By Eric Goldman
Going the classic route of introducing us to a team via a newcomer, Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. — which was shown as a surprise at San Diego Comic-Con — begins with Agent Grant Ward (Brett Dalton), a S.H.I.E.L.D. badass used to working on his own. But Ward’s skill set has put him on the radar of Agent Maria Hill (guest star Cobie Smulders, reprising her Avengers role)… Oh, and a guy named Agent Phil Coulson (Clark Gregg).
It seems Coulson — whose miraculous resurrection is explained (in a way – more on that later) — is putting together a squad to investigate the emerging world of superheroes and villains, and Ward is his latest recruit. Coulson has also brought in young specialists Fitz (Iain De Caestecker) and Simmons (Elizabeth Henstridge) and a veteran S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, Melinda May (Ming-Na Wen), with a mysterious past of her own. Soon this new group, part of “Level 7,” are on the hunt for a man (J. August Richards) who used his superhuman abilities to save someone from a fire, with Coulson warning that other far more nefarious groups are no doubt seeking this person as well.
