The Skrull Incident

 

Hey, looks like the latest Marvel Cinematic Universe Disney+ show Secret Invasion is bringing the Skrulls back in a big way. What better way to celebrate than to take a look at a part of the MC2’s unexplored history by trying to uncover as much as possible about the mysterious event known as ‘The Skrull Incident’.

 

 

The first (and unless I am mistaken only) mention of ‘The Skrull Incident’ was in A-Next #2, when The Orbital Defense Grid detects the approach of a Kree spacecraft and fires upon it, resulting in the craft splitting into two before crashing into the Washington National Park. With the newly formed new Avengers team called in to investigate by Bill Foster, we learn a little history behind the Orbital Defense Grid when Mainframe off-handedly mentions to Thunderstrike that the Grid was erected years prior when the government was convinced by the events of the last known alien invasion, which he identifies only as 'The Skrull Incident'.

 

A collection of satellites positioned in orbit around the planet Earth, the Orbital Defense Grid comes equipped with long-range sensory instrumentation and offensive weaponry capabilities allowing it to detect and destroy incoming space debris, extraterrestrial spacecraft, and various other threats to the planet from outer space (A-Next #2, Spider-Girl #34, #46, #86). We also learn in Last Planet Standing #2 that Reed Richards helped design the Orbital Defense Grid.

 

Circling back to the Skrulls, we learn in Spider-Girl #3 that Lyja is married to Johnny Storm and in Fantastic Five (vol. 1) #2 we are first introduced to the couple's son, Torus Storm, a Human/Skrull hybrid. Torus possesses both his mother's Skrullian ability to shape-shift and his father's pyrogenic powers. Despite his (very) young age, Torus often attempts to aid his family in battle by altering his form into that of a muscular adult male while utilizing his flame-blasts.

 

Here's where we connect some dots from prior exploratory posts and add some speculation. As I mentioned in the History of the MC2: The Fantastic Four post approximately five or so years prior to the events of Fantastic Five Vol. 1 #1, the Fantastic Four prepared to battle Hyperstorm, a cosmically powered warlord from an alternate future who had built a doomsday weapon in the Negative Zone (Fantastic Five Vol. 1 #4, Spider-Girl #87). Lyja was pregnant at this time and did not join the team on their mission (Fantastic Five Vol. 1 #4). 

 

Presumably, Lyja Storm is heavily pregnant with none other than Torus in the scenes depicting the Fantastic Four preparing to leave for the mission. Now this is significant because as I mention above, we know this mission was only ‘five or so years’ prior to the MC2’s present day. So, as I calculated in the How old is Torus Storm post, Lyja and Johnny’s son Torus is only around 5 or 6 years old.

 

From the book Comic Creators on Fantastic Four by Tom Defalco, we got this comment from Fantastic Four and Fantastic Five artist Paul Ryan:

Tom Defalco: You felt Johnny and Lyja should have actually had a baby, right? Do you want to explain why?

Paul Ryan: I thought it would have been a new dynamic for Johnny, in that he would have to start facing some grown-up responsibilities. I thought that it could make for an interesting character, too, because the child of a Skrull and a human would be totally unique – and it could lead to some interesting story arcs in which the Skrull Empire wanted to get hold of the child for some reason. We could have done things with the child itself, like accelerated growth rate; maybe the Skrulls mature faster. Also, things could have been very interesting where the child had the ability to face-shift, as well as he cosmic ray-based powers of heat and flame, which is something you experimented with in Fantastic Five. Finally, I thought it might bring Johnny and Lyja closer together, and there could have been some exciting story possibilities there.

 

 

I think the late, great Mr Ryan provides us with a very good explanation for why young Torus Storm looks and behaves more like a 10-year-old than a 5-year-old. Skrull hybrids are a rarity, and one that we know little about. But further to this point is Mr Ryan’s comment about the Skrull Empire wanting to get hold of the child.

