Warning: The following contains full spoilers for Secret Invasion. You can read our spoiler-free review of Episode 4 right here.
Marvel's Secret Invasion has just dropped one of the biggest reveals of the series so far, and fans are absolutely losing their minds over it.
The fourth episode of Secret Invasion premiered on Disney+ on July 12, revealing that everything is not as it seems. A major fan theory was confirmed, which delivered some answers but also raised even more questions among viewers trying to keep track of the twists and turns as we head towards the series finale.
Proceed with caution! You're about to enter MAJOR spoiler territory.
Fans started connecting the dots and speculated that James "Rhodey" Rhodes is a shapeshifting Skrull, with mounting evidence supporting that theory week after week. Finally, in the fourth episode, it is revealed that Rhodey is not Rhodey after all. He is a Skrull, but with the truth unmasked, there are more questions than ever before.
Marvel Studios president and executive producer Kevin Feige confirmed to Marvel.com that Rhodey has been a Skrull in other appearances before Secret Invasion, begging the question: Exactly how long has Rhodey been a Skrull? Now it's up to the fans to go back and try to discover when Rhodey may have swapped out.
"We like the idea of fans going back and watching some of the other appearances of Rhodey and realizing that that wasn't him," Feige teased.
Feige added that eventually, viewers will come to "understand exactly how long he's been a Skrull," but for now, those revelations are on hold. Naturally, fans have already started speculating over Rhodey's other MCU appearances, trying to work out when the Skrull-switch may have occurred and how long the imposter has been around for.
Thinking out loud here before tomorrow's new episode of #SecretInvasion, but if Rhodey's a Skrull the perfect opportunity to swap him out would've been when he was hospitalized in Civil War.
— Method to Madness (@Method2Mad) July 12, 2023
Just sayin'. There's a ton of instances like this with several MCU characters.
Rhody is a SKRULL?, so he's been a skrull in Endgame? damn#SecretInvasion #Skrull pic.twitter.com/eD1T1QmfsU
— sanmeyo (@sandeep_sanmeyo) July 12, 2023
If Rhody is a skrull, was a skrull in Endgame?
— st (@startefacts_) July 12, 2023
#SecretInvasion #Skrull pic.twitter.com/c3OcwemFkb
Bruh if Rhodey a skrull was he a skrull in infinity war ???
— YT : Joshua Dunn (@Joshuadunn__) July 12, 2023
When did Rhodey become a skrull?
— Guy (@VISDAOFFICIAL) July 12, 2023
Has he always been a skrull?
Where is the real Rhodey rn?
I got so many questions rn #SecretInvasion
When the fuck did Rhodey become a skrull??? Was he in civil war as one? As tony grieved over him when he broke his back? I NEED ANSWERS FEIGE pic.twitter.com/tFUtobBA7A
— Flows (@FlowsAndolini) July 12, 2023
People are also wondering when they might see the real Rhodey again, and how the world around him will differ from before. In particular, there are questions about how much he has missed, what key events have passed him by, and how he could react to the death of Tony Stark aka Iron Man in Avengers: Endgame.
If Rhodey is a skrull, and if they find the real Rhodey and wake him up at the end of the season, then his first words should be, "Where's Tony?"
— Ryan Arey ?? (@ryanarey) July 6, 2023
Rhodey when he wakes up and hears that Tony stark is dead#SecretInvasion pic.twitter.com/cRHOQWZ5a0
— joe (@Strongambush886) July 12, 2023
The Secret Invasion comics changed the superhero landscape forever. The 2008 story arc by Brian Michael Bendis and Leinil Francis Yu revealed certain Marvel heroes were replaced by alien doppelgangers, causing readers to question everything they knew about these beloved characters.
The Secret Invasion TV show only shares its basic premise in common with the comic book source material. Marvel even instructed director Ali Selim to not read the comics before making the show, but it hasn't stopped fans from doubting various plot points, stemming right back to the first episode and its shock ending.
The fourth episode of Secret Invasion is available to stream on Disney Plus right now, with new episodes released every Wednesday until the season concludes with its sixth episode on July 26.
Adele Ankers-Range is a freelance entertainment writer for IGN. Follow her on Twitter.
