TV Review: ‘Secret Invasion’ Season 1, Episode 1
by Frank Martin
Right off the bat, Secret Invasion kind of starts in an awkward position. In order to create a twist in Captain Marvel, the Skrulls are portrayed as a rather sympathetic race. So the show must do a couple logistical backflips in order to justify turning the Skrulls into villains — a job it accomplishes well by incorporating the Blip as a means to change the aliens’ status quo on Earth. However, the proceedings ultimately fall into pretty lackluster spy thriller territory by not capitalizing on the unique nature of the MCU and instead following a pretty typical plot line.
Events begin with Agent Everett K. Ross (Martin Freeman) visiting another agent who believes there is a Skrull plot to take over the Earth. Ross kills the other agent and goes on the run, although he ultimately dies and is revealed to be a Skrull in disguise. This triggers Nick Fury’s (Sam Jackson) return to Earth to stop the scheme. The Skrulls are orchestrating various terrorist attacks across the Earth in order to set off world war that will eradicate humans from the planet. The episode ends with the Skrulls outsmarting Fury and triggering several explosions in the heart of Moscow.
The Secret Invasion comic event was filled with a lot of fun moments. All that seems to be lost in the show. Still, it sets up a pretty interesting situation with the potential to be an excellent spy thriller. But instead of leaning into Marvel’s sci-fi territory, the show deploys a standard “stop the bomb” plot. Of course, this is just the first episode and there’s still plenty of opportunity to revel in its comic book roots. Nevertheless, if this first episode is an indication of what’s to come then it is unlikely to be anything special.
Secret Invasion streams Wednesdays on Disney+.