 

As mentioned earlier, the Orbital Defense Grid was commissioned following the events of the mysterious 'Skrull Incident' (A-Next #2) which was some years prior. This alongside Apox the Omega Skrull's out of date references to heroes such as Thor, Captain America and Iron Man strongly suggests the Skrull Empire has not had contact with Earth since - a fact the marvunapp entry for Apox pointed out (Spider-Girl #47). Notably, in both battles with Apox, he refers to the Fantastic Five as ‘the team once known as the Fantastic Four’ and Skrull’s aboard the Skrull Worldship also refer to the team as the Fantastic Five suggesting the Skrull Empire is aware of the change in team name (Spider-Girl #47, Spider-Girl #86-#87).

 

It is also worth pointing out that apart from Apox, no one from the Skrull Empire approached Earth directly, as evident from the Skrull Worldship's position far away from the planet at the edge of the Milky Way Galaxy (Spider-Girl #87-88). It is also suggested that Apox may have attacked the Fantastic Five against orders as a result of his delusion of godhood. While we do not know much about the state of the Skrull Empire, we do know that it is currently led by an Emperor (Spider-Girl #88) who presumably presides over the Skrull High Command (Spider-Girl #86-88) in a regime that Lyja refers to as 'virtual slavery' (Spider-Girl #88).

 

With all these points laid out, I would like to posit a hypothesis. I believe the so-called ‘Skrull Incident’ involved an invasion resulting in a large-scale attack upon Earth with a potential goal or motivation related to Torus Storm and his hybrid Skrull/Human nature. Presumably this occurred around 5 to 6 years prior to the MC2 present-day, either during Lyja’s pregnancy or shortly afterwards, potentially after the team officially rebranded as the Fantastic Five or simply while they operated with additional family members on a regular basis as the F4. Whatever the details, the invaders are defeated and the Skrull Empire seemingly do not attempt further attacks until the present day.

 

 In the aftermath of this Skrull Invasion, the government was convinced to erect The Orbital Defense Grid, possibly due to the security risk shape-shifting imposters pose to world authorities. Reed Richards (through his Big Brain robot proxies if we assume it takes place after his accident) helps to design this Defensive Grid, with long-range sensors that reach nearly to the edge of the Milky Way Galaxy. This Grid proves effective in detecting and deterring potential alien invasions and is outfitted with offensive weaponry capable of destroying space debris and other threats.

 

Let me know what you think of this theory, it has been a long time brewing in the ol’ brain pan and involves a variety of different minor points of continuity being put together. Do you agree, disagree, or have a different theory?

 

Until I stop plucking at the various loose threads of the MC2’s untouched history, I remain

 

frogoat

Skrulls in the MC2

What a coincidence, I'm writing a post about Skrulls in the MC2 shortly before the release of the Captain Marvel movie which features Skrull prominently! In all seriousness, this post and a few others have been in the works for a while now. Without further ado, let's get started.

While the shape-shifting Skrulls have been menacing the Earth since they first appeared way back in Fantastic Four #2, the first time we see a Skrull in the MC2 is...the first appearance of the MC2 in What If #105. It's here we get a glimpse of the Fantastic Five, who's members include the Skrull Lyja Storm aka Ms. Fantastic.

We learn in Spider-Girl #3 that Lyja is married to Johnny Storm and in Fantastic Five (vol. 1) #2 we are first introduced to the couple's son, Torus Storm, a Human/Skrull hybrid. Torus possesses both his mother's Skrullian ability to shape-shift and his father's pyrogenic powers. Despite his (very) young age, Torus often attempts to aid his family in battle by altering his form into that of a muscular adult male while utilizing his flame-blasts.

Both Torus and his mother Lyja require far more attention than this write-up on the Skrulls as a whole can do justice, so look forward to me giving the them more focus in another post in the future. Needless to say, they are Skrulls and it would have been remiss of me to leave them out of this post.

