Quick Review – Avengers: EMH! Episode “Infiltration”

Infiltration

It’s on. The Skrulls are in full invasion mode, and their goal of eliminating the Avengers is moving along well. The team has been reduced to only Captain America, Hawkeye and Wasp. One problem though, this Captain America is a Skrull agent! 

Ms. Marvel follows the trail of a Skrull ship to Wakanda. The Black Panther left the Avengers to focus on the protection of his kingdom and Wakandan law forbids any foreigners to set foot on their soil, alien or human. 

What comes next is a great payoff for those that have been keeping up with the show. The Skrull ship opens and the entire Avengers line-up steps out. This group claims they have been trapped by the Skrulls since immediately after their adventure in Asgard. They claim all the Avengers currently on Earth are Skrulls and they are pretty convincing in their argument. 

This group makes its way to the Wakandan capital, only to be stopped in their tracks by Wakandan soldiers, led by their king, Black Panther. The Skrull-ship Avengers claim that this Black Panther is a fake and is after the Wakandan Vibranium mines. 

Tensions are high and the fuse is finally lit when Hawkeye and Wasp show up, accusing the Skrull-ship Avengers of being fakes. From this point it is everyone versus everyone. No one trusts the other, until finally the greater skill of the true Hawkeye and Wasp reveal the fake Avengers for the Skrulls they are. Ms. Marvel has had enough and unleashes on the enemy, with the aid of the real Black Panther. 

While this massive battle takes place, Dr. Doom makes his move. Not the kind you were expecting though. He has been studying the Skrulls, since his earlier appearance on the show. He confronts Iron Man and in a manner only Doom could pull off he offers his help. He has developed a method to detect the Skrulls, but he needs Iron Man to complete this tool. 

As if that wasn’t enough,  Nick Fury is putting together the pieces of who is a Skrull and who is not with sheer investigative skill and gut instinct. However, his revelations come too late, as the Skrull Queen pretending to be Mockingbird strikes. Fury calls Iron Man with his information, but Tony Stark arrives only to be defeated by the Skrull Queen, who implanted a virus in his armor which freezes him. 

At this point the Skrull invasion is looking well on its way to success. 

This is a huge payoff episode. It ties together all the previous episodes, even ones that you may not have thought would have a direct impact on the Skrull invasion. And it all makes sense. 

The appearance of Dr. Doom is spot on characterization. The heroes disbelief and mistrust of each other is incredibly believable and has been established perfectly.  What really makes this so convincing is that it feels smart. 

I read the Secret Invasion comic series. I thought it was good, but this was an even better version. It upped the action and made the motivations clearer. Much of the clutter of the comic series has been eliminated and yet we still get great character moments.

Quick Review – Avengers: EMH! Episode 34

Who do you trust? 

Very few animated shows can pull off paranoia with this much panache. Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes continues to set the bar higher for itself. 

Nick Fury is back and he has a message for Maria Hill, acting director of SHIELD – trust no one. Fury has discovered that the shape-shifting, alien Skrulls have infiltrated all levels of government including SHIELD and he knows there is another within the Avengers. 

While Fury is playing super-spy, The Avengers are trying to enjoy a positive moment in their tumultuous lives, the inclusion of Ms. Marvel on the team. They take her out for dinner, hoping for an easy night off from saving the world. Unfortunately a mysterious figure has other plans. She tracks down the monster known as The Grififn and sets him in their path. 

The Avengers quickly respond, but it is all a distraction to capture Tony Stark. It turns out the mysterious figure is named Quake and she works for Nick Fury. Fury opens Stark’s eyes to the invasion of the Skrulls, informing him that he knows there is one on the Avengers and hinting that it might be Hawkeye. 

This sets Stark into paranoia-mode. He returns to the mansion to confront his teammates, determined to address the issue. He confronts the team with Fury’s suspicions regarding Hawkeye, which quickly sets the members at odds. Hulk backs Hawkeye, Ms. Marvel has her loyalties the Avengers and SWORD tested and Black Panther walks out on the team. This ultimately leaves Iron Man with only one choice, to disband the team. 

