SPOILERS

“Promises”

After the shocking end to last week’s Secret Invasion, you weren’t sure what was next for the six episode series.

With Maria Hill’s death, it was clear that the show was filled with strife and stakes. That continued this week.

The writing on this show has been tremendous so far. It is not afraid to allow its superstars to provide the drama through their words even as it is throwing in some excellent action.

Samuel L. Jackson is getting an opportunity to flex his acting chops as well as to dive into the character of Nick Fury, something that we have not had a chance to see before.

One of my favorite scenes in the episode was the sit down discussion between Samuel Jackson and Don Cheadle, Nick Fury and James Rhodes respectfully. The depth of character really shone through with two remarkable actors who have played these parts for years.

Olivia Colman. I absolutely love her. Her few scenes that we have gotten so far has been tremendous. She is such a joy, and watching her torture a Skrull was just strangely appealing. Colman is an amazing talent and she brought a freshness to the horrible moment, even when she was cutting off fingers. I want more of Oliva Colman in the MCU.

This villain, Gravik, has been presented as a force. Kingsley Ben-Adir has been outstanding so far and brought his mission the right amount of menace. I loved how the show shot Gravik while he was in the passenger seat of the car being driven by Emilia Clarke’s G’iah. The angle of his head and the lighting made him look very Skrull-like even though he was in his human shape. This group of Skrulls led by Gravik feels very much like the way the Flagsmashers should have felt during The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. I enjoyed that show, but there was no doubt that the Flagsmashers part was the weakest of the series. This feels like it is working on every level.

Another awesome scene was between Nick Fury and Talos on a train. Once again, it is a talking scene, but it is as compelling as anything we’ve gotten before. Plus, Talos dropped some info in the “tell me something I don’t know” game that knocked Fury over. Over a million Skrulls were on earth. Whoa.

The episode also ended with a surprise. Hey, Nick, are you married to a Skrull?

Secret Invasion episode 2 was a wonderful balance and it continues to wonder exactly whom you can trust.