After seemingly coming around to Talos' side, G'iah informs him that the bombing will go down the next day and marks the bags that have bombs with thermal paint. However, the bags are empty when Talos and Hill catch the couriers, and G'iah should have known that because she was carrying both. So did she know the bags were empty and deliberately misled her father, or did the rebels figure out the gambit and swap the bags during the brief period the bags went unsupervised?
The revelation that there was a Skrull impersonating Everett Ross in Moscow brings the status of the real deal into question. He was last seen being broken out of detainment by Okoye after his arrest for committing espionage on Wakanda's behalf, but we never saw where he actually went after being set free. Did Ross try to find a way to get himself off the grid on his own and was subsequently captured by the Skrull who assumed his identity? Or was he given asylum in Wakanda, and the Skrull just happened to assume Ross's form, using the events of Wakanda Forever as a perfect cover story for why he's hiding in Russia?
Back in the Saddle: Multiple characters point out that Fury has been out of the game for a while, being offworld working on the S.A.B.E.R. project, and question his ability to handle this latest threat.
The Bad Guy Wins: Gravik successfully outplays Fury and detonates several bombs in Moscow, killing numerous innocent civilians and likely leading to increased tensions (if not flat out war) between America and Russia. On top of that, he kills Maria Hill by impersonating Fury, leaving Fury without his trusted right hand.
Bait-and-Switch: The opening seems to show Ross talking to an operative on the Skrull operations and the man snapping to attack him. It turns out "Ross" is a renegade Skrull.
Bookends: The opening scene before the titles roll ends with the renegade Skrull agent (impersonating Ross) splayed dead on the ground, after falling off a building while Maria and Talos approach. The very last shot of the episode is Maria splayed dead on the ground, after being shot by Gravik (impersonating Fury) as Talos drags a mourning Fury away.
Broken Ace: Nicholas J. Fury: The Spymaster, The Chessmaster, and the former director of S.H.I.E.L.D. itself, returns to Earth left traumatized by being dusted by Thanos, limping on his leg, and so horribly off his game that Gravik is easily able to outmaneuver him.
Cerebus Retcon: In Spider-Man: Far From Home, Nick Fury was revealed to be away from Earth because he claimed to be on vacation, leading to Talos and Soren filling in for him.note Though that was partly due to the writers of that film realizing Mysterio would never have gotten away with his plans with the real Fury watching over his shoulder. It turns out that Fury didn't leave Earth just to build S.A.B.E.R., or even take a vacation; him being dusted by Thanos has given him some serious PTSD, and left him horribly off his game.
Continuity Nod: Fury tells Maria that he came back to Earth because he owes it to Talos. Maria then asks Fury if he is not actually talking about someone else.
Dies Wide Open: Maria's eyes remain open after her death.
Explain, Explain... Oh, Crap!: In the opening scene, Properly Paranoid agent Prescod is explaining to a clearly skeptical Everett Ross about his belief that the Skrulls are conspiring against humanity. He tells Ross that he came to him because he trusts him implicitly... then his voice falters as he realizes that he has no more reason to assume Ross is genuine than anyone else. When Ross tries to talk the obviously agitated man down, Prescod attacks him, clearly convinced he's a Skrull. He's right.
Exploited Immunity: Skrulls are naturally immune to ionizing radiation, so the Renegade Splinter Faction has taken up residence at abandoned nuclear plants where humans can't survive and intend to start a nuclear war that will render the planet uninhabitable for humans but fine for their kind.
Failed a Spot Check: Prescod willingly meets with Agent Ross to inform him about the Skrull terrorists... except Ross, when last seen, was arrested for treason by the CIA for leaking sensitive intel to Wakanda, and was being transported to federal prison before Okoye broke him out and likely took him to Wakanda for asylum. It's not out of the question for Ross to be out in the field, especially if he's trying to help protect the weakened Wakanda in the wake of Namor's invasion, but Prescod clearly didn't keep tabs on recent events in the US, as he still refers to Ross as an agent. Sure enough, it turns out "Ross" is a Skrull imposter.
