As was foretold, we've added advertisements to the forums! If you have questions, or if you encounter any bugs, please visit this thread: https://forums.penny-arcade.com/discussion/240191/forum-advertisement-faq-and-reports-thread/

[Marvel TV] That Time I Was Reincarnated As A Skrull (There's a Secret Invasion??)

Local H JayLocal H Jay Registered User regular
edited April 2023 in Debate and/or Discourse
Disney had a big ass baby named Disney+ and then that baby had a bunch of marvel babies and no it's not the Power Pack it's MCU TV Shows! And this thread is about that

Thread is OPEN SPOILERS for all currently released episodes. Leaks should go in spoilers.

Moon Knight
https://youtu.be/x7Krla_UxRg

Ms Marvel
https://youtu.be/m9EX0f6V11Y

She-Hulk
https://youtu.be/PFpT5ZkuLlo

I am Groot!
https://youtu.be/D7eFpRf4tac

Secret Invasion
wzdfq9r6g71h.jpg

Iron Heart
????

Armor Wars
????

Untitled Wakanda Project
????

Echo
????

Agatha: House of Harkness
????

-Animated Content-

Spider-Man: Freshman Year
????

X-Men '97
!!!!!!

Also Loki and What If? Season 2 eventually. OP under construction

Local H Jay on
«134567107

Posts

  • GrisloGrislo Registered User regular
    It might be a good idea to be clear about spoiler policy in the OP, if not in the thread title.

    This post was sponsored by Tom Cruise.
  • DrezDrez Registered User regular
    I haven't seen it yet. Is Moon Knight about a streaker? Like a super villain that goes around and moons himself in front of people? That's what it's about, right?

    Switch: SW-7690-2320-9238Steam/PSN/Xbox: Drezdar
  • XantomasXantomas Registered User regular
    The Moon Knight is a hero, but he's a white man that never gets any sun because he wears a suit of full plate armor at all times, but it's missing the butt-plate so his full ample ass hangs out of it like a can of biscuit dough that's just been popped open.

  • RatherDashing89RatherDashing89 Registered User regular
    Gonna spoil just while people ease into the new thread here, talking 'bout Moon Knight finale.
    Overall the ending was good and the show itself was great. For a show that started as bonkers as it did, it managed to stay bonkers enough while being intelligible. By that I mean, often shows that start off with some really difficult to parse premise either (1) just stay so weird and confusing that you stop caring about figuring anything out (2) explain everything and lose momentum as soon as you actually know what's going on. This show did a remarkably good job of being understandable enough to follow and explaining most of its mysteries by the end, but still having some stuff that was weird and confusing all the way through, and continual surprises. I'm not going to break my brain trying to interpret the hospital stuff, but having Harrow be in a hospital at the end, which turns out to be just the real world (probably) was a great fakeout. And having Jake kill Harrow was a good way to tie off the story, with a twist that was definitely predictable but still very satisfying.

    The show left a lot open to interpretation or just flat didn't have consistent rules about things, and some of the time that was okay and sometimes less so.

    A. For example, the hospital stuff was confusing and inconsistent and I suspect followed more the "rule of weird" than some sort of Inception-like puzzle where you can figure out what is what by the color of their eyes or whatever. But I never minded that because you didn't need to understand what was happening in the hospital to understand what it meant for the story. How did Steven and Marc get back to the apartment? Doesn't matter. We've established that Jake took control, did some stuff, and dropped them off at home, where as far as they know everything is done. Good place to be.

    B. Moon Knight's power set was undefined and inconsistent but for some reason I am also okay with that one. Because despite it all, I felt like his power level was consistent. I didn't know what random bullshit he was going to pull out of his suit (get it?) but those surprises were fun. The final street fight was great even though it was short, and I have a general idea of what he's capable of. If he were to appear in the MCU more formally I feel like I know which heroes and villains he could take on in a fight. So I don't care that I don't know what his powers are because I get the idea of what tier he's in.

