct, May went with the Secret Warriors to find Fitz or Simmons. They hided in the castle's field and May managed to take one soldier down. Johnson warned them from R. Giyera and Campbell and Gutierrez revealed their fears. Johnson tried to calm them down by saying they all feared, but May said she was not. Campbell used his powers to turn off the lights. The Secret Warriors entered the castle and May stayed outside. When a soldier found Simmons, May threw at him a knife. May asked about Fitz and Simmons said that Grant Ward had taken him through the portal. She also told May that Garner was there and he had saved her life. May said to Simmons that she did not want to look for him and she informed Johnson she found Simmons.
However, May did searched for Garner, and she found out that he had killed all the Inhumans that were in the castle. She entered the portal chamber and informed the team what she had found and also that she could not find a difference between Garner and Lash. As HYDRA tried to entered the chamber, Mackenzie ordered May to take the team to Zephyr One, and blast the castle in case Hive would return to Earth or HYDRA would enter the room. He also told them that May would be Coulson if he died.
Mackenzie and Johnson stayed in the chamber and waited Phil Coulson and Fitz, while the team returned to Zephyr One. May readied the rockets to be fired, and Mackenzie ordered her to shoot them at the castle, as he returned in the Containment Module to the plane with Johnson, Coulson and Fitz. While the group were reunited with each other and celebrated their victory over HYDRA, May embraced Coulson, knowing he had killed Grant Ward for good.[8]
Comforting Phil Coulson[]
- "I don't know what happened there, on that planet."
"I do. You joined the cavalry." - ―Phil Coulson and Melinda May[src]
Phil Coulson and President Matthew Ellis had a meeting in Rosalind Price' apartment. May said to him that it was probably not easy for him and asked him why the meeting was there. Coulson responded that he wanted the President would see where Price had been killed and that he did not want to give the location of the Playground. The President entered and the two were talking about the Advanced Threat Containment Unit would serve as S.H.I.E.L.D.'s public face. As Coulson asked him if he could help him finding Gideon Malick, the President said he could not. May then said she was sorry for that, but Coulson responded that the President might helped him.
She then helped carrying Werner von Strucker to the Theta Brain-Wave Frequency Machine, so he could help them find Malick. After Coulson found a way to communicate with Malick, May found out where the phone was connected. Later, May and Coulson were in his office and May felt his new robotic hand. May saw that he was upset, so she said to him that maybe he could not overcome this feeling. Coulson said he did not know what had happened to him on Maveth, and May said that he joined the Calvary. The two watched as the stocks of Malick's company dropped. May said that sometimes you get hurt and sometimes you wound.[61]
Infiltrating the Taiwan Symposium[]
- "Great. Coulson's in trouble, the place is crawling with armed HYDRA Agents, and we have no weapons."
"Not strictly true. Buon appetito."
"I love you."
"I don't hate you quite as much." - ―Melinda May, Lance Hunter, and Bobbi Morse[src]
Under the guidance of May, Lincoln Campbell protected Phil Coulson during his meeting with Glenn Talbot, the new head of the Advanced Threat Containment Unit. May advised Campbell to blend in the best he could while she watched him through CCTV, when Campbell caught sight of General Talbot, he joked about his terrible haircut until he spotted someone seemingly following the pair, warning May that it was not a joke this time. Campbell then suspected someone who followed Coulson. May discovered it was Carl Creel. She warned Coulson about it and ran to defend him. She tricked him into turning into metal. Campbell's powers almost killed Creel until Coulson ordered him to stop. When Talbot was freed, he revealed that Creel was not attacking them but was now Talbot's personal bodyguard.
In Coulson's office, his agents disagreed with him that Creel should join the mission to the Symposium on Alien Contagion. May noted that Creel had a criminal record long before he joined HYDRA. Eventually, Coulson accepted Creel to the mission. He asked May to accompanied Talbot to Creel. On Zephyr One, she informed Lance Hunter that the briefing was about to start. She saw him watching Creel and he said that he still did not trust him after he had killed Isabelle Hartley and Idaho. She said to him that the mission was more important, but he said that he was tired to hear that, since it was not valid when it had come to Andrew Garner. She stated that the only reason he called himself an agent was because of Bobbi Morse. He said that he was a friend who tried to keep her save, but May said that they weren't friends.
In symposium, May, Hunter and Morse disguised as waiter and entered the delegates' room to find a clue that one of them was Gideon Malick' inside man. May entered Haruto Yakimura's room. She heard as the delegate Ellen King said harsh things on the Inhumans. May tracked a message to King. She decrypted it and the words "MOVE HIM OUT" appeared. Morse informed him that Hunter had gone after Creel and went to her room. May was informed by Morse that King had an Inhuman for military experiments. As Hunter was threatened in guns by HYDRA operatives, May and Morse knocked them out. Hunter informed her that Talbot's son was there, inside a Suspension Gel. May realized that Malick blackmailed Talbot. Hunter gave them their weapons he had managed to smuggle. May said he hated him less now. She took a motorcycle and drove to find Talbot's son. She found him inside a truck, so she drove to take Coulson, Talbot and Creel. On Zephyr One, Coulson told May that he suspected Malick answered to someone else. May asked if he was someone more powerful, so he answered that he was someone or something.[62]
Mission in Siberia[]
- "S.H.I.E.L.D. is about sacrifice, not for you or me, but for the greater good."
"Even over the ones you love?"
"Yes. Even them." - ―Melinda May and Lance Hunter[src]
Bobbi Morse and Lance Hunter managed to follow Gideon Malick to Siberia, with the team follow them on Zephyr One. After a few hours, May, Daisy Johnson and Alphonso Mackenzie landed with a Quinjet to assist Morse and Hunter. Morse informed them that a group of Russian ministers had a meeting with Malick to see an Inhuman. May ordered Johnson, Morse and Mackenzie to find Malick while she would be with Hunter. Hunter and May hided from the soldiers in outside the compound. Hunter discovered a body and May told him that it was the Russian Prime Minister's Attaché. They delivered his biological condition to Jemma Simmons. With the help of Morse, the team learned that Malick planned to use the Inhuman, General Androvich to kill the Prime Minister, as he did with his Attaché.
As Hunter and May were still hiding, he said she could work with Mackenzie, but she replied that she trusted him. Hunter remained her that she said they weren't friends, so she said that friends don't put other people's life in danger for selfish reason, like he did during Attack on Grant Ward. Hunter explained that he would risk his life for everyone at S.H.I.E.L.D. only because they were he cared for them. May said that he was willing to kill Andrew Garner to revenge Grant Ward, something that S.H.I.E.L.D. did not stand for the greater good, and sometimes they had to sacrificed the people you care for that. Hunter said he felt sad for her but also admired her and apologized for everything he had made to her.
The Prime Minister arrived to the compound and Phil Coulson ordered the agents to go to protract him from Androvich. The team converted to the meeting. Mackenzie asked for a distraction, so Hunter said the had an idea that included May hitting people, to which she smiled. With a smoke bomb, Hunter took the Prime Minister and ran while May fought the guards. Morse managed to kill Androvich, but she and Hunter were arrested. Coulson went to free them, but he returned to Zephyr One alone. He informed that the team and they were disavowed from S.H.I.E.L.D. in order to keep it a secret. Later, the team visited a bar where Morse and Hunter were. Without directly contacting them, May and the others all ordered shots for the two, saying goodbye in the only way they could[63]
Tracking Andrew Garner[]
May encountered Jemma Simmons practicing shooting range and gave her an advice. May asked her why she was doing it, and Simmons said that since she could not defend herself so she had let Lash kill innocent people, she needed to know how to use a gun. May told her that it was not her fault and left. In order to find Garner, May assigned some of S.H.I.E.L.D. services. She asked for Simmons' help, and Simmons told her she used them wrong, since Lash was driven by basic instincts. Simmons asked her what she was planning to do with him, so she answered that she would kill him. Simmons told her about the vaccine for pre-Terrigenesis Inhumans she was working at that could help Lash, but May refused.[64]
Preparing for the Future[]
- "I have an advantage."
"I can't cause earthquakes, but I'm faster than you."
"Foresight. I know what's coming."
"Then get off your ass and show me." - ―Daisy Johnson and Melinda May[src]
While riding in Zephyr One a call came through in which Edwin Abbott desperately called for Daisy Johnson's help. his team went to investigate as Abbott desperately tried to explain that he had seen these events already happening in a vision of his own death given to him by Charles Hinton. An HYDRA QuadCopter suddenly arrived and May shouted that they were HYDRA and pulled her gun at them. They killed Abbott and used the Extraction Claw to kidnap Hinton just as he gave Johnson her own vision.
The team returned to the Playground where Johnson explained her vision, telling that she had seen her fighting to save Hinton from HYDRA. They began discussing how they could try and get ahead of the vision and change the future, but Leo Fitz insisted that it was a fixed point in time which could not be altered no matter what they did. Phil Coulson suggested that they ensure that Johnson would not leave the Playground in order to change the course of the future. Instead, Coulson suggested May would go to save Hinton, since she had not appeared in Johnson's vision.
May found Johnson, Fitz and Jemma Simmons trying to find the building where the fight would accord. Fitz told her that he was using every S.H.I.E.L.D. services for it. May, knowing she had to find Andrew Garner with them, said angrily to Johnson to leave them. Simmons asked her if she believed they could change the future, to which May answered that every move they made changed the future, and the real feat was changing the past.
May asked Johnson to help her prepare for the battle she had seen. With the help of Fitz, Simmons and Lincoln Campbell, they began training May undergo her mission as fast as possible in order to change the vision's outcome. Johnson made sure the room was laid out as accurately as possible to the vision she had had the agents acted as the guards who needed to be taken out. Eventually May managed to beat the time limit. They eventually found the building where Hinton was held. Coulson gave May his last orders when suddenly the alarms in the base went off, telling them that there was an intruder. Garner was brought into the base and explained that Lash was taking over and he wanted to say goodbye to May.[65]
Losing Andrew Garner[]
- "Every terrible thing that has happened to you could have been avoided, if you'd never met me."
