The 2023 Disney+ series Secret Invasion brought an immensely powerful character to the screen, but her first appearance will most likely be her last. When MCU fans debate the franchise’s most formidable hero, Captain Marvel (Brie Larson), the Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen), and Thor (Chris Hemsworth) often come up, while villains like Arishem (David Kaye) and Dormammu also rank among the MCU’s biggest threats. But, Secret Invasion‘s G’iah, portrayed by Emilia Clarke, outmatches them all. A Skrull refugee and daughter of Talos (Ben Mendelsohn), G’iah coordinates with Gravik (Kingsley Ben-Adir) and his resistance fighters in their plan to take over Earth. During the events of Secret Invasion, Talos manages to recruit G’iah to work undercover for him and Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson). Following Talos’ death, G’iah teams up with other anti-resistance Skrulls to take down Gravik.
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To gain her immense fortitude, G’iah first infuses herself with Extremis — the same serum that gave Iron Man 3 villain Aldrich Killian (Guy Pearce) his heat and regeneration powers. This enables her to survive Gravik’s initial attempt to kill her. G’iah also uses the Harvest, a collection of various Avengers’ DNA, to enhance her abilities and mimic the most powerful heroes in the universe. In the final showdown with Gravik, G’iah summons the powers of Captain Marvel, Ghost (Hannah John-Kamen), Mantis (Pom Klementieff), and Drax (Dave Bautista) to defeat her fellow Skrull — who had also taken the Harvest. Even though G’iah’s prowess often goes unrecognized by audiences, her epic first appearance in the MCU promised to shake up the franchise. Unfortunately, G’iah’s tenure seems to have ended due to one major reason.
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The Future of Emilia Clarke’s G’iah in the MCU Is in Serious Doubt
Currently, there’s no official news regarding Clarke’s MCU future as G’iah, but the strong unlikelihood of her reappearance can be inferred. Secret Invasion‘s poor reception from both critics and MCU fans easily explains Marvels hesitance to formulate a future storyline for any of the new characters introduced in the show. The lowest-rated title of the MCU’s 11 live-action TV series, Secret Invasion holds a 53% critic approval rating and 43% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes. Secret Invasion loosely bases its narrative on the Marvel Comics run of the same name, however, there are several major differences that fans didn’t appreciate.
The series has been heavily criticized for colossal blunders, such as Maria Hill’s shocking death at the end of the first episode and the revelation that Rhodey (Don Cheadle) has been a Skrull in the MCU since 2016’s Captain America: Civil War. Jackson delivers a tour de force in his 12th appearance as Fury, while Clarke and Ben-Adir also deliver impressive performances, but the talented actors can’t make up for Secret Invasion‘s convoluted storyline and lack of meaningful stakes in the larger MCU. Due to Secret Invasion‘s negative reviews, Marvel will most move on the show and pretend the majority of its plot points didn’t happen. Secret Invasion largely served as a prelude to The Marvels, thus, despite its failure to contribute anything substantial to the film, its purpose has been fulfilled.
It’s a Shame That G’iah’s MCU Tenure Was So Short-Lived
G’iah’s power set is undeniably cool and incredibly lethal, but sadly, the poor quality of Secret Invasion overshadows this monumental character introduction. Had the series been better executed, Marvel might have granted G’iah a more significant role in future projects. Given her exceptional level of power, it would have been interesting to find out how the MCU would have handled her following Secret Invasion. Since she can channel the abilities of a myriad of superheroes, there exists practically no limits to her strength in combat, thus potentially making her a valuable asset to the Avengers or any group that recruits her. Tragically, MCU fans may never know her fate. For better or for worse, it’s hard to imagine Marvel bringing back Clarke to play G’iah again. But, if the MCU partially or totally resets after the Multiverse Saga concludes with Avengers: Secret Wars in 2027, perhaps the character could return and be used in a new way.
All episodes of Secret Invasion are available to stream on Disney+. The MCU returns to theaters on May 2nd with Thunderbolts*. Meanwhile, new episodes of Daredevil: Born Again release on Disney+ weekly on Tuesdays.