Five-Second Foreshadowing: After Gravik detonates the bomb, Maria is called over by Fury, who seems way too calm in the midst of the chaos. It's actually Gravik, who fatally shoots her.
A patron at the bar Fury visits notes how rusty he's gotten since the last time he was on Earth. Said patron is revealed to have been Gravik tailing Fury in disguise.
While Fury is taking a walk in Moscow earlier in the episode, he encounters a little girl playing with a ball that stares at him intently before being escorted away by a woman who appears to be her mother. Except it's not; it was once again Gravik watching him in another form.
Freeze-Frame Bonus: As G'iah enters the corridor with the human captives in the Skrull headquarters, Poprishchin can be glimpsed in the first alcove.
Headbutt of Love: After being off-planet for years, when Fury meets up with Talos again, they touch foreheads as greeting, and to share Talos's mourning for his wife.
Heel–Face Turn: G'iah joins Talos and Fury after her father tells her that Gravik was responsible for her mother's death.
Internal Reveal: G'iah is told by Talos that her mother was killed by the rebel Skrulls during her absence, a fact that was revealed to viewers at the beginning of the episode.
Kick the Dog: Gravik killing Hill is one thing. Doing it while appearing as Fury? That elevates it to this trope.
Last Request: Talos tells his daughter G'iah that her mother's last words were "Find G'iah."
Mid-Life Crisis Car: Talos protests being called "old" by Fury, saying he's about 40 in human years and hasn't even gone on his "midlife crisis shopping spree" yet. When asked what he got for his midlife crisis, Fury answers, "The Avengers".
N-Word Privileges: Fury calls himself a spooknote it has several meanings; the relevant ones are: a slang term for spy (how he meant it), and a derogatory term for Black people (which she implicitly pointed out) during a conversation with Hill, who tells him that he can't say that. He smiles and says that she's the one that can't say that.
Psychotic Smirk: Gravik gives Fury a smug smile right before setting off the bombs in Moscow.
Renegade Splinter Faction: Revealed as the main threat of the show. A group of young, resentful Skrulls led by Gravik who're angry they still haven't found a new home planet, and feel abandoned by Captain Marvel and Fury.
The Reveal: Three people that Nick had encountered throughout the episode (the woman in the hat, the little girl, and the bar patron) turn out to be Gravik in disguise. He had been tailing Fury this entire time.
Running Away to Cry: After Talos explains the true circumstances behind Soren's death, G'iah storms off and goes to the most secluded place she can find before breaking down in tears.
Sacrificial Lion: Maria Hill, whom many expected to be one of the main characters of the series, is killed at the end of the episode, showing how much of a threat the renegade Skrulls are.
Series Continuity Error: Skrull Ross's blood (shown with the huge gashes on his face from falling to his death) is shown to be red in this episode, even though the other Skrulls are shown to have purple blood.
Sonya mentions Paul Robeson when her men take Fury to her:
Sonya: So a black man wandering the streets of Moscow and I think it's either Nick Fury or the ghost of Paul Robeson.note Robenson was a leftist and controversial for his communist sympathies, visiting Moscow in WWII and during the cold war.
Spoiler Opening: Even though Maria Hill has a large role in this episode, Cobie Smulders is not credited in the opening credits, which pretty much spoils the fact that she won't be around for the whole series. She is instead credited at the end of the episode as a "special guest star".
Villain Has a Point: Gravik isn't really wrong to be angry at Talos, Fury and Captain Marvel for failing to make good on their promise to find the Skrulls a new home, or feeling like Fury and Captain Marvel abandoned them. That doesn't justify murdering hundreds and thousands of people with dirty bombs or planning to wipe out the human race so Skrulls can take over what's left of Earth in the aftermath, but at least his motives are understandable.
World War III: The Renegade Splinter Faction's plan. They want to set off a dirty bomb in the hopes that the United States and Russia would blame one another and go to war, destroying humanity with radiation that Skrulls are immune to.
