The MCU may be past the days of “It’s all connected,” but Avengers: Endgame still has an important link to Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D..

When all is said and done, there is only one direct crossover between the world of Marvel TV and Avengers: Endgame. James D’Arcy’s thrilling appearance as Howard Stark’s butler, Edwin Jarvis, is a brief but landmark moment in the film. D’Arcy originated the role in Agent Carter, which ran for two seasons, and the sight of him on the big screen is as delightful as it is, frankly, shocking.

The rest of Marvel Television fares far less well.

There is no reference made to Netflix’s Defenders, or (perhaps thankfully) the short-lived Inhumans series. The Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. crew is nowhere to be seen or heard from, and even Phil Coulson — the strongest connection between the two worlds, who bridged the gap in Captain Marvel — is not alluded to at all. The nearest Endgame comes to tipping a hat to the modern-day of Marvel television are the appearances of Nick Fury, Maria Hill, and Jasper Sitwell, all of whom have been seen in the earlier seasons of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D..

While disappointing, this state of affairs is not surprising; the relationship between the Marvel Cinematic Universe and its small-screen counterparts has by this point thinned to near nonexistence.

But there is one connection between the stories of Endgame and Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. that is worth considering, especially as the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. season 6 premiere finally approaches. The link lies in the curious twists of time-travel at work in both stories, and the impact this has on relationships central to the drama.

Stick with me though, because this is going to get kind of complicated.

The ‘Endgame’ side

In Endgame, almost all of the time-travel is directed backwards, as the Avengers seek out the Infinity Stones in their chronological past. After a few complications, most of our heroes complete their missions and return to the present, with two notable exceptions.

Related: Avengers: Endgame review: It’s everything you want it to be

The first is Black Widow, who sacrifices her life so that Hawkeye can earn the Soul Stone. (Still not over it, but that’s an issue for another time.) The second is the present-time’s Nebula, who is captured by Thanos, Gamora, and past-Nebula on Morag. Still obsessed with pleasing Thanos, past-Nebula sneaks back to the present in her present-self’s place and allows Thanos to travel through time to the present day — bringing Gamora with him.

This is significant because there is no present-day Gamora. The reformed Gamora who had left Thanos and experienced the events of the Guardians of the Galaxy films was murdered by Thanos in Infinity War, allowing him to retrieve the Soul Stone. (The same is true of Thanos himself, who was killed by Thor at the beginning of Endgame, though I’m not sad about that.)

It is this past version of Gamora who joins the final fight against Thanos, a Gamora who is a stranger to her new allies. They know her, but she does not know them. Peter Quill quite deeply loves her, but she doesn’t love him. The relationships built through time and drama have, as far as Gamora is concerned, never existed.

Further complicating matters — and building further parallels to Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. — is the fact that Gamora vanishes from the story after the climax of Endgame. Has she been snapped to nonexistence by Tony Stark’s last stand? Has she returned to her position in time? Has the threat of falling in love with Peter Quill driven her to the far reaches of the galaxy?

So the situation is thus: One partner has lost the other, only to know that a past version of their love (one who has not shared many of the experiences that defined their relationship) remains alive, somewhere in the galaxy.

That’s a pretty unique scenario — but it’s one that is closely mirrored by the events of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. season 5.

The ‘S.H.I.E.L.D’ side

In Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. season 5, the movement through chronological time is directed forwards. In the premiere episode, most of the cast is transported via monolith to the devastated shell of Earth 70-odd years in the future.

The only member of the team left behind is Fitz, who takes the long way through time, waiting in suspended animation in an alien space pod. After Fitz arrives in the future, the team is able to return to the present day. (And honestly, that’s not even the wildest thing that happened last season!)

But tragedy strikes in the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. season 5 finale, when Fitz is killed by falling debris as Daisy joins battle with Graviton. It was a shattering development only compounded by Coulson’s acceptance of his own fate throughout the episode.

But a twist was in the offing. Simmons, Fitz’s long-time love and new wife, vows to search the galaxy for the other Fitz — the Fitz who, thanks to the quirks of chronological time, is still frozen in space, waiting to rejoin the team in the future.

But like Gamora, that version of Fitz is distinctly different from his lost counterpart. That Fitz has not experienced life in the brutal future, or proposed to or married Simmons. That Fitz has not suffered a scarring dissociative event that left Daisy furious and wounded. That Fitz has not experienced the terrible division of his team and the sacrifices needed to bring them back together. Hell, that Fitz doesn’t even know that Coulson was dying.

Same love, who this?

So following the events of Endgame and Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., both Peter Quill and Gamora, and Simmons and Fitz are set up to endure a bizarre reinvention of their love stories.

First and foremost, Simmons and Quill both have the burden of finding their lost loves somewhere in the cold reaches of space. But that might be the easy part.

Related: After Avengers: Endgame, what will the next era of the MCU look like?

Quill must convince Gamora that she ever loved him in the future at all, and of course, Gamora must be willing to be convinced. Simmons (assuming she finds Fitz) must reacclimatize him to the vastly changed circumstances both of their relationship and of the new realities at S.H.I.E.L.D. (“Hey honey, you don’t remember this, but we’re actually married now!” might be quite the opener.)

Yes, it’s a subtle connection, and one that may pay off very differently in each medium. Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. season 6 begins on May 10, but Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 is not set for release until next year. There could be all kinds of circumstances — timeline-based, personality-wise, and story-related) that eventually minimize the similarities between the two.

Still, the parallel between Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and Endgame is worth appreciating, partly because it is so distinct and strange, and partly because it makes such unique emotional demands of both sets of characters. Quill and Simmons, Fitz and Gamora will all have to undergo challenging reboots to their expectations and indeed, their realities. From the big screen to the small screen, these characters are all bound by tragedy, unexpected deliverance — and of course, the wild caprices of living in a comic book world.

So corporate divisions and executive disinterest be damned. These delicious, unlikely gymnastics of the heart is where the real bond between the MCU and Marvel Television lies, and Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and Avengers: Endgame have delivered on this exact thing.

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. season 6 premieres on May 10 on ABC. Avengers: Endgame is in theaters now.