Warning! This article contains spoilers for Secret Invasion.Secret Invasion's central story included several huge MCU plot points and even some crucial retcons which are important to know for the future of the franchise if the show was skipped. Secret Invasion's core premise was a much smaller-scale version of the comic story of the same name, centering on a violent group of renegade Skrulls seeking to infiltrate Earth with only Nick Fury left to stop them. Fury allied with characters like Talos from Captain Marvel and Maria Hill in order to stop Gravik, the leader of the Skrull insurgents, while having to deny assistance from the Avengers.

By the ending of Secret Invasion, plenty of massive MCU plot points were introduced to the show. However, Secret Invasion's viewership numbers were disappointingly low for Marvel Studios, meaning many skipped the first MCU TV installment of Phase 5. Given that Secret Invasion included many universe-altering elements and plot points, some are almost guaranteed to be vital to future MCU projects. With that said, here is every significant plot point, retcon, and character moment from Secret Invasion that is important to know for the future of the MCU explained.

13 Nick Fury And Captain Marvel Never Found A New Home For The Skrulls As Promised

The premise of Secret Invasion comes from a young Skrull named Gravik seeking to start a nuclear war and wipe out humanity so that the Skrulls can claim Earth. The reason for this stems from Captain Marvel's ending, in which Nick Fury and Carol Danvers promised to find the Skrulls a new home. Secret Invasion included several flashbacks to the 1990s during its six-episode season, detailing how Fury and Danvers initially struggled to find the Skrulls a home. Fury then struck a deal with the Skrulls, with the shape-shifting aliens aiding him by forming a covert spy network as he and Danvers continued looking for a planet for them.

However, it was revealed that Fury and Captain Marvel never managed to find a home for the Skrulls. It was mentioned at one point during Secret Invasion that no matter where the Skrulls attempted to settle, they were treated as monsters with ulterior motives. This likely comes from Kree propaganda, with Captain Marvel detailing how the Skrulls were being portrayed as bloodthirsty monsters and therefore a threat to every planet when in reality they just wanted to find a home. Fury's failure to find a planet led Gravik to become vengeful, and attempt to take Earth for himself as retribution.

12 There Are 1 Million Skrulls On Earth, And Most Are Still Alive

Another massive MCU reveal in Secret Invasion is that there are one million Skrulls hidden on Earth. One scene between Fury and Talos shows the duo discussing the destruction of Skrullos, the Skrulls' original home planet. Talos states that one million Skrulls escaped the planet's destruction, and he managed to send a signal to them, telling them to seek refuge on Earth. Talos reveals that almost all of them made it to Earth and began living in hiding with most still alive at the end of Secret Invasion albeit peacefully, unlike Gravik's insurgents.

This reveal caused some tension between Fury and Talos. The former was naturally shocked to find out how many Skrulls were living on Earth, while the latter was arguing that he believes it is proof both species' can coexist. With so many Skrulls hidden among the human population, it is hard to imagine this plot point not showing up again in future MCU stories.

11 Nick Fury Lost Faith In Himself After The Blip

Undoubtedly the biggest plot point from Secret Invasion regarding Nick Fury was his own personal character arc. It was revealed in Secret Invasion that Fury lost faith in himself after Thanos attacked Earth. Fury even described his disappearance during Avengers: Infinity War as relieving, as he did not have to fight anymore. Upon returning during Avengers: Endgame, Fury began to lose confidence in himself likely due to the fact that he has spent his life committed to protecting Earth and even the Avengers could lose as they did to Thanos. This also contributed to his failure of the Skrull people and led to Gravik's invasion.

10 Maria Hill And Talos Are Killed By Gravik

Two of the biggest plot twists in Secret Invasion likely to impact the MCU's future were the deaths of Maria Hill and Talos. At the end of Secret Invasion episode 1, Gravik shape-shifts into Fury and gets close to Maria Hill before shooting her. Hill tragically passes away, fueling Fury's battle against Gravik. Later in the series, during Secret Invasion episode 4, Gravik impersonates a British soldier as Talos and Nick Fury - alongside the British - attempt to save the U.S. President from a Skrull assassination attempt. Gravik uses this disguise to kill Talos, ending his MCU journey that began with Captain Marvel.

