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The first official trailer for the newly official Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. debuted on ABC and online last night, giving the world its first glimpse at what to expect from the Joss Whedon-created television spin-off from last year's uber-successful Marvel's The Avengers movie. If the 30 seconds of fast-cut footage left you a little confused, however, here's a guide to what (and who) you might have missed.
0:02-0:05: "We work the cases that S.H.I.E.L.D. hasn't classified," says Agent Phil Coulson (Maybe Deceased) in voiceover as we see a plane painted with the S.H.I.E.L.D. logo. (Clearly, although S.H.I.E.L.D. may be a covert operation, whoever's in charge of their vehicular decoration hasn't gotten the memo about subtlety.)
0:08: The Hulk from Marvel's The Avengers, repurposed as footage from viral marketing site and apparent in-universe conspiracy blog Rising Tide (more later on that).
0:08-0:10: More Avengers footage, this time of Thor, Captain America and Iron Man. So far, of these three, only Iron Man has shown up on the Rising Tide site.
0:12-0:14: Someone jumping from a tall building, apparently saving a woman in their arms. But who? Perhaps Angel alum J. August Richards, who is rumored to have been cast as occasional Hero for Hire, Luke Cage in the series.
0:15: "The whole world's in on the action." With this line, we get a hint at the direction of the pilot, if not the entire show. Is the viral Rising Tide site (http://seriable.com/agents-of-shield-id-badges-skye-rising-tide/) to the character Skye, who asks, "Who is S.H.I.E.L.D.? What are they hiding? Super-powers are real. Aliens exist. What else is out there? We will uncover the truth. We will not remain silent any longer." Is Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. what happens when the Men in Black go public, or at least have to face off against conspiracy theorists who are continually proven to be right as the supernatural and sci-fi become increasingly real?
0:18: That's Ming-Na playing Agent Melinda May; her character was initially described as "a top-notch pilot, weapons expert and soldier who is described as being soulful but damaged by her time spent in combat." Plus, flying tech is looking for… someone. Could these be S.H.I.E.L.D. toys, some inventions by Tony Stark, or one of the Marvel Universe's many other technological geniuses?
0:19: Is that Paris that we're seeing a chase through the streets of? If so, that's an interesting development because up until now, S.H.I.E.L.D. has been a primarily domestic organization in the movies; in what's become known as the "Cinematic Universe," S.H.I.E.L.D. stands for Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division. Will the series see the organization go international, or just play outside of their sandbox. Also, that certainly looks like J. August Richards, this time around...
0:21: After mentioning Rising Tide's Skye earlier, here she is. This is actress Chloe Bennet, looking more than a little confused by what's going on. Perhaps blogging about the fantastic and experiencing it first hand is a little too much for her at first…?
0:21: Agent Phil Coulson walks towards something that an explosion happening in reverse, and slow motion. Is this some kind of technological simulation, someone using their super powers, or something else entirely. We're still waiting for an explanation of how Coulson returned to life, could backwards time have something to do with it…?
0:24: "Don't touch Lola." Clearly, Coulson has moved on from trading cards of Captain America in his emotional attachment to inanimate objects, post-Avengers.
So what do you think? Does this look like something you'd tune into on a weekly basis? Do you think that really might be Luke Cage on show? Leave your thoughts, suggestions about what we've missed and Rising Tide-esque conspiracy theories about Coulson's seeming resurrection in the comments below.