    C. The rules for how the gods work are all over the place. This is the only instance of inconsistency and vagueness that I feel really hurts the show. And I want to be careful saying that because I actually love how nothing about the gods feels normal or mundane. I really, really liked the imagery of Khonshu casually sitting on buildings and knowing he wasn't exactly there. And I don't want the gods to just be more superheroes with defined rules. And yet, the lack of rules made the stakes in the last episode really confusing and removed some of the pressure. Do the gods need Avatars to manifest physically? What does the Ushabti actually do? Why could Khonshu do more after being freed than he could before being imprisoned? Are the other Avatars representing gods in Ushabtis or free (but absentee) gods?

    As I was watching the street fight with Moon Knight that happened during the Kaiju fight with the gods, it occurred to me that I'd much rather if the street fight had been the only "real" part, and Khonshu and Ammit were fighting in the heavens somewhere, empowered by whoever was winning the fight below. That would have made the stakes more sensible, since as it was the rules were so undefined that I had no idea what the heroes actually had to do to win. Then by the end of the fight I realized that kind of was how it was. I don't think Khonshu and Ammit were really "there" on the side of the pyramid. But that could have been a little clearer. As it was, the gods interacted a bit too physically with the humans if they were trying to establish that they are on a slightly different plane. If they had been just a bit clearer about Khonshu and Ammit only being visible to Marc and Harrow, and not being able to interact physically with anything else (even after being freed), then I would have felt more like the stuff on the ground level mattered because it would have been clear that Marc's fight was determining who won Khonshu's fight.

    Anyway that made the climax not so great for me, but everything from the blackout (which I thought was great, actually) onward was really good and I don't think I could be much happier with the way it all ended (though having stuff after the credits is still lame and means nothing anymore anyway so they should just put it in the stinking show).

  • honoverehonovere Registered User regular
    Probably the most satisfying MCU TV show yet, in my opinion.
    The setting in and the portrayal of Egypt was really nice. It told a self contained story without having to set up another show. It didn't drown in MCU quipping. And Oscar Isaac is just a joy to watch.

  • HevachHevach Registered User regular
    edited May 2022
    Gonna spoil just while people ease into the new thread here, talking 'bout Moon Knight finale.
    Overall the ending was good and the show itself was great. For a show that started as bonkers as it did, it managed to stay bonkers enough while being intelligible. By that I mean, often shows that start off with some really difficult to parse premise either (1) just stay so weird and confusing that you stop caring about figuring anything out (2) explain everything and lose momentum as soon as you actually know what's going on. This show did a remarkably good job of being understandable enough to follow and explaining most of its mysteries by the end, but still having some stuff that was weird and confusing all the way through, and continual surprises. I'm not going to break my brain trying to interpret the hospital stuff, but having Harrow be in a hospital at the end, which turns out to be just the real world (probably) was a great fakeout. And having Jake kill Harrow was a good way to tie off the story, with a twist that was definitely predictable but still very satisfying.

    The show left a lot open to interpretation or just flat didn't have consistent rules about things, and some of the time that was okay and sometimes less so.

    A. For example, the hospital stuff was confusing and inconsistent and I suspect followed more the "rule of weird" than some sort of Inception-like puzzle where you can figure out what is what by the color of their eyes or whatever. But I never minded that because you didn't need to understand what was happening in the hospital to understand what it meant for the story. How did Steven and Marc get back to the apartment? Doesn't matter. We've established that Jake took control, did some stuff, and dropped them off at home, where as far as they know everything is done. Good place to be.

    B. Moon Knight's power set was undefined and inconsistent but for some reason I am also okay with that one. Because despite it all, I felt like his power level was consistent. I didn't know what random bullshit he was going to pull out of his suit (get it?) but those surprises were fun. The final street fight was great even though it was short, and I have a general idea of what he's capable of. If he were to appear in the MCU more formally I feel like I know which heroes and villains he could take on in a fight. So I don't care that I don't know what his powers are because I get the idea of what tier he's in.

