"Better a fallen rocket than never a burst of light."
~ Tom Stoppard, The Invention of Love

Wednesday, April 10, 2019

Relationship Spotlight: Carol Danvers & Nick Fury (Captain Marvel)


Samuel L. Jackson had to love being in Captain Marvel.  For years, Nick Fury has been a very visible character in the MCU without a ton to do.  He’s been mysterious, he’s been badass, and he’s tossed out cool lines, all of which sounds great but which ultimately end up as a lot of wash-rinse-repeat moments.  Before this point, his best showing was probably Captain America:  The Winter Soldier, which offered a bit more dimension for his character, but Captain Marvel is operating on its own playing field entirely.  Seeing a younger Fury who’s not so distrustful plays a big part in opening the character up, but far more so than that, it’s seeing the fantastic buddy relationship that grows between Fury and Carol.

When S.H.I.E.L.D. gets wind of a woman wandering around in a flight suit shooting photon blasts from her hands, they send Fury to suss out the situation.  Carol, of course, is on a mission and has no time for Earth agents getting in her way.  She blows Fury’s initial attempt to bring her in, but she’s fairly straight with him.  Right off the bat, she banters with him a little, and she tells him her business on Earth without trying to conceal the facts of the situation or talking down to him as someone who obviously isn’t flush with extraterrestrial experience.

But Fury isn’t one to be deterred, and once he tenaciously tracks her down, Carol isn’t unimpressed by what she sees.  She gives him a more complete rundown on the Skrulls, recognizes that his local knowledge and S.H.I.E.L.D. clearance could be valuable, and enlists him as an ally in her work.  This is all new to Fury, but he isn’t just along for the ride – he figures out that this mission is personal Carol, even if she doesn’t yet know why that is, and he’s willing to go off the map with her.

From there, it’s pretty much just straight awesomeness.  They still don’t trust each other fully, and there’s some definite circling, but over the course of the film, both earn the other’s respect and loyalty.  They play well off of each other, taking turns making important observations and coming up with needed solutions, and even though Carol is obviously the more powerful of the two (by far,) Fury still comes in handy by fighting smart, getting the upper hand on Skrulls who are stronger than he is and have nothing left to lose.  While both have some knowledge deficits compared to the other – Fury is new to this whole alien-invasion thing, and Carol has lost her memories of Earth – neither really treats the other as dumb or green.  Instead, they lean on one another’s understanding, filling in each other’s gaps so they can move forward together.

And best of all, they’re just so much fun.  I could listen to Carol and Fury rib each other all day, I love Carol’s total lack of patience for Fury’s adoration of cute felines, and there’s a relaxed scene between them near the end of the movie that’s the epitome of friendship awws.  From start to finish, these two are simply wonderful together.  We’d better get to see something between them in End Game at some point, I’m just saying.

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