Posts tagged #agents of s.h.i.e.l.d.

"This Week on Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D." Podcast

JoBlo Review of "MAOS: Season One Declassified"

(Awesome image with Lola cameo by the good folks at SHIELDtv.net)

At risk of patting myself on the back, during a regular visit to JoBlo.com, I caught a review of the Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Season One Declassified book that made me so damn happy that I had to share.

From JoBlo.com:

While the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Season One Declassified is equally beautiful in design and execution, it is not a mere art book. With Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. delivering over 20 hours of Marvel goodness, this book serves more as an episode guide for the freshman season. The opening chapters give a background on the origin of the series with comic book history for the organization. There is also a nice section on the return of Phil Coulson and how Clark Gregg's portrayal has permeated the entire Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Each chapter covers an episode of the season, giving a synopsis of the plot, key easter eggs you may have missed, and even the running behavioral themes from each character that you may have missed on first viewing. The biggest perk of this book is learning all of the Marvel Comics references that were peppered through each episode. We may have seen the character references and appearances from Deathlok and Graviton, but there were numerous other ones you may have missed.

In addition, almost every episode comes with a schematic, map, or diagram of a key scene from that episode. These are very cool treats for fans of the show as they can both see how the show developed these intricate scenes as well as a nice way to delve deeper into the series. The layout fo the book acts as if it is a S.H.I.E.L.D. computer, so everything appears encoded and gives the impression that the reader is accessing this top secret database of information.

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. got a lot of criticism for having an unbalanced debut season. While it didn't quite find its legs until the final half dozen episodes, this book supports that the showrunners and producers had a definite idea of where they wanted the show to go. There are few hints at where the upcoming second season my go, but if they plan to put one of these books out every season, it would be well worth the investment for fans.

In Stores Now: Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Season One Declassified

Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Season One Declassified - published by Marvel - in all its glory.

I was sitting having lunch during a break on the set of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. with three of the amazing Marvel folks that work on the show, Megan Thomas Bradner, Samantha Thomas and Emma Fleischer. As often happens on a film set, the conversation turned existential and we started talking about things that we've always wanted to do in our lives.

As a kid growing up in Franktown, Colorado my only exposure to the behind the scenes of films and TV were the short segments on Entertainment Tonight, Scott Patrick's occasional Hollywood One-on-One show that aired at one in the morning on KUSA, and the amazing "Making Of" books that were readily available at the library. Lengthy love letters to films that poured over every detail, gave you glimpses at concept art, behind the scenes photos, deleted scenes, and storyboards that gave you a slice of what it was like to be a part of the production. I probably still hold the record for most times Alan Arnold's Once Upon a Galaxy: A Journal of the Making of Empire Strikes Back was checked out from the Parker Public Library. Don Shay and Jody Duncan's Making of Jurassic Park was a volume that read cover to cover more times than I could count on family road trips. I still guard a copy of Making Ghostbusters as if it were my birth certificate. And J.W. Rinzler's amazing Making Of books for the Star Wars trilogy as of late have been absolutely outstanding.

So, in that moment at lunch, I mentioned that I'd always wanted to write making of books like those I had grown up reading. I don't know where it came from. Like Ray Stantz says, "it just popped in there." But apparently those three amazing Marvel execs took note, and several weeks later they had vouched for me and helped me embark on my first adventure as a Making Of book author.

My wife was kind enough to photograph me like Christmas morning when the final copy arrived via FedEx on 7/11/14.

In the introduction of the book, you'll read that I had the pleasure of chronicling one of the most welcoming and familial sets on which I've ever had the pleasure of working. One of the absolutely enduring things about some film sets is that a bond is created with those that work on the show and no matter what the challenges are, that warm kindness never fades. Long days and late nights didn't stop many from always greeting me with a smile and a handshake or a chuck on the shoulder. You often hear people speak of their sets feeling like a family, but this is one that it's the absolute truth.

What resulted with the book is a cool hybrid between an episode guide and analysis, behind the scenes, and a reference book that makes me immensely proud. My hope is that it gives fans old and new a background on the series' origins, some insight that helps them see the series through the writers room's eyes, and that it's something that can be read and re-read as many times as I tore through that Making of Jurassic Park book. Marvel always does such an incredible job with their Art Of books, that I can only hope this is a fitting companion to those awesome compilations.

In the Acknowledgements, there were far too many people to thank to list. The amazing editors that were patient and kind probably would have flogged me for trying. Those that championed for me, that helped me out by sending me photos and information, who spent huge chunks of time in the middle of trying to finish out the tail end of a whirlwind first season's worth of episodes to sit down and conduct interviews for the book with me. Here's just a handful of those names of people who I owe an enormous debt to for so many reasons, and whose book this truly is regardless of who it says wrote it (and apologies to any that I've left out still):

Sabrina Arnold, Scott Bauer, Jeffrey Bell, John Bernstein, Thomas Boucher, Megan Thomas Bradner, Garry A. Brown, Sarah Brunstad, Katie Carroll, "Chewie", Marc Christie, Gary D'Amico, D.J. Doyle, Allen Easton, Sarah Halley Finn, Emma Fleischer, Brent Fletcher, Ann Foley, Blair Foord, Shalisha Francis, Kenn Fuller, Tanner Gill, Tamara Hunter, Kyle Jewell, Rafe Judkins, George Kitson, Mark Kolpack, Harmony Kummer, Brian Kwan, Lauren LeFranc, Jeph Loeb, Lee Malin, Geoffrey Mandel, Bear McCreary, Gregory Melton, Monica Owusu-Breen, Denise Anderson Poore, Corey Reeser, Greg Rementer, Nelson Ribeiro, Erin Shade, Arune Singh, Daniel Spilatro, Sonya Strich, Samantha Thomas, Aiyana Trotter, Joe Quesada, John Vertrees, Jed Whedon, Joss Whedon, Maurissa Tancharoen Whedon, Maileen Williams, Jeff Youngquist, Paul Zbyszewski and so many others including the amazing cast who was so patient with me, that it's not even funny.

The truth is, I had the time of my life working on this book. For me, having that volume on my shelf will remind me of the amazing time that I had and the incredible people that I met in the process. I'm so tremendously grateful to have been a small part of everything, and can't wait to take all that I've learned from them into whatever the next adventure may bring.

ABC Renews Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Picks Up Agent Carter

The Cast of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s freshman season sees the really big door behind them open up to a second season. (Courtesy ABC)

According to the official Marvel site, and confirmed by show runners, cast and crew via Twitter, Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. has been renewed for a second season. Along side the show is the oft-discussed but never confirmed Agent Carter series, which has been ordered straight to a season order (skipping the formality of filming a pilot and running through the trials that many shows often have to endure).

Obviously this is great news for Marvel fans and fans of great genre television as it means not one but two more shows to look forward to this fall revolving around the extraordinary. For those that might have fallen off the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. train early in the season, I would really encourage you to go back and give it another try, especially in this post-Captain America: The Winter Soldier arc that the show is currently exploring.

For more information including casting as well as how many episodes to expect and when, I would expect ABC's upfronts presentation to reveal (at least some) answers. Stay tuned!

Posted on May 9, 2014 and filed under Comic Books, TV.