BREAKING NEWS: ABC has officially greenlit a pilot for S.H.I.E.L.D. from Joss, Marvel TV and ABC Studios. S.H.I.E.L.D. or Strategic Hazard Intervention Espionage Logistics Directorate, (yeah, let’s stick with the acronym) is the secretive organization in the background of just about everything in the Marvel universe.

S.H.I.E.L.D. (from now on known as SHIELD so I can stop with the periods), will be a Whedon family affair with writing and producing by Joss and Jed Whedon and Maurissa Tancharoen. Deadline reports that if the stars align, Joss will direct the pilot, which is scheduled to go into production ASAP. Additional producers are also in the Whedonverse and include Jeffrey Bell (Angel, The X-Files) and Marvel TV’s Jeph Loeb (producer of the ill-fated Buffy the Animated Series and writer of Buffy Season 8).

SHIELD marks the first television series in the exclusive film and TV deal Disney signed with Joss earlier this month. Of course the film part of that deal is to write and direct The Avengers 2.