Episode #35 Prisoner of War
Review:
Really liked the way Cap and Madame Viper interacted in this episode. Viper finds herself forced to work with her enemy, if she wants to escape the Skrulls' prion. Cap once again proves he is a natural born leader by convincing the other captives, both heroes and villains, to rise against the Skrulls. Among them we see Mockingbird and Sue Storm (already revealed to have been replaced by Skrulls in previous episodes), but also some surprises: Cobra, from the Serpent Society, an AIM. scientist who was next in line to become their Scientist Supreme, and Henry Peter Gyrich. This most likely means that the Gyrich we saw back in the episode "Welcome to the Kree Empire" was a Skrull, which makes things even more interesting. Likewise, it would be interesting if Cap's actions in this episode would lead to Viper changing sides and joining the fight against the Skrulls. Though I doubt it would happen, her leading HYDRA into battle against the aliens is entirely possible, even if only for regaining control of the organization.
I didn't expect to see Galactus this early on the show. He was the one responsible for the destruction of the Skrulls' home planet of Skrullos, thus the aliens seek out a new planet, and Earth is their target. I liked how they mentioned that their invasion has already started years ago; by now the Skrulls have agents in every organization on Earth. We now about the Avengers, the Fantastic Four, SHIELD, HYDRA, and now AIM and the Serpent Society. Hopefully we'll see some of the other organizations the aliens are talking about in the next few episodes, meaning a lot of new characters will appear on the show. Good, evil, neutral or whatever they might be, I look forward to seeing some new faces on the show.
Skrulls seem to use some sort of magic (they mention Skrull shamans at one point in the episode) to access and replicate the memories of those they replace, while shape-shifting seems to be one of their basic powers. I find it interesting that they use both technology and magic; sounds familiar to what the people of Wakanda have done under the rule of the Black Panther. This could explain why one of the first targets of their invasion, as revealed at the end of the episode, is Wakanda. With Black Panther declaring a state of emergency and mentioning that they are at war back in the episode "Who Do You Trust?", this should be awesome.
On top of that, the heroes also have to deal with the Super-Skrull. His introduction here was great; he looked pretty cool and used his powers rather well. He has the same powers as the Fantastic Four, and he can use them all at once, if necessary. His fight with Cap was cool, and I am sure we haven't seen the last of him. If the Skrulls manage to create an army of Super-Skrulls, things will get even more interesting.
Not a lot more to say except that I enjoyed this episode a lot more than I thought I would. Seeing Cap again after being absent from so many episodes was great, and he gets a lot of really awesome moments here. Looking forward to him re-joining the Avengers and most likely leading them into the final battle with the Skrulls.
Five stars, and a round of applause for Captain America.
Original Airdate - July 1st, 2012
After being held prisoner for months by the shape-shifting aliens known as the Skrulls, Captain America realizes he must align himself with his enemies in order to break out. Cap must warn the Avengers about the pending alien invasion but did not expect to face the Super-Skrull!
Written by Kevin Burke & Chris Wyatt
Directed by Steve Gordon
Review by RoyalRubble
Media by Marvel Animation Age
Perfect episode to showcase Captain America. We learn more about what happened to him following his abduction by the Skrulls at the end of season one. Two months have passed, and the Skrull interrogator has tried his best to get information from him, but without success. Seeing that Cap won't break down even after suffering more than humanly possible (or so they say), the Skrulls decide to try a new tactic. I admit, I would have been tricked by their strategy, when I saw the Hulk enter Cap's cell. I thought it could have been the real Hulk following the events from the previous episode. But once Thor, Iron Man, Hawkeye and Black Panther come in, it became obvious they were Skrulls trying to trick Cap. I loved Cap's line of "How stupid do you think I am?", as he beats the Skrulls and escapes from his cell.
