SPOILERS

Marvel Studios is back on Disney + with the first episode of Secret Invasion dropping on the service this morning. As someone who has enjoyed all of the Disney + series to some extent, I was looking forward to the debuting show, especially since it puts Samuel L. Jackson’s Nick Fury front and center.

Based loosely on the Marvel Comics event series from a few years ago, Secret Invasion deals with a group of Skrulls and their desires to find a new homeworld. Fury and Carol Danvers promised to help them find a place at the end of Captain Marvel, but apparently, that promise fell to the backburner. This has made some of the Skrulls angry and ready to take matters into their own hands.

Secret Invasion kicks off with an episode that gives us a taste of what the series will be about. Paranoia. Trust, or lack thereof.

Even though the series is about a group of shape shifting aliens, Secret Invasion feels very grounded. It is more of a thriller/political espionage story than a superhero one. The Skrulls make a perfect foil for this type of series as their ability to shape shift makes them very dangerous.

Everything is centered around the performances of Samuel L. Jackson and Ben Mendelsohn. Sam Jackson’s Fury feels damaged, shaken and unhinged by the blip. Taking this character who we have known since Iron Man and making him vulnerable by his own experience of being dusted is very smart. Add to that his body struggling against him because of age or because of wear increases the feeling that Nick Fury is different.

Ben Mendelsohn’s Talos is clearly still torn between the desire to help his people and to be loyal to Fury. His loss of his wife offscreen and the anger of his daughter G’iah (Emily Clarke) will give him a ton to play as well.

The opening credits have stirred up a ton of controversy online. The AI used to create the credits is a hot-button issue and caused some backlash against the series. I found the opening credits to be very ominous and fitting for the series, but I can say I do not know much about this subject.

Olivia Colman made her first appearance in the MCU as Sonya Falsworth as a member of British MI6. Sonya could be considered the Nick Fury of British Intelligence. Her few moments of screen in episode one whetted the appetite to see more from this powerhouse actor.

Okay, so that is far enough before we talk about the shock ending of the episode. During this Skrull terrorist attack on Moscow, leader of the Skrull revolution, Gravik, who is played very ominously by Kingsley Ben-Adir, in the shape of Nick Fury, shot and apparently killed Maria Hill, played by Cobie Smulders. Smulders, who has been around the MCU since near the beginning, is a beloved character and he apparent demise will cast a pall across the series. I do not want Maria Hill to die, but I can see how her death here would really be a powerful trigger.

This was a very good opening episode and I was captivated by what was happening. The feeling that you are never sure what is happening and that there is no one to trust was highlighted by the events of this series. I am looking forward to finding out where this heads next.