In this scene, our Ekko just woke up in an alternate timeline. This is the frame where he sees Benzo, his father figure who's dead in his reality.
Obviously he's in shock. He doesn't know where he is, what's going on, he's seeing his dead dad, probably a million thoughts running through his head. In response to seeing Ekko like this, Benzo says:
"One of those days, huh?"
I'm sorry, WHAT????? WHAT DOES HE MEAN ONE OF THOSE DAYS????
Then Powder says
"You know those ugly twins, genius and madness!"
It's clear she's saying this to redirect the focus off of Ekko, dude needs a moment and she sees that. What's interesting to me is Benzo isn't at all shocked that Ekko is having a moment. Powder saying the line above also implies this isn't out of the ordinary.
The ugly twins Powder's talking about are likely akin to an angel and devil on his shoulders, two halves of a whole that make up Ekko. This sudden moment of panic that he's having is regular enough that Powder and Benzo consider it a sort of side effect to his intelligence.
The FASCINATING part of this implication is that it mirrors his world's Jinx. In his reality, Jinx is the crazy genius who has 'those days'. If Ekko in this reality is the one who experiences that 'craziness' then not only does that mean Ekko and Powder are reflections of each other, but it means something's CAUSED Ekko to have a 'madness' side to him. In our reality, Jinx is 'crazy' due to the trauma and brainwashing she goes through with the death of her loved ones and being used as a weapon by Silco. There are some signs in season 1 arc 1 that Powder could've had a chemical imbalance even before that, but we can see through this other Powder that she would've turned out mostly ok.
In the nearly perfect reality of this alternate timeline, what could've caused Ekko to be the 'crazy one'? In my mind, there are two possibilities. The first one being, he's traumatized from causing Vi's death. He didn't kill her, and everyone around him knows that, but he still thinks it's his fault for giving them the tip to steal from Jayce, which lead to Vi's death. If he hadn't given them the tip, they never would've gone there and Vi wouldn't have died. This would also line up with the mirror dynamic, as Jinx in our reality thinks Vander, Milo, and Clagger's deaths are her fault. The guilt of it has driven him mad just as it did her.
This makes other interactions make sense as well. Powder inviting Ekko to go see Vi, (she probably does this to help Ekko cope when he's having these episodes) Then he turns to her and says "Was it you" and you see how upset she is. She looks as if she has something to say, but holds back and walks off instead. What if she was thinking "What? No, it was your fault???" Or maybe she does secretly think it was her fault too and her helping the guy who feels the same way is her way of coping, making it all the more insulting that he'd accuse her just cus he's having an episode. She's very willing to forgive him because she understands his psychological struggles. That brings me to possibility 2.
What if Ekko was always crazy? What if Ekko has dealt with a chemical imbalance and struggled with that madness on top of his trauma? Just like Jinx. The only reason we actually get to see that madness on display for this Ekko is because our Ekko never has a moment to show that side of him. He's never allowed a moment to think to himself or at the very least we never see it. With Jinx, we get tons of scenes with her madness on full display. If Ekko had similar struggles in our reality just not as severe or noticeable, then in comparison to Jinx, he seems completely fine.
These small implications of the alternate timeline tells me that we had it wrong. Ekko is also crazy and always has been. THAT'S why he's able to get to Jinx and understand her, accept her for who she is when Vi couldn't. It's also possible his hatred for Jinx in season 1 may have been him projecting his issues onto her. He knows what that madness looks like and he fears that if he doesn't keep his together, he could end up like Jinx. It's only until he sees the other Powder, sees the way she understands him and is there for him, that he realizes that he is worthy of love and compassion, madness and all. Only then does he accept himself for who he is and is able to accept Jinx for who she is. Accepting Jinx as Jinx and loving her madness and all, was part of him accepting himself too.
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