Ahead of 'Secret Invasion,' It's Time to Give Maria Hill Her MCU Props
Often overlooked for the more prominent agents who have formally joined the Avengers — folks like Clint Barton aka Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) and Natasha Romanoff aka Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) — Maria Hill’s importance in the Marvel Cinematic Universe should not be discounted. Her contributions to the MCU as an Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. have coincided with some of the most significant events in the franchise, from her very first appearance in The Avengers to the up-and-coming Disney+ series Secret Invasion and the sequel to Captain Marvel, The Marvels.
Though Cobie Smulders may still be more prominently known for her role as Robin “Sparkles” Scherbatsky from the beloved sitcom How I Met Your Mother, Smulders properly imbues Maria Hill with the hardened experience and intuition of a great spy. No wonder she plays so well alongside Samuel L. Jackson’s Nick Fury. While she is exceptionally trained in combat and skilled in espionage, Maria Hill’s greatest strength is in her loyalty to those closest to her, despite the odds against her and the risks she takes by taking a stand. Her vigilance and allegiance should not be taken for granted. It's now been over a decade since she debuted in the MCU. Isn't it time we all give Maria Hill the recognition she deserves?
Maria Hill Is One of S.H.I.E.L.D.’s Best
No agent could become Nick Fury’s right-hand woman without being one of S.H.I.E.L.D.’s best. However, she has also had her fair share of dissent. In the ABC television series Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. — which has had a fluid, sometimes confusing, connection to the MCU — Agent Grant Ward (Brett Dalton) tells her, “A lot of us lost respect for Fury when he picked you as his second. If he wanted eye-candy around, he could have at least picked Romanoff.” Hill responds, “That's funny. I'll tell her you said that.” Later, after HYDRA was revealed to be behind SHIELD all this time during the events of Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Hill receives the same condescending tone from Ward. “I hoped you went down with the Triskelion,” he says. “And I hoped you weren’t the duplicitous lowlife you turned out to be,” Hill snaps back. Maria Hill doesn’t put up with misogyny and stands up for both herself and fellow agent Natasha Romanoff. She certainly doesn’t put up with the likes of Grant Ward, a HYDRA sleeper agent who betrayed his own team — the complete opposite of Maria Hill’s code of ethics.
Time and time again, Hill demonstrates why she was handpicked by Fury to be his second in command. In The Avengers, she comes head to head with Agent Barton, albeit mind controlled by Loki (Tom Hiddleston). In an intense car chase underneath a S.H.I.E.L.D. base, which is about to implode on itself, Hill trades shots with Barton while simultaneously driving through the collapsing debris around her. Although Barton and Loki do get away, it isn’t without Maria Hill’s best efforts — she is, after all, one woman against a fellow agent and the God of Mischief, with the added difficulty of driving for dear life as her surroundings are falling on top of her. One can argue, too, that Hill is probably pulling her punches. Even though Loki has taken over his mind, Clint Barton is still one of her fellow agents. As a skilled and trained agent, Hill might have easily taken him out. But she is nothing like Grant Ward. She wouldn’t turn against her own team, which brings us to why Maria Hill is a strong candidate for the MCU’s MVP.
Loyalty Is Maria Hill’s Most Important Asset
At the end of the day, Maria Hill is willing to sacrifice her safety, security, and livelihood for her closest friends and allies. For example, in The Winter Soldier, Steve Rogers becomes S.H.I.E.L.D.’s most wanted man. That's because Alexander Pierce (Robert Redford) has been harboring HYDRA agents within the agency and has finally decided to eliminate all of his enemies, Captain America and Nick Fury among them. Pierce orders the Winter Soldier — who is revealed to be Bucky Barnes (Sebastian Stan) — to assassinate Nick Fury, and he is seemingly successful. Then, the Winter Soldier and members of HYDRA capture Steve Rogers, Natasha Romanoff, and Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie). Captain America and his team would have had a more difficult time escaping if it wasn’t for Maria Hill. Like a classic spy, she infiltrates the HYDRA team and busts the Avengers out of an armored truck. At the risk of her own life, Maria Hill is willing to fight alongside Captain America. It’s also no surprise that Nick Fury also trusts her enough to let her know that he isn’t actually dead. Even Romanoff didn’t know about how Fury cheated his death. With so many secrets and even some lies, Nick Fury keeps everything close to his vest and never lets anyone know his next move — that is, unless you are Maria Hill.
Ultimately, Maria Hill is more than just an agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. When it comes time to dismantle the agency she has worked so hard to be a part of, she doesn’t hesitate. Not only does she follow Captain America in stopping HYDRA at the Triskelion in The Winder Soldier, but she continues the work behind the scenes. In Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., we see how Hill also teams up with Phil Coulson (Clark Gregg) and Melinda May (Ming-na Wen) to eradicate other HYDRA cells that continue to operate after the events of The Winter Soldier. These are the agents who have always had Nick Fury’s back, and that loyalty extends to Maria Hill.
Maria Hill might not have powers of her own, but her unflinching loyalty makes her a necessary asset to any team, be it with S.H.I.E.L.D. or the Avengers. Some might dismiss Maria Hill as a side character in the MCU. But just as Nick Fury was instrumental in setting up the rest of the universe during the end credits scene of Iron Man, Hill’s decade-long contributions to the franchise are just as noteworthy. She helped bring the Avengers together on their first mission against Loki in the Battle of New York, later aided the Avengers in their fight against Ultron, and persevered through the downfall of S.H.I.E.L.D. and helped Nick Fury establish S.W.O.R.D.
What’s next for Nick Fury’s second in command? We'll find out soon, as Secret Invasion, which will feature Maria Hill’s latest adventure, drops on Disney+ on June 21.
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