User reviews

Although there are a lot of complaints about how these first two episodes have felt quite slow-paced, and I'm definitely not going to disagree, it's the right choice for this series. People had to expect something like this as soon as we were told it wasn't going to be as fast-paced and action packed as other superhero TV shows, focusing more on the spy/espionage sub-genres. What these episodes have been doing is introducing the new characters, fleshing-out the arcs of the ones we knew, and building-up the story, establishing the stakes and providing challenges and complications for the protagonists to face. It's classic story-building, and this show is doing it beautifully. So, slow-paced or not, I'm really enjoying this show so far, and feel as though it could really bring something spectacular.

This is a more coherent and more well-paced episode than the first.

They give a decent backstory to the villain and his motivation, though I still think his motive is ridiculous, or at least is presented poorly.

Scenes and dialogue are better written and you can actually follow what they're saying unlike the first one.

And although I think the 6 episode format might, if not definitely gonna hurt the pacing of the show just like the previous MCU shows, I think it's better that these episodes are at least 50 minutes. The pacing for this episode is pretty good and you won't get bored like the previous one, but I feel like we're gonna have a rushed ending.

So far, this episode made the story of the show a little more interesting for me which the first episode failed spectacularly.

It was a decent episode and more engaging than the first episode, but still, nothing to write home about. I don't really have much else to say about it except that it was decent and the next episodes will determine if the show is worthy of a watch or not.

I'm still disappointed that Disney has all the money in the world but still decides to take the most interesting storylines from the comics that have so much potential and turn them into cheaply-made uninteresting boring messes.

After the demise of Maria Hill. Nick Fury tells a story about his childhood to Talos. It is all to find out from Talos what he has left out. Which is there are 1 million Skrulls on Earth as refugees.

Gravik was there as a child when Fury said he would find them a home. The adult Gravik believes that he broke that promise. In the meantime some Skrulls disguised as humans have got themselves into seats of power. They have their own council which Gravix has pretty much taken over. A collision course with humanity beckons.

Fury has his own collision with Rhodey (Don Cheadle) who has known about the Skrulls for years. He now fires Fury who is rightfully furious about being betrayed by an old friend.

Meanwhile Falsworth (Olivia Colman) brutally interrogates a captured Skrull. She manages to get information out of him about Gravix wanting to make the Skrulls stronger.

There is still a lot of world building but it is also plodding. It was nice to hear about the Fury family tales but surely that conversation with Talos should have happened years ago.

The ending with Fury visiting his wife was a straight lift from the Spielberg movie Lincoln.

So far I wouldn't say I'm ecstatic about this show but I think with what i've seen so far it's sort of like a breath of fresh air from what the MCU has produced post endgame.

Speaking on this episode they do a fairly good job at expanding this story. The Skrulls have grown upset that Fury hasn't provided them a new home and in retaliation they send a message that has obviously raised concerns.

We get to know more about Fury but also Gravik who I think stole the spotlight here. His motivations are very understandable and it's clear that he is on a mission to exact justice for his people. This episode demonstrates that and it is interesting how this will carry out moving forward.

Not exactly an improvement from the first episode, I think there is a lot of stuff that they need to cover and hopefully the next couple of episodes does that.

I spoke about this when I wrote about the premiere, but this show feels like it should really have been up there on the big screen. The story is spanning the entire globe and while the ending of the first episode felt like a big deal, it would have been better had it actually been seen as more of a global threat and not something that had to be small because of the budget. This episode pushes the scale and it feels a little bigger. And it's a good episode that pushes the plot along, although it's still burried under a lot of necessary set-up.

This episode feels very much like a set-up episode. A lot of its time is focused on the Skrulls and showing what they're plotting and why they've found themselves in this situation. A lot of time is spent with the show's antagonist Gravik - portrayed by the brilliant Kingsley Ben-Adir - and it's all to make him up as a more interesting villain, which he is slowly becoming. There's a lot of anger brewing in him and a lot of it is due to some things that Nick Fury didn't deliver on. It's great that they're making the show feel very personal and that they're making Nick Fury the centerpiece of it all, but it still can't escape the fact there's a lot more that could be done. They try to present an answer as to why he has to do this by himself, but it still comes across as a little desperate. There's also a large ensemble of characters in this show; so many that there isn't enough time to really give them all the necessary screentime. It's going to be interesting to see what it all leads to, because there has to be some more room for these characters to roam in. A few of the pieces are starting to fall into place, and fans of the comics - like me - should be picking up on where this is going, and that is an exciting prospect. It also ends with an entertaining action sequence and a nice revelation that provides Fury with some needed character development.

