#Charlayne Woodard

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CHARLAYNE WOODWARD | Eye for an Eye (1996) dir. John Schlesinger

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Did you fall in love with me or the face that puts you at ease? SECRET INVASION — Home (Episode 6) ››› Charlayne Woodard as Varra ››› Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury

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UNBREAKABLE (2000)

Director: M. Night Shyamalan Cinematography: Eduardo Serra

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Armelia McQueen, Charlayne Woodard, and Nell Carter Off-Time--Ain't Misbehavin', 1982

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Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles S01E03 The Turk

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Nell Carter, Armelia McQueen, Ken Page, Charlayne Woodard, and André De Shields perform "Black and Blue" in Ain't Misbehavin' (1982).

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quarterfinals (week 9)

descriptions under the cut

charlayne woodard -> appeared in 6 episodes over 8 seasons as sister peg, a nun that was really for the people. gets killed by jenna in smoked (rip).

robin williams -> appeared in the season 9 episode authority. plays a man who pretends to be a police officer and gets another person to commit sexual assault by talking him into it on the phone.

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1978 Tony Awards - Ken Page, André DeShields, Charlayne Woodard, Nell Carter, and Armelia McQueen perform a medley of the songs Ladies Who Sing With The Band / Off Time from the musical revue Ain't Misbehavin'

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SECRET INVASION | 1.04 "Beloved" dir. Ali Selim

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Marvel's Secret Invasion wastes potential & fantastic actors - REVIEW

I'll be honest, the announcement of Secret Invasion being adapted into a Marvel television series was somewhat disappointing. After seeing this story successfully adapted through Avenger's Earth Mightiest Heroes, and with the MCU's ever growing roster of heroes, it felt like a story well suited for the big screen.

None the less, when it was revealed to be an espionage thriller centered around Nick Fury, with the feel of Captain America the Winter Soldier, I was very excited.

As the cast grew, Ben Mendelson, Emilia Clarke, Cobie Smulders, Don Cheadle, Olivia Coleman, Kingsley Ben-Adir, I thought this show was going to be something very special.

Unfortunately, while most MCU shows have been a mixed bag, none have been more mixed baggier than Secret Invasion.

Before I get anymore deep into this rant, I must say:

SPOILERS AHEAD FOR ALL OF SECRET INVASION.

I will say a few nice things to start.

Excellent Actors

Although I think many of these actors were wasted as far as how much screen time they had, and their role within their show, the show is ridiculously stacked with talent and it's a delight to watch.

Olivia Colman, Kingsley Ben-Adir, Don Cheadle and Ben Mendelson are highlights to me, but Samuel L Jackson, Emilia Clarke, and others are also fantastic.

Colman as Sonya I think will leave this show as a fan favorite, and possible eventual successor to Fury. She has a good mix of fun energy and intimidation, and clearly is having a ball.

Don Cheadle's "Rhodey" is for once doing something interesting in this show. As a secondary antagonist, Cheadle is able to chew up scenery as a Skrull and be a sinister rival to Samuel L Jackson, for once using Cheadle's fantastic acting skills properly.

While Gravik is an ordinary Marvel villain by all means, Ben-Adir gives him an anger and viewpoint that feels fresh. His monologue facing Fury in the final episode really brings the pain out for me. I don't know if he'll work as a character for others, but for me, due to the performance, Gravik is a step above many others.

Solid Ending

Secret Invasion ends on some very interesting notes, and I think overall sticks the landing where other MCU shows fail.

Wrapping up the story of Gravik with a giant Super-Skrull fight (which was a lot of fun), it leaves the MCU in a very interesting place, with the President calling on all aliens to be considered enemies.

This leaves assassinations running rampant, Skrulls on the run, and people anxious and scared.

This leaves Sonya and a new super G'iah as uneasy allies to protect the Skrulls and mankind.

This also pushes Fury to keep his promise and go up to Saber to continue his mission with his wife.

Overall, I like this ending. It sets up good stakes for earth that aren't just multiversal stakes. We can feel the ramifications of this show for years to come, and seeing what Fury, Sonya, and G'iah do next does excite me.

Plus, who doesn't love a Super Skrull fight?

Excellent Complicated Love Story

I think often where reviews and reviewers fall short is complaining about what a show isn't as opposed to examining a show for what it is.

While part of me thinks this isn't the time for a Nick Fury love story, I also have to point out that this is a great love story.

Charlayne Woodard as Nick Fury's wife Varra/Priscilla Davis adds an excellent layer to Fury's character.

