''S.H.I.E.L.D.'' is a

comic book A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panel (comics), panels that represent individual scenes. ...

series published by

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is an American comic book publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Comics'' in 19 ...

, premiering with a first issue

cover date The cover date of a periodical publication is the date displayed on the cover, which is not necessarily the true date of publication (the on-sale date or release date); later cover dates are common in magazine and comic book publishing. More unu ...

d June 2010. It details the secret history of the occult organization S.H.I.E.L.D. The series is written by

Jonathan Hickman Jonathan Hickman (born September 3, 1972) is an American comic book writer and artist, best known for his creator-owned series ''The Nightly News'', ''The Manhattan Projects'' and '' East of West'', as well as his lengthy stints as a writer on M ...

and drawn by Dustin Weaver.

Publication history

The series was published from 2010 to 2012. The series was renumbered after issue 6.

Plot

The series details the secret history of an occult organization called the Brotherhood of the Shield, with a history extending back to ancient Egypt. The main story of the first issue is set in 1953 shortly after the death of Soviet dictator

Joseph Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvili; – 5 March 1953) was a Georgian revolutionary and Soviet political leader who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until his death in 1953. He held power as General Secreta ...

, during the height of the Cold War. Shield agents Nathaniel Richards and

Howard Stark Howard Stark is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The character is usually depicted as a background character in stories featuring Iron Man and stories featuring Captain America. He is the founde ...

enlist a young man named Leonid with unspecified superpowers into the organization, taking him to Shield's High Council in the Immortal City under Rome. The High Council reveals that they know "the final fate of Man", and their mission is to ensure nothing threatens the world before this occurs. They have chosen Leonid because he has a destiny.

Flashback Flashback(s) or Flash Back may refer to: * Flashback (narrative), in literature and drama, a scene that takes the narrative back in time * Flashback (psychology), in which a memory is suddenly and unexpectedly revisited ** Acid flashback, a repor ...

s reveal that the Shield was founded by

Imhotep Imhotep (; egy, ỉỉ-m-ḥtp "(the one who) comes in peace"; fl. late 27th century BCE) was an Egyptian chancellor to the Pharaoh Djoser, possible architect of Djoser's step pyramid, and high priest of the sun god Ra at Heliop ...

following a battle (alongside

Apocalypse Apocalypse () is a literary genre in which a supernatural being reveals cosmic mysteries or the future to a human intermediary. The means of mediation include dreams, visions and heavenly journeys, and they typically feature symbolic imager ...

and the original

Moon Knight Moon Knight is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Doug Moench and artist Don Perlin, the character first appeared in '' Werewolf by Night'' #32 (August 1975). The son of a ...

) against the

Brood Brood may refer to: Nature * Brood, a collective term for offspring * Brooding, the incubation of bird eggs by their parents * Bee brood, the young of a beehive * Individual broods of North American Periodical Cicadas: ** Brood X, the largest br ...

, and that previous agents include

Zhang Heng Zhang Heng (; AD 78–139), formerly romanized as Chang Heng, was a Chinese polymathic scientist and statesman who lived during the Han dynasty. Educated in the capital cities of Luoyang and Chang'an, he achieved success as an astronomer, ma ...

(who tricked a

Celestial Celestial may refer to: Science * Objects or events seen in the sky and the following astronomical terms: ** Astronomical object, a naturally occurring physical entity, association, or structure that exists in the observable universe ** Celest ...

into using the sun to give birth to its child instead of destroying the Earth or the Moon to do so),

Galileo Galilei Galileo di Vincenzo Bonaiuti de' Galilei (15 February 1564 – 8 January 1642) was an Italian astronomer, physicist and engineer, sometimes described as a polymath. Commonly referred to as Galileo, his name was pronounced (, ). He w ...

(who fought against

Galactus Galactus () is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Formerly a mortal man, Galactus is a cosmic entity who consumes planets to sustain his life force, and serves a functional role in the upkeep of ...

) and

Leonardo da Vinci Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci (15 April 14522 May 1519) was an Italian polymath of the High Renaissance who was active as a painter, Drawing, draughtsman, engineer, scientist, theorist, sculptor, and architect. While his fame initially re ...

(who is shown with a mysterious device, flying off in an

ornithopter An ornithopter (from Greek ''ornis, ornith-'' "bird" and ''pteron'' "wing") is an aircraft that flies by flapping its wings. Designers sought to imitate the flapping-wing flight of birds, bats, and insects. Though machines may differ in form, th ...

). Leonid spends three years working with the Shield before being visited by his father, a superhuman named the Night Machine who has encountered the Shield before, and apparently been killed by them. The Night Machine gives Leonid the key to a secret area of the headquarters, saying his destiny cannot be dictated by others. The issue ends with Leonid meeting Leonardo da Vinci, who has apparently traveled through time to use his device to save the world. Leonardo's return was met with resistance from

Isaac Newton Sir Isaac Newton (25 December 1642 – 20 March 1726/27) was an English mathematician, physicist, astronomer, alchemist, theologian, and author (described in his time as a " natural philosopher"), widely recognised as one of the g ...

who saw it as a threat to his reign as leader of the organization. This eventually leads to a great

schism A schism ( , , or, less commonly, ) is a division between people, usually belonging to an organization, movement, or religious denomination. The word is most frequently applied to a split in what had previously been a single religious body, suc ...

that divides the Shield into two factions; one led by Leonardo da Vinci and one led by Newton. Meanwhile, the child of a Celestial, the Star Child, is picked up by Leonardo from the sun. Also connected to the story are Renaissance man

Michelangelo Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni (; 6 March 1475 – 18 February 1564), known as Michelangelo (), was an Italian sculptor, painter, architect, and poet of the High Renaissance. Born in the Republic of Florence, his work was in ...

who as The Forever Man has amazing superhuman powers of time and space manipulation and

Nostradamus Michel de Nostredame (December 1503 – July 1566), usually Latinised as Nostradamus, was a French astrologer, apothecary, physician, and reputed seer, who is best known for his book '' Les Prophéties'' (published in 1555), a collection ...

who was doused with the Infinity formula and tortured for centuries by Newton to tell the future for centuries. It is later discovered that The Night Machine is really

Nikola Tesla Nikola Tesla ( ; ,"Tesla"
'' Jonathan Hickman (writer) and Dustin Weaver (artist) were tied up with the Marvel summer crossover events for 2013.

Reception

The first volume of the series holds an average rating of 8.0 by forty-one critics and the second a rating of 8.6 by thirteen critics according to

review aggregation A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews of products and services (such as films, books, video games, software, hardware, and cars). This system stores the reviews and uses them for purposes such as supporting a website where users ...

website

Comic Book Roundup a medium used to express ideas with images, often combined with text or other visual information. It typically the form of a sequence of panels of images. Textual devices such as speech balloons, captions, and onomatopoeia can indicate ...

Prints

Issues

One-shots

Collected editions

References

External links

S.H.I.E.L.D. (2010)
at the Comic Book DB
S.H.I.E.L.D. (2011)
at the Comic Book DB {{S.H.I.E.L.D. 2010 comics debuts Comics by Jonathan Hickman Marvel Comics titles Spy comics Superhero comics S.H.I.E.L.D. titles