Genre: Action-adventure, Spy thriller, Superhero
Created by Craig Mazin; Neil Druckmann
Based on Secret Invasion by Brian Michael Bendis, Leinil Francis Yu
Starring: Samuel L. Jackson, Ben Mendelsohn, Cobie Smulders, Kingsley Ben-Adir, Emilia Clarke, Olivia Colman, Martin Freeman & Don Cheadle.
Composer: Kris Bowers
Executive producers: Kevin Feige, Louis D’Esposito, Victoria Alonso, Jonathan Schwartz, Brad Winderbaum, Kyle Bradstreet.
Production Location: England
Cineatography: SylvaineDufaux, Remi Adefarasin
Editors: James Stanger, Melissa Lawson Cheung
Production companies: Marvel Studios
Distributor:Disney Platform Distribution
Network: Disney+
Plot: Nick Fury learns of a secret invasion of Earth by a faction of shapeshifting Skrulls; Fury joins his allies, and together they race against time to thwart an imminent Skrull invasion and save humanity.
The Secret Invasion miniseries was not that good.
Pros: Samuel L. Jackson still works as Nick Fury even when he was down-&-out. I was glad they showed what happened to the Skrulls now living on earth, right after the Captain Marvel movie (2019). The secret invasion does deliver when it comes down to drama and suspense. I liked Olivia Colman in her role even when she was in limited scenes.
Cons: They didn’t capitalize on this series tagline “Who do you trust” along with the missing involvement of the avengers. It wasted a good amount of talent like Cobie Smulders, Martin Freeman, Emilia Clarke & Kingsley Ben-Adir. Seeing a lot of plot-holes left me with unanswered questions and because of time constraints. I felt nothing after this series was finished.
Casts & Characters:
- Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury:
The former director of S.H.I.E.L.D. who has been working with the Skrulls in space for years before returning to Earth. Fury has been away from Earth so long in part because he is worn out and uncertain of his place in the world following the events of Avengers: Infinity War (2018) and Avengers: Endgame (2019). - Ben Mendelsohn as Talos: The former leader of the Skrulls and an ally of Fury. Mendelsohn noted how Talos, along with Fury, have “lost their way” and are “up against it” since he was last seen in Captain Marvel (2019).
- Kingsley Ben-Adir as Gravik:
The leader of a group of rebel Skrulls who has broken away from Talos and believe the best way to help their kind is to infiltrate Earth for the resources they need. He sets up his operation in a decommissioned radioactive site in Russia, and has a hatred for most of the Skrulls working for him, believing them to be idiots. - Killian Scott as Pagon: A rebel Skrull and Gravik’s second-in-command. Ben-Adir said Gravik sees that Pagon has ambition and wants to be a leader, but “he doesn’t have the guts to take it”. Scott also portrays the human counterpart whose form Pagon took in the final episode.
- Samuel Adewunmi as Beto: A rebel Skrull recruit.
- Dermot Mulroney as Ritson: The president of the United States.
- Richard Dormer as Prescod: A former S.H.I.E.L.D. agent who uncovered the Skrulls’ plan to invade Earth.
- Emilia Clarke as G’iah:
Talos’s daughter who works for Gravik. Clarke described G’iah as having “a kind of punk feeling” to her, adding that being a refugee had “hardened her”. She resents Fury since he has not been able to deliver on the promises he made in Captain Marvel to find the Skrulls a new home. - Olivia Colman as Sonya Falsworth:
A high-ranking MI6 agent and an old ally of Fury’s who looks to protect the United Kingdom’s national security interests during the invasion. - Don Cheadle as James “Rhodey” Rhodes:
An officer in the U.S. Air Force and an Avenger who operates the War Machine armor and serves as an envoy and advisor to President Ritson. The fourth and sixth episodes reveal that he was captured by Gravik’s rebels and impersonated; Nisha Aaliya portrays Raava, the Skrull impersonating Rhodes. - Charlayne Woodard as Varra / Priscilla Davis: A Skrull who is the wife of Nick Fury and has a history with Gravik. Varra took the likeness of Dr. Priscilla Davis who was suffering from a congenital heart defect.
- Christopher McDonald as Chris Stearns: A Skrull posing as an FXN news host and member of the Skrull council. The character was based on real-life newscaster Tucker Carlson and the Fox News channel.
- Katie Finneran as Rosa Dalton: A scientist replaced by a Skrull that is researching various DNA samples for the Harvest project.
Reprising their MCU roles are Cobie Smulders as Maria Hill, Martin Freeman as Everett K. Ross, and O-T Fagbenle as Rick Mason.
I still recommend this series to anyone who might enjoy it more than me.
Rating: 4 Out of 10 Stars
Ryan Balkwill:
Resident TV reviewer,
Level Best Art Cafe