If you watched the two-hour premiere of ABC's Agent Carter this week, you'll understand the following statement: Agent Peggy Carter is the superheroine we need.
But why is that? What makes Agent Carter, both as a television series and a person, something we've been desperately wanting from our television programming, perhaps without even knowing it?
1. Peggy Carter is a smart and strong female lead.
Even in the year 2015, it's still a rarity when a female character leads a TV series. However, beyond that, Peggy Carter is highly intelligent and isn't afraid to get her hands dirty, and can even fight off the bad guys in lipstick, a 1940s dress and heels. She's also proudly unafraid of being different in a time when most women focused more on getting married than on their careers. To top it all off, though, she's also flawed, permanently scarred by her relationship with Captain America (and his supposed death), as well as watching those around her in danger because of her.
A lot of Carter's strength comes from the actress that plays her: Hayley Atwell. Atwell gets this character by showing us great emotional range that runs the gamut from grief to sarcasm.
"She doesn't reject her femininity," says Atwell about the character. "She still looks very feminine, but she can hold her own with guys," she says. "She understands that she has to present herself to be attractive— nice clothes and good makeup - and she takes care of herself. But she's not just relying on that. She's relying her wit and intelligence and all of her skill set."
2. Agent Carter is a superhero without superpowers.
Let's face it: there are a lot of superhero-related movies and TV shows. And most of these superheroes have powers that make them a little something beyond human. Peggy Carter, though, is 100 percent human and mortal, but still manages to stick it to the bad guys and save the day. That's quite remarkable considering all she has in her favor are a few gadgets to help her out.
3. Other characters on Agent Carter are also interesting.
More often than not, supporting characters in superhero films and TV shows get the short stick, at least when it comes to character development. However, this isn't the case with Agent Carter. In fact, we have some pretty interesting characters, including Tony Stark's dad, Howard, as well as his butler, Jarvis, who serves almost as Carter's sidekick (reversing the usual female as the male superhero's sidekick). Even the sexist men in Carter's office seem to have interesting stories, and we can only hope that we'll see more of their backgrounds in future episodes.
4. The series features loads of action.
Just in the first two hours alone, there were just as many action scenes (or perhaps more) in Agent Carter as what we might see in series like Arrow or Flash. From large explosions to Carter fighting a bad guy on top of a moving vehicle(!), this series is all about some well-choreographed fight scenes and action. I'm sure we have Marvel to thank for that.
5. Peggy Carter defies stereotypes.
Sure, this goes in line with the series featuring a strong female character, but that female character is working in a time when men are coming back from the war and taking back the jobs that women did in their place while they were gone. It's a time of transition for women, when most are forced to go back to looking for husbands and being housewives.
Carter, though, is different. As of the two-hour premiere, she has no romantic partners, even though other women attempt pressuring her into dating. She also wants a career beyond what she currently has (although she is an agent, her work duties are mostly secretarial). And when one of the men in the office comes to her defense after the other men dismiss her, she tells him she doesn't need him doing that because she can take care of herself, thank you very much.
If you haven't yet watched the premiere of Agent Carter, it's available now on Hulu.