"I wouldn't change a thing."
"I would."
"Well, you're still the center of the best moments of my life." - ―Melinda May and Andrew Garner[src]
Phil Coulson said that May could not go to the mission since Andrew Garner was going for good. May refused by saying he was a murderer. Coulson said that if she did not go to him, she would regret this for her all life. Daisy Johnson said she would go instead of May. Garner was hooked onto an I.V. which May explained was filled with a potential cure that Jemma Simmons had been working on through Carl Creel's DNA, although it was likely that it would not work.
Garner explained that he felt that Lash was fighting for a cause that they may not yet understand. May asked Garner if he would change anything in regards to having met her, as she felt that everything bad that had happened was down to them meeting, but Garner assured her that he would not change a thing still viewed his time with May as the centre of the best moments of his life. May told Garner about a mission that Johnson was preparing for when Garner felt himself changing once again.
Knowing that these were his final moments in human form, Garner rushed into the Containment Module to ensure that May was safe as he felt himself being transformed into the monster inside him. As she watched from the other side of the Module, May pressed her hand against the glass and Garner did the same, sharing one final moment of intimacy together. Garner slowly fell to the ground as his body and May saw in Lash form and she took a step back, knowing the man she loved had gone forever.[65]
Hive's Return[]
Duel against Giyera[]
- "Plus side, maybe I'll get a chance to kill him too."
- ―Melinda May to Phil Coulson[src]
May entered Phil Coulson while he was staring at a screenshot of Hive inside Grant Ward. She asked him what they were looking at, and Coulson responded that the lab was working for an answer. He gave his condolences on Andrew Garner, but May said she did not want to talk about it. She then remained him he did not have a lot of kills like in Ward's case, especially those he enjoyed. May, however, found a bright side which was she could also kill Ward. The team then had a meeting in Coulson's office. They discussed how the being they had encountered was not Ward, and set up a plan to defeat their enemy.
They used Zephyr One to go to GT Agrochemical facility where HYDRA had raided the facility. On their way, they saw through the cameras of the facility, that R. Giyera was present in there. May asked Leo Fitz and Jemma Simmons about a room in the facility where she could defeat Giyera. After they landed, May, Coulson and Alphonso Mackenzie entered the facility and May told them that HYDRA had taken equipment and files and the rest had been destroyed. May then prepared for Giyera inside the empty room. After Coulson led him into it, May closed the door mocking him for being now unable to use his powers to gain the advantage.
May then proceeded to attack Giyera, with the pair of highly skilled warriors engaging in a fierce fight to the death. The pair proved to be equally matched with both managing to gain hits on each other. Eventually Giyera was able to grab May by the throat and pin her against the wall, telling her that although he preferred not to get his hands dirty he was happy to if it meant killing her. May, however, told him not to bother and kicked him in the crotch before knocking him to the ground, and before he was able to get back up May slammed his head on the floor and knocked him unconscious.[66]
Battle on Zephyr One[]
- "May! You can't even walk!"
"But I can still fly." - ―Jemma Simmons and Melinda May[src]
Giyera was put inside the Containment Module inside Zephyr One. As Mackenzie was questioning him, May told him they were close to Gideon Malick's base. Later, The alarm of the plane was set as Giyera escaped the Module. Giyera came to the the control room and managed to control the plane, with May ready to fight him again. Giyera used his power to take control on the plane, causing May flip through a glass. After the plane was in Malick's base, May checked on Simmons, but she did not respond. May then crawled to the communication system and called Daisy Johnson. She explained the situation but was knocked out by Giyera.[66]
The plane was brought to Malick's base. Due to May's injury, she had to be carried to a safe room in Zephyr One where the team could be protected. Jemma Simmons checked on her and said that May was bleeding really bad. However, the Secret Warriors came to rescue them and saved the team. Johnson asked who could fly the plane, so May, although her injuries, managed to fly Zephyr One back to the Playground.[67]
Monitoring the Inhumans[]
- "Whatever the hell is going on, the Inhumans are wondering about it. Also... What the hell is going on, Mack?"
- ―Melinda May to Alphonso Mackenzie[src]
Back to the Playground, May was treated by Lincoln Campbell, although she refused pain medications as she used to faint when using it. When Daisy Johnson came to her, May complimented her leadership with the Secret Warriors. Johnson asked if it would be easier, but May said it would only become harder. Johnson then told her she felt Phil Coulson had made her lie to her team about the base's lockdown but May said that Coulson was doing it for a good reason.
May later got out of her bed and asked Alphonso Mackenzie what was going on, stating that the Inhumans were wondering about it. Mackenzie told her about Coulson's suspicion that Hive may had brainwashed one of the Secret Warriors. Leo Fitz and Jemma Simmons confirmed that the Inhuman Lucio had been infected in the brain by Hive. May and Mackenzie told Coulson about it. May suggested to isolate the Inhumans and warned Coulson that Johnson knew he had lied to her.
Suddenly the power in the base was turned off. May and other agents surrounded the Inhumans. As they argued with Coulson, he ordered May to use her I.C.E.R. on Elena Rodriguez, but she took her gun. When the Inhumans locked themselves inside a room, May suggested to Coulson to use sleeping gas against them, but Coulson ordered her to check their lockers. Campbell was suspected to be under Hive's control and the Inhumans were all isolated. May was with Coulson when the base started shaking, revealing that Johnson had actually been swayed by Hive.[67]
Looking for Daisy Johnson[]
- "I pull the trigger because you order me to. You're the Director. I didn't ask for the kill switch to Lincoln's vest. You gave it to me. Because somehow, sacrificing him is okay with you."
"That's not what I meant."
"I'll do your dirty work, Phil, but don't you dare pretend your hands are clean." - ―Melinda May and Phil Coulson[src]
After Daisy Johnson escaped from the Playground, May joined Phil Coulson's briefing aboard the Zephyr One. Although the Playground's doors were damaged, May managed to fly the place out of it. Once in the air, Leo Fitz and Jemma Simmons told the team that they could enlist Holden Radcliffe's assistance to help them find a cure to Hive's sway, and May gave Simmons a gun to defend herself, telling her to use it if she felt it right. Later, Coulson told May that he intended to look for Alisha Whitley before Hive could get to her. As Lincoln Campbell had to join, Coulson trusted May with a detonator for a bomb vest that May would have to use if Campbell was infected by Hive.
May had an angry conversation with Coulson about whether they should be ready to sacrifice Johnson or Campbell to arrest Hive. After that, the interview with Whitley went wrong as she was already under Hive's influence. May joined the fight and fought her clones, but was knocked out before being saved by Coulson. Coulson later apologized to May for being abrupt with her. When they heard about a minor earthquake caused by Johnson in South Dakota, where JT James was living, May flied the Zephyr One to the location. On site, May and Coulson discovered that something had been dug up and that the area had been set to explode, though Coulson managed to save May and himself with his new Energy Shield. Back to the Playground, May joined Coulson in his office and attended the last offensive on HYDRA.[68]
Kree Interference[]
- "I'm not going to apologize for trying to save someone I care about."
"We all care about Daisy."
"Oh, it's not the same."
"No. The rest of us have known her a lot longer." - ―Lincoln Campbell and Melinda May[src]
When Lincoln Campbell confronted May because they did not let him helping with the search of Daisy Johnson, May abruptly rebuffed him. When they finally located Johnson in Union City, Wyoming, May was sent there with Alphonso Mackenzie and some other S.H.I.E.L.D. agents with the objective of killing Hive. On site, May recognized Hellfire and infiltrated the city by posing as a HYDRA operative and took advantage of Hellfire hitting on her to get some intel about Hive's plans and location before knocking him down.
It soon turned out that Hive was luring the Kree Reapers into Union City, making the place highly dangerous for the S.H.I.E.L.D. team. May joined the rest of the team and watched the Kree slaughtering the Inhumans. When they felt a quake, May could not keep Mackenzie from trying to save Johnson. May followed a Kree Reaper who went to fight Hive. When the Kree was killed, Phil Coulson ordered May and her team to shoot Hive, but the ancient Inhuman survived the assault. May fled, only to see Mackenzie being attacked by Johnson. They rescued him and flied back to the Playground, their operation having failed.[69]
Desperate Measures[]
- "The last thing we need right now is the government hamstringing us with the Accords. We need to stop Hive by any means necessary."
"I'll deal with the government. You do whatever it takes to end this."
"All options on the table?" - ―Melinda May and Phil Coulson[src]
Coulson ordered May to use any means necessary to stop Hive. May visited Lincoln Campbell while he was still locked in a Containment Module and told him to be patient as General Glenn Talbot was present at the Playground. She then ordered Jemma Simmons to help S.H.I.E.L.D. understand Hive's psychology as she had spent time with both Grant Ward and Will Daniels, whose memories belonged to Hive. Afterwards, May visited her former husband, who had turned to Lash, before he was presented to Talbot.
Later, Campbell escaped with Daisy Johnson's help. However, Phil Coulson revealed to General Talbot that this was all part of a plan: May had been secretly communicating with Campbell all along and had given him instructions to win Johnson's trust and make her believe that Campbell would join her. Instead, S.H.I.E.L.D. sent the highly dangerous Lash to Hive in an attempt to kill him, even if it put Johnson's life at risk. With Lash's help, Johnson was successfully returned to S.H.I.E.L.D. However, Lash died in the attempt, deeply saddening May who definitely lost her former husband.[70]
Hive's Defeat[]
- "I don't give a damn about your powers. They're not what made you an agent. I did."
"May, you... you have no idea what I did. I have nothing left."
"Then why did Andrew save you? Yeah, you did a lot of bad things. All you can do now is balance the scales, do some good." - ―Melinda May and Daisy Johnson[src]
May led a team comprised of Alphonso Mackenzie, Yo-Yo Rodriguez and Lincoln Campbell to a missile silo in the Pacific Ocean who had been overrun by Hive and his Inhumans. They infiltrated the island by flying a Quinjet beneath the surface of the ocean and stormed the facility, May teaming up with Campbell. With the rest of the S.H.I.E.L.D. team, they were able to establish an uplink and used a kill code, preventing Hive to launch a missile with the Absolution Virus which would have turned everyone on Earth into Primitives.
