On the DVD set of Iron Man 3, there was a short called Agent Carter where Captain America cohort Peggy Carter fought sexism and took on a physically demanding spy challenge before being promoted to head S.H.I.E.L.D. The short was so popular and well-done that Disney/Marvel decided to make a short-season series to show while Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. was on hiatus. Hayley Atwell stars as the eponymous character in this new series, so let’s see how it is.

Fresh off helping win the war while losing Captain America, Agent Peggy Carter of SSR is stuck in the office with a bunch of men who treat her with casual sexism, except for the one co-worker who wants to protect her. Decrying both of them, she instead starts working undercover with Howard Stark’s butler Jarvis to recover weapons stolen from Howard Stark and prove him innocent of the treasonous charges against him.

Carter fights the bad guys with her wits, body and mind, aided by Jarvis as her support team. She has to put up with the troglodytes in SSR who believe she’s only there because of her “special relationship” with Captain America. And, to make things worse, the most popular radio drama is The Adventures of Captain America, where an actress portrays her as a squeaky voiced damsel in distress.

Agent Carter, both the show and the character, are a wonderful look back to olden times and older spy shows with an interesting character going on a mission. I’m hopeful that they can keep up the quality over the 8 episodes this season and that it comes back next year. I’d almost prefer that they add some more episodes next year and cut down on Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. to make sure neither show wears out their welcome. Recommended