WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for "The New Deal," the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Season 7 premiere which aired Wednesday on ABC.
Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. has finally returned for its final season. For their last mission, Coulson, Mack, Daisy and the rest of the team must stop the villainous synthetic aliens known as the Chronicoms from erasing S.H.I.E.L.D. from history. The Chronicoms plan to remake the planet into their own home and S.H.I.E.L.D. is essentially the only thing able to stop them. By traveling back in time, the aliens want to make sure S.H.I.E.L.D. has never existed, and, with them out of the way, Earth will be theirs for the taking.
For that reason, the titular team has traveled back in time to New York in the year 1931, back when S.H.I.E.L.D.'s predecessor, the Strategic Science Reserve, was not yet formed. In this time period, the agents find themselves in the Prohibition Era -- a strange new world that is not unlike old films. And Season 7's new title card reflects the direction of this new story with a perfect throwback.
Over the years, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. has become known for its signature use of changing title cards. After an episode's cold open, the series' title appears on the screen, and the font and the animation used always reflect the storyline currently unfolding. From the Hydra takeover to a season taking place in space, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s logos have always defined a specific era of the series. The title card has even been known to change in the middle of a season, as a new storyline would begin to unfold. Because of this signature use of different logos, fans had every reason to expect a new title card in Season 7. And the premiere episode, "The New Deal" delivered exactly that.
After a cold open that saw the Chronicoms arrive in the year 1931, kill a trio of police officers and literally steal their faces, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s possibly final title card is unveiled. This time, the logo is angled, and it appears with a font that could have been lifted from a classic noir film. The added presence of "Marvel Presents" isn't just a throwback to another cinematic era, it also honors the comic books, which have often featured a title page preceded by "Marvel Comics Presents."
On top of that, the added presence of a copyright boilerplate, complete with the year in Roman numerals, also helps make this look like an authentic, old school film title. With the use of music that resembles what you would also hear in a private detective story, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. lets viewers know, right off the bat, what type of aesthetic this new season will adhere to.
Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s final season airs Wednesdays at 10 pm ET/PT on ABC. The series stars Ming-Na Wen, Chloe Bennet, Henry Simmons, Iain De Caestecker, Natalia Cordova-Buckley, Elizabeth Henstridge and Clark Gregg.