Editor’s note: The below contains spoilers for Episode 1 of Secret Invasion.
While Marvel Comics has been using the Skrulls as villains for decades, Captain Marvel introduced the shapeshifting aliens as a group of intergalactic refugees displaced by the horrors of war. That all changes in Secret Invasion, where a radical group of Skrulls has decided to wipe out humanity and use Earth as their home. And with the Skrulls as villains, the MCU can finally show how terrifying aliens who can take anyone’s looks might be. That’s because, due to their ability to appear as anyone they’ve seen before, the Skrulls have an unparalleled advantage when it comes to infiltration and deception. However, while Secret Invasion’s approach to the Skrulls is fresh, the MCU has previously showcased the shapeshifters’ knack for espionage in Spider-Man: Far From Home, in which Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) is a Skrull.
In 2019, Marvel Studios wrapped up a decade-long storyline with Avengers: Endgame, one of the most ambitious projects in Hollywood history. Still, the “Infinity Saga” wasn’t over after Thanos (Josh Brolin) was defeated and the Snap was reversed. Before saying goodbye and kicking off a new storyline, the MCU had to show the lasting effects of the Infinity Saga. That’s why the last chapter is actually Spider-Man: Far From Home, a movie set months after Endgame.
Far From Home explores the impact of Tony Stark’s (Robert Downey Jr.) death and the bizarre consequences of the people popping into existence after disappearing for five years. In addition, Far From Home introduces a more paranoid version of Fury. In Far From Home, we follow Fury and Maria Hill (Cobie Smulders) as they deal with the Elementals, all-powerful beings who threaten to bring the world to an end – and who are actually illusions created by a VFX team. In their eagerness to protect the planet, Fury and Maria are tricked by Mysterio (Jake Gyllenhaal), who poses as an interdimensional hero while coordinating the supposed Elemental attacks, all in the name of fame and fortune.
Since Thanos’ Snap changed the world in such a fundamental way, we could understand how Fury and Maria could be tricked. After all, even the strongest MCU spirits will forever carry the scars of Thanos’ genocide. Still, fans of the MCU’s spies couldn’t shake the feeling something was wrong with the whole affair – Nick Fury is always three steps ahead of everyone, so it’s weird that he gets tricked so easily. Since Mysterio is a former employee of Tony Stark, it’s hard to imagine Fury failed to use his high-tech to run a simple background check that would expose the impostor. The answer to this conundrum comes in an end-credits scene that reveals Fury is a Skrull.
As the end-credits scene of Far From Home reveals, the real Fury is off-planet overseeing the construction of a massive space station. However, since so many Avengers died, retired, or left Earth after the events of Endgame, Fury wants people to think he’s still around and taking carry of things. That’s why he asked his Skrull friend Talos (Ben Mendelsohn) to pose as Fury, with Talos’s wife, Soren (Sharon Blynn), acting as Maria Hill. It’s one of the best end credits scenes in the history of the MCU, teasing events that could forever change the beloved cinematic universe. After four years, Secret Invasion finally explains what that end-credits scene truly means.
In the first episode of Secret Invasion, we learn the United States is building a space station they call S.A.B.E.R., with Nick Fury overseeing the project. Developed in coordination with the Skrulls, S.A.B.E.R. is supposed to serve as a first line of defense against alien threats, a primary concern for everybody after Thanos’ attack. We don’t know why Fury decided to exile himself for years after the events of Endgame, and it all seems connected to the spy losing his faith in humanity for some reason. Still, Secret Invasion answers all the questions raised by Far From Home’s end-credits scene in its first episode, explaining the space station.
That’s not the only way Secret Invasion is connected to Nick Fury as a Skrull, though. Once Talos reunites with Fury in the series, the two old friends discuss the complicated politics of the Skrulls on Earth, and we learn the former leader of S.H.I.E.L.D. used Skrulls as spies for decades. As Talos puts it, the Skrull Council accepted to work with Fury, hoping the spymaster would fulfill his promise of finding the shapeshifters a new home after the Kree destroyed their home planet. Unfortunately, thirty years is a long time to wait, and the younger generations of Skrulls grew restless. That has led to the rise of an extremist leader that felt Fury and humanity betrayed their trust. As a result, Skrull terrorists are willing to take Earth by force, transforming our small blue rock into a new planet where the aliens can be themselves in their skin.
The main plot elements of Secret Invasion give new meaning to Far From Home’s end-credits scene. In 2019, we thought Talos and Soren were impersonating Nick Fury and Maria Hill as a favor between friends. However, as it seems, the Skrulls have been helping Fury in his spy endeavors since the events of Captain Marvel. Furthermore, by keeping in touch with the Skrull community, Fury inadvertently fed the frustration of the thousands of aliens who were left stranded on Earth with only vague promises of a new home planet somewhere. Plus, once Fury has his faith crisis and takes shelter on S.A.B.E.R. for years, there’s no longer a respected human voice to face extremist leaders such as Gravik (Kingsley Ben-Adir).
In 2019, when the MCU first showed us Nick Fury as a Skrull, we wondered what new cosmic adventures Marvel Studios could be teasing. As it turns out, the danger is much. closer to home, as Secret Invasion shows how the lack of trust Skrulls have in humanity is the perfect tool for villains such as Gravik to radicalize young minds. In addition, by asking Talos to pretend to be Fury while he hid in S.A.B.E.R., the real spy abandoned the people he promised to help, further aggravating the situation. And by the end of Episode 1, Gravik wears Nick Fury’s image to kill a key MCU character, cementing the Far From Home end-credits scene as a decisive moment in a tragic story.
New episodes of Secret Invasion premiere every Wednesday on Disney+.
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