Yay for Season 6 of Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.!
I was very excited to hear that Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. has been renewed for a sixth season. It had been a nail biter as to whether it would be renewed with the series actually ending this season as if it were a series finale. The title of the episode is aptly named "The End."
Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., I think, has gotten a bad rap. With Joss Whedon attached, Clark Gregg's beloved Agent Phil Coulson leading the team and the promise that everything Marvel does the movies and television would be connected, it had a lot of expectations riding on it. And, sadly, the first season didn't meet those expectations. At least, not until later when the show tied in to Captain America: The Winter Soldier and Hydra's infiltration of S.H.I.E.L.D. But, by that time, the show lost many of its viewers.
The series never really truly feels like its connected to the greater Marvel Cinematic Universe, comfortable to sit within its own little pocket. Many of us have either forgotten or forgiven (or both) the transgressions to focus on what we love and to enjoy the occasional Easter Egg they throw at us. I don't need for the show to constantly mention the Avengers and what they're doing to enjoy it.
I have watched the series from the beginning and have faithfully watched over the last five seasons, through both the good and bad. So, I was sad about having to say good-bye to these characters that I have come to love. I've spoken at length about my love of FitzSimmons, but I love all of them. That's what the show is to me, the development of these great characters that started out a little one-dimensionally and have now fully become fleshed out.
I've always been a fan of Ming-Na Wen's since I saw her in The Joy Luck Club.
Side note: Why isn't Ming-Na Wen a Disney Legend? Her first big role was The Joy Luck Club under Disney's Hollywood Pictures imprint. She has voiced the classic Disney "princess" Mulan through movies and television shows, including this fall's Ralph Breaks The Internet: Wreck-It Ralph 2. And, she plays Agent Melinda May on Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.. She just needs a role in Star Wars and she has all her Disney bases covered. LOL. No, but really, why isn't she?
Anyway, as I was saying, I've always been a fan of Ming-Na Wen's. While her character's personality on the show has remained somewhat stern throughout, we understand why she is the way she is now and the choices she's had to make. And, it's been a fun journey watching the subtleties of May's development.
In the second season, the show introduced the Inhumans to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, adding a new layer to one of the cor characters. Skye (Chloe Bennett) went from unknown hacker to being famous super powered S.H.I.E.L.D. Agent Daisy Johnson (aka Quake). She is now a seasoned field agent and commander. The show also added a couple of other characters from the comics in Alphonso "Mack" Mackenzie (Henry Simmons) and Yo-Yo Rodriguez (Natalia Cordova-Buckley). This season, Yo-Yo even received her robotic arms that she has in the comics. Also in the comics, both Yo-Yo and Daisy served on the Secret Warriors after the Skrull invasion.
And, now, we've seen characters from the show crossover into the comics themselves. Melinda May and FitzSimmons were introduced in the 2014 S.H.I.E.L.D. comic book series.
Next season will be an abbreviated 13 episodes as opposed to a full 22 episodes. It will also air next summer rather during the fall. Personally, I think this is good news all around. Twenty-two episodes is long for any series, leaving a season with lots of filler. Up until last year, Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. was full of filler because it was trying to do one continuous season long storyline. But, over the last two seasons, they started dividing the season into two separate, but connected, storylines. And I think that has served the series well. Just having the 13 episodes will allow them to tighten their storytelling even more.
The summer should also allow it to find a greater audience as people look for shows to watch while the fall/spring seasons are in hiatus. Hopefully, people who gave the series up will pick the show up again.
“What we’ve discovered is that we have a very loyal and passionate fan base for S.H.I.E.L.D.. The show does incredibly well for us in delayed viewing,” ABC Entertainment president Channing Dungey told TVLine. “By putting it in the summer, we’re going to be able to super-serve the fan base that loves that show and hopefully give it an opportunity to continue on longer than we would if it was [scheduled] in-season.”
I'm also hoping, with the abbreviated series, that ABC will give the show more budget for special effects and locations. One of my constant irritations of the show is that every episode seems to take place in some kind of warehouse. And, while I thought the look and the way they animated Ghost Rider last season was amazing, the budget didn't allow Robbie Reyes (Gabriel Luna) to stay Ghost Rider for very long. So, it almost always looked like a regular guy as the Spirit of Vengeance. I often wonder what would have happened if the season was shorter and didn't divide the season with the "LMD" storyline. I'm hoping this might mean a chance to make the show look better.
Whatever happens, I'm just glad to see the show returning and to continue to enjoy these characters I've grown to love. I'm elated that this Friday's episode really isn't "The End." Yay for season six!