Agents Of SHIELD Officially Goes To Series

Marvel’s first venture into the small screen has the go-ahead for a full first season.

File this all under the “no duh” category.  The Joss and Jed Whedon- crafted pilot for Agents of SHIELD, Marvel’s upcoming TV extension of their massive cinematic universe, has been green lit for a full series by ABC.  Since Disney owns Marvel and ABC… and since Whedon has such a rabid fan following… and because The Avengers made enough money it could become its own sovereign nation… this confirmation is far from shocking.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m totally happy– I want to see this show as badly as the next card carrying geek, and I’m totally intrigued to see how the heck they’re actually bringing back Agent Phil Coulson.  I think this is a great concept for a show and a brand extension for Marvel– we’ll likely see the SHIELD show as their “farm league” to launch and develop smaller heroes and villains and test the waters to see who they can elevate to the big screen from there.

Apparently, ABC’s marketing blitz for SHIELD begins this Sunday, with a first-look appearing at 8pm before the season finale of Once Upon A Time.

While we wait for that with DVRs at the ready, here’s a synopsis of the upcoming series:

Clark Gregg reprises his role of Agent Phil Coulson from Marvel’s feature films as he assembles a small, highly select group of Agents from the worldwide law-enforcement organization known as S.H.I.E.L.D. Together they investigate the new, the strange, and the unknown across the globe, protecting the ordinary from the extraordinary. Coulson’s team consists of Agent Grant Ward (Brett Dalton), highly trained in combat and espionage, Agent Melinda May (Ming-Na Wen) expert pilot and martial artist, Agent Leo Fitz (Iain De Caestecker); brilliant engineer and Agent Jemma Simmons (Elizabeth Henstridge) genius bio-chemist. Joining them on their journey into mystery is new recruit and computer hacker Skye (Chloe Bennet). From Executive Producers Joss Whedon (“Marvel’s The Avengers,” ”Buffy the Vampire Slayer”); Jed Whedon & Maurissa Tancharoen, “Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” pilot co-writers (“Dollhouse,” “Dr.Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog”); Jeffrey Bell (“Angel,” “Alias”); and Jeph Loeb (“Smallville”) comes Marvel’s first TV series.  “Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” is produced by ABC Studios and Marvel Television.