Recap / The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes! S2 E7 "Who Do You Trust?"

Written by Brian Reed

Director Hill is attacked in her quarters by Mockingbird but, in spite of what it looks like, she hasn't gone rogue. Out of the shadows steps none other than Nick Fury, missing since the fall of HYDRA Island. He makes a lot of vague references to aliens and infiltration, and leaves behind two things: a data disc containing everything he knows about the new threat and an ominous warning: everyone, without exception, has been compromised.

Meanwhile, it's a happy day for the Avengers. They're celebrating the induction of Ms. Marvel as their newest member (except for Hulk, who is on monitor duty and Black Panther, who is on Hulk duty), which is promptly cut short by the machinations of Quake, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D., who sics former Big House inmate Griffin on downtown New York after driving him berserk with her powers. The other Avengers hang back and let Ms. Marvel resolve the situation on her own and in the confusion, Black Widow drugs Tony Stark and takes him to Fury's personal safehouse.

Upon regaining consciousness Stark demands an explanation from Fury and, surprisingly, he gets one. Kept on an operating table is the comatose body of the Madame Viper impostor, finally revealed to be one of the Skrull race that the Kree are supposed to be at war with. Widow, Quake, and Mockingbird are all part of a secret cell of agents reporting directly to Fury himself, a necessary precaution because the Skrulls have the ability to impersonate anyone down to their personality, mannerisms, and even their memories. Indeed, Fury was only able to discover their existence through sheer chance when Mockingbird chased down Viper during the chaos of the attack. Furthermore, he has found out that the Madame Viper Skrull wasn't acting on its own; it was receiving communications from two separate locations: onboard the Helicarrier and within the Avengers Mansion.

Tony Stark: And how do I know you're not a Skrull?
Nick Fury: Now you're getting it.

The rest of the Avengers get back to the Mansion in high spirits after watching Ms. Marvel soundly trounce Griffin until Black Panther announces that Iron Man is standing in the corner, staring at them. He doesn't mince words. After relating the details of his meeting with Nick Fury, he fingers Hawkeye as the Skrull infiltrator. Panic and paranoia ensue. Ms. Marvel and Black Panther side with Iron Man for various reasons while Wasp and Hulk defend Hawkeye. Captain America is, of course, silent on the whole issue. A brawl breaks out, Iron Man decides he can't trust any of the team anymore and he leaves. Rather than be forced to choose between her duties to SWORD and the Avengers, Ms. Marvel leaves too. Cap steps up to take command of the team and the rest of the Avengers, sans Black Panther who has already left, stay for their own reasons.

Fury has been watching all of this from afar and comments that Iron Man's solution was very similar to his own; the entire thing was an act designed to put the Skrull in a position where it would reveal itself. It also confirms to Fury that Iron Man is not the infiltrator. Quake remarks that the Skrulls will now know that he is onto them, but Fury assumes that they already are, and it turns out he's right. Elsewhere, "Captain America" reports back to the Skrull Queen, who has replaced Mockingbird.

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Tropes:

• Accidental Hero: Fury lampshades how a few Avengers mucking up his long-term strategy against HYDRA last season is what led to him learning about the Skrull invasion.
• Armor-Piercing Response:
  • At the Secret Warriors' hideout, as Fury talks about Skrull communications:
    Tony: I've gotta get back to my team.
    Fury: Tony, the other communication came from your mansion. The Avengers have been infiltrated!
  • At the mansion, as the stand-off unfolds:
    Hawkeye: You're holding back. Fury wouldn't have come to you with this, if he didn't have someone pegged.
    Iron Man: You're right. It was you. He said you were the Skrull, Clint.
• Batman Gambit:
  • Fury has Quake give Griffin a nasty earache. In a rage, Griffin causes a scene that prompts most of the Avengers at the restaurant to head out. This allows Black Widow to quietly abduct Tony and bring him to Fury's safehouse.
  • The final scene reveals Fury approaching Iron Man was actually Veranke's idea. Everything played out exactly like she expected it to, getting three Avengers out of the way and her agent in control of the team.
• Big Eater: Tony had intended a to-go order of 10 pizzas for the Hulk alone.
• Blonde, Brunette, Redhead: Mockingbird, Quake, and Black Widow.
• Breaking the Fellowship: Iron Man, Black Panther, and Ms. Marvel quit because they no longer trust anyone on the team.
• Call-Back:
  • When confronting the team, Iron Man cites their first encounter with Mar-Vell and how he told them about the Kree being at war with the Skrulls.
  • Black Panther floats the Ultron incident as an example of how a teammate's unusual behavior could mean a Skrull infiltrator.
• Check, Please!: Tony's reaction to seeing Griffin fly by and cause a panic.
• Chekhov's Gun: Hawkeye notes that, based on her file, Ms. Marvel is almost as powerful as Thor and Hulk. She demonstrates that during the big fight, as she just barely manages to repel an attack by Hulk.
• Darkest Hour: In The Teaser, Fury muses on the threat posed by the Skrulls.
  "You can't trust S.H.I.E.L.D. You can't trust the government. Hydra and A.I.M. have been infiltrated, and worst of all, the superheroes. Everyone has been compromised."
• Deadpan Snarker: After seeing Madame Viper's Skrull impostor on the table:
  Tony: Where did this come from?
  Quake: Uh, space?
  Tony: Cute.
• Didn't See That Coming: Quake is stunned that Iron Man outright asked who on the team was a Skrull rather than play it cool. Fury averts this, pointing out how quickly Iron Man revealed his secret identity to the public.
• Do You Trust Me?: Hawkeye's plea, as he's facing being taken into custody. Wasp immediately vouches for him and Hulk soon steps up, but Black Panther won't and simply walks out of the building.
• Downer Ending: Three Avengers quit. While the remaining members take comfort from Cap promising to stay and lead them, viewers know he's really a Skrull.
• Dramatic Irony: A number of heroes having the wrong Avenger pegged as a Skrull infiltrator, and Wasp specifically insisting that no one has been replaced.
• Easily Condemned: Upon learning there was a Skrull infiltrator and due to Fury's misinformation, Hawkeye is the one pegged as the imposter, with Ms. Marvel acting on it almost immediately as she tries to take him in, much to Hawkeye's disbelief as it's without proof or provocation.
• Five-Second Foreshadowing: At the restaurant, the redheaded waitress's face is deliberately not shown to viewers, until she reveals she's Black Widow and knocks out Tony.
• Flashback: A couple to Hawkeye and Mockingbird's HYDRA adventure—one using old footage and another with new animation.
• Initiation Ceremony: With Griffin on the rampage, the team has Ms. Marvel do all the work bringing him in. Hawkeye justifies it by citing her strong powers and her being at the bottom of the totem pole.
  Wasp: Carol, you're doing it wrong. You're supposed to get out of the way.
  Hawkeye: Yeah, it works better if you tackle the monster and not the other way around.
  Wasp: And if it tries to bite you, you should not let it.
  Hawkeye: Are you sure you've done this before?
• Internal Reveal: The Avengers find out that they have been infiltrated by the Skrulls.
• Mission Control: It's Hulk's turn for monitor duty, and it's Black Panther's turn to monitor Hulk during monitor duty.
• Mugging the Monster: Griffin is about ready to attack an unsuspecting jogger, but it's really Quake in disguise, and she was actually looking for him to give him an earache.
• My God, You Are Serious!: When Tony Stark tells the Avengers that he found out that one of them is a Skrull, Janet's first reaction is to laugh, until she realizes that he is serious.
• Mythology Gag:
  • Carol says her pilot call sign was Warbird, a nod to one of her aliases in the comics.
  • When saying anyone could've been replaced at any time, Black Panther cites Ant-Man's recent behavior and that the Ultron incident could've been deliberate. In the comics, Hank was replaced by a Skrull and that Skrull tampered with "Clor" from Civil War.
