We’ll be honest: Even as big Marvel nerds, this one has us a bit stumped. There is an organization in Marvel Comics history called Zodiac, of course, but it’s a group of supervillains who’ve patterned themselves after astrological signs. (So, yes, you’d see Captain America punching out a guy called Cancer, who’s described as “a criminal mastermind who wears a crab costume equipped with pincers.”) (Oh, also, one of the versions of the group was founded by a time-traveling Leonardo Da Vinci. Comics: They’re great!) The point is, none of these origins presented themselves using the “spy thriller” framing, even if the name itself conjures up a certain level of bureaucratic mystery. (Or the looming specter of great Mark Ruffalo and Robert Downey Jr. performances of yesteryear, as the case may be.) It’s probably not for nothing, meanwhile, that the A in the show’s title artwork includes the little eagle guy from the S.H.I.E.L.D. logo.
On the other hand, spy stuff also tends to be a bit cheaper than superhero material when you’re working on a TV budget; sure, you have to film a gun fight or an explosion every now and again, but the number of big, expensive space portals and giant magical lasers tends to be a lot lower. The real upshot, in any case, is Marvel—which most recently irritated its streaming fans by killing off the well-received Wonder Man after just a single season—making it clear that it’s not abandoning its Disney+ TV plans outright, even if the concept of MCU-set shows will be taking a lil’ power nap through the entirety of 2027.
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