Welcome back to the blog readers. Last week's premiere of Secret Invasion was brilliant, with so many twists, turns, and shocks to make any fan of Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014) happy. Could we keep the momentum going with this new episode, titled "Promises," directed by Ali Selim from a teleplay by Brian Tucker and a story by Tucker and Brant Englestein? Stick around to hear my thoughts.
NOTE: I will be using spoilers for my thoughts, so DO NOT read ahead if you have not seen the episode.
Like I said last week, I loved how we were taken back to the "Winter Soldier" vibes in the MCU, so I was very excited going into this week's episode. What twists and turns were we in store for this time around? Well oh well, let me tell you something right here. This episode did political espionage thriller far better than Andor did it (Again, not saying Andor was bad, just did not love it as much as everyone else did). Reveal after reveal and twist after turn, this was some brilliant television.
I love the fact that we get immediate consequences of last episode's final moments. Gravik has gotten what he wants, with Russia blaming the United States for the attack and Maria Hill's mother blaming Nick Fury for not protecting her daughter. Also yeah, she is super dead. We also get a lot of heart and a lot of emotion in this episode, which is really nice for the MCU. And it is also something it does super well, balancing the dark with the light. I need more of this MCU.
I love the scene between Fury and Talos on the train, as we get some backstory for Fury. We learned that him and his mother were victims of segregation and we get some parallels between his struggles and the struggles of the Skrulls that we see in the beginning of the episode. Fury also lashes out at Talos when he finds out there are over a million Skrulls on Earth, realizing this "Secret Invasion" is more widespread than he feared. We don't see them together for the rest of the episode, and it seems that they may be attempting to fight this war separately, which is grounds for them to lose it.
Fury's fight with Rhodey was also filled with so much tension and stress. We learn that Rhodey has been the punching bag for President Ritson as he is the one that is sent to answer for the United States' involvement in the Moscow attack. Fury tries to explain that he was tying to stop the attack, but is discharged and made to look like a fool. They fight about how they were able to gain the power they did, but Rhodey is indifferent in this regard. I can pretty much bet you at this point that Rhodey is a Skrull, and these actions are only to deter Fury from stopping the invasion. I think Sam Jackson needs to get an Emmy nomination next year for his performance.
Ever since learning her mother Soren died last episode, G'iah has not been sure of her path forward. She further takes the dive towards the side of her father by resisting a lot of what Gravik is doing and doing things behind his back, like doing her own research into his plans. I am enjoying her progression into anti-hero and I cannot wait for her to officially reunite with her father, because it will definitely be a feel-good moment. Emilia Clarke is killing this role in my opinion.
But the real star of this show is Kingsley Ben-Adir as Gravik. I told you last week that he was a phenomenal actor and it is starting to show here. I love his performance in this episode. He brings such a magic to this character and it is electric to watch. His meeting with the Skrull Council really sold me on this character, especially with how calm he felt. All but one decided to appoint Gravik as general, and that is terrifying especially with the fact that we know how dangerous he can be. Look no further than his actions to close out the episode. He rescues a Skrull that was kidnapped by Falsworth in a killer action scene, and then orders the execution of that Skrull because he is afraid he might have talked. This man is cold and bitter.
We also got a few revelations in this episode as well. We learned that Gravik knew Fury when he was a child, when he lost both of his parents to the Kree, and he and the rest of the Skrulls were promised that Fury and Talos would find them a new home. We also got the revelation that Rhodey is a villain all the same as Gravik, and I will continue to theorize that he is a Skrull. We also learn a bombshell about Fury. We find out that his wife Priscilla is actually a Skrull. Holy shit, some of our theories were right.
This episode was fantastic, and I cannot wait to see you for next week's episode.
Before I officially say goodbye to you guys, I want to take a brief moment and mourn the loss of a legend in the business. This past weekend, we lost the irreplaceable Alan Arkin. I came to appreciate him in the 2012 film Argo (my favorite film of all time), and he was phenomenal in the role. He also gave one of my favorite film lines ever: "If I'm gonna make a fake movie, it's gonna be a fake hit!" We are all going to miss you down here man, and it sucks that you're not here anymore.
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