Warning: the following article contains spoilers for episode four of Secret Invasion.
Since the very first episode of Secret Invasion, Gravik’s plan to take over Earth has been clear. Infiltrate the planet undetected, replace humans in positions of power, and attack them mercilessly while putting the blame on someone else. Perhaps cause World War III, you know, as a treat before making this planet your new home.
In theory, Gravik seems like a mastermind for using the Skrulls’ unique disguising ability to his advantage on such a huge scale. That said, some consider that the character’s execution leaves something to be desired. For example, if he was going to blame the Russians for his attack on the U.S. president in episode four, maybe using his Super-Skrull powers in plain sight wasn’t the best move. Viewers immediately picked up on this, taking the conversation to Reddit, where others pocked a couple more holes in the antagonist’s plan.
In Gravik’s defense, though, aliens aren’t the only creatures with unique powers in the MCU. If you recall, the entire movie franchise started out by establishing human characters with superabilities, and they’re public knowledge in-universe by this point. And no, supersoldiers aren’t just an American thing, other countries can have them too, as a fair share of Redditors points out.
What all this means is that the antagonist will very likely get away with the attack, just as he did in episode one, when he placed the blame on Americans for what went down in Moscow. No matter how much hate Gravik gathers among fans, there’s no denying how impressive it is to see him in action.
Secret Invasion will continue, with new episodes hitting Disney Plus every Wednesday.