Secret Invasion: Episode 1 Changes How We See One MCU Hero - Forever
"Secret Invasion" Episode 1 begins in fittingly subversive fashion. The opening minutes of the new Marvel Cinematic Universe series follow Agent Everett Ross (Martin Freeman) as he takes a covert meeting with Agent Prescod (Richard Dormer), who presents Ross with his theory that a sect of shapeshifting Skrulls is secretly working to tear humanity apart. Their meeting takes an unexpected turn when Prescod suddenly attacks Ross, who is ultimately forced to shoot and kill the paranoid government agent. In the moments that follow, Ross tries to escape a seemingly dangerous Russian agent.
At least, that's what initially seems to be happening in the "Secret Invasion" prologue. The series turns its introductory sequence on its head, however, when it's revealed that the Russian agent chasing Ross is, in all actuality, Talos (Ben Mendelsohn). When Talos and Maria Hill (Cobie Smulders) eventually find themselves standing over a dying Ross just moments later, it's additionally revealed that the character viewers have been watching since "Secret Invasion" began is not the Everett Ross they've previously come to know, but a nefarious Skrull agent posing as the "Black Panther" character.
The surprise "Secret Invasion" twist has changed the way many MCU fans have long viewed Ross. Some, in fact, have begun to wonder whether the fairly mysterious MCU character has always secretly been a shapeshifter. "I wonder how long Ross was a Skrull," one Redditor recently pondered online.
Marvel fans don't know what to think of Everett Ross now
The opening twist of "Secret Invasion" Episode 1 seems to have understandably reshaped some MCU fans' view of Everett Ross. With that in mind, in response to the aforementioned Reddit comment about the MCU character, one fan wrote, "I gotta think the Everett Ross from 'Black Panther' was the real one and this Skrull was a recent replacement." Their response prompted additional comments from other "Secret Invasion" viewers, some of whom debated whether a Skrull can totally impersonate a human being's genetic and biological makeup.
If they can't, then it seems safe to assume the version of Ross who got shot and medically treated in 2018's "Black Panther" was a human being, otherwise Shuri (Letitia Wright) and her fellow Wakandans would have noticed his Skrull DNA. If a Skrull's transformation can trick even those who operate on them, though, there's no telling how long Agent Ross has or has not been a Skrull in disguise. Given the fact that the central Skrull uprising of "Secret Invasion" is a recent development in the MCU, even Ross' previous efforts to minimize conflict on Earth don't completely absolve him of suspicion.
Regardless of what the truth is, fans will probably have to wait for Marvel to confirm the nature of Ross' identity before they know which of their theories about him are correct and which aren't. Either way, it seems safe to say that "Secret Invasion" Episode 1 has already proven to be quite the conversation starter among viewers.