May then proceeded to the silo, where she fought two Primitives and released Holden Radcliffe. Although May failed to keep R. Giyera from stealing the warhead Hive needed, they successfully captured Hive himself and brought him back to the Playground. There, May delivered Radcliffe to General Glenn Talbot. However, Hive's Inhumans managed to infiltrate the Playground and released him.[71]
After fighting Daisy Johnson, Hive captured her, stole the Zephyr One and left the Playground sieged by numerous Primitives. However, May and Leo Fitz managed to hide on the plane before it took off. They found Johnson but she refused to be released. May tried to convince her to get out of her Containment Module and fix the wrongs she had done, but before she could convince Johnson, May was knocked down by R. Giyera. Fortunately, Fitz killed Giyera and Johnson was released and the three S.H.I.E.L.D. agents went to a safe place, waiting for reinforcements: Phil Coulson and the rest of the team.
They all gathered in the plane's cargo bay and prepared for the final battle. They fought several Primitives before realizing that Hive was chasing Daisy. They found her and discovered that Campbell has chosen to sacrifice himself, flying a Quinjet with Hive and the warhead into space where it exploded, thus putting an end to Hive's threat. Like everyone else, May could not do anything but attend Campbell's sacrifice.[72]
Legitimized[]
After Hive’s defeat, Glenn Talbot revealed the Playground’s location to the president, forcing S.H.I.E.L.D. to accept the Sokovia Accords and becoming legal again, however, Daisy Johnson left S.H.I.E.L.D. and became the vigilante known as Quake, also Phil Coulson resigned as S.H.I.E.L.D. director and replaced by Jeffrey Mace. Mace assigned May to take charge of a special strike team.[73]
Confronting Yo-Yo Rodriguez[]
- "I expected more from you, Elena. An enhanced person, a chance to do some good, a whole team rooting for you. But turns out... you're a terrible spy."
- ―Melinda May to Yo-Yo Rodriguez[src]
When Jeffrey Mace's credentials were stolen, May quickly figured out that Yo-Yo Rodriguez was the one behind it. She took her in a Quinjet and interrogated her. However, May was not against Rodriguez's personal vendetta against Victor Ramon but simply wanted to warn her that she had been careless and left tracks. May then left the Quinjet, enabling Rodriguez to fly to Baltimore instead of Los Angeles.[74]
Haunted by a Ghost[]
- "The Director didn't want to use numbers because he didn't want any team member to feel less than."
"Well, you do have a higher clearance than me."
"Only in most instances."
"I feel less than." - ―Jemma Simmons and Melinda May[src]
After helping Yo-Yo to take revenge on Victor Ramon, May called Phil Coulson and Alphonso Mackenzie to the Playground to inform them about Quake's recent activities.
As May and her team trained in the Playground, Coulson and Mack suddenly arrived in the Zephyr One, after the landing, May revealed that she called the with the intention of reporting them that Quake was seen by a Aryan Brotherhood member when the Brotherhood was attacked. She also informed them that the officials are looking for Quake with the intention of kill her. Jemma Simmons, who became Jeffrey Mace’s special advisor in science, confronted May and revealed that she know what May did and, despite saying that either both didn’t trust in Mace, Simmons sent May to get back Coulson and Mack.
May and her team later arrived in Los Angeles just as Coulson and Mack discovered that Quake was tracking a weapon transaction, May later fought the Chinatown Crew with her team, however, she was infected with a mystical infection by a ghost, later May and her team put Chen and the Crew members into custody. That morning, Coulson and May discovered that the Chinatown Crew was working for the Watchdogs, as they discussed what Mace would do to them, May knowed that Mace would talk to them directly, before seeing Coulson’s face becoming monstrous.[73]
Losing her Sanity[]
- "Get away from me. Get away from me!"
- ―Melinda May[src]
May and Phil Coulson were summoned by Jeffrey Mace who was worried about Quake and her illegal actions since she had left S.H.I.E.L.D.. When Mace finally dismissed May to have a word with Coulson alone, she looked at him an also saw Mace with a monstrous face, but said nothing and left the office. She later met a delegation of Congressmen led by Mace and Coulson and once again, she saw horrifying faces. Troubled, she went to the Containment Module where Chen was locked in to know what was happening, but Chen went crazy and hit his head on the door, forcing Jemma Simmons to spread sleeping gas in the module.
May soon fell into craziness as well. As she believed everyone was infected and she was the only one who could see it, she feverishly looked for an explanation. Coulson found her in the locker room and suggested to go to the lab, but on their way, they crossed the training room where May's Team was gathered for training. Terrified by the several monstrous faces she saw, May started to fight everyone before being stopped and knocked out by Mace and his superhuman strength. Afterwards, May was transferred into a CDC facility.[75]
Death and Resuscitation[]
- "In order to quell the hyperactivity in your reticular activating system, we had to – very carefully, gently – kill you. Just a little bit."
"I died."
"Yes, and came back." - ―Holden Radcliffe and Melinda May[src]
The CDC team turned out to be incapable of treating May. When Chen died of his madness, Jeffrey Mace agreed to let Jemma Simmons handle May's case. Simmons ordered May to be brought to the Radcliffe Residence as Holden Radcliffe was S.H.I.E.L.D.'s best hope for curing May. Radcliffe sedated May and used some Framework equipment to map May's brain. Simmons and Radcliffe thus understood that May was experiencing something similar to awaken nightmares, overrunning her organism with fear and panic.
Radcliffe suggested to stop May's heart to sort of reboot her brain. However, just as Simmons had to reanimate her, the power was shut down due to the Watchdogs' Blackout Attack. Simmons managed to perform CPR while Radcliffe retrieved Aida's power source and use it to power their equipment. Thus, May was successfully brought back to life, although she was not fully aware of what her organism just experienced.[76] May remained at the Radcliffe Residence to recover, with Aida taking care of her, even if May was unaware that Aida was an android. She was also visited by Leo Fitz who insisted on carrying further tests before being allowed to leave the residence and return on the field.[77]
Return to Duty[]
South Ridge Penitentiary Riot[]
- "I know what you're doing. Trying to distance yourself from everyone else so they don't drown in your wake? I invented that move. It doesn't work, for one simple reason: Phil Coulson. He found me in that cubicle and dragged me out. He didn't give up on me, and he won't give up on you."
- ―Melinda May to Daisy Johnson[src]
May caught up with what she missed during her recovering: Phil Coulson and Alphonso Mackenzie were intending to retrieve the ancient Darkhold and had enlisted the help of Ghost Rider. Coulson took May to South Ridge Penitentiary as they also needed assistance from Eli Morrow, who was imprisoned there. They met the director of the prison, but it soon turned out that Lucy Bauer and her fellow ghosts had already infected the whole prison staff, who assaulted them, believing them to be some kind of demons. May and Coulson barricaded themselves in the director's office, waiting for reinforcements.
Quake eventually rescued May and Coulson and the three of them proceeded through the penitentiary. A riot erupted among the prisoners when Bauer unlocked all the cells. As they were outnumbered, Quake decided to remain behind and stop the prisoners and locked the door behind May and Coulson, prompting them to search another access to help Quake, which they eventually did. On the way, May admitted that during her near-death experience, all she saw was Coulson himself. The S.H.I.E.L.D. team finally exited the penitentiary only to find that Bauer had kidnapped Morrow. Back to the Playground, May went to find Quake and told her to stop trying to distance herself from the others, as Coulson would never give up on her, just like he did for May.[78]
Obtaining the Darkhold[]
- "If this book is half as powerful as everyone thinks it is, then getting it out of here and hiding it somewhere safe is our top priority. You're the only one I trust."
- ―Phil Coulson to Melinda May[src]
May led a S.H.I.E.L.D. team to the Momentum Labs facility only to find that the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents who where guarding the place had been killed by Lucy Bauer. May and Leo Fitz then tried to determine Bauer's plans and whereabouts. Thanks to the clues found by May at Momentum Labs, Fitz guided the team to an abandoned Roxxon Corporation power plant. May joined Phil Coulson, Alphonso Mackenzie, Ghost Rider and Fitz at the power plant in an effort to stop Bauer. May and Coulson found some sophisticated equipment as well as the Darkhold. Coulson trusted May with the Book of Spells and ordered her to bring it back to the Quinjet. May then tried to go back to the facility and attended a massive energy outburst due to Eli Morrow performing his experiment to gain matter creation powers.[79]
Friends Gone Missing[]
- "I'm building an Inter-Dimensional Gateway with an android I've created. If this works, I could die happy"
"We put our faith in a robot who says she hears ghosts. If it fails, you might die quickly." - ―Holden Radcliffe and Melinda May[src]
May and Alphonso Mackenzie returned to the Roxxon Corporation power plant after the outburst and discovered that Phil Coulson, Leo Fitz and Ghost Rider were missing. They also found out that Eli Morrow had killed four S.H.I.E.L.D. agents before escaping. May returned to the Zephyr One, where she watched the video feed showing the complete disappearance of Coulson, Fitz and Reyes. After discussing with Jeffrey Mace, the team decided to call for Jemma Simmons' help. In the meantime, May reclaimed the Darkhold and told Mackenzie that she had a feeling that their friends were not dead and that she intended to use the Darkhold to find them. However, Mackenzie advised her against it and Mace ordered all the equipment seized at the power plant to be brought back to the Playground, where Holden Radcliffe awaited.
