Marvel Studios’ run in the TV sector is going stronger now, with ABC’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. second season earning respect from critics and viewers alike. However, S.H.I.E.L.D. was always meant to be the beginning of a whole new small-screen slate - and that’s where the upcoming limited series event, Agent Carter, comes into play.

Starring Hayley Atwell in a reprisal of her Captain America: The First Avenger role of Peggy Carter, the new series will track the early days of S.H.I.E.L.D. and its first great field agent. Most recently, we got a small taste of what we can expect from the new series, and that glimpse left us with one burning question: when, exactly, are we going to get more?


Well, for a while now it’s been known that the series will premiere next January, but Marvel has now officially set Agent Carter to debut January 6th, 2015 in S.H.I.E.L.D.’s current time slot of 9/8c. Of course, S.H.I.E.L.D. will return to its rightful place on the schedule two months later, after Carter‘s first season has finished its eight-episode run.
Currently, there are only eight episodes planned for Carter, but should the ratings take off, there’s potential for more (though a season two won’t happen until 2016, most likely). As for casting, the Agent Carter ensemble includes Dominic Cooper back as young Howard Stark, along with Chad Michael Murray (One Tree Hill) as Agent Jack Thompson, Enver Gjokaj (Dollhouse) as Agent Daniel Sousa, and James D’Arcy (Cloud Atlas) as Edwin Jarvis.

Here is the basic gist of the storyline for Agent Carter‘s first season (for additional details, read the extended synopsis):

It’s 1946 and peace has dealt Peggy a serious blow as she finds herself marginalized when the men return home from fighting abroad. Working for the covert SSR (Strategic Scientific Reserve), Peggy finds herself stuck doing administrative work when she would rather be back out in the field; putting her vast skills into play and taking down the bad guys. But she is also trying to navigate life as a single woman in America, in the wake of losing the love of her life, Steve Rogers – aka Captain America.

When old acquaintance Howard Stark (Dominic Cooper, Captain America: The First Avenger) finds himself being framed for unleashing his deadliest weapons to anyone willing to pony up the cash, he contacts Peggy – the only person he can trust – to track down those responsible, dispose of the weapons and clear his name.

Agent Carter cover Marvels Agent Carter Gets an Official Premiere Date on ABC

Tara Butters and Michele Fazekas (Reaper) will serve as co-showrunners on Agent Carter‘s debut season, while Marvel’s TV department “brain trust” – Louis D’Esposito, Alan Fine, Joe Quesada, Stan Lee and Jeph Loeb – all serve as additional executive producers. Meanwhile, both the directors (Joe Johnston and the Russo Brothers) and the writers (Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely) of the Captain America movies will be leading a helping hand in some form with Agent Carter season one.

As far as the fan perspective goes, it’s going to be interesting to finally see what else Marvel TV’s capable of. Now that the Jeph Loeb run division’s established itself as a creative unit with a vision thanks to the announcement of four upcoming Netflix series, a lot of good-will’s been given to everyone involved. The big challenge now is proving Marvel can deliver on something as ambitious as a period-piece, espionage drama. If they can pull that off, that’ll instill all the more confidence in the future of Marvel’s TV wing.

Agent Carter Preview

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. continues next Tuesday, November 11th, with “The Writing on the Wall” @9pm on ABC.

Agent Carter premieres in that same time slot on January 6th, 2015.