The Agent Carter Teaser Does Not Suck

The first teaser for the new ABC series has landed, and you can watch it right now.

Yesterday, Marvel made the Internet’s face melt with a spectacular infodrop that included its full slate of Phase 3 films, as well as an extended preview of Avengers: Age of Ultron. And tucked into all of that was the release of the first official teaser for Agent Carter, which you’ll notice you can watch right here.

When I had the chance to talk to the show’s producers during San Diego Comic Con last summer , not a single scene of Marvel’s Agent Carter had been shot. Even so, what I heard at the time blew me away.

The Agent Carter production staff talked about not only the show’s strong feminist themes* and possible tie-ins to Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.. They also discussed the striking possibility that if the miniseries is a success, episodes produced beyond the initial order of 8 may jump around throughout Agent Carter’s career with SHIELD. That would allow the show to explore different eras from her perspective, giving greater context to the MCU and pulling off some social commentary at the same time.

But back in July, the show had yet to begin filming and only the pilot episode had been written. A lot can go wrong from conception to execution, especially on television. So however exciting the show sounded, that’s all there was to it – sound. Fast forward to today. Yeah, it’s short, almost content free. But it looks gorgeous. I especially like the subtle airbrush effect that makes it look almost noir-ish, or at least like vintage television. Definitely evocative of the late 1940s period in which it’s set.

We’ll have to wait a bit longer to know if the show is good, but I think I can say this: if it’s anything like the cold open to the season premier of Marvel’s Agents of SHIELD – which you’ll notice Marvel has also released online – I suspect we’re going to be happy. But enough about me, what do you think? Sound off in comments.

Meanwhile, here’s the official 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, Marvel’s “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. He empowers his butler, Edwin Jarvis (James D’Arcy, “Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World”), to be at her beck and call when needed to help assist her as she investigates and tracks down those responsible for releasing these weapons of mass destruction. But Jarvis, who is a creature of habit and sticks to a rigid daily routine, is going to have to make some major life changes if he’s going to be able to keep up with Peggy.

If caught going on these secret missions for Stark, Peggy could be targeted as a traitor and spend the rest of her days in prison – or worse. And as she delves deeper into her investigation, she may find that those she works for are not who they seem, and she might even begin to question whether Stark is as innocent as he claims.

* Before anyone argues, there is literally no other way to describe a show that makes the fact that a woman post-WWII was not afforded an equal measure of respect by male peers in any field a central plot point.