May told Radcliffe that the Darkhold might contain answers to their problem. However, Radcliffe, after reading just a little bit, refused to go further, stating that it was way too dangerous, despite May's insisting. May then decided to read it herself, but Radcliffe advised her against it and Aida offered to read the Darkhold, prompting Radcliffe to admit that Aida was actually a android. With the newly acquired knowledge and despite May's doubts, Aida built an Inter-Dimensional Gate. When it opened, May saw that Coulson and Fitz were in danger, on the verge of being aspired into the Dark Dimension region known as Hell. They eventually managed to escape through the gateway, much to May's relief. Later, Coulson and May discussed what happened and decided that they would open Nick Fury's bottle of Haig when Morrow's threat would have been dealt with. They also attended Quake's departure from the Playground.[80]
Kidnapped by Aida[]
While S.H.I.E.L.D. was preparing for a final assault on Eli Morrow, Jeffrey Mace ordered May to go to the Radcliffe Residence and to enlist Aida's assistance as she had proven herself to be a valuable asset. May never returned since she was kidnapped by Aida and replaced by a Life-Model Decoy with Aida stripping her and dressing the LMD in her clothes, in an attempt to reclaim the Darkhold for Holden Radcliffe. May was kept sedated in the Radcliffe Residence, where agent Nathan B. Nathanson found her before being killed by Aida. Later, May was connected to the Framework.[81]
Framework[]
Near-Escape[]
- "The flaw isn't in the hardware. It was in May herself. The simulation was rejected because Agent May thrives in conflict and chaos, not tranquility. She's a warrior."
- ―Holden Radcliffe to Aida[src]
To sedate May, Aida hooked her up to a version of the Framework, where she experienced a spa treatment. However, the tranquil environment was completely unsuitable for a warrior like May, and any attempt to leave caused the program to awkwardly reset itself, raising May's suspicions and eventually causing her to wake up.[82] Aida intercepted and, with her superior strength, quickly overpowered May, and only Holden Radcliffe's intervention prevented Aida from snapping May's neck. Radcliffe realized that a stereotypical calm environment was unsuitable for May, and so decided to place her in an environment where she would have "a dragon to fight".[83]
Caught in a Loop[]
- "This is the program's end. We're coding more, but we can't keep up with you. You keep getting through it faster. I'll wipe your memory and send you through again."
"You wipe my memory, but I get better every time?"
"Yes. Memory traces."
"So I'm beating it. And I'll get out. Eventually beat you." - ―Aida and Melinda May[src]
Aida and Holden Radcliffe set up a new Framework simulation for May. In this version, May believed that she woke up and took advantage of Aida's distraction to unstrap her and try to leave the Radcliffe Residence. She would then fight Aida and escape the Residence. During one simulation, Aida informed May that each time the simulation reset, she would go further into the simulation due to memory traces, making it hard for Aida's programming to keep up. May smiled and assumed she would eventually go far enough to fully wake up, but she never reached that point and Aida kept resetting the simulation, coding it further to its next step.[82]
Sparing Katya[]
- "I did it, Andrew. I saved the girl."
- ―Melinda May to Andrew Garner[src]
As May kept going further in the Framework simulations, Aida and Holden Radcliffe finally reached the final step in creating an efficient way to keep May sedated. Indeed, thanks to the Darkhold, Aida recreated the entire world inside the Framework and removed May's biggest regret in her life: having killed Katya Belyakov.
Thus, in the new version of the Rescue in Bahrain, May would not kill the girl. Instead, she would succeed in saving her[82]. However, this would lead to the infamous Cambridge Incident, which would in turn catalyze HYDRA rise in power in the world of the Framework. As May was the one who enabled Katya to go to the United States, she felt responsible and was soon influenced by HYDRA anti-Inhumans propaganda: thus, May, one of the best S.H.I.E.L.D. agents in the real world, became a fierce HYDRA agent in the Framework[84].
HYDRA Agent[]
- "HYDRA thanks you for your service."
- ―Melinda May to Alphonso Mackenzie[src]
After Daisy Johnson plugged herself into the Framework to rescue her friends, including May, who were trapped in it, May found her at the Triskelion and, mistaking her for her colleague Skye, summoned her to a briefing. During this briefing, May informed her team that HYDRA had captured an Inhuman named Jason Rajan and ordered Johnson and Grant Ward, who was also a HYDRA agent, to interrogate him. May attended the interrogation and pressured Johnson into getting answers. She then joined the interrogation and got angered when Rajan, actually Vijay Nadeer, mentioned the Cambridge Incident.
After considering killing Nadeer, May ordered him to be delivered to The Doctor. Later, May went to see The Doctor himself to inform him that Phil Coulson, a teacher in the Framework, had reported a subversive. The Doctor ordered May to chase her, but she failed and informed The Doctor about it, suspecting the presence of a mole within HYDRA. May assured The Doctor that she would find the traitor, although he doubted May's capabilities.[84]
May took Johnson to another briefing during which The Doctor explained that they were chasing Jemma Simmons. Afterwards, May led a team, including Johnson, to a house in order to arrest its inhabitants, who turned out to be Alphonso Mackenzie and his daughter Hope. They were taken to the Triskelion, where May interrogated Mackenzie and threatened to hurt his daughter so that he would be willing to do anything to prove his innocence. May subsequently used Mackenzie to lure Johnson into admitting that she was a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent. May arrested Johnson and locked her in a cell before releasing Mackenzie and Hope.[85]
Defecting from HYDRA[]
- "Is it true, that you're an Inhuman?"
"Yeah. Powerful enough to bring this whole damn place down."
"I hope so." - ―Melinda May and Daisy Johnson[src]
As she was staring at a memorial for the Cambridge Incident, May was found by Madame Hydra: after a brief conversation, May volunteered to test a new weapon designed to enforce HYDRA's reign of terror. She headed to the lab where Kenneth Turgeon disclosed his latest design: a super-serum which would give her enough strength to go toe-to-toe with the Patriot, the leader of the S.H.I.E.L.D. resistance, and May grinned at this perspective.
May got an opportunity to test the super-serum when S.H.I.E.L.D. assaulted a HYDRA Enlightenment Cultivation Center. After being injected the super-serum by The Doctor, she flied to the facility and faced the Patriot. After a violent fight, May was defeated. She informed her superiors, who ordered her to destroy the quarantine building where the Patriot had fled. Once the missile hit its target, May activated her Body Cam and entered the building to confirm the Patriot's demise.
On her way, she encountered several children and teenagers, making her wondering why they were here. She eventually found the Patriot, along with Phil Coulson, Jemma Simmons, Grant Ward and Antoine Triplett. They managed to convince May not to shoot the Patriot as he was trying to save Chris Adler, another child. As the building was on the verge of fully collapsing, May got out, but not before exchanging a look with the Patriot, who was sacrificing himself to ensure everyone's escape.
Seeing her enemy giving his life for her deeply affected May. This, combined with the discovery that HYDRA had been forcefully indoctrinating children, caused her to defect from HYDRA. She went to Johnson's cell and shattered a Terrigen Crystal, triggering Johnson's Terrigenesis so that she would gain her powers and escape the Triskelion.[86]
Making Amends[]
Once Daisy Johnson's Terrigenesis completed, May and Johnson made their way through the Triskelion, getting rid of many HYDRA operatives in the process. They stumbled on Madame Hydra who tried to stop them, but Johnson used her newly recovered powers on her, severely injuring her, and the two managed to escape the Triskelion. They hid in the streets, trying to get to safety, and May informed Johnson about the Patriot's death. They finally reached a rendezvous point to go to S.H.I.E.L.D.'s base but were found by a HYDRA squad. However, with help from Phil Coulson, Alphonso Mackenzie and Burrows, they managed to get out and finally reached the Playground.
May offered to hand over the footage of her Body Cam to S.H.I.E.L.D. to make up for her actions while she was a HYDRA agent: the images of the Patriot saving the lives of children and teenagers would weaken HYDRA's influence. S.H.I.E.L.D. then put in place an operation to attack the HYDRA Broadcasting Center. May helped Coulson to prepare for making a live statement, calling for an open rebellion: while doing so, they both had a feeling of déjà vu, without being able to know where it came from. Once the broadcasting began, May and the others left the building, having dealt a crippling blow to HYDRA.[87]
Escape[]
- "I followed you."
"I'm amazed you went through. I was a little squirrely on the other side."
"It was kinda cute." - ―Melinda May and Phil Coulson[src]
May returned to the Playground where she looked after some refugees. She was approached by Phil Coulson, who chose to disclose the whole story about the fallacy of the Framework. Evidently, May did not believe him and demanded evidence for Coulson's theory as she was done blindly following other people. Later, Jemma Simmons came to May as well and told her the same thing than Coulson. Simmons mentioned the fact that in the real world, Leo Fitz was a colleague of theirs, which May greatly doubted due to Fitz's position in the Framework. May also mentioned Fitz's father, Alistair Fitz and gave his address to Simmons.
While May was chatting with Coulson, Daisy Johnson asked them whether they knew about Simmons' whereabouts, to which May replied that she had gone to Alistair's place. May also told Johnson that she knew about the whole "fake world" theory. Nevertheless, she agreed to join a mission involving Coulson, Johnson, Antoine Triplett, Alphonso Mackenzie and Simmons, who finally got back. The team flied to a steel mill where the Framework backdoor built by Holden Radcliffe was supposed to be. They found the place, but it was hidden beneath a pool of molten steel. An argument erupted as Mackenzie did not know anything about the real world and May was still doubtful about it.
The situation went worse when a HYDRA squad stormed the steel mill. Despite the fight, Johnson managed to reveal the backdoor. When Coulson was shot on his way to the backdoor, May reached him and was convinced that the only chance of saving him was pushing him through the portal. After hesitating for a few moments, May jumped as well and finally woke up in the real world. May and Coulson woke up at Anton Ivanov's submarine base, and they were soon joined by Fitz, who woke up as well although he was terribly distressed because of his behavior in the Framework. Soon after, Aida came to the room, having achieved her goal of acquiring a real human body. May tried to shoot her, but Fitz got in her aim and was too shocked to move away. Before May could take the shot, Aida teleported away.[88]
Back to the Real World[]
- "This is a terrible plan."
"You know, Robot May was way more supportive."
"Is she what happened to the Haig?"
"That again? Really? You want to have that talk now?"
