With Captain Marvel flying into theaters, it’s only fitting that we take a look at some of the other cosmic characters who will make an appearance alongside Carol Danvers. After all, it wouldn’t be much of a galactic adventure if there weren’t other alien races involved somehow. Luckily for the Marvel Cinematic Universe, there are plenty of species in the comics all with extensive histories and fascinating story arcs. Eagle-eyed fans will already be able to spot the seeds for stories like ‘Secret Invasion’ in the promotional footage. There are two key races (that we know of in Captain Marvel, so let’s break them down.
The Skrulls
No, Carol Danvers didn’t punch an old lady in the face. It was an alien… Obviously. The Skrulls are a race of shape-shifters who can change their appearance at will and use their abilities to integrate themselves into a society and turn it upside down. They’ve been causing havoc in the Marvel universe since 1962 when they were introduced during Fantastic Four #2. They’re pretty recognizable, with their scaly green skin, pointy ears, and purple outfits. Although you’d be forgiven for mixing them up with the Green Goblin costume, there are a few similarities in their looks!
They’re a particularly violent race, with various Emperors and Queens starting wars with entire star-systems, planets and also other Empires. But we’ll get onto that in a moment. Some Skrulls can absorb the powers of a person they’re imitating, which means that they can even infiltrate the ranks of superpowered teams. During the ‘Secret Invasion’ comics event in 2008, the Skrull Empire nearly managed to overthrow Earth by integrating Skrulls in every level of every infrastructure possible on the planet. And yes, that even means the Avengers. They were embedded so deeply, that some of them didn’t even realize they were a spy. Using the Skrulls in the MCU doesn’t necessarily mean that Kevin Feige is eyeing up ‘Secret Invasion’… But it’s hard not to wonder whether someone in the Avengers isn’t who they say they are.
Interestingly, the Skrulls appearance could be a precursor to another project in the MCU pipeline; The Eternals. Billions of years ago, the Celestials began experimenting with reptilian life, which created three versions of the shapeshifters; the Deviant Skrulls, the Prime Skrulls, and the Eternal Skrulls. The Deviants were the only ones left after a war with the Primes, and were similar to the Skrulls we’ll see in Captain Marvel. Once The Eternals movie starts production, it wouldn’t be surprising to see the Skrulls make another appearance in the MCU.
The Kree
With an equally sprawling comics history, the Kree have had a firm footing in the MCU since 2014’s Guardians of the Galaxy. It introduced us to Ronan the Accuser, played by Lee Pace – who had turned into a terrorist after disagreeing with how the Kree Empire’s peace treaty with the Nova Corps. Interestingly Ronan will return in Captain Marvel, which is set in the 1990s, before his radicalization. He’ll also be joined by Djimon Hounsou’s Korath, another Kree soldier. There are two racial groups in the Empire, the ‘True’ Kree are the blue-skinned members that we’re so familiar with in the films and even in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. They’re seen as the upper class in Kree society. The ‘pink’ skinned Kree resemble humans more closely but happen to be more durable than their blue-counterparts. It’s worth knowing that the Kree have experimented on humans before, which is where the Inhumans come from…
A huge storyline in the comics that Captain Marvel is seemingly adapting is the ‘Kree-Skrull War’ – it’s quite self-explanatory really. Some fans might be surprised to learn that the Kree were actually the ones who ignited the fight by attacking the originally peaceful Skrulls first. Because of their conflict, the Skrulls had to change their entire ethos and became a violent race of warriors. The Kree might be the ones who awaken Captain Marvel’s powers, but they’re not the good guys here.
The original Captain Marvel (Mar-Vell), was a Kree hero and worked closely with Carol Danvers before she was involved in an accident with a piece of alien technology (the Psyche-Magnitron, obviously) and his DNA was melded with hers. How closely the film will adopt this origin remains to be seen. On-screen, Danvers will be a member of a Kree military squad, Starforce, alongside some other notable Kree characters from the comics such as At-Lass and Minn-Erva… Inventive, eh?
Wait for it… The Flerken
So far, Disney has been cleverly using a key character in their marketing campaign for Captain Marvel… Goose the Cat. He’s been renamed from his comics counterpart (Chewie) to reference Top Gun since Carol Danvers was an airforce pilot. But there’s more to this furry companion than meets the eye – he may secretly be an alien, called a ‘Flerken’. In the comics, Danvers’ pet appears to be an Earth-cat, but inside she’s bristling with alien tentacles and snapping jaws, almost like a Xenomorph from Alien. When Captain Marvel teamed up with Rocket Raccoon in the comics, he tried to shoot Chewie because he was terrified of him! We need to see that onscreen. But for now, Samuel L. Jackson and Lashana Lynch have both confirmed that Goose has a bigger role than some fans are expecting… Get ready some Flerken action.
Captain Marvel flies into theaters, March 8.
