The essence of drama is conflict. The essence of comedy is conflict. The essence of character is conflict. When there is no conflict, there's nothing really interesting going on. Lack of conflict is the essence of bad writing. Sadly, this is one of the problems facing the new show, Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. There just isn't any good conflict.
We get to know characters by their conflicts, and that's especially important in an ensemble show. When the characters lack dramatic tension, they lack defining characteristics and it's hard to tell them apart or even remember their names. Each character needs to both have a purpose and a conflict, because that's what we remember about them. The worst thing you want is for your characters to be forgettable.
