By Juliana Riverin
Staff Writer
When it comes to influential female figures in World War II, Rosie the Riveter has nothing on Agent Peggy Carter.
Creators Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely create a world filled with intrigue, wit and an admirable protagonist in CBS’ new TV show, “Agent Carter.”
“Agent Carter” is set in the Marvel superhero universe post WWII. It follows supersoldier Captain America’s comrade Peggy Carter (Hayley Atwell), who begins working for her old friend and aspiring military inventor, Howard Stark (Domenic Cooper), after WWII. She quickly begins work with Stark’s butler, Edwin Jarvis (James D’Arcy), to track down the person who framed Stark for selling dangerous weapons on the black market.
One major highlight of “Agent Carter” is the top-notch writing. It keeps with Marvel’s tradition of cheeky but unforced humor. Additionally, there is a noticeable effort to keep all dialogue era-appropriate, which gives the far-fetched premise of this series an air of authenticity.
One of the show’s greatest strengths is its unique story line. Due to the fact that “Agent Carter” is set before most of the new Marvel movies and TV shows, the writers are less restricted by existing films and shows.
Additionally, Markus and McFreely do away with the trend of solely basing stories around well-balanced teams (such as “The Avengers”) in Marvel, and instead focus on a woman who must rely only on herself. By doing so, “Carter” is one of the most focused pieces of entertainment in the Marvel series.
The characters also play a large part in Carter’s forced independence. The shows supporting cast of characters either pay no attention to Peggy’s dilemmas or become obstacles for her. This frustration proves to be a relatable facet of the show, as it forces Carter to assume the responsibilities of others, characterizing her as strong and independent.
However, this dynamic serves to be a sort of double-edged sword. The problem is that by focusing primarily on Carter, the show’s supporting characters are left largely unexplored. This is disappointing as the characters that Carter encounters all present intriguing narratives. Yet, since the show is only a few episodes in, there is a possibility that these flaws will be addressed in future episodes of the show.
“Agent Carter” succeeds because of Carter herself. Her independent character, when paired with the show’s excellent writing, establishes a strong foundation for an entertaining TV series.
“Agent Carter” airs Tuesdays at 9 p.m. on ABC.
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