Say what you will about Secret Invasion and whether it’s a step forward or backward for the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but you have to admit that the Samuel L. Jackson-led miniseries hasn’t slouched when it comes to the onslaught of surprises they’ve delivered so far; the show got down to business right out of the gate by revealing Everett K. Ross as a Skrull, and the shakeups haven’t slowed down since.
And with just two episodes to go, Secret Invasion only has so many more cards up its sleeve in that department, so to speak, and the biggest one yet could be hiding in plain sight, if recent musings on r/marvelstudios hold any weight to them.
With episode four all wrapped up, there’s more than a bit of evidence pointing towards Veranke, a Skrull princess who takes Jessica Drew’s Spider-Woman’s powers in the comics, being the true identity of Rhodey.
We know from the shower scene that the Skrull posing as the former Avenger is a female, and it’s safe to assume that she’s an important associate of Gravik given how important her impersonation of the POTUS’ right-hand man is to the invasion; beyond holding a high position in one of the most powerful countries on Earth, her Rhodey disguise means she’s perhaps the only one who could have thrown a wrench into Fury’s plan the way she did.
In the comics, Veranke is the orchestrator of the Skrull invasion, and given how close she is to Gravik and his rebellion in the show, this potential reveal could take the form of Veranke forcefully usurping Gravik from his position as the de facto leader of the rebellion, perhaps with the added sizzle of how she was secretly pulling the strings all along.
Indeed, with so little time left for Fury to get his bearings back, it’s entirely possible that Secret Invasion won’t end with a quelling of the invasion, but an evolution upon it; an evolution brought on by what could potentially be the most earth-shattering reveal of the entire show.
Secret Invasion is now streaming on Disney Plus. New episodes will release every Wednesday until the series finale on July 26.