"Promises" is another solid entry into this show that expands on the Skrulls' motivation a little bit, providing a nice backdrop for their evil schemes. Kingsley Ben-Adir's Gravik is coming across as a very menacing antagonist in an episode that takes the focus away from its lead character for the most part, until the end.

The first scene made a great impression, the plot of this show is mildly interesting, however throughout the episode I got little bored, not much happened, there is only a thing or 2 about "skrulls", and that it, there is no exploration about their identity (yet), but such thing should have been a little bit explained in the first episode.

I can't wait to see how Nick Fury is connected to all of this.

However, I don't know how Disney write a story, I felt like politics should not be an addition to the story, you got stories like Avengers: Infinity War, and Avengers: Endgame, where the antagonist try to snap the whole world, yet we did not see any politics interference on global scope (I am talking about how the environment of politics in this show is so equated to our own world, which sucks, because Marvel is a different universe).

This episode get 7/10.

After watching the first episode, I had hoped that there would be some of that Marvel charm in this episode, after all, the cast is top notch. Instead, I discover that not only is Cobie Smulders out, she's out of the entire MCU. I can't say I enjoyed the weak exit written for her, nor her lack of screen time. Her exit doesn't make me want to see more, it makes me want to see less. The scenes between Don Cheadle and SLJ are an interesting, yet unbelievable move to 'raise the stakes' which falls flat and hard. I almost expected to hear someone utter "jive turkey" at some point, such was the oddly lacking conversational style between two 'brothers'. It should have been written as two powerful, competent, dedicated, fearsome men confronting each other, one for his inaction, one for his heavy-handed approach. Frankly I don't really care if anyone wins this boring invasion, and its manufactured "The Bear" daily no stakes drama. Win, lose, it's just a time filler that I have no desire to see completed.

In the second episode of Marvel's Secret Invasion, "Promises," Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) indoctrinates refugee Skrulls he helped rescue from the Kree into human-presenting foot soldiers. The series exposes Nick's manipulative nature over the years. The episode also introduces a younger version of Gravik (Kingsley Ben-Adir) and his connection with Talos' daughter, G'iah (Emilia Clarke). Initially reluctant to recruit a child soldier, Nick convinces Gravik to join his cause. He promises the Skrulls that if they agree to his dangerous spy work, he and Carol Danvers will find them a new home. The Skrulls are grateful, traumatized, and lost, willing to do anything to make Fury happy. In the present day, Nick faces the consequences of his actions, including the death of Maria and the destruction of Russia by Gravik's Skrull faction. Sonya's men are already on the ground, and they pick up a Skrull henchman for her to torture information. Olivia Colman's character, Sonya, is ruthless and likable, even if she's a James Bond villain to a random alien. Colman's bright red pantsuit in Secret Invasion stands out visually, reminiscent of nature's warning colors of danger. Overall, Colman's portrayal of Sonya is enjoyable to watch. In the second episode of Iron Man 3, the plot of the show revolves around the arrival of a million Skrulls on Earth, who are summoned by Gravik to avoid their annihilation. The Skrulls, who are now a threat to humanity, are portrayed as cold, calculating, and now a Skrull general. Gravik's nefarious plans involve creating Super Skrulls, and his chief scientist uses Groot, Frost Beast, Cull Obsidian DNA, and Extremis tech from Iron Man 3. This unexpected twist adds to the tension and intrigue for fans of the show. Episode 2 introduces a major twist as Nick Fury is secretly married to one of Talos' most trusted Skrulls, Priscilla (Charlayne Woodard). This romantic relationship is a surprise, as Nick has failed to find a new planet for his people in the last 30 years. The show's upcoming episode will provide more information about their relationship, with the hope of revealing more about their relationship during the next week's episode. In summary, the show's plot revolves around the arrival of a million Skrulls on Earth, the emergence of a Skrull general, and the unexpected romance between Nick Fury and Priscilla. "Promises" is a slight improvement from the premiere of Secret Invasion, with themes better fitting the past and future threats. However, the slow burn approach of the series makes the episode feel rushed. The intimate scenes between Nick and Talos and Rhodey are appreciated, but Nick's lack of knowledge and his jaded relationship with Skrull make it difficult to predict the future. The third and fifth episodes of the series often contain the biggest revelations, making it difficult to predict how the complex relationship between Skrull and man can be salvaged.