Secret Invasion Episode 4 Review! Go to sponsr.is/cs_s... and use code SCREENCRUSH to save 25% off today. Thanks to Curiosity Stream for sponsoring today’s video.
Secret Invasion Episode 4 gave us what should have been THE biggest twist in the history of the MCU--and instead it was a casual, offhand reveal that was not a shock to anyone. In this video, we break down how this is indicative of the problems permeating Disney and Marvel--and the way they can recover to rebuild the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
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Written and Hosted by Ryan Arey ( / ryanarey )
Edited by Harriet Lengel-Enright, Randolf Nombrado, Lee Mazzio, and Sofien Dami
Featuring
@NandoVMovies
@HeavySpoilers
#SecretInvasion #RhodeyReveal #Episode4
This is a show that I am rooting for-a show that should be shaking the foundations of the MCU-and yet, they just gave us one of the biggest reveals ever in the MCU-and no one cares. Is it because of low ratings, or is there something else behind this?
I’m going to talk about why I think that is, what the show has done right and wrong, and a little later I’m going to be joined by nando v movies and Paul from heavy spoilers, but first, here’s my take.
What’s really surprised me about this show is the apathy. I did a poll on our community page, and this is how you all voted: 55% of ScreenCrush viewers like the show, 14% don't like it, and a whopping one-third are not watching the show yet. I mean, guys-you’re part of ScreenCrush nation here. We're used to watching the MCU shows in the morning, before work. So what's going on here?
I’m wondering if we’re seeing something with this show, where it almost feels obligatory. Like Marvel is ticking boxes of things that need to happen in order to set up the future-Fury in the Marvels-president Ross in Captain america: Brave new world. Now there’s nothing wrong with that-captain america civil war was basically all set up for infinity war-but it was done with elegy writing and clockwork precision. That movie had scale, substance, and was a fanboy dream come true.
Secret INvasion’s comic books tryline would have also been a fanboy dream come true. Massive scale, hundreds of heroes. The show doesn't have the artistry, scale or budget this story deserves. This is not the same level of show we saw in 2021, for example.
But I want to be fair and point out what the show is doing right. For one, they have done an exceptional job with the skrulls. The skrulls look great, they have believable motivations, and they're sympathetic. I think the skrulls in the MCU are way more nuanced than they are in the comics.
The show also has these world class actors putting on great performances. Samuel L Jackson is bringing the weight [clip], But he’s also having fun [torture scene]. And speaking of torture scenes, Olivia Colman is a treasure [clip]. All of the character baked drama with Fury works really well. Like his strained relationship with his wife [her talking about when he blipped], INe flaw with this though, is that there is a lot of telling in this show, instead of showing. We don't see fury post blip, we don't see him lose faith in heroes.
And by the way-the entire show has been undermined because we saw fury in the Marvels trailer [clip]/ so we know things are gonna work out just fine.
Doug: Unless that’s an LMD. Unless it’s an LMD, right.
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So the real problem with secret invasion is that it feels small, it’s not-cinematic. Even though the world is threatened with extinction, it doesn't feel like it. I watch the show, and I don't feel threatened.
And the best example of this is the lazy, uneventful Rhodey is a skrull reveal.
So we have talked about it extensively on the channel. We did a video breaking down how long Rhodey could have been a skrull, and what this means for the mCU. This had the potential to be an earth shattering reveal that would have questioned everything we know about the MCU.
But instead, we get the reveal over the phone [clip]. Now the captions say, “Man on phone,” but that’s not cheadle.. He's one of the most famous people on the planet. Wouldn't a skrull have changed into someone else to disguise their voice?
And this reveal was way too easy to see coming. He treats fury like dirt, he fires him [clip]. And does not act like the man of honor we’ve come to know over the past 15 years.
Doug: Well then, how should they have done the reveal?