Secret Invasion 1×02 picks up from where we left off in the first episode; the explosion in Moscow that led to Maria Hill’s fatal shooting. As mentioned in the first review, this second episode gives us more insight into who Gravik is and why he’s coming after Nick Fury so hard. And we also get to see Fury at another low point in his life and wonder how he will save the planet because things aren’t looking good for him right now.
With no help from the Avengers, S.H.I.E.L.D., or his Skrull best friend, Fury is in for a major battle trying to prevent an invasion on his own.
Fury and Gravik Go Way Back in Secret Invasion Episode 2
Secret Invasion 1×02 begins with a flashback of Nick Fury’s past with the Skrulls, specifically, the events of 2014’s Captain Marvel. In 1995 we saw a young Fury who had just started at S.H.I.E.L.D. and was eager to save the world from any alien threat. Then we skip to the good part in 1997 when Fury promised the small Skrull faction he and Brie Larson’s help to survive from the Kree.
In the same year, Nick Fury is introduced to a young Gravik by a Skrull named Varra to help his cause to keep the planet safe. He already has his eye patch after Captain Marvel’s cat left him with a nasty scratch. From the first meeting, Gravik hesitates to trust Fury, but it’s expected, given what he’s been through. Varra tells Fury of Gravik’s story of how he ended up on Earth.
According to Varra, Gravik’s parents died when The Skrulls were making their last stand against the Kree. At his tender age, he managed to pilot a ship on his own from the Kree and escaped. Varra says, “He is smart Fury, He knows how to survive.” so they can recruit him. Fury offers his condolences to Gravik before accepting the fearless boy into the fold.
A younger-looking Talos, who is still the Skrull leader here, then speaks about the state of the Skrull population and says their species is scattered all over the galaxy. Here Talos tells his people that they can trust Fury because he does. Then Fury tells the alien race what they should do in exchange for his help. Putting on a human face and keeping it. “While you work to keep my home safe, Carol Danvers and I will help you find a new one. Who will be first to take the pledge.”
G’iah’s mother was the first to join Fury after he promised to keep his promise to them. Finding out that Gravik was there all along makes much more sense why he’s so mad at Fury.
Hill Is Dead, And Everyone Blames Fury For Her Death
Sadly Maria Hill’s death is real. I expected to tune in to episode 2 with Hill in some super secure facility where they’re doing everything possible to bring her back. But Hill remained on the ground after Talos’ attack in this next scene and died in Fury’s arms. Maria Hill deserved better than this for giving her life to S.H.I.E.L.D.
A man who looks like the Russian authorities grabs Fury from Agent Hill’s body and throws him into a van as everyone runs for their life. The man then turns into Talos, and I get to sigh with relief that Fury wasn’t captured. Gravik and G’iah walk away from the crime scene, leaving one of their own (a Skrull with the face of Martin Wallace – the leader of the group Americans Against Russia) to get captured by the authorities.
When they enter their vehicle, G’iah tries to smile at Gravik, but it’s taking all of her strength after the terrible act they just did. After the opening credits, we see Russian police checking cabins on a train from Moscow to Warsaw when they knock on a woman’s cabin. When the authorities ask if she has seen Fury, she jokes they have a better chance of finding aliens on the train than a black man, which is enough to get them to leave.
They leave, and Talos returns to his human form just as Fury gets out of the bathroom. Talos reveals he hasn’t heard from his daughter since the explosions. A confused Fury is eager to understand what happened and feels his friend is hiding something.
The former Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. tells Talos about a game he and his mother used to play when they had to ride in the ‘colored’ car on the train to Detroit called ‘Tell Me Something I Didn’t Know.’ Fury explains one time, his mother asked him to tell him something about him and a girl named Suzzie.
He lied through his teeth instead of telling her what was going on. And that lie let his mother know the true nature of his relationship with the girl. Fury then turns to Talos and asks him to tell him something he doesn’t know about the destruction of Skrulls by the Kree. Talos insists that Fury knows everything there is to know, but he doesn’t buy it.
The former Skrull leader explains that the million Skrulls who were left tried to destroy the Kree, but they were overpowered, and they fled. Fury continues questioning his friend, who reveals that he summoned all the 1 million Skrulls who escaped to Earth. Not only them but every Skrull who the Kree didn’t capture, and they came.
There Are More Than A Million Skrulls On Earth Now
Talos explains that he only had two choices when the Kree were killing his people back then. Let them be killed or call them to Earth, and he did the latter. Fury finds it crazy and calls out Talos for not being honest with him about what’s going on. But Fury tells Talos he had no right to do that when he is the one who agreed to let them stay on Earth, so he sets the terms. Talos lashes out and accuses Fury of using his species for his own benefit before disappearing to space.
Talos comes after Fury for hiding out in space after things got too heavy for him to bear. “When you did come back there was no talking to you about anything real, your boots barely hit Earth before and ‘Ohh, it’s too heavy here man, I gotta go up to my space station’ You’ve been up there for years!” Fury accuses Talos of keeping the truth from him, but Talos explains his goal is for humans and Skrulls to live on Earth together.
Fury shuts down the idea in the most ‘Nick Fury’ way possible, screaming! He explains that there is no way humans and Skrulls can coexist when humans barely accept each other. “There is not enough room or tolerance on this planet for another species.” Before kicking Talos from the train for lying to him.
