| “ | So you characters finally decided do some of that famous assembling, huh? | „ |
| ~ A S.H.I.E.L.D. agent to the Avengers in Avengers Vol. 1 #69. |
| “ | I'm the director of S.H.I.E.L.D.. Lying to the entire world is in the job description. Right next to "some overtime required," which I would like to point out is a severe understatement. | „ |
| ~ Maria Hill on her position as the director of the organization. |
Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division, commonly known by its acronym, S.H.I.E.L.D., is a fictional organization in Marvel Comics and its universe.
Formed during the 1960s by Howard Stark, S.H.I.E.L.D. was created to stop global threats that were often terroristic, paranormal, and superhuman. The agency is often assisted by the superhero community when dealing with threats bigger than themselves, such as the Avengers and the Fantastic Four. S.H.I.E.L.D. has went on to appear in numerous media, such as in films, tv shows, and video games.
The organization first appeared in Strange Tales #135 in August of 1965, which was written by the late Stan Lee, the late Jack Kirby, and published by the late Martin Goodman.
Biography[]
Formation[]
The agency that would be known as S.H.I.E.L.D. was founded by Howard Stark, who was a member of the Brotherhood of the Shield at the time and wanted to create a organization that would protect the world from threats. Stark brought his ideas to the United States Government, who approved of starting the organization under the name "Project Shield" before naming it the Supreme Headquarters, International Espionage, Law-enforcement Division. The group was sponsored by the U.S. Government, the United Nations and Stark Industries, and Colonel Rick Stoner was made the director despite some officials wanting Nick Fury to act as executive director.
Services[]
Stoner would be killed by Hydra agents during the mid-1960s, and officials decided to nominate Fury to become the next director, and was assigned to counter-act against Hydra's attempt at domination and terrorism. Fury would be supported by his Howling Commandos allies, such as Dum Dum Dugan and Gabe Jones, and was also assisted by the new agents - Jasper Sitwell, Sidney Levine, Jimmy Woo, Laura Brown, Clay Quartermain, and the contessa Valentina Allegra de Fontaine. While as director, Fury would battle against his arch-nemesis Baron von Strucker, who at the time became the Hydra supreme, and would sometimes go on the field to deal with his mortal enemy. S.H.I.E.L.D. would be often assisted by superheroes when dealing with bigger threats, such as the Avengers and the Fantastic Four. Government officials were annoyed by the superhero community for assisting the agency, especially towards Fury since he was knew a vast majority of them, such as Captain America.
Though S.H.I.E.L.D. was active for decades, the agency would be infiltrated on numerous occasions, such as when Fury's brother, Scorpio created light-model decoys that replaced members of the organization. Leadership would change when Fury was removed when his secret war with Latveria was exposed, and he was replaced by Maria Hill by officials since she had no connections with the superhero community. The organization would come at head against superheroes when the Superhuman Registration Act was created, and a unit in the group that enforced the act became known as the "Cape-Killers". After the Civil War and the success of the registration act, Hill decided to step down from the position, believing that she was put there to fail. She proposed that Iron Man take her position, and he did so and started many initiatives, which boosted morale and made the agency more streamline. Stark would lead the agency against superhuman terrorism, and later stopped the Mandarin from committing genocide when the villain attempted to smear Tony's image.
S.H.I.E.L.D. would eventually be infiltrated again by the Skrulls by the start of the Secret Invasion, who replaced many of the agents with their race to attack Earth. The Skrulls were stopped by the Secret Warriors, and the government decided to dissolve the organization and gave Norman Osborn the authority over it. Osborn took the opportunity to turn S.H.I.E.L.D. into H.A.M.M.E.R., and used other groups such as the Thunderbolts to do his dirty work. He would be removed from his position once his insanity was exposed, and Captain America was given control over S.H.I.E.L.D., and decided to built it up from the ground.
Ultimate Marvel[]
In the Ultimate Marvel comics, the agency was formed by Nick Fury and Clint Barton during the Cold War, and would expand as a global organization as years went on. S.H.I.E.L.D. was first led by Thunderbolt Ross, and during his leadership, the agency would sanctioned the Weapon X Project under the command of John Wraith, which resulted in James Howlett having his entire body covered in adamantium. When Ross was presumably killed, Fury became the new director and shut down Weapon X, and decided to instead re-create the super soldier program. The result of trying to re-create the super soldier formula and other projects created catastrophes, such as causing the creation of the Hulk, the Green Goblin, Sandman and Electro. Despite these failures, the agency continued to protect Earth from threats by creating the Ultimates, and later brining the X-Men and Spider-Man under their jurisdiction.
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- The agency's name has changed through the comics, as it was originally named the "Supreme Headquarters, International Espionage and Law-Enforcement Division", and was later changed to the "Strategic Hazard Intervention Espionage Logistics Directorate" during the 1990s.
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