    C. The rules for how the gods work are all over the place. This is the only instance of inconsistency and vagueness that I feel really hurts the show. And I want to be careful saying that because I actually love how nothing about the gods feels normal or mundane. I really, really liked the imagery of Khonshu casually sitting on buildings and knowing he wasn't exactly there. And I don't want the gods to just be more superheroes with defined rules. And yet, the lack of rules made the stakes in the last episode really confusing and removed some of the pressure. Do the gods need Avatars to manifest physically? What does the Ushabti actually do? Why could Khonshu do more after being freed than he could before being imprisoned? Are the other Avatars representing gods in Ushabtis or free (but absentee) gods?

    As I was watching the street fight with Moon Knight that happened during the Kaiju fight with the gods, it occurred to me that I'd much rather if the street fight had been the only "real" part, and Khonshu and Ammit were fighting in the heavens somewhere, empowered by whoever was winning the fight below. That would have made the stakes more sensible, since as it was the rules were so undefined that I had no idea what the heroes actually had to do to win. Then by the end of the fight I realized that kind of was how it was. I don't think Khonshu and Ammit were really "there" on the side of the pyramid. But that could have been a little clearer. As it was, the gods interacted a bit too physically with the humans if they were trying to establish that they are on a slightly different plane. If they had been just a bit clearer about Khonshu and Ammit only being visible to Marc and Harrow, and not being able to interact physically with anything else (even after being freed), then I would have felt more like the stuff on the ground level mattered because it would have been clear that Marc's fight was determining who won Khonshu's fight.

    Anyway that made the climax not so great for me, but everything from the blackout (which I thought was great, actually) onward was really good and I don't think I could be much happier with the way it all ended (though having stuff after the credits is still lame and means nothing anymore anyway so they should just put it in the stinking show).

    So, god rules, piecing things together:
    Ushabti are prisons. Gods in them can't have avatars - Harrow only became an avatar after freeing Ammit, and Marc/Steven abruptly lost his avatar powers when Khonshu was imprisoned, and didn't immediately regain them upon his release, the contract has to be renewed.

    Except for the last battle, which I'll get to in a second, it appears that while Gods can exert some will within their domains (Tawaret using dead bodies to speak, Khonshu messing with the night sky or lights in dark buildings) they can't directly appear or speak except to their avatars (possibly to other avatars, but we don't see a time when a god manifests in front of another god's avatar, except that final battle which is different). We see Khonshu speak to Marc before he becomes an avatar, but he doesn't manifest and the conversation appears to take place in a holy place of some sort dedicated to Khonshu, so he may be more powerful in such a place than elsewhere, or the rules may be slightly different when a god without an avatar is extending the offer to a candidate.

    Now, the chamber where they had the little summit is a special place. It's said to be somehow tied to the dimension where the gods normally reside, Both the gods and their avatars have powers there they do not elsewhere. I believe this place also is why Ammit and Khonshu could physically manifest there and not elsewhere. My speculation is that once fully manifest, however, they aren't tied to the place and can leave, which is why Harrow wanted to specifically release Ammit *there* and not just smash the statue on the spot.

    Hevach on
  • Jam WarriorJam Warrior Registered User regular
    I absolutely loved that. Wonderful bit of variety. I certainly enjoyed your Hawkeyes and F&TWSs but I definitely get much more out of these projects that push in a weird direction that is very different to anything the MCU has done so far, so I’d rank this and early Wandavision well above them.

    MhCw7nZ.gif
  • HydropoloHydropolo Registered User regular
    This is part of the problem (if that's the right word) people keep "ranking" them based on personal factors. Honestly, I don't think ANY of the MCU TV shows were bad, and were generally all pretty good. I have my personal preference for what I enjoyed, but that's not really a comment on it's quality.

  • TofystedethTofystedeth Registered User regular
    Regarding someone's comment on the last page of previous thread:
    They said they liked that it wasn't a typical "person working for bad guy inevitably betrayed by bad guy" and it wasn't. Sort of.
    He probably did view it as a betrayal. Harrow seemed to want to just be eaten and done with.

    steam_sig.png
  • NobeardNobeard North Carolina: Failed StateRegistered User regular
    Finished MK. Thoughts.

    I actually respect Harrow for his commitment to his ideals. He’s crazy, but he’s not a hypocrite. Him submitting to Amit does not diminish his commitment, even after he sees her be a hypocrite. When an ancient croc god lady tells you to do something, you just roll with it.

