Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.’s 2015 Fall Finale, ‘Maveth’, airs next week (at the time of writing this) and will bring the initial half of a season full of exciting storylines concerning Inhumans, HYDRA operatives, and mysterious portals to other planets to a temporary resting spot. Agent Carter shall take S.H.I.E.L.D.’s Tuesday evening spot while the latter goes on its mid-season break - and the second season of Peggy Carter’s solo adventures aims to maintain the pace established by its Marvel/ABC series predecessor of late, at the same time.
However, those anticipating Hayley Atwell’s return to the small screen will have to wait a little longer - now that the Agent Carter season 2 opener has been pushed back a couple weeks from its previously-announced January 2016 premiere date.
Deadline is reporting that Agent Carter season 2 is now set to begin its run on ABC on January 19th, 2016, following the announcement that U.S. President Barack Obama will deliver his State of the Union Address one week earlier, on January 12th. ABC has originally slated Agent Carter to return on January 5th based on the expectation that the 2016 SOTU would (in all likelihood) take place on either the 19th or 26th of that month. However, since that won’t be the case after all, the network has decided to shift the Carter premiere, rather than air it and then have the show go on a two-week break
The other downside is that Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.’s 2016 return date will presumably be pushed back from its previously-set March 8th date too, since it was originally lined up to re-start the week after the Agent Carter season 2 finale. It’s only a delay of two weeks at most, but seeing as the S.H.I.E.L.D. Fall Finale looks to leave viewers on a tantalizing cliff-hanger - building on the dramatic developments that unfolded in ‘Closure’ - anything that leaves them waiting longer for Coulson and friends to return won’t come as welcome news, regardless.
In more welcome news, though, Agent Carter season 2 looks to hit the ground running, when it does get started. This next season of the historical espionage adventure series will be be introducing more Marvel Comics villains - with Wynn Everett (The Newsroom) as Whitney Frost (a.k.a. Madame Masque) being the season’s big bad - and other characters with key ties to the larger Marvel Cinematic Universe mythos, including possibly Peggy’s future husband. Moreover, show-runners Tara Butters and Michele Fazekas have said this new season will very much be influenced by its change in location to 1940s Los Angeles:
Marvel Studios’ TV series have become increasingly successful at distinguishing themselves from one another through their genre elements (see the neo-Noir thrills of Jessica Jones vs. the crime drama of Daredevil, for example), and Agent Carter season 2 looks to likewise feature a stronger historical serial adventure flavor than season 1 did - for the better, too. Indeed, now that season 1 has provided some closure to the events in Captain America: The First Avenger (showing Peggy dealing with the aftermath of Steve Roger’s “death”), season 2 can have more fun with the 1940s version of the MCU.
“In Los Angeles, you have the spectacular wealth, glamour and beauty right next to the grit and crime—often right up against each other. We’re very much being inspired by Noir films.”
Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. continues next Tuesday with ‘Maveth’ at 9 p.m. on ABC. Agent Carter season 2 will premiere on ABC on January 19th, 2016.
Source: Deadline