"I never want to have a talk, but maybe we should, considering we don't know how this will play out." - ―Melinda May and Phil Coulson[src]
May and Coulson quickly figured out that they were trapped in a submarine base full of multiple mechanical bodies of Anton Ivanov. They destroyed one and locked themselves in the room to resist the others. As they were looking for another way out, May took advantage of the moment to catch up with all the events she had missed since she had been kidnapped by Aida before the confrontation with Eli Morrow. She was also told about Ivanov and the fact that she had been replaced by a Life-Model Decoy. May found some epinephrine and decided to use it to strengthen herself to fight the androids. This proved to be successful, however, it left May in a weakened state afterwards.
When Ivanov triggered the base's destruction, Coulson managed to take May to the surface, where they were rescued by the Zephyr One. Thanks to Aida's unexpected help, the whole S.H.I.E.L.D. team was fully reunited aboard the plane and flied back to the completely destroyed Playground. May joined the others while they were trying to figure out what to do with Aida: May was not willing to kill her as she had saved Alphonso Mackenzie and there had been enough deaths already. The conversation was interrupted when Jemma Simmons broke down due to her fear of having losing Leo Fitz and his love. However, Aida, who did not remain long on S.H.I.E.L.D.'s side, was not the only threat. General Glenn Talbot arrived to the Playground and intended to arrest everyone, but due to Aida having gone mad, he agreed to let them go and May flew the Zephyr One away.[89]
When Ghost Rider made his unexpected return, May reclaimed the severed head of Sergei Mishkin's Life-Model Decoy. They discovered that Mishkin was supposed to attend an International Inquiry Committee and flied there, only to find that Aida and her LMDs were ahead of S.H.I.E.L.D. and had tried to kill Talbot. Nevertheless, May and Coulson reclaimed the Darkhold. Back on the place, May and the others figured out Aida's plan: recreating the dictatorship she ruled over in the Framework but this time in the real world by growing hatred towards S.H.I.E.L.D. and the Inhumans.
May flied the Zephyr One back to the Playground and S.H.I.E.L.D. lured Aida into a trap which eventually led to her death. After Ghost Rider returned to the Dark Dimension and Fitz apologized for what had happened, offering to take the blame for all the team, May joined the others into forgiving him and claiming that they had to remain together. May and the others then went to Rae's Restaurant for a nice a quiet dinner. Calm did not last long, however, as the whole team but Fitz was kidnapped by Enoch.[90]
Trapped in the Future[]
Painful Arrival[]
- "Have you ever flown a spaceship?"
"You know the answer to that question."
"I... have no words."
"Don't need them." - ―Jemma Simmons and Melinda May[src]
Through the Time Di'Alla, May was sent to a mysterious destination. Unfortunately, her teleportation ended with a pipe planted in her leg. May painfully extracted the pipe and hid in the room as Deke Shaw, a man wearing a mask, entered. May saw Shaw searching dead bodies in the room and extracting devices out of their wrist. Shaw eventually found May and the two brutally fought one another until Shaw used an anti-gravity device to pin May against a wall. Shaw gagged May and tied her up before forcefully implanting her with one of the devices he had previously reclaimed, calling them Metrics. He then took May away.
Shaw and May later found Phil Coulson, Daisy Johnson and Jemma Simmons who had been locked in a cell by the Kree ruling the Lighthouse. Shaw convinced the Kree to let them go and explained that he had been paid by Virgil, another inhabitant of the Lighthouse (which May and the others thought to be a space station) to hide them, but since Virgil was dead, he considered the deal cancelled. May and the others disagreed and May used Deke's anti-gravity device to pin him to a wall. Shaw reluctantly disclosed the location of a spaceship, the Trawler, that May and Simmons were to use to send a signal to Earth and call for backup.
On their way, May and Simmons hypothesized that the Lighthouse was a Kree base designed for an invasion of Earth. May and Simmons reached the Trawler, and May got in the cockpit, where she was asked by Simmons whether she had flown a spaceship before. After successfully flying the Trawler into space, May and Simmons tried to locate Earth, but only saw rubble, including a destroyed school bus, which led them to discover that they had not gone through space but through time, to a future in which Earth had been completely destroyed.[91]
Discovering the Truth[]
May and Jemma Simmons returned the Trawler to the Lighthouse and reunited with Phil Coulson, who had made the same discovery than them by talking with Deke Shaw. They later met Tess, Virgil's friend, who was told about the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents coming from the past. Tess guided them throughout the Lighthouse to the Exchange, telling them about the life in the Lighthouse and how the Kree were ruling the place. May and Simmons remained at the Exchange while Coulson and Tess left. They attended a food distribution during which Reese, a human servant to the Kree, was wounded. May helped Simmons tend to his wounds, which drew the attention of Sinara, a high-ranking Kree who took Simmons away without May being able to interfere.
May reported the event to the rest of the team and they decided to further investigate the place in order to get Simmons back. May asked Tess if she could help her change her bandage, leaving with her while the rest of the team stole a Kree tablet. A Renewal then took place in the Lighthouse: Tess explained to May that some survivors would have to fight to the death. Worried about her friends, May went to the Salvage and found Holt, one of the designated survivors, who was threatening the lives of Coulson, Alphonso Mackenzie and Yo-Yo Rodriguez. May fought him until he was eventually killed by Tess.[92]
A Mysterious Signal[]
Like some of her teammates, May was hired by Grill, the manager of the Salvag], and teamed up with Tess to bring supplies with the Trawler. Phil Coulson and Alphonso Mackenzie managed to join one of May's missions so that they could fly the Trawler to coordinates left by Virgil. However, they had to deal with the fact that Zev, Grill's right-hand man, was also on the mission. During the flight, May and Coulson had a tender conversation and held hands, and May expressed her desire to go home and rest after her long experience in the Framework. She flied the Trawler to Virgil's coordinates and they found some radio equipment aboard the spaceship. However, Zev interfered and tried to stop them, but May managed to stall until Mackenzie knocked Zev unconscious.
Finally, the team managed to receive a radio transmission which appeared to come from the destroyed surface of the Earth. However, May had to quickly return the Trawler to the Lighthouse as Zev sabotaged the fuel line. Once back, Zev told Grill about what had happened, threatening the lives of May and the others, but Yo-Yo Rodriguez managed to distract Grill and successfully made him believe that Zev was stealing from him, prompting Grill to spare their lives and doom Zev instead. Later, May was with the others when they decrypted the transmission which seemed to indicate that there were people on the surface on the Earth who knew about S.H.I.E.L.D. coming from the past.[93]
Deke Shaw's Betrayal[]
As all the Trawler flights were cancelled for an unknown reason, May joined her teammates at the Salvage and they discussed their best options to find Jemma Simmons and Daisy Johnson, who were both missing. May and Phil Coulson went to find Deke Shaw in order to enlist his help to access a high security Kree level of the Lighthouse. Shaw told them that he had met Johnson and that she had decided to go dark to save Simmons. In the end, he reluctantly agreed to help them.
May, Coulson and Shaw accessed level 35 and discovered that it was a Kree lab in which the Kree were artificially breeding human babies with Inhuman powers. By searching into the lab's files, May discovered that Johnson was a captive of the Kree and deduced that Shaw was involved in her capture. May punched Shaw and she and Coulson confronted him, but before he could explain himself, two Kree guards arrived in the lab. They fought and killed them but Shaw was wounded in the process. When Sinara arrived as well in the lab, May remained while Coulson and Shaw ran away. May and Sinara fiercely fought but May's wound still weakened her and she was ultimately defeated by Sinara, who got on the verge of killing her.[94]
In the Arena[]
Sinara ultimately spared May's life and brought her back to Kasius, who decided to employ her as a fighter in his arena, where she would fight Inhumans. May was brought to the arena to fight Ben and was surprised to see that Leo Fitz was attending the duel. Wielding a battle staff, May had trouble fighting Ben due to her still painful wound and the fight that Ben could read her mind and thus predict her moves. Ben knew that May was a friend of Daisy Johnson and Jemma Simmons but had no choice but fight her. Although May managed to best Ben's ability on several occasions, she was defeated by the Inhuman. Fitz intervened in the fight, claiming it was boring and advising Kasius to send May to the surface of the Earth, to which Kasius complied. May thanked Fitz for that.[95]
Meeting Enoch[]
Upon being sent to the surface of the Earth, May was chased by Vrellnexians. While hiding from one of them, she saw the creature being killed by Enoch. Enoch introduced himself and explained that he had been sent by Leo Fitz to help May and the others.
Enoch also warned May that a gravity storm was coming and May noticed that the Vrellnexians seemed to be afraid of something and were running away. The storm came upon them but May and Enoch were anchored on the ground my mysterious individuals. May fainted and woke up in some secret base, where she identified the S.H.I.E.L.D. symbol and quickly figured out that she was in the remnants of the Zephyr One. Then, two masked individuals came to her room, accompanying an elderly woman carrying a wooden robin: the future Robin Hinton.[96]
Mother in Another Time[]
- "I raised you?"
"After my mother was gone, we lived together."
"Why me?"
"You weren't afraid of what I could do. You always said I had a gift. And that one day, I could help save the world." - ―Melinda May and Robin Hinton[src]
May asked Robin Hinton about the reason of her presence, but Samuel Voss explained that it was hard for Hinton to give clear answers as her mind mixed past, present and future together. Voss also informed May that her friends were on the way to the Zephyr One, something he knew for a decade thanks to a vision from Hinton. Indeed, May got the chance to welcome her friends into the plane some time later.
May informed Phil Coulson about the presence of Hinton. They went to see her as she was talking with Leo Fitz and Jemma Simmons, who were not more successful than May. Still, May and Coulson tried to get some answers, but could not really progress other than the fact that what had happened at Rae's Restaurant was the last time the S.H.I.E.L.D. was seen together. Before they left, Hinton also voiced an ominous warning, stating this was the day things were supposed to end.
May and Coulson gave Hinton a break before asking her again. They asked Enoch for help, but the Chronicom could not assist them much as he had always needed days before getting answers from Hinton. May began to doubt their chances to sort things out and as she was arguing with Coulson, Hinton came and gave them another drawing picturing the Zephyr One flying across space debris. May and Coulson then went to see Voss in the armory, where they discovered a shard of the Time Di'Alla. They brought the shard to Fitz and Simmons, who figured out they could use it to return in their time provided they could find other fragments.