    Superhero Layla as Tawaret’s avatar is yes, give it to me. Why wings? Why not! They’re cool! I’m guessing this is already a comic character with a name?

    The finale being mostly a big action set piece with kaiju fighting in the background was good. Felt like the series earned a big, superhero blowout.

    The way Tawaret flicks her ears is cute. Never thought I’d say that about hippo ears, but here we are.

    Overall I enjoyed it. Certain sections felt really disconnected, like it was a bunch of cool ideas just kind of stapled together, but the actors for the main characters all did a really good job so I dug it. Isaac especially is really, really, good.

  • WiseManTobesWiseManTobes Registered User regular
    Layla might be new for the show. I didn't mind the wings but it needs little hippo ears!

    Steam! Battlenet:Wisemantobes#1508
  • ReynoldsReynolds Gone Fishin'Registered User regular


    Scarlet Scarab is a pretty obscure character that only appeared like three times, and doesn't much resemble this, besides an Egyptian thing giving an Egyptian person powers.

    uyvfOQy.png
  • MorganVMorganV Registered User regular
    Reynolds wrote: »
    Scarlet Scarab is a pretty obscure character that only appeared like three times, and doesn't much resemble this, besides an Egyptian thing giving an Egyptian person powers.

    Definitely getting Blue Raja vibes on the name for the MK character. Other than a kind of coppery sheen on the wings, where exactly are the red hues, especially ones bright enough to be scarlet?

  • HellboreHellbore A bad, bad man Registered User regular
    Layla is a new character, sort of based on Marc's comics love interest Marlene
    combined with obscure Egyptian hero Scarlet Scarab.

  • DracomicronDracomicron Registered User regular
    Didn't the scarab that detects Ammit end up with Layla? That had similar wings.

  • MichaelLCMichaelLC In what furnace was thy brain? ChicagoRegistered User regular
    MorganV wrote: »
    Reynolds wrote: »
    Scarlet Scarab is a pretty obscure character that only appeared like three times, and doesn't much resemble this, besides an Egyptian thing giving an Egyptian person powers.

    Definitely getting Blue Raja vibes on the name for the MK character. Other than a kind of coppery sheen on the wings, where exactly are the red hues, especially ones bright enough to be scarlet?

    Copper Plover
    Captain Jaeger
    Tawaret's Storm Petrel

  • MorganVMorganV Registered User regular
    MichaelLC wrote: »
    MorganV wrote: »
    Reynolds wrote: »
    Scarlet Scarab is a pretty obscure character that only appeared like three times, and doesn't much resemble this, besides an Egyptian thing giving an Egyptian person powers.

    Definitely getting Blue Raja vibes on the name for the MK character. Other than a kind of coppery sheen on the wings, where exactly are the red hues, especially ones bright enough to be scarlet?

    Copper Plover
    Captain Jaeger
    Tawaret's Storm Petrel

    I love this one so much.

  • chrono_travellerchrono_traveller Registered User regular
    Didn't the scarab that detects Ammit end up with Layla? That had similar wings.

    Yeah, I got the feeling they were going for scarab wings, since aren't scarabs strongly related to death, which is kinda Tawaret's thing?

    The trouble with having an open mind, of course, is that people will insist on coming along and trying to put things in it. ~ Terry Pratchett
  • Warlock82Warlock82 Never pet a burning dog Registered User regular
    Oh, this is kind of cool:


    TLDR: Marc wasn't blipped because it would have complicated the story too much. Also originally there were going to be teasers of Gorr the God Butcher in the series but they decided not to do it. Really curious what those would have been.

    Switch: 2143-7130-1359 | 3DS: 4983-4927-6699 | Steam: warlock82 | PSN: Warlock2282
  • MichaelLCMichaelLC In what furnace was thy brain? ChicagoRegistered User regular
    MorganV wrote: »
    MichaelLC wrote: »
    MorganV wrote: »
    Reynolds wrote: »
    Scarlet Scarab is a pretty obscure character that only appeared like three times, and doesn't much resemble this, besides an Egyptian thing giving an Egyptian person powers.

