Question: is agent phil coulson really dead?
Answer: In Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Coulson is revealed to be alive. He was brought back using the T.A.H.I.T.I project, which was meant to bring a dead Avenger back to life using a drug derived from an ancient Kree corpse. However, test patients developed psychosis and hypergraphia, so Coulson had the project shut down.