'Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.' Pilot Review: A Fantastic Cast, Amazing Writing And Joss Whedon Make A Phenomenal Show

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. premiered Tuesday night, successfully setting up a series independent of the Avengers films while still incorporating the playful nature of the superhero films we have all come to love. The first episode of the new Marvel series is one of the best, most complete and consistent television pilots I’ve ever seen.

Starring the excellent Clark Gregg as a not-so-dead Agent Coulson (for those of you who don’t know, Agent Coulson died in The Avengers), Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. seamlessly brought up mythology from the films without confusing new viewers. Of course, certain aspects of the Marvel universe mythology featured in S.H.I.E.L.D. will be easier to grasp for fans of the Iron Man, Captain America and Thor films, but the show is structured in a way that is by no means exclusive to super-hero fans. Agent Coulson, for example, and the actor who plays him, is a particularly beloved character in the Marvel films franchise, and part of the plot of the pilot was a direct continuence of the events that took place in Iron Man 3.

S.H.I.E.L.D. uses two characters to reintroduce audiences into the Marvel universe in which the show takes place (i.e. the world in which Iron Man and Thor fly around saving New York City from aliens and Gods from another world): Grant Ward (Brett Dalton) and Skye (Chloe Bennet), the new additions to the S.H.I.E.L.D. team. Ward, already a special agent for the government, is recruited by Coulson, who believes in his ability to work in extraordinary circumstances even though his imagination is somewhat limited in terms of superheroes. Skye is similarly recruited, although she begins in the pilot as a cyber criminal, hacking into S.H.I.E.L.D. in her quest to find out the truth of what happened in New York with the Avengers and the government’s role in putting the heroic group together.

Rounding out the new team are Melinda May (Ming-Na Wen), a badass ex-field agent who now prefers to push paper, and a pair of biotech geniuses, Fitz and Simmons (Ian De Caestecker and Elizabeth Henstridge) – also known as Fitz-Simmons.

The pilot exceeded my expectations in every way. Based on the promos for the show, I worried that Dalton would be too much of a straight man, dull and stiff, but through his humorous scenes with Coulson and Skye, Ward proved to be a layered character. Nevertheless, he’s definitely the least interesting of the group – whether because Dalton lacks the charm of the other actors or because Ward lacks the charm of the other characters, I haven’t decided yet.

S.H.I.E.L.D. does an excellent job at re-inventing the quirky side-kick gimmick with Fitz and Simmons. The British science geeks have a quick back and forth that I could watch for hours, but they aren’t regulated to the lab, elevating them from throwaway plot points to full fledged characters in the Marvel world. In many procedurals, the scientists or tech specialists tend to be confined in their lab or office, and, if they do leave the safety of their workspace, they are accompanied by an endless string of fish-out-of-water gags. Not so for Fitz-Simmons. Though it’s clear in the pilot that the two are not used to being in the field, they manage to do their jobs clearly and without upset, making their characters equal to their fellow Agents.

That’s the truly great thing about Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Every core character is strong, intriguing and, based on the pilot, the actors have what it takes to rise to the occasion. (Personally, I’m especially pleased to have Ming-Na Wen as a series regular and I cannot wait to find out what happened to her character to get her out of field work.)

The pilot, written and directed by Joss Whedon himself (the man behind The Avengers, Buffy the Vampire Slayer), is perfectly written. The seeds of season-long (or series-long) mysteries and character journeys are clearly, yet subtly, planted, and the show is never boring. As much as I hate to put it this way, the pilot was really like a mini-movie spin-off of The Avengers. It will be interesting to see what the show looks like without Whedon at the helm as writer and director, though I doubt it will be too different with Whedon acting as creator and executive-producer.

I cannot wait to see the next episode and continue this adventure. Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. airs Tuesdays at 8 p.m. on ABC.

If you missed the pilot, you can read our recap here.

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