While the chemistry is there, the acting performance between these two were captivating. There is an excellent scene where you have no idea what each character might do, guns on the table, talking about their past mistakes.

This was by far my favorite scene of the show.

It also brings to light many of Fury's flaws and possible prejudices, and gives you a firsthand look at what Skrulls go through on a daily basis.

Overall, I loved the inclusion of Varra, and would love to see her pop up more often.

But now on to my problems with the show. Starting with:

Meaningless Deaths

While a story like this definitely needs death to carry weight, I'd argue two characters die for absolutely no reason.

First I'll talk about is Talos. This fan favorite character dies in my opinion the saddest death. At the end of Talos' life, he has lost his wife, his daughter has lost faith in him, he has been stripped of his seat at the table of the Council, he has lost the faith of his people, and he just dies.

Now, a death like that you think would impact our main characters in any sort of significant way. But Fury, like with most deaths, has no reaction. It does not change or effect Fury's view of himself, he does not reflect on his regrets. You'd assume he was a nothing soldier, not a brother in arms.

But at the very least we got more Talos this season before his fatal end.

Maria Hill and Cobie Smulders deserved so much more.

Besides her death being used as leverage for the world to be after Nick Fury, which truly doesn't affect him at all, Hill's role is simply to die to imply stakes.

Using Maria just to die in such an unheroic way is really insulting to the character. When they killed Coulson, at the very least they did it with him trying to protect one of our heroes. Here, she is tricked by Gravik, and dies doing nothing of importance in the series.

I think having another character to provide a view point between Talos and Fury's argument of the Skrulls could have been beneficial. And having a larger group of agents would've added to the drama of who you could trust, who is really a skrull.

Instead they wasted not one but two of Marvel's most underrated characters.

Twists we see Coming

Rhodey being a skrull, G'iah not being dead, even G'iah being Fury in the final battle were all rather predictable twists. While there were genuine moments of suspense and shock, none of these worked for me.

Perhaps if they hinted strongly The President was a Skrull, and it was revealed it was actually Rhodey, that might've worked more for me, or hiding G'iah is alive for a few episodes. But instead none of them felt particularly hard to figure out.

Easy to figure out who you could trust

The point of a Secret Invasion storyline with many characters is to not trust anyone.

With the exception of Rhodey, Ross and Fury (ONE TIME), we don't get anyone impersonating our heroes. No one pretends to be Talos, or other MCU heroes, and Fury's crew is easy to trust throughout the entire show.

They do a half-hearted reason as to why Fury can't call other Avengers but really the best reason was right under their noses: he doesn't know who is real. That should've been the driving force of the show. Fury putting all his best mates to the test trying to figure out who he can trust and undo this invasion.

That's what a Secret Invasion story is.

All in all, Secret Invasion has just enough weight and great performances to warrant a watch and maybe even a future. It surprisingly sets up a second season very well, even with two protagonists who aren't Fury.

If this were to continue, it definitely needs to push the stakes, the conflict, and more than anything, the suspense. We should all be like Agent Prescod wondering desperately as it goes on, who do we trust?

If not, I'm afraid this show is destined to be forgotten in the middle of the road of the MCU.

Thank you for reading! If you'd like to support me, you can follow me here on my socials!

[mndvx]

If you want me to apologize for being gone, Scilla, just say so. SECRET INVASION — Betrayed (Episode 3) ››› Charlayne Woodard as Priscilla Fury ››› Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury

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GLASS (2019)

Director: M. Night Shyamalan Cinematography: Mike Gioulakis

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And what did you want? To call myself beloved, to feel myself beloved on the earth.

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Secret Invasion of Actors!

I know it is more fashionable to attack Disney, but I'm finding the writing and acting in Secret Invasion top notch, especially Samuel L. Jackson, Don Cheadle, and Charlayne Woodard.

Charlayne Woodard's conflict is low-key, but it's always present. As one of the new characters, she's the one I'm the most interested in.

Don Cheadle gives us just enough falseness in his acting choices to tell us about the character he's playing without giving anything away.

And Samuel L. Jackson. The emotion turmoil that he brings to what many would call a morally gray character is refreshing on every level. Finally, a story states you don't get to be a ruthless schemer and then be able to shrug off the consequences of being a ruthless schemer with a soulless, funny quip. Nick Fury has funny quips, but the audience is never allowed to forget that his life consists of using people for the greater good, and that means you can never really be with people.

I just felt someone should point this out.