Marvel/ABC had to get it right… It is perhaps the most important show to premiere on ABC in the Iger era. And it looks like Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. is off to a good start. The show opened a strong No. 1 in the time period with Adults 18-49 (4.6/14), defeating NBC’s Tuesday premiere of The Voice by 15% (4.0/12) and CBS’ season premiere of NCIS by 35% (3.4/10), to qualify as TV’s highest rated drama debut in nearly 4 years – since 11/3/09. It was also Tuesday’s No. 1 TV show in Adults 18-49 (tie) and across all key Men demographics (M18-34/M18-49/M25-54). And despite the strong competition, the self-starting ABC drama gained young adults from its first half-hour to its second half-hour. Now it is hard to know how the show will hold up, but so far so good.
Most of ABC’s marketing dollar was spent on this one show. There are eight shows on ABC’s fall schedule, but you will be hard pressed to find an ad for any of the other eight. That is despite the show they are putting their promotional dollar in airing in a tough timeslot going against NBC’s “The Voice” and CBS’s “NCIS”. Let’s look at what ABC had riding on this show.
Most of ABC’s lineup is female driven with Grey’s Anatomy having an audience that is 76% female and with Once Upon a Time’s audience being 67% female. ABC is looking to broaden its brand and Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. might have been the key, with 58% of the show’s audience being male. If the show has staying power, S.H.I.E.LD. could be a gateway to more male-dominated shows to give ABC some more balance.
Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. could help show why ABC should remain a part of the Disney family. Disney has been moving more toward focusing on branded franchises such as Marvel, Disney, ESPN, and Star Wars,. ABC as a big tent network lacks much branding or identity. For example, it is unlikely to want to visit an ABC Store or play an ABC social game. If Marvel is able to show that a franchise show can draw eyeballs in a crowded marketplace, this could open the door to further branded shows in the primetime lineup. If ABC gives Disney’s franchises an avenue for broadcast, the calls for spinning off or selling the network should be calmed. It is also of note that Pixar’s Toy Story of Terror Halloween special will be airing as part of ABC’s hit Wednesday comedy lineup.
If the show is a success it could do great things for the Marvel brand. Having a weekly reminder of the universe the films have built could help sustain demand between films. However, if the show should have quality issues it could harm the Marvel brand which could hurt the highly successful film franchise. Disney does not want to kill the goose that lays golden eggs.
So how does Disney ensure this doesn’t happen? The same way they ensure Episode VII does not kill the Star Wars franchise which they just paid $4 billion for. Make it good. Full disclosure: I am a big superhero fan. But that being said, I knew it would be hard to meet my expectations. The show had a tough hand dealt to it. It needed to fit within the Marvel Cinematic Universe, it couldn’t rely on the superheroes that star in the movies, it had to have a cinematic level of action with a TV budget. That being said, I fell in love with the show when I saw it at Comic-Con. The humor, the characters, and Phil Coulson all met my needs. That being said, seeing the show in San Diego among the faithful enhanced the experience as every Marvel Easter-egg was recognized with infectious excitement.
I want this show to succeed for several reasons. I want more Marvel on a weekly basis, twice a year was not meeting my needs. I want ABC to have a hit that it desperately needs. I also want more of these types of shows. A J.J. Abrams produced Star Wars television series or the rumored Agent Carter TV-series would both be destination entertainment for it. So please Marvel and ABC… keep making the show good.
If you missed the pilot, ABC will be re-airing it on Thursday at 8/7c. The second episode, “0-8-4” airs 10/1 on ABC.