10 Best First Episodes of Marvel TV Shows

These Marvel TV shows – whether in the Marvel Cinematic Universe or not – have kicked off with some of the most interesting and memorable first episodes. From 2021 onwards, Marvel Studios has released 16 TV shows as part of the MCU’s Multiverse Saga, while the six series from Netflix’s Defenders Saga have also been confirmed to be MCU canon. With six more Marvel Television shows from before the days of Disney+, and even more series from long before the MCU was born, Marvel has produced many iconic premiere episodes.

Over the years, Marvel has been honing its craft so that some of the most recent TV series released as part of the MCU kicked off with the most impressive first episodes yet. However, some of these premieres date back to 2017’s Legion – set adjacent to 20th Century Fox’s X-Men franchise, 2013’s Agents of SHIELD – not yet confirmed to be MCU canon, and even 1992’s X-Men: The Animated Series, which was recently revived in the similarly-popular X-Men ’97. Check out our favorite first episodes of Marvel TV shows below.

10) “Resurrection” (Secret Invasion, 2023)

You might be surprised to see Secret Invasion here, as the series’ became one of the MCU’s lowest-rated projects during its June 2023 release. However, the problems with Secret Invasion were in the pacing, dull narrative, and low stakes – but the premiere, “Resurrection,” told the opposite story. “Resurrection” brought Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) back in an espionage thriller that outed Everett Ross (Martin Freeman) as a Skrull, introduced Sonya Falsworth (Olivia Colman), and saw Gravik (Kingsley Ben-Adir) blow up Vossoyedineniye Square and murder Maria Hill (Cobie Smulders). It’s just a shame Secret Invasion didn’t continue the premiere’s impact.

9) “Pilot” (Agents of SHIELD, 2013)

Back when Agents of SHIELD premiered with “Pilot” in September 2013, it was the first TV show that was, at the time, connected to the MCU. The series premiere brought Phil Coulson (Clark Gregg) back from the dead, and introduced his SHIELD field team, who came together to investigate the enhanced Mike Peterson (J. August Richards) and Project Centipede. Agents of SHIELD’s canonicity to the MCU’s Earth 616 has recently been disputed, but the series still kicked off with an energetic, action-packed, and well-written premiere that promised that more mysteries would be explored in episodes to come.

8) “Heaven’s Half Hour” (Daredevil: Born Again, 2025)

The premiere of Netflix’s Daredevil series did a fantastic job of introducing Charlie Cox as the Man Without Fear, but the MCU revival of the series, Daredevil: Born Again, packed an even bigger punch. Released on March 4, 2025, “Heaven’s Half Hour” opened with Matt Murdock, Karen Page (Deborah Ann Woll), and Foggy Nelson (Elden Henson) trapped in a battle with Bullseye (Wilson Bethel), who kills Nelson. This was a shocking return for Daredevil in the MCU, while Wilson Fisk’s (Vincent D’Onofrio) campaign to become Mayor of New York established the series’ grounded, political themes.

7) “Into the Lion’s Den” (Eyes of Wakanda, 2025)

Eyes of Wakanda might be the most recent series released by Marvel Studios, but the four-part show has taken the MCU by storm. “Into the Lion’s Den” introduced a massive expansion of Wakandan history in the MCU’s main timeline of Earth 616, using an innovative new animation style for Marvel to back-up the high-octane story, inform the fleshed-out characters, and deliver some visually-striking moments. It’ll be a long time before we forget Noni (Winnie Harlow) taking on the Lion (Cress Williams) in a spectacular fight sequence on her hunt for stolen vibranium artifacts.

6) “Chapter 1” (Legion, 2017)

Fox’s X-Men franchise had its ups and downs, and ultimately never actually branched out into producing long-form stories on TV, but shows adjacent to this film series were developed, including Noah Hawley’s Legion. Starring Dan Stevens as David Haller, the mutant son of Professor X (Harry Lloyd), Legion’s premiere, “Chapter 1,” established the series’ unique visual style, surrealist tones, unreliable narration, and bold story and characterizations. This set Legion up to become one of the most popular Marvel TV shows yet, and included one of the most interesting, innovative, and impactful premiere episodes of any Marvel series.