    Definitely getting Blue Raja vibes on the name for the MK character. Other than a kind of coppery sheen on the wings, where exactly are the red hues, especially ones bright enough to be scarlet?

    Copper Plover
    Captain Jaeger
    Tawaret's Storm Petrel

    I love this one so much.

    Yeah honestly just searched for birds native to Egypt, but I liked the jaeger and petrol - looks small but will still mess you up:
    t5nblytlttdm.jpg

  • MarathonMarathon Registered User regular
    Warlock82 wrote: »
    Oh, this is kind of cool:


    TLDR: Marc wasn't blipped because it would have complicated the story too much. Also originally there were going to be teasers of Gorr the God Butcher in the series but they decided not to do it. Really curious what those would have been.

    Could have been when the different avatar’s got together. I don’t think every possible god was in attendance, so you could have laid some crumbs there in asking where they were.

  • MadpoetMadpoet Registered User regular
    Warlock82 wrote: »
    Oh, this is kind of cool:


    TLDR: Marc wasn't blipped because it would have complicated the story too much. Also originally there were going to be teasers of Gorr the God Butcher in the series but they decided not to do it. Really curious what those would have been.

    I like the idea teased by one of the headlines below the article - what if one or two personalities were blipped, but not all?

  • DracomicronDracomicron Registered User regular
    I believe I read that the Egyptian gods were worried that two of them had gone missing because they got Gorr'd.

    Also a flashback where they were fighting alongside some Eternals.

    I think they made the right choice not to muddy the waters with cameos and MCU references.

  • ShadowfireShadowfire Vermont, in the middle of nowhereRegistered User regular
    Marathon wrote: »
    Warlock82 wrote: »
    Oh, this is kind of cool:


    TLDR: Marc wasn't blipped because it would have complicated the story too much. Also originally there were going to be teasers of Gorr the God Butcher in the series but they decided not to do it. Really curious what those would have been.

    Could have been when the different avatar’s got together. I don’t think every possible god was in attendance, so you could have laid some crumbs there in asking where they were.

    Then wondering what happened as a couple gods were snapped.

    WiiU: Windrunner ; Guild Wars 2: Shadowfire.3940 ; PSN: Bradcopter
  • HydropoloHydropolo Registered User regular
    What happens if one of the ones in the Ushanti get dusted? Does that just free them from the Ushanti with it taking the blow? Does it permakill them as they were in a vessel that may or may not exist any longer 5 years later? Would anyone even notice the Ushanti was empty?

  • FencingsaxFencingsax It is difficult to get a man to understand, when his salary depends upon his not understanding GNU Terry PratchettRegistered User regular
    Are the Egyptian gods biological? Only biological entities got snapped

  • Anti-SeanAnti-Sean Registered User regular
    Reynolds wrote: »


    Scarlet Scarab is a pretty obscure character that only appeared like three times, and doesn't much resemble this, besides an Egyptian thing giving an Egyptian person powers.

    The name also gets bonus Moon Knight points for a sideways callout to Stained Glass Scarlet.

  • ManetherenWolfManetherenWolf Registered User regular
    Anti-Sean wrote: »
    Reynolds wrote: »


    Scarlet Scarab is a pretty obscure character that only appeared like three times, and doesn't much resemble this, besides an Egyptian thing giving an Egyptian person powers.

    The name also gets bonus Moon Knight points for a sideways callout to Stained Glass Scarlet.

    I wonder if Scarlet Scarab was a riff on Blue Beetle originally.

    …wait, yeah looked it up, and it totally was lol.

  • -Loki--Loki- Don't pee in my mouth and tell me it's raining. Registered User regular
    Give me a Scarlet Scarab series.

  • mxmarksmxmarks Registered User regular
    I cant find the article now but theres an interview somewhere out there where the director is asked about the wings and the answer is pretty great.

    Originally, Mark and Stephen would have met Isis in the underworld, who would have taken them to her husband, Osiris. And then Layla would have become the avatar of Isis, a goddess with wings.

