DC Vs Marvel: Who Is Winning The Superhero TV War?

6. The Marvel Cinematic Universe On The Small Screen: The Birth, Fall And Resurrection Of SHIELD

DC might have ruled ruled the silver screen with Superman and Batman, but then Iron Man and the birth of The Avengers changed all that. Suddenly superheroes lived in the same movie universe, even crossing over and teaming up just as they did in the comics from where they came. As phase 1 can to a triumphant end, Marvel naturally wanted to get in on the TV front as well. Agents Of SHIELD struggled in its early days; the expectation of following The Avengers and Joss Whedon on a executive producer meant it could never possibly live up to expectations. More than that, the show failed to get the balance right between humour and drama and by failing to utilise existing characters from the comics, the cast felt a little...bland. The events of Captain America: The Winter Soldier changed all that as the war with HYDRA changed the dynamic of the show and season two finally became the confident, dramatic show audiences had been expecting from day one. The arrival of comic-based characters like Mockingbird certainly helped and leading the Marvel Cinematic Universe's introduction into The Inhumans, rather than relying on the movies for inspiration, was another step towards it success. With Secret Warriors looking to be adapted for the small screen in season three, the best might be yet to come. There is also another show that found its footing from day one and has arguably been more critically successful in its first eight episode run than all of Agents Of SHIELD's two seasons. Agent Carter did something special with the Marvel Cinematic Universe and created an origin show for SHIELD while utilizing the successful character of Peggy Carter to create a slick, fun, female-led show in a way that the movies have yet to do. Captain Marvel might be the first Marvel female superhero-centric film, but Agent Carter got their first, proving that you don't need a Norse god or a man in an iron suit to succeed. Thankfully UK audiences will finally get to experience Agent Carter for themselves when it debuts on Fox this month.