5) “Amazing Fantasy” (Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man, 2025)

To this day, we haven’t see the origin story of Tom Holland’s live-action Spider-Man in the MCU, but 2025’s animated Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man series showed us Hudson Thames wall-crawler receiving his gifts. An epic time-twisted sequence saw Parker bitten by a genetically-modified spider – engineered with his own future DNA by a future Oscorp – after battling a Symbiotic alien. This was the first time Spider-Man went up against a Venom-like being in the MCU, and we got a glimpse at a new Norman Osborn (voiced expertly by Colman Domingo), so “Amazing Fantasy” certainly made a good first impression.

4) “Night of the Sentinels” (X-Men: The Animated Series, 1992)

Back in 1992, Fox introduced young audiences to the X-Men from Marvel Comics in X-Men: The Animated Series’ incredible double-premiere, “Night of the Sentinels.” These episodes explained the X-Men, their history, their powers, and mutant-aimed discrimination in a tight storyline that saw Jubilee (Alyson Court) act as our eyes and ears. Vibrant colors, an exciting narrative, and theatrical vocal performances make “Night of the Sentinels” a memorable chapter in Marvel’s TV history. The impact of this animated series was repeated in 2024’s X-Men ’97 revival, which also kicked off with a brilliant premiere, “To Me, My X-Men.”

3) “Generation Why” (Ms. Marvel, 2022)

2022’s Ms. Marvel series certainly had its issues in later episodes, but the series premiere, “Generation Why,” which blended interesting live-action material with beautiful and witty animated moments to highlight Kamala Khan’s (Iman Vellani) imagination, was very strong indeed. “Generation Why” marked a fantastic introduction to Kamala and her friends, delivered some brilliant easter eggs at AvengerCon, and saw Kamala unlock her mutant abilities after putting on the Quantum Band. This jam-packed episode was the perfect debut for Ms. Marvel in the MCU, easily making her one of the most exciting and popular new heroes.

2) “Glorious Purpose” (Loki, 2021)

After a full decade, 2021’s Loki series finally gave Tom Hiddleston his first solo MCU adventure. The series answered a wild question from the Time Heist in 2019’s Avengers: Endgame, which saw 2012’s Loki escape from the Avengers. He was taken captive by the Time Variance Authority and thrust into a new adventure tracking his own variant, Sylvie (Sophia Di Martino), and “Glorious Purpose” kick-started this entire adventure. This epic episode introduced us to the TVA, debuted several great new characters – including Owen Wilson’s Mobius – replayed Loki’s entire MCU journey, and, despite being full of exposition, was never boring.

1) “Filmed Before a Live Studio Audience” (WandaVision, 2021)

While Loki’s “Glorious Purpose” is a spectacular premiere episode, WandaVision’s “Filmed Before a Live Studio Audience,” released on January 15, 2021, did something completely new for the MCU. WandaVision’s was Marvel Studios’ first MCU-set TV series, picking up in the wake of Vision’s (Paul Bettany) Avengers: Infinity War death and Wanda Maximoff’s (Elizabeth Olsen) traumatic storylines. Created by Jac Schaeffer and directed by Matt Shakman, “Filmed Before a Live Studio Audience” did just that, filmed with a crowd and released in black and white in the style of 1950s sitcoms, but still containing some incredible Marvel mysteries.

“Filmed Before a Live Studio Audience” became one of the MCU’s most critically-acclaimed TV episodes, and received many accolades. Olsen, Bettany, and MCU newcomer Kathryn Hahn delivered incredible performances, while the mysteries of Westview’s significance, Vision’s resurrection, and the dramatic dinner with the Harts kept audiences engaged throughout. WandaVision is still celebrated as one of the MCU’s strongest instalments, and its premiere episode certainly got it off on a good footing.

What are your favorite first episodes from Marvel’s TV shows? Let us know in the comments!

10 Best Episodes of Marvel TV Shows on Disney+