Michael and Simone

Michael completely love Nikita, yes i think he did love Simone, he married her while they were in section, so it wasnt a cover, I also believe over time while he was undercover with Elana he did grow to love her as well, but the love he had for those two women could not compare to the love he had for Nikita.

I think it is the kind of love most women crave for, it was so powerful that Operations and Madeline wanted so desperately to keep them apart.
Nikita was a treat to Section, Michael was they #1 operative, killing machine, and whn Nikita cameon the scene, she started to change Michael, he was still the best at wht he did, but she had completely captured his heart.
If Simone had been rescued, the marriage would not have lasted she would hve seen the tension between Nikita and Michael, the chemistry was just off the charts you would hve to be blind not to c it.

Michael risked everything for Nikita, he put her above everything else, he ran away with her from section, he told her he couldnt live without her, he let her see who he was under the mask and finally told her what we all knew, that he loved her.

I believe that a man can love many women over time, but there is always one that turns his whole world upside down, that stays in his heart even f they r not together, that he would do anything or leave anyone for, that he loves completely above all, that was Nikita for Michael.

I think he loved Simone tremendously as well as Nikita (of course), just in different ways. He was a different person with Simone. Younger, more outgoing, more 'alive' - and yes, I think they were like equals in their relationship. With Simone in those moments we saw them together - he was automatically different and more open / vulnerable than we probably ever saw him again. I think that is very telling of not only the person that he used to be (also evidenced in the ep where he lost his memory), but also very telling in how much he loved Simone, and how their relationship dynamic was different than what he had with Nikita. He definitely loved Simone deeply. He suffered a lot of trauma over the years being in Section and being so closed down and controlled helped him survive. But for the most part, it was Simone's death that caused him to shut down to such a huge degree. It was mentioned at least once or twice. And I think by Walter. It was basically implied that Michael wasn't always this cold, aloof, controlling personality. But the loss of Simone is what ultimately had caused that outer change in him. So obviously he had to have loved her deeply. And Nikita was the only one that was able to get through to him. Deep down Michael felt very strongly and loved very deeply, possibly more than any of the other characters - but after Simone died he shut that part of himself down and rarely showed it except on rare occasions.

(By the way, also worth noting is that it was mentioned in the series and by tptb that Michael and Simone had a child together that died and Michael had nightmares about it. It was left very ambiguous and they were definitely not talking about Adam (this was long before the Adam reveal as well). So I think they shared that connection as well as being married. So that loss along with Simone could have also contributed to the change in him. I think it was a cumulation of severe trauma and drama though, with Simone being the ultimate catalyst.)

Anyway basically Michael was very different with Simone. He was a different person and their relationship was very different. And it's hard to compare, because one can love multiple people nearly equally just in very different ways. But ultimately, I would have to say Michael loved Nikita more than any other person ever, except his son. When Simone died he was absolutely wrecked, however he still managed to hang on and survive. When he lost (or thought he had lost Nikita), he was a wreck as well, but on top of that he was uncaring about his own well-being and arguably suicidal. He needed Nikita to live as well as loved her. The only other loss of a person that he took so hard, was when he lost his son. So while it devastated him to lose Simone, it totally threatened to destroy him to lose Nikita. On the other hand, Simone loved Michael to the end and vice verso. And it makes me wonder if Michael would have just stayed and died with Simone had Nikita not been there urging and forcing him to get out of there before the blast. I think had Nikita not been there, Michael would have died that day too. So it really is hard to compare the love he had for both these women, as they were both VERY strong and very different relationships. But since we only saw a small glimpse of Michael/Simone, I think it's often overlooked how much he loved her and how much of an impact she had on him. But the evidence of his love for her was always there on the show - in the man that was shown in each ep, the very change that her loss had wrought upong him.

As for what would have happened had Simone survived and gone back to Section. Well I think they would have still loved each other very much (Michael and Simone). But it wouldn't have worked out then, because by that point both of them were very different. Both Michael and Simone separately with all of the trauma they had endured during those years apart. They weren't the same, so I don't think it would have ended well. Especially with how Simone had been traumatized. They would have still loved each other til the end, whatever end. But I think she would have gone very dark and probably ended up being an enemy or taking a villainous turn and been killed (possibly by Michael - though it would have 'killed' him to do it, but I think it would have lead to that). Seems to me like how the show would have gone down that road had that been the case.

The Simone storyline was not a favorite of mine. There were a few lapses in the writing and this was one of them IMO.

Just to add briefly to the lofty discussions here..
I do think Micheal started out as a very idealistic student activist when he was first recruited. I think being recruited in the first place is probably a pretty traumatic event..But i do think that his relationship with Simone is what kept Micheal grounded and allowed him to transfer his idealism and accept his dedication to Section. Simone is what helped keep him human in Section.

After Simone went missing and was believed dead Michael lost his only link to humanity..and it showed. The walls came down because all he had was this expectation that he act like a killing machine with complete dedication...
On the other hand, he also had his Section sanctioned marriage and child, Elena and Adam.. He lived such lies and make believe. Although I would imagine that he found some refuge from Section in being able to pretend to just be a normal guy in his marriage to Elena...for short periods of time. Then Nikita came along.

One thing that struck me in a question that Nikita asked Michael: "How did Simone react to you marrying Elena and fathering a child for Section"?
"We never talked about it." Michael told her.
So I guess that tells you something. Michael and Simone never questioned their relationship in the confines of Section. They accepted everything.
But for both Nikita and Michael in terms of their relationship; this simply was not possible for them. They were not capable of thriving under the domination of Section ..and they wanted it enough to fight back.

I think that the fact that he was allowed to marry Simone while they were both agents of Sections answers that question. I don't doubt that he loved her but i don't think that it even comes close to how he felt about Nikita. His relationship with Simone was allowed because they were able to work together, madeline and operations never would have allowed them to get married if they thought that it would effect there work or endanger one of there missions. But with Nikita they never allowed it. While there were comments made that he shut himself down after Simone i don't think that compares to how he was in the first episode of season 2 when he wasn't sure if Nikita was alive or dead, when he saw her everywhere and all he could think of was her. Had he been that distracted after Simone died i doubt he would have still been in charge of the new recruits when Nikita joined. The intensity in the looks and the subtle but really powerful ways that he would touch her face made every woman want to be Nikita so while i do believe that it is possible to love more than one person in a lifetime i think that sometimes you get one love that is just so pure and powerful that no other compares to it and in my opinion thats what Michael and Nikita had.



live and let live

I always thought that Michael was closed off and almost catatonic because of two reasons:

1. His "job," if that's what you want to call it, required him to kill people. I'd imagine that, at some point, he became emotionally, "numb," to protect himself from the emotional consequences of what his, "job," required him to do.; and

2. Simone's death.