Paxton's son James was revealed to be guest starring in "Stolen" as a younger version of John Garrett. James Paxton rewatched all of his father's episodes from earlier in the season to prepare, learning the cadence Bill used when speaking his lines. James felt he could increase the character's energy and excitement in certain moments, because the younger version was "probably even more of a hothead and excitable at that age". Other guest stars appearing alongside Paxton include: Enver Gjokaj reprising his Agent Carter role as agent Daniel Sousa, Dichen Lachman as Jiaying, Thomas E. Sullivan as Nathaniel Malick, Dianne Doan as Kora, Tipper Newton as Roxy Glass, and Byron Mann as Li. All return from earlier in the season. Fin Argus also returns as a young Gordon. Marvel Cinematic Universe tie-ins Deke listens to a cassette of Deke Squad Mix Vol. 2 on a Walkman, a reference to Star-Lord from Guardians of the Galaxy (2014). Meagan Damore from Comic Book Resources noted the Walkman reference was "a tongue-in-cheek nod to the fans who once speculated that Deke was Star-Lord"; when Deke first appeared in season five, he wore a helmet similar to Star-Lord's mask. Release "Stolen" was first aired in the United States on ABC on July 29, 2020. Reception Ratings In the United States the episode received a 0.3 percent share among adults between the ages of 18 and 49, meaning that it was seen by 0.3 percent of all households in that demographic. It was watched by 1.30 million viewers. Within a week of release, "Stolen" was watched by 2.32 million viewers. Critical response The A.V. Clubs Alex McLevy gave the episode a "B", stating the episode had "a strong script, fleet pacing, and some especially good character dynamics from Daisy, Simmons, and Coulson". He noted "the heart of the episode" was Daisy's interaction with Jiaying. McLevy added the show "could stand to do a little more with" Malick having the Timestream, as there was the potential "to really stack the deck against S.H.I.E.L.D. in these last few episodes." Writing for Den of Geek, Michael Ahr felt the best moments of the episode were between Daisy and Jiaying, and enjoyed the twist of Malick searching for Simmons. Ahr also enjoyed Daisy going "into god mode" and the frightened look on Malick's face "was priceless". He concluded that the "story possibilities are thankfully starting to open up for