However, the True Believers turned on the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, intending to keep them from returning to their time to prevent the Destruction of Earth. May and Coulson defeated their opponents and rushed at Johnson and Hinton, only to find out that the latter had been stabbed by Voss. May held Hinton in her arms and the elderly woman subtly revealed that in her timeline, May had adopted and raised her following Polly Hinton's death. Before dying, Hinton disclosed the key to the return of the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents in their time: the Inhuman Flint.[97]
Upgraded Zephyr One[]
- "May, can you pilot us through a gravity storm?"
"Another mom face."
"You can do this. We can do this." - ―Phil Coulson and Daisy Johnson[src]
May worked with the rest of the S.H.I.E.L.D. team to repair the Zephyr One so it could fly again, although the task proved to be difficult. Upon finding drawings from Robin Hinton, May admitted to Phil Coulson that she found it hard to believe that she had adopted and raised Hinton, although both Coulson and Daisy Johnson were convinced that May would have been a good mother. May also asked about what they should do with Samuel Voss who was their prisoner. As the gravity storm approached and the plane was ready to go, May prepared to pilot the Zephyr One through the storm. However, the engines were heavily damaged, forcing the agents to consider seeking refuge in the Earth's caves.
However, Jemma Simmons revealed that the Zephyr One had been upgraded with Gravitonium powered thrusters, which they could use along with the gravity storm to flight despite not having engines. May and the others agreed to follow this plan. Expressing annoyance at Enoch's repeated comments about their impending death, May reached the piloting station and moved to release the ground anchors, but some of them remained stuck in the ground, blocking the Zephyr One. However, the gravity storm finally reached the plane, taking it to the sky. May waited to reach a high enough altitude to activate the thrusters, which stabilized the plane in outer space, enabling S.H.I.E.L.D. to safely return to the Lighthouse. Once in space, the team contacted Alphonso Mackenzie to prepare their arrival.[98]
Back to the Lighthouse[]
May successfully took the Zephyr One near the Lighthouse and left the plane along with the other S.H.I.E.L.D. agents in the Containment Module, leaving only Enoch to guard the plane and prepare the machine for the Time Di'Alla. The team split up and May remained with Phil Coulson, Daisy Johnson and Deke Shaw. They attacked a group of Kree guardians escorting Inhumans, killing the guards and sending the prisoners to the Trawler, where they found a revived Tess, who took the survivors with her.
The team was contacted by Enoch, who informed them that he had been located by the Kree Watch and could not hold them off for a long time. May suggested to go and help them, but Shaw decided to go himself as the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents needed to be ready for the activation of the Time Di'Alla.
May went to an elevator to join the rendezvous point with Johnson and Coulson. However, Johnson revealed that she would not come with them as she could not risk to go back and trigger the Destruction of Earth. May tried to convince her to go anyway and that they would change the future once they are home, but to no avail, forcing Coulson to incapacitate Johnson to force her to come with them.
May reached Kasius' Suites where she encountered Flint, who was supposed to build the Time Di'Alla. May watched as the Monolith was being built. She then waited for the Monolith to be activated by using Enoch's internal battery. Before they were sent back in their time, May warned Coulson that Johnson would never forgive him for forcing her back into the past.[99]
Back in the Present[]
Infiltration into Aerospace Facility[]
- "A light from the sky."
"Figured you'd be interested."
"This is what Voss warned me about. If he's right, then this is where it all starts. Hell on Earth." - ―Phil Coulson and Melinda May[src]
Along with the other S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, May was sent back into her time by the Time Di'Alla, expressing considerable relief at the idea of being back. They arrived in the present day Lighthouse, where they were welcomed by a recorded message from General Rick Stoner. Following his instructions, May and Leo Fitz explored the Lighthouse and found a storage room, where May was shocked to discover three Monoliths, including the White one. As they wondered about their presence, they were approached by a Chronicom, Noah.
Noah explained to May and Fitz that he had been monitoring various unusual events from the Lighthouse. While reviewing Noah's equipment, May noticed a screen showing beams of light seemingly coming from the sky, which was a first sign of the end of the world according to Samuel Voss. Therefore, May alerted Phil Coulson and the whole team about it. Noah then informed them that the light beam was located in St. Louis, prompting the team to leave the Lighthouse through secret tunnels in order to go there and investigate.
Exiting the tunnels, May and the team arrived in the small city of River's End, where they borrowed a van in order to go incognito and drove to the location where Fitz had left the cloaked Zephyr One. Much to her delight, May got to fly the S.H.I.E.L.D. aircraft to St. Louis, where the S.H.I.E.L.D. team entered an aerospace facility in which they expected to find the Kree Beacon, which had been identified as the source of the beams by Fitz and Jemma Simmons. Once inside the facility, which was deserted, the team found the Kree Beacon reconnected with Agent Piper.
Piper explained that she had recognized the Kree Beacon's signal days ago and that she had come to investigate as well, also informing them that she had searched for her S.H.I.E.L.D. colleagues but to no avail. Eventually, Fitz and Simmons were able to disconnect a man-made timer attached to the Kree Beacon. At this point, Piper revealed that she had struck a deal with General Hale, who was hunting down S.H.I.E.L.D., and May soon found herself and the team ambushed by a group of androids led by a mysterious feminine figure, who forced May and her colleagues to drop their weapons.
Although Piper thought that there would be no gunfire and bloodshed, the feminine figure ordered her robots to kill the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents. They were stopped from doing so by Yo-Yo Rodriguez, who stole their machine guns, enabling May to engage in hand-in-hand combat with the androids. Although May and her friends were able to take down several enemies, they were forced to retreat when the androids' leader sliced off Rodriguez's arms with her Chakram. May and the other managed to reach the Zephyr One and promptly left St. Louis. Arriving near the Lighthouse, May contacted Daisy Johnson, who had remained in the Lighthouse, and urged her to open the aircraft access as quickly as possible.[100]
Phil Coulson's Fate[]
- "Is this why we took a step back?"
"The last thing you need is to waste your time on another lost cause."
"Who I waste my time on is for me to decide." - ―Melinda May and Phil Coulson[src]
May and Phil Coulson went to see Leo Fitz, who had been wounded in the explosion of the Kree Beacon planned by General Hale. Fitz explained to them that the explosion had caused a tear in space-time which generated seemingly impossible phenomena like a subterranean forest. When Daisy Johnson and Deke Shaw joined them after being attacked by a Kree Warrior, Fitz hypothesized that the rift generated recreations of the team's fears, which was confirmed when he displayed footage of Lash, much to May's shock. Fitz explained that he had a plan to close the Fear Dimension, but that someone had to risk his life for it.
Coulson agreed to be the one to carry out the mission, which May heavily disapproved, suggesting to go down herself as the team's specialist. The situation escalated in an argument between Johnson and Coulson about the future of S.H.I.E.L.D., but Coulson eventually fainted on the ground. May and the others waited for Jemma Simmons to complete medical exams and for Coulson to regain consciousness. Simmons explained that there was necrotic tissue expanding in Coulson's body, meaning that Coulson was dying, and May related it to Ghost Rider and the deal Coulson had made with the Spirit of Vengeance to defeat Aida. Coulson confirmed that the demonic possession had cancelled the effects of the GH.325.
As the team tried to process the sad news, Johnson blamed Coulson for not having disclosed his condition earlier so that they could have found a way to save him and angrily left. Before Coulson left to follow her, May told him that he had managed things the wrong way and that he should have told his team about the deal he had struck. Later, May and Coulson had a conversation about his fate, with Coulson explaining that he had accepted the idea of dying after having been given a second chance so that a new leader, Johnson, could emerge. May then told Coulson that the team would not give up on him so easily, to which Coulson replied that he did not intend to die while performing his mission.
Back in the Lighthouse's control room, May joined the other S.H.I.E.L.D. agents to monitor Coulson's progression down to the rift of the Fear Dimension. Although they eventually lost contact, May remained confident that Coulson could accomplish his task. While they waited, they received an alert indicating that an aircraft was incoming, and they recognized it as being a Quinjet. May and Johnson went outside to check it and it turned out to be S.H.I.E.L.D. reinforcements gathered by Shaw and led by Deathlok, who went down and successfully helped Coulson to shut down the Fear Dimension. With the mission accomplished, May joined her friends in the subterranean forest where they celebrated the wedding of Fitz and Simmons.[101]
Search for Gravitonium[]
- "You sure you don't need me down there?"
"I need someone on the thing that's actually supposed to be in the air in case the bottom drops out on us." - ―Melinda May and Phil Coulson[src]
May listened to Daisy Johnson's explanations regarding her investigations on Cybertek, as S.H.I.E.L.D. was looking for Gravitonium in order to seal the Fear Dimension more permanently. She noticed that Ian Quinn had gone missing and that Raina was dead, but Johnson told her teammates about Lewis Casalino, a man who had signed several death certificates for a series of Cybertek scientists, including Joseph Getty. Thus, May joined Phil Coulson, Alphonso Mackenzie and Johnson in an attempt to find Casalino.
The S.H.I.E.L.D. team successfully tracked down Casalino to a parking lot. Casalino tried to escape, but he was intercepted by May and Mackenzie. May pointed her gun at him, but the confrontation was quickly defused when Mackenzie recognized Casalino as Tony Caine, his friend and former roommate. Thus, May and the others, including Caine, returned to the Zephyr One where they requested Caine's assistance to find Getty.
Before leaving, however, May and Johnson also revealed that they counted on their Cybertek investigation to find a way to cure Coulson from his condition. Although Coulson clearly refused to sanction such endeavor and left, May and Johnson remained determine to heal him. Thanks to Getty, S.H.I.E.L.D. went in a search for the Principia, a boat which was transporting Gravitonium before being allegedly sunk. Actually, the Gravitonium in the ship had been supercharged, causing it to take the ship into the air, where S.H.I.E.L.D. found it. While Coulson, Johnson and Mackenzie left to search it, May was asked to remain in the Zephyr One in order to pilot it should anything go wrong.
