Marvel's Agents of SHIELD went into the TV season with very high expectations, which were quickly tempered in the early weeks by a show obviously having a lot of issues figuring out what exactly it was going to be. While there was improvement through much of the season, it was still very much a work in progress, and things only really amped up in recent weeks, as the events of Captain America: The Winter Soldier had their aftershocks felt on this series in dramatic ways - and in doing so, helped raise the stakes to a notable degree.

While I'm holding my full (and spoiler-filled) review until after it finishes airing on the east coast Tuesday night, I've seen the season finale for SHIELD and am happy to report that it's very good. In fact, it rivals "Turn, Turn, Turn" -- the episode that picked up the week after Cap 2 and showed the HYDRA reveal and who was involved -- as the strongest episode so far for the series.On a show that often was criticized for feeling like there wasn't enough tension, the finale, "Beginning of the End", is notably exciting, which only increases as it continues. The second half is particularly fun, as many different elements converge together for a big showdown, which includes more than one crowd-pleasing face-off between characters with scores to settle.The appearance by Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury is also notable. It definitely is done in a manner that gives Nick proper significance, both in terms of the history he brings with him and his impact in the episode itself. Suffice to say, it's much more meaningful than simply being there for a jokey scene where he complains about damage to the plane, as was the case the last time we saw Nick on this show, in the second episode.

SHIELD: Season 1 Finale Photo Gallery: Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: "Beginning of the End" Photos 11 IMAGES

There are story elements where I felt things could have gone to an even riskier place and there's some, perhaps unavoidable, reminders of plot points from earlier in the season that could have been better developed back then, which are brought up more to let us know next season will deal with them than to actually deal with them right now. But you do get the feeling SHIELD's writers are working hard to remedy missteps from the past, even as they look at where the show should go and what the show is moving forward, given both the issues it had conceptually and the changes to the Marvel Cinematic Universe since it began. The final scenes certainly give some tantalizing hints in that regard.It's improved a lot, yet I still don't think SHIELD has achieved its full potential and hope to see it grow even more when it returns in the fall. The happy news is that Season 1 ends with me far more curious and optimistic about the show, than compared to, say, the feelings left by the midseason finale back in December. I truly think the best is yet to come, and that's a good thing.Check back at 9pm ET Tuesday, May 13, for my full review of the finale, along with an interview with SHIELD executive producers Jeph Loeb and Jeffrey Bell about what occurred in the finale and where things may go in Season 2.

Eric Goldman is Executive Editor of IGN TV. You can follow him on Twitter at @EricIGN , IGN at ericgoldman-ign and Facebook at Facebook.com/TheEricGoldman