However, Captain America, who is revealed to be the Skrull has a different plan. He argues that now, more than ever, the Earth needs the Avengers and convinces Wasp, Hulk and Hawkeye to join him in continuing the team. It is a rousing speech, worthy of the real Cap. 

The episode ends with the Cap-Skrull meeting his Queen who happens to be closer to Fury than anyone could possibly expect. 

I LOVE THIS SHOW. 

It often takes comic storylines and actually does them better than the original print version. More importantly, the show defines these characters so strongly and easily. Hawkeye hasn’t been this strongly written in years.  Black Panther comes across as lethal and thoughtful and his duties as King of Wakanda are never dismissed. 

With all of this great characterization you would think action would take a back seat, but it is definitely front-and-center. Ms. Marvel is shown to be a powerhouse on Thor and Hulk’s level as she confronts The Griffin. Even as an aside battle it still has incredible energy. 

And let’s not forget the humor. Some of it can be slapstick, physical humor within battles. Yet often it comes from character, as when Cap says “Hulk is on monitor duty. And Black Panther is on Hulk duty.” 

As an aside, I watched this episode just before I went out to watch the Avengers movie (for the third time) and I felt, tonally, that they meshed perfectly. I truly hope Marvel recognizes the fantastic series they have on their hands and keeps this show going for more seasons.

(By the way, this is listed as Episode 34, not 33. I believe the Ballad of Beta Ray Bill episode was listed as #33, but they are airing it in a different order)

Quick Review – Avengers: EMH! Episode 32

Michael Korvac

 The Avengers are starting to get a better handle on aliens. At the very least they know that the Earth has been noticed and is becoming much more popular with the out-of-towners. 

Michael Korvac appears in New York in a ball of light very reminiscent of the Terminator’s arrival. This is both a bit of homage and a little bit of foreshadowing. Buck naked and rambling about alien abduction, New York’s Finest pick him up and deliver him to Avengers mansion, as he has unusual marking s on his body that indicate there might be something to his story. Oh, and the ball of light he materialized in. 

The Wasp, on monitor duty (nice nod to the classics), brings him in and tries to help him. She calls in the other Avengers to check out his story. Black Panther and Hawkeye check out the spot he arrived at, Iron Man studies his energy signatures and Wasp tracks down a name that Korvac keeps repeating. They also contact Ms. Marvel, who is their official liaison with S.W.O.R.D., Earth’s alien experts. 

While running down their leads a new group of aliens arrives, The Guardians of The Galaxy. They are on a mission to bring Korvac back for crimes he has committed in outer space. Apparently in his madness Korvac has wiped out thousands of sentient life forms. 

The Guardians confront The Avengers at their mansion, demanding Korvac be placed in their custody. Language barriers lead to a battle to protect Korvac and his lady friend. 

Eventually things quiet down as the two forces realize that something doesn’t feel right. The Guardians reveal that Korvac was abducted by the Kree and experimented on. They unleashed some power within him, possibly the latent potential of all humanity. They also messed up his noggin. 

Realizing the danger he represents they team-up to track him down and bring him in. however, he has plans of his own. After a fierce, but futile battle, with the Avengers  Korvac leaves when confronted by the horror in the eyes of his girlfriend.

The Guardians and Avengers are left wondering what type of threat Korvac may represent with such cosmic power endowed to such a madman. 

This was a very quick episode for so much information. I think it could have benefitted from an extra episode, but it was still very good. The Guardians’ personalities are quickly and easily defined and they prove to be a formidable group to the Avengers. 

Korvac’s madness and paranoia are very well done and his erratic behavior is demonstrated nicely. Groot and Rocket Racoon provide some fun, as does the Hulk with a quick moment that shows he might not be as dumb as everyone thinks he is and that Banner’s mind might be more prominent than we suspect. 

I also really liked the banter between Hawkeye and Black Panther. It is cool that they show Black Panther as more than just some stiff, regal board with a brain.

Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes Episode 27 Review

Doom. Poker. Thing-bat.

I think Benjamin Franklin said it best,  “Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy.” Seriously. He said that.  Ken Burns had it in a documentary.