May monitored the team's progression inside the Principia. They successfully located a small quantity of Gravitonium, but were also confronted by some Sleeper Mechs, the same androids they had faced during the Infiltration into St. Louis Aerospace Facility. May watched the fight through her teammates' body cams, urging them to evacuate the ship as it could fall back down into the sea at any time. Eventually, S.H.I.E.L.D. was successful and the Gravitonium brought back into the Zephyr One.
As S.H.I.E.L.D. thanked Caine for his assistance, May asked him to look into Cybertek's research files and to find anything which could help Coulson. May and her teammates then returned to the Lighthouse, and May openly voiced her suspicions that General Hale, who was associated with the Sleeper Mechs, had another allegiance than the United States Armed Forces, unaware that Hale was actually the last leader of HYDRA.[102]
Capture of Phil Coulson[]
- "We've been behind her this entire time. If I can get clarity on what we're dealing with, then all the better."
"Oh, and we don't discuss it? We know this is a trap, Phil." - ―Phil Coulson and Melinda May[src]
Thanks to contact numbers provided by Piper and to their decryption by Daisy Johnson, S.H.I.E.L.D. was able to track down General Hale. Thus, May joined a mission with Phil Coulson and Piper in which they successfully captured Hale into the Zephyr One, keeping her prisoner in the plane. However, while Coulson interrogated Hale, May was approached by Piper who told her that they could not force Hale's driver to leave his car. May went to see him and recognized the driver as Carl Creel, who revealed that he was carrying a bomb belt.
May then joined Coulson and Piper as a Quinjet had docked the Zephyr One, revealing that Anton Ivanov was also working with Hale. Ivanov explained to May and her teammates that they were trying to avert a global extinction event and demanded for Hale to be released. Once Hale and Creel joined them, Hale requested to take Coulson with her. May refused, but Coulson was willing to accept as long as his teammates were spared. Infuriated by his decision, May blamed Coulson for what she called suicidal tendencies, but eventually went along with his decision and let him go with Hale.[103]
May returned to the Lighthouse, where she and Johnson investigated on Hale and her associates, eventually deducing that Hale belonged to HYDRA. As they had no means to interrogate other HYDRA members, May decided to go and interrogate Leo Fitz. Indeed, Fitz had recently experienced a major psychic split which had caused his dark Framework personality of the HYDRA leader known as The Doctor to resurface. May told Fitz that she needed his help and presented him with several documents, asking for his insights regarding Hale and why she needed Coulson.
Fitz suggested that Hale was building a Gravitonium-based weapon, but requested to be temporarily released to help his teammates. While May was ready to accept, they were joined by Johnson, who strongly refused to let Fitz go despite May's attempts to convince her that they had to work together. May remained mostly silent during the ensuing argument between Fitz and Johnson, which ended when Johnson angrily left. May followed her out of the cell and Johnson informed her that she intended to find Robin Hinton for help, although May was reluctant to the idea.[104]
Confessing her Love[]
- "If this is the end, better to go out doing something that matters."
"No You don't get to make that decision alone. That decision is made with the people who love you."
"May–"
"And that's me. I love you. I thought that would shut you up." - ―Phil Coulson and Melinda May[src]
Despite her reluctance, May agreed to accompany Daisy Johnson for a reunion with Robin Hinton. Before they departed, they were approached by Jemma Simmons, who wanted to talk about Leo Fitz's ideas about General Hale. Johnson strongly insisted that Fitz could not be released, which caused May to almost say something about it. Once Simmons left, May advised Johnson to have a less harsh leadership over S.H.I.E.L.D. as this situation was new to everyone, but Johnson barely listened to her, claiming that she would lead them to Phil Coulson.
May remained in the Zephyr One while Johnson left to find Robin Hinton. When the little girl returned, she called May her mother due to being lost between times and referring to the time when May adopted her after the Destruction of Earth. May then sat with Robin and explained that they were looking for Coulson who, according to Robin, could "put all the pieces together". May was also worried when Robin said that Coulson would die. However, while reviewing the girl's drawings, she found one which could represent Coulson, standing in a snowy and mountainous area with another man.
May showed the drawing to Johnson and Deke Shaw and they immediately tried to locate the place depicted by the drawing. While they searched for it, May had a talk with Robin's mother Polly, who had noticed May's connection to her daughter. However, Polly did not blame May for this link she barely had with Robin, as she knew that she would die in the catastrophe S.H.I.E.L.D. was trying to avoid.[105]
The team eventually identified the location and put the Zephyr One above the area, but were unable to locate Coulson, as they were not even sure that they could find him since they did not know when the events showed on the drawings would come true. Despite fearing to be spotted by Hale and her troops, May agreed that they should land and search for Coulson on the ground. May, Johnson and Shaw made their way through the snow and the forest and eventually found Coulson, as well as Glenn Talbot, who had escaped from Hale's base and were being chased by Ruby Hale.
While Johnson remained behind to fight Ruby, May took Coulson and Talbot to safety in the Zephyr One. They then took off the plane once Johnson returned with a wounded Shaw, who had been shot by Hale. During the flight, May attempted to reach out the Lighthouse to inform about their arrival and need of medical assistance, but no one responded. Arriving at the Lighthouse with Shaw on the verge of dying, May and the others were brought up to date by Alphonso Mackenzie, who told them that Simmons, Fitz and Yo-Yo Rodriguez had left the Lighthouse.
In Simmons' absence, May asked Piper to oversee Shaw's surgery. During the operation, May requested to speak with Coulson alone. She blatantly blamed him for his behavior, accusing him of giving up on the idea of fighting and disapproving with his decision of making Johnson the team's leader so early. As Coulson tried to defend his position, claiming that his sacrifice had brought them something, May told him that he could not take such decisions alone and abruptly confessed her love for him, leaving him speechless.[106]
Attack on HYDRA Facilities[]
On her way to a team meeting, May was approached by Phil Coulson, who wanted to talk about May's earlier declaration. However, May claimed that this was not the time as they had a mission to find their missing colleagues Leo Fitz, Jemma Simmons and Yo-Yo Rodriguez. May and Daisy Johnson explained to the team that they had pinpointed a signal apparently coming from Hale's Sleeper Mechs to a location in the Appalachian Mountains leading to Hale's base of operations. May and Johnson intended to attack the facility and left the Lighthouse with the Zephyr One.
While preparing for their assault, May was asked by Johnson if she was fine, but May replied that she simply needed to unleash her frustration. She then went into the plane's Containment Module with Johnson, which was dropped down to the HYDRA Preparatory Academy. May and Johnson successfully took down several HYDRA operatives and eventually found Hale. Much to their surprise, Hale immediately surrendered and asked for their help, which May could not believe. However, Hale insisted, claiming that their friends were in danger because of her daughter Ruby and Johnson agreed to take her to the Zephyr One.
May, Johnson and Hale went to the HYDRA Herefordshire Facility and arrived in the middle of Ruby's infusion with the Gravitonium. May remained astonished when she was Ruby levitating out of the Particle Infusion Chamber and screaming in pain due to voices she heard in her mind. Ruby attacked Fitz and Simmons but eventually let them go, enabling May to take care of them and take them to safety. On their way, they encountered Yo-Yo Rodriguez, who was returning into the room where Ruby and Johnson were. May, Fitz and Simmons remained outside for a moment, but eventually returned when a powerful outburst occurred. As Johnson informed them that Rodriguez had murdered Ruby out of revenge, May noticed that Hale had disappeared.[107]
Siege of the Lighthouse[]
- "All outer doors will remain sealed for 15 years."
"Did he just say 15 years?"
"How was I supposed to know there would be an "alien invasion" option?"
"You always listen to the whole menu. Always!" - ―Rick Stoner, Melinda May, and Phil Coulson[src]
Returning to the Lighthouse with the Gravitonium, May listened to Phil Coulson explain the plan to launch it into the sun. May also added that they had to get Carl Creel and the Hintons to safety with Tony Caine. An argument broke out about Yo-Yo Rodriguez killing Ruby Hale, and May remained silent during it. Johnson went to meet with Caine, so May saw her off, discussing their secret plan to save Coulson.
May then returned in the control room, where she witnessed the sudden appearance of Qovas' Ship, as the Remorath leader demanded the Gravitonium to be delivered to him. May listened as Coulson directly refused to meet Qovas' request. Once the negotiations were over, May and Coulson watched a recorded message from Rick Stoner indicating them the protocols which had been enacted, but Coulson made the mistake to select the nuclear hazard option, causing the Lighthouse to go into lockdown for a planned period of 15 years, much to May's anger.
May and Coulson were later joined by Yo-Yo Rodriguez, and they wondered why Johnson had not returned to the Lighthouse yet. Although she had covered for her until this moment, May revealed that Johnson was looking for a way to save Coulson. While Coulson strongly disapproved this plan, May was also surprised to hear Rodriguez claiming that her future self had warned her about such projects which could cause the Destruction of Earth. However, May refused to believe that they should let Coulson die, instead preferring to rely on Robin's words who had said that Coulson could bring "all the pieces back together".
Nevertheless, the debate was interrupted as the Remorath began to invade the Lighthouse, using their Phase Harmonic Teleportation Device. May listened to Deke Shaw's explanations about these extraterrestrial enemies and remained in the control room to withstand a siege with Coulson and Alphonso Mackenzie. They were later joined by Leo Fitz, who had been rescued by Shaw and gave them handcrafted combustible in order to light fires and counteract the Remorath's technology. While waiting for their opponents, May was given a handgun by Coulson.
May fiercely fought against the Remorath, firing numerous bullets at them, but she soon found out that the Remorath were incredibly durable and that her gun was of little use. Eventually, May ran out of ammunition, much like most of her teammates. As a group of Remorath surrounded them, May prepared to go in hand-in-hand combat, but Mackenzie gave her a metal rod to defend herself. May successfully held her own against the attackers until they were all slaughtered by Glenn Talbot, who had infused himself with Gravitonium. May then watched in complete shock as their enemies were defeated and Talbot took Coulson with him up in the air and outside the Lighthouse.[108]
Rescue of Phil Coulson[]
- "I'll take care of it. Go home, Phil, now."
