Emilia Clarke’s Marvel Twist Isn’t Clever
Written by Luck Wilson on July 16, 2023
After casting Emilia Clarke in the MCU, her character in Secret Invasion has been completely butchered before even being given a chance, most evidently in Episode 3’s cliffhanger twist.
Warning – This article contains spoilers for Secret Invasion.
To no one’s surprise — Marvel literally teased it with a mid-week promo — Emilia Clarke’s G’iah didn’t actually die in Episode 3 of Secret Invasion.
After barely getting to know Talos’ daughter, Kingsley Ben-Adir’s Gravik shot her down, leaving her (supposedly) dead.
But why was she killed?
Forcing Emilia Clarke’s G’iah Death for Shock Value
Since the beginning, G’iah has been lazily written as a follower of the new Skrull regime, led by Gravik. Believing that Nick Fury and Carol Danvers betrayed them and they’re set on taking Earth from humans.
G’iah hasn’t been loyal, to anyone seemingly, caught in the middle of a conflict that she’s unsure about because of family ties.
During Episode 3, G’iah was inside the Skrull bunker, assisting her father Talos to stop a missile launch.
Following the betrayal (the episode is called “Betrayed” to really make the point clear), G’iah fled the scene quickly on a motorcycle.
It’s not hard to imagine the next scene was written similarly to this: Gravik arrives suddenly in a car, with little explanation…because he’s a villain.
Right place. Right time. Why? Because.
It’s sad to think of what this show was expected to be, and the great performances that are given on a weekly basis, just for some of the script to appear paper thin.
The shoe-horned death was clearly inserted solely for the purpose of shock value, something Secret Invasion is a big fan of.
Three of the four episodes of Secret Invasion have concluded with a death.
While Marvel Studios could’ve done something interesting like introduce G’iah’s human counterpart (possibly Abigail Brand) in the MCU, Emilia Clarke’s Skrull character was just quickly brought back to life.
As seen at the beginning of Episode 4, G’iah (for reasons unknown besides predicting her own death) experimented on herself to become a Super Skrull, powered by the healing Extremis.
This unsurprising and uninspired cold open was simply too predictable.
G’iah’s ‘pump fake’ style death is an example of a root issue with the series. An attempt to be thrilling, mysterious, and cool, but the execution falls flat.
The shocking death of Maria Hill at the end of Episode 1 was impactful and meaningful for the entire MCU, but it shouldn’t have become a trend.
Why Should Audiences Care About G’iah?
The Super Skrulls now seem invincible, following G’iah’s swift recovery after being shot in the chest, and witnessing Gravik’s face recover after being shot by Nick Fury.
In all likelihood, it looks like G’iah will be a vital piece of how Fury and the human race can end up on top by the end of Episode 6.
If Gravik fails, what was the point? So many characters have fallen, risen, and not even been themselves. But what’s getting lost is the root conflict between Gravik and Fury.
G’iah’s merry-go-round of allegiances has been mishandled and doesn’t give much for fans to care about. Following a “death” midseason, it all but confirms she’s safe to survive the rest of the show.
Stakes are low heading into the penultimate episode of this “event series”, can they turn the ship around? What will it take for audiences to care about Clarke’s new MCU character? Will we meet her human lookalike?
So many questions, such little faith.
Secret Invasion is currently streaming on Disney+
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