  • The fact that the Avengers are reduced to four members due to Skrull-induced paranoia is very similar to events of Avengers #16 where the founding members of the Avengers left the team for one reason (mistrust/wanting to stop "heroing"). This is also a reference to the second line-up of Avengers, which fans have nicknamed Cap's Kooky Quartet. The lineup here even has Cap and Hawkeye, with Wasp and the Hulk replacing Quicksilver and the Scarlet Witch in the lineup.
  • Who Do You Trust?" was also the tagline for Secret Invasion.
  • The scene when Nick Fury wakes Maria Hill is taken from the comics, albeit with a few differences.
  • Nick remembers that Tony Stark only kept his secret identity for five minutes before making it public, a reference to the ending of the first Iron Man film, where Tony reveals himself instead of sticking to SHIELD's "bodyguard" alibi.
• Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: The whole incident causes three Avengers to quit and Cap's Skrull impostor to take over the team.
• The Only One I Trust: Downplayed. Nick Fury approaches Maria because he normally would trust her, but he admits he can't be sure she's not a Skrull and is only really talking to her because time is running out.
• Only Sane Woman: Wasp is the only one who tries to keep a fight from breaking out and argues that the team has to stick together.
• Paranoia Fuel: In-Universe. Nick tells Tony that the Skrulls can change into and impersonate just about anyone, and they can aquire their victims' memories. With this, there's no telling who amongst the hero or villain groups in the world are infiltrated. When Tony asks if it's possible that Nick himself if a Skrull, Nick tells him that way of thinking is the point. Nick later reveals to Quake that he intentionally invoke this in hopes the higher ranked Skrulls will slip up since Tony asked the other Avengers directly.
• Pet the Dog: As Iron Man and Ms. Marvel intend to take Hawkeye in:
  Hulk: If you don't put your arms down, you're gonna lose 'em. Hawkeye's with me.
• Pragmatic Villainy: The moment Iron Man starts talking about a Skrull infiltrator, the one that replaced Cap gets very quiet and sticks to the background. He doesn't participate in the fight and only tries to prevent the others from hurting each other.
• Properly Paranoid: Downplayed in two instances:
  • Iron Man does briefly consider the possibility of Cap being replaced by a Skrull, but only in the context of "from the day we found him." He's also listing this example in general terms rather than a direct accusation.
  • Nick Fury always assumed the Skrulls were on to him, but he has no idea how far it goes.
• Puppy-Dog Eyes: Carol about the Griffin, after she defeated him.
  He got those big puppy dog eyes like I yelled at him or something!
• The Quiet One: Black Panther, much to Hulk's annoyance.
• The Reveal:
  • We finally learn why Nick Fury disappeared from S.H.I.E.L.D.: he's been working against the Skrull invasion.
  • Mockingbird has been replaced by the Skrull Queen.
• Royals Who Actually Do Something: Queen Veranke is not only participating in the infiltration part of the invasion, but she's covertly sabotaging the organization that's trying to stop them.
• Screw This, I'm Outta Here: All of the quitting team members, really, but Black Panther is the first to walk off.
• Secret-Keeper: Ms. Marvel opts not to report this development to her superiors at S.W.O.R.D.
• Shout-Out: Fury's team consists of three women.
• The Smurfette Principle: Lampshaded. Wasp is thrilled to have another woman on the team. In the end, though, Ms. Marvel quits and Wasp is back to being the only girl.
• Spanner in the Works: Fury admits the Avengers interfering in an earlier operation is what led to him finding out about the Skrulls in the first place.
• Tap on the Head: Black Widow knocks out Tony Stark for twenty minutes to have him talk to Nick Fury in secret.
• Tempting Fate: Hulk asks what a Skrull could do to him. He'll get his answer soon.
• This Is Gonna Suck: Fury discusses with Tony how seeing that Madame Viper had been replaced by a Skrull prompted this reaction, as he realized that anyone in any organization could have been replaced and that no one would know until it was too late.
• Unwitting Pawn:
  • Griffin ends up being Fury's way of keeping the other Avengers busy while Tony is brought in for a chat.
  • The last scene reveals Fury, Iron Man, and everyone else were this to Veranke.
• Wham Line: "As it is written, my queen."
• Wham Shot: Mockingbird being revealed as a Skrull infiltrator, and not just any Skrull, either.
• What the Hell, Hero?: Hawkeye when berating Iron Man and Ms. Marvel for not trusting him.
• Worth It: Nick Fury got what he wanted most: confirmation that Iron Man is the real deal.
• Wrong Genre Savvy: Fury knows one of the Avengers has been replaced, but viewers know he suspects the wrong guy. "Infiltration" will later suggest he did actually suspect Cap at one point, only to rule that out.

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