"Are you giving me an order? 'Cause that sounded like you were giving me an or–"
"Yes, I'm giving you an order!" - ―Melinda May and Phil Coulson[src]
In the aftermath of the Siege of the Lighthouse, May worried about the fact that Phil Coulson had left with a psychologically unstable and newly empowered Glenn Talbot. As they needed to know the whereabouts of the Remorath, May found Alphonso Mackenzie on the verge of executing Qajax, who had survived the battle, and told him that they needed the Remorath alive.
May took part to Qajax's interrogation, but she was barely able to extract answers from him before he died due to the effects of the Odium he had taken. She then asked Jemma Simmons to perform an autopsy on Qajax to learn more about the Remorath and the Odium. May then found Yo-Yo Rodriguez and Daisy Johnson fighting in the corridors of the Lighthouse. She fired her gun at the ceiling to make them stop. She informed them that they had spotted Qovas' Ship and that they would leave as soon as the Zephyr One could be able to be taken into space. May also warned Rodriguez that they would do anything to keep Coulson alive despite her warnings, and ordered her to leave if she did not want to help them in their endeavor.
As the Zephyr One was equipped with new RCS thrusters relying on Gravitonium, May joined a mission in order to rescue Coulson and Talbot. Along with James Davis, she put the plane in vertical position and piloted the Zephyr One into space, enabling the aircraft to stealthily approach the Remorath spaceship using the plane's cloaking. Once they were docked to Qovas' ship, May and Quake infiltrated it. They quickly made their way through the spacecraft, taking down several Remorath soldiers in the process.
However, May and Quake realized that the situation had gone incredibly wrong while they were looking for Coulson. Indeed, Talbot had grown mad because of his powers and had turned on S.H.I.E.L.D., instead allying with Qovas and the Confederacy. Despite May's attempts to convince Talbot that they were here to rescue him, Talbot attacked Quake, rendering her unconscious, and murdered General Hale, who was also present. May raised her weapon at Talbot, but he threatened to kill Coulson as well and May was forced to surrender. She was then taken into a cell with Coulson by the Remorath.[109]
As Qovas locked them up in their cell, May warned him that they would eventually defeat him, and that they would do so without a gun. Once imprisoned, May and Coulson talked about Talbot, being genuinely surprised at the idea that they were concerned about someone who they had initially known as an antagonist but who had become a close ally. As Coulson commented on how people could change, May replied that it did not mean that they could save Talbot, although Coulson insisted that they should try.
May and Coulson prepared to escape from their cell using Phil Coulson's Prosthetic Hand's capabilities, only to find out the door opening thanks to Deke Shaw who had come to their rescue. However, as they progressed through the ship's corridors, they were still unable to find where they should go in order to save Johnson and to escape: indeed, much to May's disappointment, Shaw could not read the different writings in the ship. They were then confronted by two Remorath who were promptly taken down by Quake, who had escaped.
May came up with a plan to escape and to avoid that the Lighthouse could be hit by Qovas' Ionizer Missiles: she would remain with Shaw to change the missiles' target to the ship itself and escape with the Phase Harmonic Teleportation Device, while Coulson and Quake would leave with the Zephyr One. However, Coulson refused the plan, claiming that they should remain together. This led to an argument which was interrupted by the arrival of other Remorath. In order to protect her, Coulson dragged May behind his Energy Shield and passionately kissed her.
May was eventually allowed to proceed with her plan and left with Shaw. They fought and defeated two other Remorath soldiers, and May ripped off their claws in order to defend herself should more soldiers were to come. Meanwhile, May tasked Shaw to change the missile's target's coordinates to the ship and to load the Lighthouse's coordinates in the teleporting device. However, they were stopped in their endeavor by Qovas, who engaged in a fight against May.
May managed to hold her own against Qovas, despite fighting with considerably smaller claws than his, while Shaw finished to enter the Lighthouse's location in the teleporting device. Although May lost one her claws during the duel, she managed to punch Qovas away, causing Qovas to get angry and to proceed to the launch of the missiles. Smiling, May revealed that they had changed the target. They then teleported away moments before the spaceship's destruction, safely arriving in the Lighthouse, where they contacted Coulson and Quake, who were also returning, albeit more slowly, with the Zephyr One.[110]
An Ultimate Decision[]
- "So we either save Coulson..."
"Or we save the world." - ―Melinda May and Yo-Yo Rodriguez[src]
However, once Coulson returned, having collapsed and begun bleeding, May learned that he was sicker than ever, with his condition getting worse and accelerating. She joined a team meeting during which they were faced with a crucial dilemma: they could either use the Centipede Serum brought back by Johnson to save him, or they could use it in combination with the Odium to craft a weapon to kill Talbot and save the world, but they could not do both.[110]
During the debate within S.H.I.E.L.D. about what to do with the Centipede Serum, May sided with Daisy Johnson who considered that they should trust Robin Hinton's prophecy about Coulson "putting the pieces together". Indeed, May feared that even if they created a weapon by using the Odium, it could fail to kill Glenn Talbot, meaning that they would have sacrificed Phil Coulson's life for nothing. As the discussion heated up and Yo-Yo Rodriguez seized the Centipede Device, May smashed the vial of Odium so that they would only have one option left. She then apologized to Rodriguez and gave the Centipede Device to Leo Fitz for him to make the cure.[111]
Battle of Chicago[]
- "It's up to you if you think more time is worth it. I've made it clear how I feel."
"I think I have, too."
"But even now the word scares you."
"I'm just having a hard enough time leaving you behind."
"So don't." - ―Melinda May and Phil Coulson[src]
During their flight to Chicago, where Talbot had been spotted laying waste across the city, May went to see Phil Coulson, who was forced to remain in his bed. Although Coulson insisted that he disagreed with May's decision, May told him that she had confessed her feelings for him and that he now had a choice to build a relationship together. May urged him to take the cure before leaving.
As they approached Chicago, Daisy Johnson gathered the team and admitted that she was not fit to lead S.H.I.E.L.D.. Instead, she appointed Alphonso Mackenzie as Director of S.H.I.E.L.D., which May agreed with, along with the rest of the team. She was then pleasantly surprised to see Coulson back on his feet and rejoining the fight, having apparently taken the cure. Coulson looked to Mackenzie for their orders in the approaching fight, and he told the agents that they were going to save lives.
During the Battle of Chicago, May worked with Fitz and Mackenzie to evacuate the civilians to the Zephyr One. On top of one building, May and Mackenzie found Robin Hinton, who told them that her mother was still trapped in the remnants of Qovas' Ship which had been dragged by Talbot. While Mackenzie left, May hugged Robin in comfort. However, when Fitz joined them, he remembered that neither Mackenzie nor Polly survived in the future they had seen. Therefore, May and Fitz decided to infiltrate the ship as well.
May and Fitz arrived in time to save Mackenzie and Polly from two Remorath soldiers. May managed to take one down and ripped off his claw, throwing it to Fitz so he could stab the other one from behind. They then safely made it out of the spaceship, but a pile of rubble fell down on Fitz, forcing May and Mackenzie to clear the debris. They managed to remove the stones, but also found out that Fitz had been mortally wounded and that he would not survive. Thus, May remained at Fitz's side until the very end, crying over the death of her friend.
Despite this tragic loss, S.H.I.E.L.D. was victorious against Talbot, who had been killed by Johnson. May returned to the Lighthouse, where she destroyed the shard of the Time Di'Alla which was still in their possession and which they no longer needed.[111] Simmons theorized that there was another Leo Fitz out in space, which concerned the team, but when his body was brought back to the base, they discussed this, with May thinking she could be right, and encouraging Mackenzie to support the mission.[112]
Retirement[]
- "So... anything else on your bucket list?"
"Just one thing."
"Parasailing?" - ―Melinda May and Phil Coulson[src]
May then poured the team a drink for the celebration of Phil Coulson's retirement. They reminisced over their different homes, with May and Daisy Johnson expressing her fondness for the Bus.
Coulson then gave a speech, saying that they were all heroes, and that they have all suffered loss. The team then added that they'll never forget those that they've lost, including Coulson when he eventually dies. They then talked about Leo Fitz being frozen in space, and Coulson finished his speech, toasting the team. After the team said their goodbyes, May joined Coulson outside the Zephyr One, stepping onto a beach in Tahiti, as the two began to spend his remaining days together.[111]
Tahiti[]
- "That's such a cheesy way to ask a girl out for a date."
"Like I said, I planned to say it, but as you know, I never did."
"You chickened out."
"You were very intimidating back then."
"You were too nerdy for me back then." - ―Melinda May and Phil Coulson[src]
May and Phil Coulson discussed about what the latter wanted to do to enjoy his last moments, with Coulson expressing his interest in parasailing. They then watched as the Zephyr One departed, with their friends continuing their S.H.I.E.L.D. missions without them.[111]
May spent Coulson's last weeks with him on the island, where the pair drank wine, slept on the beach, and went on dates, having more time than they thought they would have had. During this time, May conceived the idea of reforming S.H.I.E.L.D. Academy in Coulson's name, which Coulson approved of. Coulson passed away in his sleep shortly after and May buried him.[113] With Coulson gone, May returned to S.H.I.E.L.D., serving as Alphonso Mackenzie's second in command, helping him rebuild the organization by recruiting agents.[114]
Shrike Infestation[]
Tracking Anomalies[]
- "I'll never be the Director Coulson was."
"No, you're a different Director. That's not a bad thing." - ―Alphonso Mackenzie and Melinda May[src]
In 2019, S.H.I.E.L.D. had detected anomalies around the world, so Alphonso Mackenzie had STRIKE split into three teams, waiting for the next occurrence. May led alpha team and piloted a Quinjet to Indiana, where an anomaly had been traced. May spotted a suspicious individual and ordered him to surrender, but they were shot out of the sky, causing them to crash land.