This article contains spoilers for episode 2 of Secret Invasion.
With the release of episode 2 of Marvel’s Secret Invasion Disney+ series, we’re now a third of the way through the story of shapeshifting Skrulls trying to wipe out humanity—and unfortunately, the flaws in the show’s logic are showing. Plenty of superhero movies have plot holes, and normally they roll off my back—but with Secret Invasion’s more grounded focus as a gritty spy thriller with nary a superhero in sight, the plot had better be that much stronger to withstand scrutiny. And it’s really not.
Love it or hate it, here are the plot holes in Secret Invasion that are bugging me the most.
Why won’t Nick Fury ask for help?
The whole idea behind Secret Invasion is that it’s Nick Fury’s sole responsibility to stop a global network of genocidal Skrulls on his own. It’s cool to see Nick finally take center stage in a Marvel project, but seriously, why doesn’t he reach out to any of the superheroes he knows?
Episode 2 waves this problem away, with Nick claiming that if a recognizable superhero stepped in, the Skrulls would just make a duplicate of them and frame them for terrorism. “This is my war,” Fury says. Okay, but the last time a bunch of Marvel characters got together, they figured out time travel. Surely they could work this problem out, too? I know Fury has been wary of contacting Carol Danvers in the past, but is there a specific reason he’s not contacting her now, seeing as the two of them together promised the Skrulls a new home? Or, to get a little more creative, why not reach out to one of the hundreds of Kamar-Taj sorcerers that everyone apparently now knows about?
This problem harkens back to the fact that the original Secret Invasion was a major crossover event in Marvel comics. The Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Secret Invasion could have been the next Avengers team-up, and Marvel’s decision to make it a superhero-free series focusing on one main character feels odd.
Why is Gravik’s plan so complicated?
Gravik’s plan is super convoluted. He starts by fomenting tension between nations with terrorist attacks. He places Skrull agents within the highest levels of the world’s governments in order to gain momentum. Then he starts building a machine to produce genetically enhanced super-Skrulls. His plan is to start a nuclear war so massive that humanity will cease to exist … and also throw the super-Skrulls into the mix somehow.
Why all the steps, though? It seems like the more stages there are in Gravik’s plan, the more opportunities it has to go off the rails. If Skrulls can look like anyone, why don’t they just figure out how to sneak into nuclear facilities and launch the bombs themselves? Maybe Gravik is just a wild-eyed villain who hasn’t thought his plan through, but it seems like the plot of the series was constructed solely in the service of leaning into conspiracy theories and paranoia. A more straightforward scheme would have worked much better—and avoided the parallels to antisemitic conspiracy theories that some fans have pointed out.
What about the aliens already living on Earth?
This is the plot hole that bothers me the most.
In episode 2, Nick Fury angrily tells Talos that aliens and humans can’t share a planet. “There is not enough room or tolerance on this planet for another species!” he cries.
But there’s already a colony of aliens living on Earth! Why hasn’t anyone in Secret Invasion mentioned New Asgard, where the Asgardians and a bunch of other species settled after Ragnarok? Things seem to be going fine there! It’s a cheerful tourist destination that sells Thanos-themed ice cream! If a Skrull walked down the street of any major city in their full Skrull glory, I have a feeling the people of Earth wouldn’t blink. They’ve seen plenty of weird stuff already.
The idea of doing another spy thriller in the MCU is fun, but Marvel shouldn’t have to ignore the world they’ve already established in order to make it work.
Secret Invasion still has time to right the ship
Reviewers were only given access to the first two episodes of Secret Invasion, so from here on out, I’m as in the dark as you are about what’s going to happen next. It’s possible that some of these problems will be resolved as the show goes on. Gravik implies that he has a contingency plan in case the Avengers show up, which means we may get a surprise guest or two, and I’m assuming that Fury will eventually acknowledge the Carol Danvers-shaped hole in his plan to stop the Skrulls, what with The Marvels coming up this fall.
At least, I hope he does. I hope all these plot points make sense by the time the show is over. I’m willing to buy that Steve Rogers lived a whole alternate life with Peggy Carter without messing up the Sacred Timeline, but you’re telling me that not a single Skrull decided to rent out a cottage in New Asgard? Get outta here with that.
(featured image: Disney+)
