As an exercise in writing teleplays, I've written a full script for an episode of Marvel's S.H.I.E.L.D. as fan fiction. The script is 60 pages long and includes 4 acts, a teaser (the short part before the opening credits) and a tag (the short part before it cuts to the preview for next week).
It is NOT a pilot episode, and once the show comes out it may not (probably won't) resemble the show in any way. That's fine. For now, though, I went with what I had to try and fit the script into the Marvel Cinematic Universe without stepping on any canon.
The episode takes place after the events of The Avengers, so it is fortuitous that we have confirmation the show will, too. I chose to go relatively low-powered, and treat it similar to a case-a-week cop drama, which I believe is close to what we can expect.
The S.H.I.E.L.D. offices aren't confirmed, but I'm doubting they'll have the budget to base it out of the helicarrier. For the purposes of this script, I've just set them up as a field office based out of New York, with Coulson as the office boss. The location "S.H.I.E.L.D. Offices - Lab" can be seen as serving the same purpose as the library in Buffy the Vampire Slayer or the Harvard lab in Fringe.
Because it isn't a pilot episode, the main characters aren't given descriptions. Here are the character descriptions:
(Clark Gregg)
It isn't a surprise anymore
that Coulson will be back, but it is still pleasant. Everyone's favorite S.H.I.E.L.D. agent will be the series anchor.
Agent Melinda May (Ming-Na Wen)
Also known as “The Calvary,” this hard-core soldier has crazy skills when it comes to weapons and being a pilot. But her experiences have left her very quiet and a little damaged.
Agent Gemma Simmons (Elizabeth Henstridge) and
Agent Leo Fitz (Iain De Caestecker)
These two came through training together and still choose to spend most of their time in each other’s company. Their sibling-like relationship is reinforced by their shared nerd tendencies – she deals with biology and chemistry, he’s a whiz at the technical side of weaponry.
Agent Grant Ward (Brett Dalton)
Quite the physical specimen and “cool under fire,” he sometimes botches interpersonal relations. He’s a quiet one with a bit of a temper, but he’s the kind of guy that grows on you.
Skye (Chloe Bennet)
This late-20s woman sounds like a dream: fun, smart, caring and confident – with an ability to get the upper hand by using her wit and charm.
I tried to write to the descriptions as closely as I could. I also heard a rumor that Skye would be a little font of Superhero/secret society knowledge, so I've written her role as something of an understudy to Coulson - a mentorship, if you will.
The script ends on a cliffhanger, but I'll leave the reasons (and a couple explanations) for after the script.
Click the image for a PDF of the script. You can either download it or read it in a web browser that supports them.
If you cannot read PDFs, Adobe Reader is free on the Adobe website.
The episode does not introduce Damage control to the MCU. That was done in the first Iron Man. It does introduce some of the characters that make up the firm's employees. It should be noted that one of the secretary's lines was taken verbatim from Damage Control Volume 1 Issue 1 as a tribute to Dwayne McDuffie. If someone actually does write the Damage Control characters into the MCU, I hope they give him the same honor.
I translated the comic canon of The Wrecker (Dirk), Thunderball (Eliot) and Damage Control as closely as I could to the MCU, but with my own spin on it. The character of Little Feng is an original. His role does not replace any existing canon, but helps me organize the patchwork of existing stories these characters developed from into a tighter, more cohesive existence in the MCU. Fans of Marvel, and Damage Control or The Wrecking Crew, may understand what his real role is in everything. I removed Thor's importance in The Wrecker's origin, but so did the Marvel Ultimate story. Using Thor in the script would have diminished it, because the point of the series is the agents and the bad guys they're forced to deal with.
The next episode is titled "The Trials of Eliot Franklin" and will feature the transformation of Eliot "The Black Bruce Banner" Franklin into Thunderball, answers how he is involved in the accident that transformed Dirk into The Wrecker, tells the whereabouts of the other two members of The Wrecking Crew, a little more about Wilson Fisk and a lot more about Little Feng. Two of the Agents will get kidnapped (don't blame them, it's not their fault. They won't do that again.), two more try and find them and the last two get stuck trying to piece everything together.
The third episode in the arc gives origins for Bulldozer, Piledriver and The Wrecking Crew. Buildings fall down. There may also be a hero origin. Maybe.
I do not know when the sequel will be finished. A script like this takes a lot of time and creative energy. I'm still getting my feet wet as a script writer, so any feedback is appreciated. Enjoy!