Marvel’s Agents of SHIELD, quite possibly the most anticipated new show of the fall batch of shows, has been picked up for a full season. This was certainly an expected move to be made, but nonetheless, fans of the new show can rejoice and know that they will be able to watch their new favorite characters for a full 22 episode season. The show’s pilot was picked up by ABC, and fans of the superhero franchise everywhere were immediately excited about the news.

The show is based on The Avengers film and comics, and in a way like never before, the show will focus on the characters that are normally ignored in the major films of the Marvel universe. It focuses on the agency that recruits the superheroes that everyone is already familiar with, such as Iron Man, The Incredible Hulk, and Thor. SHIELD stands for Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division, and is led by Agent Phil Coulson (Clark Gregg), who works to recruit and train the younger agents. The show will follow Coulson and his new team of agents as they attempt to track down people with superhero abilities.

The cast is certainly happy about ABC’s decision and took to twitter to show their excitement.

Wow!! Good news travel fast!! Yes, we just got word from our amazing EPs that #AgentsofSHIELD got the full pickup!! Thank you , #ABC!

— Ming-Na Wen (@MingNa) October 10, 2013

Guess which show just got picked up for a full season? No, other than NCIS. Us! @AgentsofSHIELD

— Brett Dalton (@IMBrettDalton) October 10, 2013

While none of the superheroes from the films are expected to star on the show, the agency does retain its star in Clark Gregg from the films to play Agent Coulson. The show is directed by Joss Whedon, and this will mark his full broadcast season since the WB’s final season of Angel concluded in 2004, although Dollhouse aired for two short seasons on Fox. Dollhouse was cancelled early, however many fans of Whedon’s work, who also created Buffy The Vampire Slayer, adored the show during its short run on the network. Whedon is known for his show’s similarities in a number of ways, including the types of dialogue, relationships between characters, and recurring cast members.

lol, sitting here watching Agents of Shield thinking 'damn, this is good. Reminds me of Buffy & Angel.' DUHHHHH LULU

— lucy valentine. (@LuluAttack) October 4, 2013

Ok so @Marvel's @AgentsofSHIELD is really damn solid. And the Bus is REALLY similar to the Serenity. Internet high five @josswhedon.

— Captain RedBeard (@RedbeardCaptain) October 4, 2013

While the Marvel comic books have inspired numerous films and earned a countless amount of money, this is the first time that the franchise has been featured on TV. The series is co-created by Joss Whedon, his brother Jed Whedon, and Maurissa Tancharoen. Although none of the Marvel stars are main characters on the show, it has been stated that certain fan favorites may show up at some point during the series, and as Gregg teased to all of the fans, “Anybody could show up at any time.” Samuel L. Jackson already showed up briefly to reprise his role as Nick Fury, and Colbie Smulders, who had a small part in The Avengers, appeared briefly as Agent Maria Hill. We are guaranteed to see more of these characters throughout the show, but who will they be?

Nice. http://t.co/UHvADX2Te8 #AgentsofSHIELD #fishtank

— Clark Gregg (@clarkgregg) October 8, 2013

Agents Of SHIELD has already had great success with both fans and critics, opening to a incredibly high premiere of almost 12 million viewers. This made it TV’s best drama debut in four years, since ABC’s remake of the sci-fi series V, which coincidentally starred Morena Baccarin, who was also in Whedon’s cult favorite Firefly.

Stay up to date with one of the most popular new shows on television, and tune in to ABC on Tuesdays at 8 p.m. to see new episodes of Agents of SHIELD.

It's official. We've just been picked up for the full first season! Thank you to all of our fans! #AgentsofSHIELD

— Agents of SHIELD (@AgentsofSHIELD) October 10, 2013

Image via Youtube