There’s something about Agent Carter.

It’s not just that Peggy Carter has been a fan favourite since the first Captain America, and hence, Atwell’s further inclusion in the MCU has been met with wide support from fans and critics alike.

Although I must admit that certainly it’s a big part of it.

Agent Carter is about more than one character. It’s about a movement, a new movement in Marvel towards greater gender diversity.

Marvel has announced a Captain Marvel movie scheduled for 2018. We’ve also recently discovered that Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. is in fact about more than a spinoff for Agent Coulson who was murdered by Loki in The Avengers: it’s about the superhero origin story of Skye/Daisy Johnson.

Yet Agent Carter is the first major change we’ve seen. And it’s important, because Hollywood will be watching, ready to determine whether such female-led heroics are worth greenlighting, basing such decisions on a show with an eight episode arc.

However, the importance of Agent Carter not only lies in the sexism it may help to overcome in today’s society, but also in its feminist narrative.

I must admit to being openly shocked by its feminist stance, as it had vastly exceeded my expectations, and the expectations of everyone I have talked to about the show.

Because Agent Carter isn’t afraid to show that feminism includes femininity. Too often, femininity is discarded in favor of heroines who act more like male heroes. Yet Agent Carter demonstrates that a woman can be both feminine and badass, and what better example than that of Peggy Carter herself.

In fact, the opening sequence demonstrates this best with Peggy remembering the events of Captain America, and then interspersing her fight sequences with the present-getting ready for work, which includes ironing and putting on stockings.

Because women can be both badass and feminine. Because Peggy Carter IS both. And Agent Carter demonstrates this so well. It’s not afraid to dress Peggy in feminine clothing, and at the same time make her the most competent person on the show, easily ahead of her male colleagues in skill and ability. In a sea of grey at the beginning of the first episode, Peggy shows up to work in bright blue clothing and a bright red hat. She’s not afraid to stand out or be different. She’s not afraid to be seen as feminine.

Not only that, but Agent Carter highlights the sexism that Peggy experiences in her own workplace, and certainly much of the sexist behaviour of her male colleagues is reminiscent not only of those times, but also what women of today experience.

Peggy Carter is not simply a reminder of what women continue to experience, she’s also incredibly inspirational, the way that she fights back against this sexism. She handles it maturely, but not without a razor-sharp wit and an ability to use her femininity as a tool. Femininity is shown to not only be something that she can be as well as badass, but also that it’s an effective weapon in her arsenal.

Peggy Carter hits back at the sexism she witnesses in the diner, and in her own workplace. With very few allies, this can be tough, but it’s something she continually strives to do. She refuses to be talked down to. She refuses to let their behaviour dictate her own actions.

What’s also fascinating to note, is the point of view of Agent Carter in regards to Steve Rogers. Too often, women (the love interest or mother figure usually) are killed off to motivate the hero, and so begins their story. This time however, using the death of Steve in Captain America at the very beginning of the very first episode of Agent Carter, the show frames it as Steve being fridged whilst Peggy’s journey continues.

And I love this, because it’s not often that this regular plot point for male heroes is instead used to further a woman’s narrative journey.

The Captain America radio show in episode two further highlights this point, as they characterise Peggy Carter as simply Captain America’s girlfriend, much to actual Peggy’s annoyance and disgust. This is not just distasteful to Peggy, but also to the audience, well aware of Peggy’s actual performance during the war. In the radio show, Peggy is cast as the love interest/damsel in distress, incapable of doing much except for being kidnapped by Nazis and then rescued by Captain America.

Unfortunately the attitudes of many of her colleagues seem to resemble this characterisation, so Peggy is not just fighting sexism in general, she’s also fighting this preconceived notion of who she actually is.

However, what I love about the inclusion of these scenes is how they are edited to coincide with particularly badass moments, fighting those sexist notions of who Peggy is. There’s nothing wrong with being a love interest or being in distress, however, there is definitely something wrong with changing the narrative due to sexism, which is what Peggy is directly experiencing.

Agent Carter is everything we’ve needed in a society that…

– still lacks gender diversity in fiction

– fails to accept that badass and feminine are not mutually exclusive

– constantly fringes women to motivate the male heroes

– seeks to classify all women into roles as limited as love interest/damsel in distress

Agent Carter is not just the show we’ve always wanted. It’s the show we deserve. And thank god for that.