Marvel’s situation in Hollywood remains enviable. It is true that ‘Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania’ played at the box office and that there are many who have ended up somewhat burned with this universe of superheroes after the great climax that was ‘Avengers: Endgame’, but everyone wants to follow their model. However, perhaps this is one of the main problems of the study, since what at the time was something and special has been losing that condition.
That leads to Marvel having to do two contradictory things. On the one hand, it has to grow all the seeds that it has been planting in Phase 4, but on the other hand, it has to offer something different so that many fans can regain faith that they are still the number 1 in Hollywood. ‘Secret Invasion’ seems to be the work chosen for it, since superheroes are left completely aside here to offer a thriller with an adult vocation in which the presence of humor is also reduced to a minimum.
more serious and focused
Of course there are mentions of The Avengers and I wouldn’t be surprised if at some point a Marvel superhero appeared showing off his powers to face the threat posed by the Skrulls here, but the truth is that already in its second episode there is a conversation that It implies that we can forget about that idea. What we have here is the return of Nick Fury representing a decadent Marvel that refuses to be left behind in the face of a metamorphic enemy that is very difficult to identify.
In its own way, ‘Secret Invasion’ is a sequel to ‘Captain Marvel’, taking the growing discontent among the Skrulls settled on Earth as the main narrative force to present us with a conspiracy that the series itself defines as much more dangerous than it ever was. HYDRA. Luckily, the force here does not remain in words and those responsible have no problem making it clear to us very soon that the thing is serious and that we are not facing another random threat that seems very powerful and with which it is going to be possible. deal without there being real consequences for what happened.
It is not the first time that Marvel flirts with the adult thriller and, saving the distances, ‘Captain America: The Winter Soldier’ would be the title with the most points in common with ‘Secret Invasion’. However, this miniseries created by Kyle Bradstreet, known until now for his participation in ‘Mr. Robot’, has a much more serious approach. Yes, there are certain concessions to the light, where one shines Olivia Colman who at all times seems to be having a great time playing Sonya Falsworth, but I can’t think of any other movie or series that does less. Perhaps a reaction to the complaints that were made last year towards ‘Thor: Love & Thunder’ for the excessive use of humor? Could be.
Of course, intentions are one thing and results are another, but fortunately here the latter is quite close to the former. Yes, I am aware that there will be those who expect a more lively rhythm, but precisely one of the hallmarks of ‘Secret Invasion’ is that it takes what it wants to tell us calmly in order to give more space to the characters and their motivations. It’s not that there’s anything revolutionary about any of the things, but it does help to dive deeper into that conspiracy that threatens to dethrone humanity at the head of the Earth.
To this we must add what I was saying before ‘Secret Invasion’ achieves something very difficult within Marvel, and that is that one really believes that the protagonists are in danger. So much so that having seen only two episodes -Disney+ has not sent more to the press-, I would have perfectly believed that the character of Samuel L Jackson He could end up dying here if it weren’t because we already know he’s in ‘The Marvels’. The weaknesses had to appear somewhere because they were part of a larger universe.
However, ‘Secret Invasion’ does something very well to counteract that, and that is that it feels more human. Ok, yes, the enemies are aliens, but here it’s not exclusively brute force, but more sneaky methods that allow them to hit harder when the time comes. That also helps make it more interesting, which together with the Jackson’s tremendous charisma as Fury it makes the trip more engaging.
Nor do I forget that at all times, even in those plots that may not work as well -sometimes certain dialogues feel a bit too generic-, there is a plan drawn up and a clear path to reach it -for example, I still remember the big gaps in everything related to the plan of the villains in the disappointing ‘Falcon and the Winter Soldier’-. That is also transferred to the visual section, because Ali Selim He is alone in charge of the staging of all the episodes, where a more visual approach is also perceived in terms of the great display of media in line with what is proposed here narratively,
What triumphs in the end is the feeling that Marvel wanted to punch the table with ‘Secret Invasion’ and do something different, but without getting out of the margins that this universe has either. For my part, I am grateful for the commitment to a more serious and focused science fiction thriller that makes it clear that not everything here has to be superhero stories.
In Espinof | The best movies on Disney+ of 2023 (for now)