"Worse, the drug came from the corpse of an alien," Coulson says. "We don't know what kind or from where. It's a terrible thing they did, yes..."

"But we're going to have to wait," AL adds. "There's six episodes left in the season, so hopefully we'll have some answers." A dark look crosses her face. "Unfortunately, his cellist ex-girlfriend - the one who thinks he's dead...she's mentioned in The Avengers - is going to be in at least one episode." Beat. "The alter ego linked us before knowing that, so...well, let's just say it won't be the first time a canon girlfriend's been retconned. I just hope it's not more than one episode and she doesn't complicate things."

Coulson pretends he didn't hear her and instead answers V with a chuckle. "I was pretty upset, yes." He smiles. "Lisa got me a new set."

"From the same era," she adds, "so they remain vintage."