11 Years Ago Today, Agents of SHIELD Introduced Marvel Television’s Best Characters (But the MCU Has Ignored Them)

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In 2014, the TV show Agents of SHIELD introduced several now-iconic Marvel characters. However, in the eleven years since, the larger Marvel Cinematic Universe has largely overlooked them. As the first TV series spun off from The Avengers, Agents of SHIELD helped pave the way for later shows like the Netflix Defenders series and the Marvel shows on Disney+. While it’s now been confirmed that Agents of SHIELD isn’t officially part of the main MCU storyline, the show’s seven seasons still introduced a lot of great characters who could have enriched the universe.

Fans were excited about the possibility of seeing Phil Coulson and his SHIELD team reappear in the main Marvel Cinematic Universe, but the introduction of the Inhumans on Agents of SHIELD ultimately had a bigger potential impact. The Inhumans were first revealed in the episode “What They Become” (season 2, episode 10) which originally aired on ABC on December 9, 2014—over 11 years ago. This storyline was one of the most innovative and popular parts of Agents of SHIELD, and Inhumans remained a key element throughout the series. However, the MCU has largely overlooked this superpowered group.

Why Marvel Has Mostly Ignored Inhumans Since Agents of SHIELD

The episode “What They Become” confirmed that Skye, played by Chloe Bennet, was actually Daisy Johnson, a character from Marvel Comics who first appeared in 2004. After introducing Inhumans to the show Agents of SHIELD, the series spent several years developing storylines around them, including their secret community called Afterlife, the spread of Terrigen across the oceans, the return of the original Inhuman, Hive, and the creation of Daisy Johnson’s Secret Warriors team. Given the wealth of stories the Inhumans offered, it’s surprising that the wider Marvel Cinematic Universe hasn’t explored them further.

The Inhumans were first introduced in the show Agents of SHIELD, and Marvel planned to create a separate series for them in 2017. However, the Inhumans show was a critical and commercial flop. While it suggested audiences weren’t interested in the characters, this might not have been entirely true. Because of the show’s poor performance, Marvel Studios largely ignored the Inhumans for a while. But the recent appearance of Black Bolt (played by Anson Mount) in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness hints that Marvel might be reconsidering these characters.

Marvel Studios plans to heavily feature mutants – including the X-Men – starting with Phase 7 of the MCU and beyond. While mutants will be a major focus, the Inhumans won’t be left out. The differences between these two groups could even create conflict, potentially leading to prejudice against mutants, a key element of their stories. Following Black Bolt’s appearance in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, fans are hoping to see more Inhumans properly integrated into the MCU, with a better approach than their previous appearances in Agents of SHIELD or their standalone series.

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2025-12-09 19:41