We don't encounter any other members of the Skrull race until Apox the Omega Skrull is introduced in Spider-Girl #46. Apox a Skrull servant who was turned into a cyborg with the ability to access the Power Cosmic via a power nodule on his back. Apox killed the Skrull Genetech's who granted him this ability when they refused to worship him as a god. Making his way to Earth under the cover of a meteor swarm, making it past the Orbital Defense Grid and destroying the top of the Fantastic Five Headquarters on his mission to destroy the former Fantastic Four. When Spider-Girl removed the power nodule regulating Apox's Power Cosmic, the Omega Skrull nearly exploded due to the overload. Apox was defeated when the nodule was restored after Big Brain (Reed Richards) had made modifications to it (Spider-Girl #47).

Imprisoned within S.H.I.E.L.D.'s  secret Mount Athena maximum security prison, Apox is freed by a beam of 'coherent energy' sent by the Skrull High Command which restores him to power and eliminates the need for a command nodule. After leaving a trail of defeated heroes in his wake, Apox attacks the F5 Headquarters only to be delayed by the team's children and Spider-Girl (Spider-Girl #86-87). Meanwhile, a Skrull Worldship traps the F5 Headquarters within an 'extermi-field' which draws energy from the sun to create a bomb large enough to destroy the Island of Manhattan. It transpires Apox is merely a pawn for the Skrulls to exact their revenge on Earth, as they do not care if he succeeds or fails or even lives or dies (Spider-Girl #87).

Making his way into the Negative Zone via the Fantastic Five's portal, Apox heads to the Fantastistation to take out the original Fantastic Four, only to be defeated by the team when Reed Richards uses the Omega Skrull's Power Cosmic to seal the rift in reality and restore Susan Richards (Spider-Girl #87-88). Spider-Girl makes her way back out of the Negative Zone to deliver Reed Richard's solution to the solar bomb-reversing the polarity and sending the energy back to the Skrull Worldship. With the Skrull Worldship disabled and the mission a failure, the Skrulls chose imprisonment on Earth alongside Apox rather than face the Skrull High Command (Spider-Girl #86).

Finally, the Shaper of Worlds, the sentient Skrull-made original Cosmic Cube makes appearances in Last Planet Standing #2 and #3 alongside other Great Powers of the Universe who gather to discuss the threat to reality Galactus' final plan poses. Ultimately deciding they must destroy Galactus using a combined destructive bolt strong enough to wipe out the Earth and the entire Milky Way Galaxy, the Great Powers are halted in their attempt when Reed Richards is forced to use his Transdimensional Cannon's single shot on the cosmic beings.

As mentioned in my previous post the Orbital Defense Grid was commissioned following the events of the mysterious 'Skrull Incident' (A-Next #2) which was some years prior. This alongside Apox the Omega Skrull's out of date references to heroes such as Thor, Captain America and Iron Man strongly suggests the Skrull Empire has not had contact with Earth since - a fact the marvunapp entry for Apox pointed out (Spider-Girl #47). It's also worth pointing out that apart from Apox, no one from the Skrull Empire approached Earth directly, as evident from the Skrull Worldship's position far away from the planet at the edge of the Milky Way Galaxy (Spider-Girl #87-88). It's also suggested that Apox may have attacked the Fantastic Five against orders as a result of his delusion of godhood. While we don't know much about the state of the Skrull Empire, we do know that it is currently led by an Emperor (Spider-Girl #88) who presumably presides over the Skrull High Command (Spider-Girl #86-88) in a regime that Lyja refers to as 'virtual slavery' (Spider-Girl #88).

And that's it, that's all I have to share about the Skrulls in the MC2. Clearly, there is an untold story in the history of the MC2 involving the 'Skrull Incident' and I believe it played a part in keeping the Skrull race from openly attacking Earth. Perhaps one day I'll expand on it in it's own post?

Until I can uncover Tom Defalco and Ron Frenz's unpublished scripts and plot ideas, I remain

frogoat

The Orbital Defense Grid

This is something somewhat different today, because unlike many of my recent posts which usually tie-in or are in someway tangentially related to upcoming and current movies and films or comic events....this one doesn't have much to do with anything outside the MC2. Unless I'm mistaken (and feel free to correct me) this is a wholly original MC2 concept: The Orbital Defense Grid.

