Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Season 5 finally has a release date. With Marvel's expanding TV slate, it's becoming harder for fans to keep the pieces together. With properties on ABC, Netflix, and now Hulu with Runaways, the comic giant has the monumental task of keeping each entity unique while potentially leaving room for connecting storylines.

Still going is the first MCU TV show, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., which is soon going to be returning for its fifth season. The show was almost canceled due to poor ratings but corporate overlords Disney saved it. The new run will see Natalia Cordova-Buckley's Yo-Yo upgraded to series regular and a Captain Marvel connection with the Kree making a comeback. Now we know when it'll all go down.

At New York Comic Con, Marvel has revealed that Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Season 5 will return to ABC on Friday, December 1st with a two-hour premiere set in space. ABC's move of both Once Upon a Time and Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. to Friday nights marks what the network touts as a "destination". Inhumans has the current 9pm slot, but this announcement confirms Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. will premiere as more of a mid-season replacement once the Inhumans' short 8-episode first season finishes its run.

Starting out in space implies that the series is going to be picking up where it left off with a possible S.W.O.R.D. introduction on the horizon. Rumors that this upcoming fifth season could be its last are unconfirmed (during the panel, Clark Gregg credited fans for getting the series to a fifth season), but if true, it looks like the flagship for Marvel television is setting up its predecessors nicely.

There's definitely the possibility of an Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. crossover with Inhumans, ABC's other MCU show. Poor critical reception of Inhumans didn't stop the series from premiering on ABC with numbers on par with that of season 4 of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., so there's evidently some interest there.

During the NYCC panel where Marvel's Jeph Loeb first announced the season 5 premiere date, fans were also treated to 20 minutes of the show's two-hour premiere. Other observations from the first look indicate hints at more than one species of alien, new weapons, more humor, and a fair bit of action.

Next: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: Clark Gregg Directing Season 5 Episode

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. season 5 two-hour premiere airs Friday, December 1st beginning at 8pm on ABC.

Source: Marvel