Given Talos' importance to the Captain Marvel franchise, it is likely his death will be mentioned in The Marvels. Also, Maria Hill has been an integral part of multiple MCU movies like the Avengers films and Captain America: The Winter Soldier. As such, it is likely Hill's death will be referenced in future MCU projects too.

9 Nick Fury Has Been Married To A Skrull For Decades

Another huge MCU plot point centering on Nick Fury from Secret Invasion is that he is married. The first hint of Nick Fury being married in the MCU came in Captain America: The Winter Soldier when Fury told Steve Rogers that his wife kicked him out of the house. This mysterious wife is revealed in Secret Invasion, with the even bigger revelation that she is a Skrull named Varra. Fury has been working with Varra since the 1990s as she was part of his Skrull spy network, yet the two became close and got married which was revealed in Secret Invasion episode 2.

8 Rhodey And Everett Ross Have Been Skrulls For An Unknown Amount Of Time

The biggest retcon found in Secret Invasion was that Rhodey and Everett Ross were Skrulls. While many theories state that Rhodey has been a Skrull since Civil War, it is not made explicitly clear how long he has had an impersonator. The same can be said for Everett Ross, who was last seen in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. The last appearance from Ross saw him imprisoned by the CIA, with his Wakandan allies setting him free. As such, the timeline is somewhat confusing for when Ross became a Skrull, which means the MCU's future has to reveal this information.

The same can be said for Rhodes. If indeed it is confirmed that Rhodes has been a Skrull since Captain America: Civil War, it strips his character of several emotional moments from Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame. With Rhodes and Ross being two important MCU characters, it is almost a certainty that the duo being Skrulls in Secret Invasion will be mentioned again in future MCU projects, making the Skrull retcon a vital point to keep in mind.

7 Nick Fury Collected Superhuman DNA After Avengers: Endgame

As the series went on, it was revealed that the endgame of Secret Invasion would aptly revolve around the events of Avengers: Endgame. It was revealed that Gravik was making a machine to imbue Skrulls with superpowers, creating the MCU's version of Super Skrulls. Gravik was searching for something called the Harvest, which was a vial Fury had collected after the Battle of Earth containing DNA samples from most major Avengers. While it is unclear what happened to the Harvest, it is still a big plot point that Fury has the samples as Secret Invasion's Avengers DNA could lead to clones in the MCU.

6 Talos' Daughter G'iah Is A Super Skrull With Dozens Of Powers

The Super Skrull experiments that Gravik created came to fruition in the final episode of Secret Invasion. Gravik obtained the Harvest and used it to imbue him and G'iah - the daughter of Talos - with the superpowers of countless Avengers. Including Hulk, Thor, Valkyrie, Mantis, Drax, Captain Marvel, Captain America, Abomnation, Korg, Gamora, Groot, and Bucky Barnes, G'iah now holds endless powers from several powerful Avengers that fought during Avengers: Endgame.

Similarly, the screen showcasing the many Avengers characters' DNA samples in Secret Invasionalso included villainous beings from the MCU. To further bolster G'iah's powers, she was also imbued with the DNA of Thanos himself, alongside the members of the Black Order: Cull Obsidian, Proxima Midnight, Corvus Glaive, and Ebony Maw. Combined with the Outriders and the Chitauri, G'iah's new powers seem almost limitless. Introducing a being with such immense power surely calls for future MCU appearances, which is why G’iah’s new Super Skrull powers are important to keep in mind should Secret Invasion have been skipped.

5 The US Government Has Declared War On All Alien-Born Beings

One of the throughlines of Secret Invasion was protecting the U.S. President from attacks by the Skrulls, with the latter impersonating Russians to cause a nuclear war they could use to their advantage. In order to do this, Gravik used the Skrull impersonating Rhodes to get close to President Ritson. Fury and Sonya Falsworth - a British Secret Service agent - defeated Rhodes' impostor and saved the President by Secret Invasion's ending. Despite Ritson surviving, he declared war on all alien species in a disturbingly realistic choice, tarring all aliens with the same brush despite some living peacefully on Earth and actively opposing Gravik.

