4. But No Longer Feeling Restrained By The Movies.

One of the biggest criticism of the early days of Agents Of SHIELD was that it felt too limited by its big movie counterparts. Stories were framed around the fallout of the Battle of New York and the London incident in Thor: The Dark World. And while the fall of SHIELD in Captain America: The Winter Soldier gave the show the boost it needed, it still didn’t feel that it could work without those strings being pulled.

The groundwork was laid in the first half of season two last year - The Inhumans – but it was in 2015 where Agents Of SHIELD started to have the confidence to shape the Marvel Cinematic Universe without being beholden to the movies. While not every element of the ‘war with Skye’s mother’ in season two worked, it demonstrated a renewed confidence that has continued into season three with the Secret Warriors storyline. (Here in the UK we have yet to see the third season but everything we’re hearing suggests it is a success).

The fact is when there was a ‘crossover’ with The Avengers: Age Of Ultron late in season two, the show worked despite not around it. And while we might not see the major characters from Inhumans until 2019, Agents Of SHIELD has laid the foundations a whole five years early.