Whether you thought Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. stood up to the hype surrounding the show, it looks like it’s going to stay, at least for now.  The show tied with The Voice for first place among its target audience (ages 18-49), and was third in overall viewership, just behind #1 NCIS and #2 The Voice.  I’d say that’s pretty successful.

That adult demo number is particular impressive given the show’s time slot. S.H.I.E.L.D. had to self-start at 8 p.m. — no lead-in — and ran against huge competition: NBC’s The Voice and CBS’ NCIS are two of the most popular shows on television. And how did it stand up? S.H.I.E.L.D. (recap here) actually managed to tie the two-hour The Voice overall in the demo (4.6) — and beat it head-to-head during the 8 p.m. hour — while trouncing the return of NCIS in the demo (3.4), though obviously losing among total viewers (19.4 million).

As a pilot episode, the show itself was decent enough to warrant more viewings, but it definitely needs to continue to keep viewers attentive with the main ensemble as well as the guest actors.

It gives off a lighter tone than that of The CW’s Arrow, which is based of a DC comic, but it has potential to do very well, especially with character development of the main cast of characters.

After viewing the pilot, I did find myself liking Chloe Bennet as Skye more than I thought I would.  Looking forward to seeing more.

Check out the preview video for the season:

via EW.com.