In Secret Invasion, Marvel finally made good on the breadcrumbs it introduced in Captain Marvel by bringing back the Skrulls, a shapeshifting alien race that can assume anyone’s identity. Paranoid hijinks abound in the 2019 film, but Secret Invasion takes it further with its spy thriller twist. Anyone could be a Skrull at any time, and that made things exciting... at first. But as the herd has thinned and the series gets close to its finale, it may be running out of tricks to keep audiences engaged.
With only one episode remaining, everyone who could be a Skrull has already made themselves known. And none of the reveals have been that shocking: most saw the true identity of a certain Avenger coming a mile away. With Fury’s allies dwindling, there’s only one wild card the series has yet to play, and it involves Olivia Colman’s Sonya Falsworth.
Could Sonya actually be a Skrull operative? She might be the last person anyone would suspect, given her clear disdain for the Skrulls. She’s hunted the insurgence at every turn, and she’s been a stout (if begrudging) ally to Fury, which absolves her of some suspicion. But she’s also made a few odd decisions.
In the first episode of Secret Invasion, Sonya allowed Fury to bug her office. That’s not something a seasoned operative, one positioned as Fury’s British counterpart, should have let slide so easily. Later, she offers him choice intel and asks for nothing in return. Fury may be the only person she can really trust, but it’s not as if she owes him favors. Why is she so gung-ho about helping a disavowed spymaster, one who’s been out of the game for years, has a personal connection to the Skrull, and could very well be one himself?
Granted, Fury does have something to offer Sonya, as the latest episode revealed just why Gravik (Kingsley Ben-Adir) has been so obsessed with him. Gravik wants to create a superpowered Skrull army, but he needs the Avengers’ DNA to do it, and Fury has that treasure under lock and key.
Maybe Sonya is another part of Gravik’s plan. Maybe she’s a rogue Skrull who wants to usurp him, or the Skrull Empress everyone’s been waiting for. Either way, there could be more to her than meets the eye. Sonya’s been a delightful addition to the series, and one of its few high points. But wouldn’t it be that much more interesting if Fury’s Stormzy-loving, podcast-enjoying bestie were actually a Skrull?
Maybe, this theory is a bit off the deep end, but it’s exactly the kind of debate Secret Invasion was supposed to generate. The Skrull invasion worked in the comics because it had a host of heroes at its disposal. Skrulls were impersonating Avengers left and right, so no one was safe from suspicion. But there are few Avengers in Secret Invasion, and while that keeps the series focused on Fury, it’s also keeping it from generating similar intrigue.
Secret Invasion is all about Fury’s personal quest to atone for his sins, but it was also supposed to be a spy thriller that made us question characters we know and love. The MCU might have erred by opting for a small, insular cast of strangers, while Sonya is one of the few newbies that endeared herself to audiences. It would make sense if she was actually a Skrull in disguise, if only because it would pose a real shake-up to a series that’s been frustratingly light on thrills.
