Parents' Guide to

Secret Invasion

TV Disney+ Drama 2023
Secret Invasion TV show poster: Nick Fury's face is shown in black and white in closeup against a gray background; there are slashes of empty space wi

Common Sense Media Review

Joyce Slaton By Joyce Slaton , based on child development research. How do we rate?

age 13+

MCU alien spy thriller has great cast, sci-fi violence.

Parents Need to Know

Why Age 13+?

Any Positive Content?

  • Secret Invasion TV show screenshot 1: Nick Fury walks into a dark and shadowy room with a tense expression; he wears all black.
  • Secret Invasion TV show screenshot 2: Talos is shown in cloesup against a somber brown and beige background; his face looks tense.
  • Secret Invasion TV show screenshot 3: G'iah holds some type of advanced weaponry and is looking down the sight; her eyes are wide and her face serious

Parent and Kid Reviews

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age 15+

Based on 5 parent reviews

Alexis P.
Alexis P. Parent
July 3, 2023
age 15+

Crime drama with a new level of violence for Marvel TV series

After two episodes, the show seems to read like a crime action drama. Most young children would probably be bored through the first episode. In the second episode, I was shocked to see a torture scene where dismemberment occurred. A person's finger was cut off in plain view with little to no warning (full view of blood and severed finger). Marvel needs to be more specific when a new-level of violence is being introduced to one of their TV series.
Courtney M.
Courtney M. Adult
July 14, 2023
age 18+

Too much violence in Episode 2!!

I’m an adult. Watching this show I had betrayed my own ability to process things. Did not want to see a person’s finger cut off. I blamed myself to have not gotten a feeling and turned it off earlier, but the kind of violence I saw wasn’t what I expect from this brand. I felt like I’d be safer watching stuff on Disney+ and I have settings that only allow up to TV-14 to be played, I believe- but how is this ok for anyone to see, let alone at 14? I don’t understand. Did they sneak one past the rating agency. And if so, why? Marvel doesn’t need gore to be good? Throw in some more plot intricacies and not just brute violence
See all 5 parent reviews

What's the Story?

Three decades ago, a race of extraterrestrial shapeshifters called the Skrulls made contact with Earth, and SECRET INVASION takes place at a pivotal moment in Skrull-human relations. A renegade factor of rebel Skrulls has broken away and hopes to drain Earth's resources for themselves. It's up to Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson), his Skrull ally Talos (Ben Mendelsohn), and a team of secret operatives to foil the evil plan and save humanity.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (5 ):
Kids say (9 ):

Combining the conventions of a spy narrative with the Marvel Cinematic Universe wasn't a bad plan, and the results aren't half-bad, either, especially anytime Samuel L. Jackson is on-screen. He looks to be having a good time in Secret Invasion, set loose in a world with alien big bads vs. alien buddies, and anytime he appears, the tension lightens a bit. And make no mistake, things are tense. Decades after the events of Captain Marvel, many Skrulls are tired of waiting for Nick Fury to make good on his promise to help them find a new home after they were displaced by a war on their origin planet. They've begun covertly taking over positions of power and staging international acts of terrorism in hopes of sparking world war and wiping out humanity entirely.

Secret Invasion is wise to give the renegade Skrulls some nuance; it's easy to sympathize with the plight of powerless refugees who just want a place of their own. The show revels in spy thriller trappings too: secret meetings, coded messages, strangers in disguise (which takes on a special resonance given that Skrulls can mimic anyone's appearance and presentation). Marvel shows often build to over-the-top battles, and Secret Invasion might too, but the whiff of James Bond and the great cast, plus the paranoid implications of the Skrulls' shapeshifting power, make this twisty, gripping MCU entry worth the journey anyway.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about movies and TV shows involving superheroes and villains. Why are they so common now? Which ones have you enjoyed, and which have you not?

  • This series pits two groups against each other, humans and Skrulls, a type of alien. Does the make-believe premise matter? Are viewers expected to draw parallels between this made-up conflict and other conflicts? What are some parallels you can think of?

  • Like many comic book narratives, Secret Invasion revolves around a clash that could potentially end human life on Earth. What do you think about narratives with such high stakes? Is that necessary to keep viewers interested?

TV Details

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