The March 15th episode of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. "Inside Man" marks the 100th Television episode of the MCU. Quite an achievement in only 2.5 years!* That's 56 Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. episodes, 18 Agent Carter, 13 Daredevil and 13 Jessica Jones.
With the 2nd season of Daredevil coming up in only a few days, the rest of season 3 and all of season 4 (and maybe beyond?) of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., the first seasons of Luke Cage, Iron Fist and The Defenders, and with others shows in various stages of development including Most Wanted, Damage Control and a potential Agent Carter Season 3... I imagine we'll get to 200 pretty quickly.
For those counting, the DC Television series in the same continuity is well over a 100 (no matter how you count i.e. if you include Constantine, Vixen and Supergirl or not).
This is my look at my best 10 episodes of the MCU TV universe so far. My opinion will be different to yours, so please let me know in the comments. I should note that I'm rating individual episodes, so shows like Daredevil and Jessica Jones are at times disadvantaged as they have a greater focus on the season arc. I've also cheated at times by including 2 part episodes as 1.
They may not have major movie connections, but they have all carved out their own corner in the MCU. I think all 4 shows add depth to the world of the MCU.
10. "SNAFU"
Series: Agent Carter #1x07
Starring: Hayley Atwell, James D'Arcy, Chad Michael Murray, Enver Gjokaj, Shea Whigham
Recurring Stars: Ralph Brown, Bridget Regan, Lesley Boone
Guest Stars: Sarah Bloom
Written by: Chris Dingess
Directed by: Vincent Misiano
Season 1 of Agent Carter comes to ahead, with Ivchenko controlling Dooley for an explosive conclusion! Agent Carter's first season was tight, slow burn story telling. The result of which came up with the MCU's most developed and likely most popular female character.
My favourite Agent Carter episode! The Howling Commandos, we got to see Peggy in her element, great character development for Thompson, introduce the Black Widow program and moved forward the season's overall story. And the action scenes were great :)
8. "Closure"/"Maveth"
Series: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. #3x09-10
Starring: Clark Gregg, Ming-Na Wen, Brett Dalton, Chloe Bennet, Iain De Caestecker, Elizabeth Henstridge, Nick Blood, Adrianne Palicki, Henry Simmons, Luke Mitchell
Recurring Stars: Powers Boothe, Constance Zimmer, Juan Pablo Raba, Andrew Howard, Mark Dacascos, Blair Underwood
Guest Stars: Tyler Ritter, Dillon Casey
Written by: Brent Fletcher, Jeffrey Bell
Directed by: Kate Woods, Vincent Misiano
Phil Coulson is a bad-ass. I've combined two episodes that largely form the same story (sue me). Coulson demonstrated why Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. is his damn show - from jumping out of a plane into a portal to killing Ward in cold blood, he really demonstrated his worthiness of being the lead character. Whole bunch of other stuff going on also, particularly some more Fitz and Simmons angst.
7. "S.O.S."
Series: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. #2x21-22
Starring: Clark Gregg, Ming-Na Wen, Brett Dalton, Chloe Bennet, Iain De Caestecker, Elizabeth Henstridge, Nick Blood, Adrianne Palicki
Recurring Stars: Kyle MacLachlan, Henry Simmons, Dichen Lachman, Ruth Negga, Jamie Harris, Maya Stojan, Luke Mitchell, Christine Adams, Mark Allan Stewart, Blair Underwood, Alicia Vela-Bailey
Written by: Jeffrey Bell, Maurissa Tancharoen, Jed Whedon
Directed by: Billy Gierhart, Vincent Misiano
The season 2 final of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. had a lot to like. Mostly Mack and his axe. Coulson loses a hand. Jaiying loses the battle. Skye loses a mother. Fitz loses Simmons. Cal loses his memory. Ward loses his Agent 33. Bobbi gains a bullet. Lots of loss! Which makes for compelling TV.
6. "Speak of the Devil"
Series: Daredevil #1x09
Starring: Charlie Cox, Deborah Ann Woll, Elden Henson, Toby Leonard Moore, Vondie Curtis-Hall, Ayelet Zurer, Vincent D'Onofrio
Recurring Stars: Peter McRobbie, Peter Shinkoda, Royce Johnson, Judith Delgado, Susan Varon, Tommy Walker
Written by: Christos Gage, Ruth Fletcher Gage
Directed by: Nelson McCormick
If I was to rank each season of MCU TV, Daredevil would be #1. But, it was often tough to pick some real stand out episodes. I picked this one ultimately - because it was structured around Matt's fight with Nobu (which was great), things got real with Karen and Foggy with a death of a friend, before Foggy finds out Matt's secret. This felt like an individual episode, while keeping the story moving. That's what you'd like to see.