This could also tie into the future of the MCU as Ritson declares war on all aliens. Rather than just the Skrulls, Ritson targets all beings not born on Earth. This could impact franchises like Thor or Guardians of the Galaxy, especially the former as Asgardians are now based on Earth through the city of New Asgard in Norway. If Ritson's war really does link to every alien life form, then Asgardians will surely be targeted too. It is difficult to say exactly how this will appear again in a future MCU movie, but Ritson's war is sure to have ramifications.

4 Vigilante Groups Are Actively Hunting And Killing Remaining Skrulls

After President Ritson declares war on alien life forms and alerts the human population to the possibility of Skrulls living among them, vigilante groups begin hunting anyone who could be a Skrull. Secret Invasion revealed that important figures like the U.K. Prime Minister and the NATO Secretary General are Skrulls working for Gravik, with vigilante groups hinting down these figures and killing them out of paranoia. However, the real U.K. Prime Minister was killed by mistake, meaning Ritson's war on aliens is off to a tragic start.

3 The British Government Has Volunteered To Partner With The Skrulls After Fury's Failure

One of the final teases that will likely appear in the MCU's future from Secret Invasion is a team-up between G'iah and Sonya Falsworth. Sonya confronts G'iah and states that, now that humans have declared war on Skrulls, G'iah and her people will need all the help they can get. Sonya says she can provide this help, and rectify the mistakes of Fury and Talos whose personal feelings led to Gravik's war and ended the last human-Skrull alliance. This hints at a future MCU story between G'iah and Sonya, though in what capacity is difficult to say.

2 Nick Fury And His Wife Have Returned To Space To Brooker A Kree/Skrull Peace Agreement

At the end of Secret Invasion, Fury returned to S.A.B.E.R., the space station he has been on since Avengers: Endgame. Secret Invasion revealed that Fury has been away from Earth largely due to his crisis of faith, with Gravik's war forcing him to return to Earth. After foiling Gravik's invasion plan, Fury returned to S.A.B.E.R. to continue his work. However, he did not go alone. Varra, his wife, chose to return to space with him as the Kree offered to hold peace talks with the Skrulls.

This is a reference to Captain Marvel in which the Kree-Skrull war was first mentioned. The Kree began expanding their Empire and destroyed Skrullos when the Skrulls resisted. This led to the propaganda campaign against the Skrulls in Captain Marvel and also started the war between the two races that has been waging for decades in the MCU. With Fury's reveal that the Kree want to hold peace talks, this will likely be included in The Marvels.

The villain shown in The Marvels' trailer is a Kree, which likely means these peace talks do not go particularly well. As such, this is an important plot point from Secret Invasion to know. Varra goes with Fury to act as a Skrull envoy given the increasingly unclear status of her people's place in the galaxy.

1 The Fate Of New Skrullos Inhabitants Is Left Unclear

Similar to how one million Skrulls being on Earth could impact the future of the MCU, the inhabitants of New Skrullos could too. In Secret Invasion, New Skrullos was the home base of Gravik and his insurgents. Skrulls who did not wish to fight were allowed to live there in peace, while Gravik and any warriors would commit acts of war against Earth to increase their invasion attempt. This was also where the humans that Skrulls chose to impersonate were kept, such as the aforementioned political figures, Rhodes, and Ross.

In Secret Invasion episode 5, the inhabitants of New Skrullos mutinied against Gravik due to the latter's violent ways. Gravik shut down the mutineers and killed the Skrulls who attacked him. The final battle of Secret Invasion episode 6 takes place in New Skrullos, yet no Skrulls other than Gravik are anywhere to be seen. While Gravik states that some have been locked away, it is never revealed what happened to them. This could lead to a big plot point in the MCU's future, stemming from Secret Invasion's main villain.