 A collection of satellites positioned in orbit around the planet Earth, the Orbital Defense Grid comes equipped with long-range sensory instrumentation and offensive weaponry capabilities allowing it to detect and destroy incoming space debris, extraterrestrial spacecraft and various other threats to the planet from outer space (A-Next #2, Spider-Girl #34, #46, #86).

We learn a little history behind the Orbital Defense Grid in A-Next #2 when Mainframe off-handedly mentions the Orbital Defense Grid was erected years prior when the government was convinced by the events of the mysterious 'Skrull Incident'. We also learn in Last Planet Standing #2 that Reed Richards helped design the Orbital Defense Grid.

It's worth mentioning that on occasion the Orbital Defense Grid seems to be referred to using different names  and there is also one instance where the speaker may, in fact be referring to an entirely different satellite. The only potential reference to appear in either Fantastic Five series comes from Fantastic Five (vol. 1) #1 when Johnny Storm mentions having downloaded images from the team's 'new Safeguard Satellite'. However, aside from this one example, I believe all other mentions to defensive satellites protecting the Earth are referring to the Orbital Defense Grid.

With all of that out of the way, let's take a look at the various appearances and mentions of the Orbital Defense Grid throughout the MC2. The Orbital Defense Grid first appears to in A-Next #2 when it detects the approach of a Kree spacecraft and fires upon it, resulting in the craft splitting into two before crashing into the Washington National Park.

Following the return of hero spider-powers, May 'Mayday' Parker and her father visit the Fantastic Five for a full check-up. The check-up is interrupted when Lyja spots an alien vessel on long-range space scanners. Lyja calculates the unidentified alien spacecraft will be within range of the planet's Orbital Defense Grid. The team sets out to determine the alien's intentions and potentially avoid a misunderstanding (Spider-Girl #34).

The Fantastic Five are again involved when the Orbital Defense Grid destroys the meteor swarm concealing Apox the Omega Skrull on his approach to Earth. However, the Grid isn't powerful enough to prevent the Skrull from reaching the Fantastic Five Headquarters on his mission to destroy the team (Spider-Girl #46).

The Orbital Defense Grid detected the Skrull High Command's coherent energy beam as it passed on it's way to restore the Power Cosmic to Apox the Omega Skrull so that he could play a part in their revenge plans against the Fantastic Five (Spider-Girl #86).

In Last Planet Standing #2 we not only learn that Reed Richards helped design the Orbital Defense Grid but we also see it's destruction when the latest Herald of Galactus Dominas the Wavemaster uses his phenomenal power upon his approach to Earth.

The destruction of the Orbital Defense Grid is referenced in Avengers Next #1 by American Dream when she mentions Mainframe being called to Washington to consult on a 'new Space Defense Program'. The situation is also referenced by Nova and Earth Sentry when they recall their near deaths during the events of Last Planet Standing (Avengers Next #2). Notably, on both occasions Nova doesn't use the term 'Orbital Defense Grid', instead calling it 'Earth's Satellite Defense Program' in Last Planet Standing #2 and 'Space Defense Perimeter' in Avengers Next #2. Perhaps these are colloquialisms, as we see the likes of the more formal and intelligent Reed Richards, Mainframe and Vision use the term 'Orbital Defense Grid'.

This is the last time the Earth's Orbital Defense Grid is mentioned or seen in the MC2. It's unclear whether Mainframe's meeting in Washington yielded productive plans for a new and improved Orbital Defense Grid and related program. In the meantime, the MC2's Earth remains just a little more vulnerable.

I like the idea of an Earth that's frequently combated alien incursions and invasions developing a defense, particularly because it shows the veteran heroes are competent and didn't leave the world defenseless in their absence. It's a nice plot device.

Until I figure out a way to expand the 'Skrull Incident' into a full post, I remain

frogoat