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Whedon represents this tension in the pilot by contrasting Rising Tide activist Skye (Chloe Bennet) with gee-whiz-enthusiastic S.H.I.E.L.D. honcho Agent Coulson, played by Clark Gregg. (Movie fans may recall that he inconveniently dies in The Avengers; I'll spare them the spoiler of how he's brought back.) Between them, Whedon hopes he can capture the real world's love-hate relationship with tech and secret guardians. "The NSA collecting data on me freaks me out," Whedon says. "And yet I'm from the generation that wants to put a GPS on their kids."
It's a tricky balance to strike, but the idea that not everyone would welcome superheroes and superpowers is bred into Marvel's DNA. Spider-Man was seen as a public enemy by some; The X-Men's mutants were persecuted; the Hulk is both hero and natural disaster.
Of course, comics are also about, well, marveling. Above all, Whedon is making a fun series for fans who are unembarrassed to cheer awesome spies and their flying cars. But somewhere in its comic-book margins is a small, resonant worry: that in a world of real dangers, a shield of protection can become a veil of secrecy.