5. "What They Become"
Series: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. #2x10
Starring: Clark Gregg, Ming-Na Wen, Brett Dalton, Chloe Bennet, Iain De Caestecker, Elizabeth Henstridge, Nick Blood
Recurring Stars: Kyle McLachlan, B.J. Britt, Henry Simmons, Adrianne Palicki, Ruth Negga, Reed Diamond, Patton Oswalt, Jamie Harris
Written by: Jeffrey Bell
Directed by: Michael Zinberg
Inhumans! They'd teased us all season, before finally revealing that Skye and Raina were Inhumans. It was a very dramatic sequence with Mack being possessed, Cal's revenge kick against Whitehall, Skye shooting Ward, and of course, the death of Tripp. Another game changer for S.H.I.E.L.D.
4. "AKA WWJD"/"AKA Sin Bin"
Series: Jessica Jones #1x08-09
Starring: Krysten Ritter, Rachael Taylor, Wil Traval, Erin Moriarty, Eka Darville, Carrie-Anne Moss, David Tennant
Recurring Stars: Susie Abromeit, Robin Weigert, Elizabeth Cappuccino, Albert Thompson, Clarke Peters, Lisa Emery, Danielle Ferland, Gillian Glasco, Ryan Farrell, Paul Pryce
Guest Stars: Kathleen Doyle, James Freedson-Jackson, Miriam Shor, James Colby, Billy McFadden, Thomas Kopache
Written by: Scott Reynolds, Dana Baratta, Jamie King
Directed by: Simon Cellan Jones, John Dahl
I thought Jessica Jones was great. But going through each individual episode, I struggled to pick a stand-out. Except for episodes 8 and 9 of the series, which I've cheated and included as one episode. The first part focusing on David Tennant's Kilgrave 'gifting' Jessica her childhood home in an incredible surreal and creepy way, before Jessica trying to use Kilgrave's ability for good. Ultimately Jessica traps Kilgrave and we get a real insight into his past, before, of course, the shit hits the fan.
3. "4,722 Hours"
Series: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. #3x05
Starring: Clark Gregg, Ming-Na Wen, Iain De Caestecker, Elizabeth Henstridge
Guest Stars: Dillon Casey
Written by: Jesse Bochco
Directed by: Craig Titley
I always love it when shows mix-it-up. This could almost be considered a vehicle to demonstrate Elizabeth Henstridge's acting talents, and for a show that has a large ensemble cast, it was a pleasant change of pace to focus just on Jemma Simmons and her struggles off-world on Maveth. Not only does it work well as an individual episode, it also moves the season story forward.
2. "Into the Ring"/"Cut Man"
Series: Daredevil #1x01-02
Starring: Charlie Cox, Deborah Ann Woll, Elden Henson, Toby Leonard Moore, Bob Gunton, Rosario Dawson, Vincent D'Onofrio
Recurring Stars: Peter McRobbie, Daryl Edwards, Chris Tardio, Rob Morgan, Wai Ching Ho, Royce Johnson, Peter Skinkoda, Nikolai Nikolaeff, Susan Varon
Guest Stars: Peter Gerety, John Patrick Hayden, Skylar Gaertner, Alex Falberg, Gideon Emery
Written by: Drew Goddard
Directed by: Phil Abraham
A first taste of the gritty nature of Netflix Marvel, Daredevil has showed the darker corner of the MCU. I was hooked from the first 2 episodes. Together, they form an origin of sorts for Matt Murdock. Showing his accident, his struggles and his father's sacrifice for the future. While in present day we are introduced to new characters and new conspiracy, before it all being topped off with that amazing hallway fight scene.
1. "Turn, Turn, Turn"
Series: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. #1x17
Starring: Clark Gregg, Ming-Na Wen, Brett Dalton, Chloe Bennet, Iain De Caestecker, Elizabeth Henstridge
Recurring Stars: Bill Paxton, Saffron Burrows, B.J. Britt, Christine Adams
Written by: Jed Whedon, Maurissa Tancharoen
Directed by: Vincent Misiano
This was one of the best television experiences I've had. Watching the previous episode 'End of the Beginning', and that weekend experiences Captain America: The Winter Soldier and only a few days later seeing Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. completely change in this stunning episode. I was fan of the show before, though admit the criticism of the show plodding along is true, but this was another level. And from this point on S.H.I.E.L.D. has not looked back, introducing new and intriguing storylines (Inhumans, Hydra, Maveth). This show, along with The Flash, is the best weekly comic book show on TV.
FYI! Ranking the seasons of MCU:
1. Daredevil Season 1
2. Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Season 2
3. Jessica Jones Season 1
4. Agent Carter Season 1
5. Agent Carter Season 2
6. Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Season 1