Hill’s body arrives at the airport, where his mother is waiting to take her back home. Fury meets Hill’s mother, Elizabeth who he is familiar. Clearly, Hill and Fury’s relationship was much deeper than any of us thought, so her death will be a huge motivation for Fury. Like everyone else, Elizabeth blames Fury for what happened after he reveals Hill died because of a trap set for him. Her final words to Fury were that he should let Hill’s death be for nothing.
In the next scene, various news broadcasts worldwide depict the true damage Gravik has done in Moscow that has left at least 2000 people dead. Among the first people to respond are U.K. Prime Minister Pamela Lawton and NATO Secretary General Sergio Caspani, who says they are acting swiftly to gather more info on the bombings.
As per the news reports, because of the bombings, Russia is taking this as a declaration of war from America.
The Skrull Council Appoint Gravik As Their War General
We return to Garvik and G’iah in the car after their long drive. G’iah asks her leader how he knew Fury would arrive, and he says he had a feeling. Before describing how old and frail the great Nick Fury has become since they last saw each other. Gravik also brags about how easy it would have been to kill Fury in Moscow, but that would have been too easy.
The duo finally arrive at the Skrull council meeting, where Gravik confronts the head of Skrulls about his plan to invade Earth. Gravik meets the NATO Secretary-General, U.K. Prime Minister, and other important people who are all Skrulls in disguise. Gravik goes into a rant about how pathetic of a species humans are before he faces some harsh words from the Council for his terrorist actions.
Gravik repeats Fury’s promise before declaring his intentions to conquer Earth as the new home for the Skrulls. When asked if he fears the Avengers’ Return to stop them, Gravik says he isn’t worried. Now that they are at war, the U.K. Prime Minister appoints Gravik as their military general, and the NATO head points out that they were planning this ‘coup’ all along.
Only one council member refuses to follow Gravik and is let go. She warns Talos of Gravik’s plans to take over the planet, but he wants to meet their new war general to talk about his daughter G’iah. Gravik returns to the Skrullos camp, where his people celebrate his latest win of becoming their people’s general.
G’iah puts on her detective hat and follows one of Gravik’s men to an underground lab. Here she sees two doctors, one named Dr. Dolton, working on a secret experiment. What are they building?? Is it a gate or a portal for more Skrulls to invade Earth? Don Cheadle’s Rhodes is summoned to an emergency security summit in London to account for Nick Fury and Maria Hills’s involvement in the Moscow bombings.
In front of the different Heads of State, Rhodes insists Fury and Hill were in the country on their own as private citizens and not on behalf of the American government. He slams the presidents for coming after America with no concrete evidence. As Rhodes leaves, Fury calls him for a meeting, but his old friend doesn’t seem that happy to hear from him.
Secret Invasion 1×02: Nick Fury Gets FIRED
Fury finally arrives to meet Rhodes, but his goofy attitude isn’t received well. After joking about being poisoned, Rhodes warns Fury that he’s the last friend he has in the government after turning America’s allies to Russia. He isn’t shocked when Fury explains to Rhodes that the Skrulls might have invaded his security detail.
Rhodes knew about the alien species 15 years ago and offered up the one solution we were all thinking of – The Avengers. But Fury shuts down that plan because if the Skrulls fight the Avengers, they will duplicate their identity and turn them into terrorists. Just like they’ve don’t to Fury. The former Director asks for help, but Rhodes refuses.
When Fury reveals how they owe each other because of all they’ve accomplished as men of color, Rhodes shuts it down. Instead, Rhodes calls Fury mediocre and drops the unexpected news that he’s FIRED. But who is firing Nick Fury?? Is it Rhodes or Skrull?? Fury is shocked after Rhodes tells him he earned all this ‘smoke’ for getting Maria Hill killed and fueling the war between America and Russia.
As he leaves, Rhodes’ security pushes him forward, causing Fury to show them what he’s made of. He disarms the man before breaking his fingers. Rhodes mumbles, “And you wonder why you’re out.” Fury leans close to Rhodes and says, “I’m Nick Fury. Even when I’m out, I’m in.”
Nick Fury Is Married To A Skull In Secret Invasion
Olivia Coleman’s Sofia returns to gleefully torture Grogan the Skrull, who was caught by Russian authorities, to find out where Gravik’s safehouse is. Despite being tortured, he has no visible bruises on him, but that all changes when Sofia cuts off his finger to prove he’s not human. The MI6 operative uses a bio-chemical weapon on Grogan to get him to talk as Gravik, G’iah, and other Skrulls come to rescue him.
He reveals what Gravik is doing with the scientists: building a machine to strengthen the Skrulls. As Grogan reveals this info, Gravik storms into where he’s being held. We see Gravik in action as he kills those holding one of his people. While he’s rescuing, Falseworth escapes through a hatch, and G’iah relays information to an unknown person.
It could be Talos because she’s still working as a double agent. When they all drive back to the safe house, it is swarmed by police. Gravik quickly realizes he was betrayed by one of his own people and stops the car in a forest. He hands one of his men a gun, and they know what to do. Kill Grogon for his betrayal. It was a sad scene because right before he is killed, Grogon asks, “Did we make it home?” Everyone looks devastated but not like G’iah.
Fury gets himself a car and drives to a house. Before he enters the house, the camera pans to a Skrull woman cutting vegetables in the kitchen. Fury enters the home, and the woman has morphed into a beautiful human (Priscilla Fury) who questions him as soon as he sees her. Fury quickly puts on a ring before embracing his wife and giving her a long passionate kiss. After all, Fury has been through and lost, we can’t blame him for running to his only family for support.
