During Comic-Con, Marvel unveiled the pilot to its hotly anticipated "Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D." during a press conference led by Joss Whedon. The series is expected to premiere on September 24 and will take place in the same place as the hugely popular "Avengers" movies.
"It's a world where people have gone from knowing about a billionaire with a crazy metal suit and there's been one or two Hulk sightings to this world with a race of alien warriors blasting through a wormhole and a couple of kooks from Asgard. It's a world after that," said Clark Gregg, who plays Phil Coulson.
"It's a roving, first-response team that is going to tackle old and new business of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s and -- I have a feeling -- of Marvel's," Gregg added. "This is a show built around the people who basically are represented by Coulson in the movies, the people who don't have superpowers but have to deal in a world where superpowers exist."
Aside from Gregg, the show will feature Cobie Smulders in the role of Agent Maria Hill that she played in "The Avengers."
According to Entertainment Weekly, "When Marvel TV head Jeph Loeb revealed the 'clip' of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. was the entire pilot, Ballroom 20 broke into cheers."
The publication provided brief impressions and spoilers on the opening episode in the series. Writer James Hibberd noted that the pilot for the series featured a group of new recruits trying to chase down a man victimized by an experiment that gives him combustible powers. "The first episode was very much a weekly procedural drama, with plenty of little character teases to keep you interested," wrote Hibberd.
Entertainment Weekly goes on to comment on "Whedonesque" dialogue and notes that Gregg is the most potent presence in the pilot.
The review did note that the first episode was less action-packed than expected but noted that it helped set expectations at a reasonable level.