    They wrote it that way, shot it that way, and then found the entire thing to be way too serious - Isis was serious, Khonshu was serious, Ahmet was serious...so they went back to the gods and found a more lighthearted one.

    But, they already designed her costume around Isis. They figured it was too cool to throw out, and just rolled with it.

    PSN: mxmarks - WiiU: mxmarks - twitter: @ MikesPS4 - twitch.tv/mxmarks - "Yes, mxmarks is the King of Queens" - Unbreakable Vow
  • TofystedethTofystedeth Registered User regular
    I don't even like hippos, but I loved Taweret.

    steam_sig.png
  • MichaelLCMichaelLC In what furnace was thy brain? ChicagoRegistered User regular
    I don't even like hippos, but I loved Taweret.

    Ok, Furry.

    Yeah the actress and the CGI team did a great job of giving her a lot of personality.

  • EmperorSethEmperorSeth Registered User regular
    It's funny because real hippos are like slaughter machines.

    You know what? Nanowrimo's cancelled on account of the world is stupid.
  • see317see317 Registered User regular
    It's funny because real hippos are like slaughter machines.

    I always wonder how much of the hippos kill count is from innate blood thirstiness, and how much is dumbass tourists wanting to play with the cute wildlife.

    I mean, a croc or a gator looks like it'll kill you, like they're designed to not be bothered. They're swimming "don't fuck with me" signs with armor plates claws and teeth.
    But a hippo? It looks like a big cow floating happily in the water. Surely it would like a little scritch behind the ears... And then the tourists find out.

  • McRhynoMcRhyno Registered User regular
    Just big "get off my lawn (out of my river)" energy

    PSN: ImRyanBurgundy
  • HevachHevach Registered User regular
    edited May 2022
    They're huge and territorial towards just about everything. Most territorial animals, especially herbivores, have a relatively small list of things they're actually territorial towards, and everything else just gets ignored. But hippos will go ham on things much larger or smaller than themselves, even if they don't pose a threat or eat the same food.

    They're also way faster than you think, either on land or in the water they are faster than you. If you're close enough to hear its threat noise you are too close to ever outrun it.

    Hevach on
  • Knuckle DraggerKnuckle Dragger Explosive Ovine Disposal Registered User regular
    see317 wrote: »
    It's funny because real hippos are like slaughter machines.

    I always wonder how much of the hippos kill count is from innate blood thirstiness, and how much is dumbass tourists wanting to play with the cute wildlife.

    I mean, a croc or a gator looks like it'll kill you, like they're designed to not be bothered. They're swimming "don't fuck with me" signs with armor plates claws and teeth.
    But a hippo? It looks like a big cow floating happily in the water. Surely it would like a little scritch behind the ears... And then the tourists find out.

    The problem isn't so much you trying to scritch them behind the ears; it's more that you exist and are breathing their air.

    Let not any one pacify his conscience by the delusion that he can do no harm if he takes no part, and forms no opinion.

    - John Stuart Mill
  • The WolfmanThe Wolfman Registered User regular
    Hippos are the geese of the swamp.

    Change my mind.

    "The sausage of Green Earth explodes with flavor like the cannon of culinary delight."
  • McRhynoMcRhyno Registered User regular
    You can't punt a hippo

    PSN: ImRyanBurgundy
  • ShadowenShadowen Snores in the morning LoserdomRegistered User regular
    mxmarks wrote: »
    I cant find the article now but theres an interview somewhere out there where the director is asked about the wings and the answer is pretty great.

    Originally, Mark and Stephen would have met Isis in the underworld, who would have taken them to her husband, Osiris. And then Layla would have become the avatar of Isis, a goddess with wings.

    They wrote it that way, shot it that way, and then found the entire thing to be way too serious - Isis was serious, Khonshu was serious, Ahmet was serious...so they went back to the gods and found a more lighthearted one.

    But, they already designed her costume around Isis. They figured it was too cool to throw out, and just rolled with it.

    See, I originally thought she was just supposed to be an oxpecker (one of those birds that plucks parasites off the hides of hippos and other such animals).

Sign In or Register to comment.