When the Skrulls are away, the Kree will play.
Marvel Studios
Marvel Explained is our ongoing series, where we delve into the latest Marvel shows, movies, trailers, and news stories to divine the franchise’s future. This entry digs into The Marvels trailer and discusses some noteworthy aspects.
We will need some serious MCU levity after Secret Invasion, Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 3, and Loki season two (assuming Loki sticks to a mid-2023 release). Given everything we sorta know about those three projects, we imagine we’ll have gone through the emotional wringer. Thankfully, in November, The Marvels promises to bring some joy to the universe, uniting Carol Danvers (Brie Larson), Monica Rambeau (Teyonah Parris), and Kamala Khan (Iman Vellani) for the first time.
The recently released teaser trailer focuses heavily on the wackiness of its Freaky Friday body-switching plot. After Monica tampers with a unique energy source emanating from a Jump Point (those space portals first seen in Guardians of the Galaxy but later used to convenient effect in Captain Marvel and Avengers: Endgame), she switches physical space with Kamala. When Kamala shows off her powers to Monica and Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson), she flip-flops with Carol. Hijinks ensue.
The Marvels trailer is pure joy, but a lot of tantalizing canon fodder is within that joy. Below, we dig into the teaser and pull out the five most noteworthy moments. Do we talk Flerkens? Yer darn right, we do. If the MCU needs anything, it’s more Flerken.
The S.A.B.E.R. Space Station
The Marvels trailer opens with a significant MCU introduction, the S.A.B.E.R. Space Station. The orbiting Nick Fury base of operations doesn’t technically have ties to the comic books, but it does resemble The Peak, the S.W.O.R.D. headquarters that protects our planet against alien threats. In WandaVision, S.W.O.R.D. basically tried to replace S.H.I.E.L.D. in wake of its Hydra infestation. However, in battling the Scarlet Witch and family, they came away from the proceedings looking like antagonistic chumps.
We’re waiting to see how Nick Fury returns to the game in Secret Invasion and whether or not the Fury we see in this trailer is actually our Fury and not just a Skrull in disguise. It is worth noting that later in the trailer, we see Fury surrounded by human S.W.O.R.D. agents. The Skrulls were his space mates when we last saw him floating around the cosmos in the Spider–Man: Far From Home post-credits scene.
The Kree are Back
Throughout The Marvels trailer, we see our heroes bashing against Kree soldiers. Indeed, these alien rascals caused a lot of havoc in the original Guardians of the Galaxy film as well as in Captain Marvel. They’re notoriously in continual conflict with the Skrulls in the comics. If those shape-shifters take a wretched beating in Secret Invasion, they might see an opportunity to make a mighty power play in The Marvels.
Considering how Carol Danvers humiliated the Kree Supreme Intelligence during Captain Marvel‘s climax, the warrior race could be gunning for revenge in the sequel. Maybe they’re behind the Freaky Friday shenanigans, using the energy similarities between the three Marvels to weaken Carol’s god-like abilities, creating a vulnerability to distract and manipulate.
Zawe Ashton, the Accuser
Amongst the Kree, we witness Zawe Ashton brandishing a Cosmi-Rod similar to the one Ronan the Accuser carried in Guardians of the Galaxy. Ronan’s hammer was destroyed during his Peter Quill dance-off, but a new one can be easily fabricated. Ronan’s Accuser moniker signified his status as a member of the Kree Accuser Corps, so Ashton may be the latest soldier to carry the rank.
More interesting is the bangle around Ashton’s right wrist. As explained in Ms. Marvel, a Kree bangle was the source of Kamala Khan’s superpowers. The Disney+ series speculated about a second one, and now we know the identity of its owner. The device gives Ashton’s unnamed character similar powers to Kamala as we see her generating purple energy constructs as she takes on Carol, Monica, and Kamala in the trailer’s final seconds.
What the Flerken?
Possibly the most delightful moment in the trailer is when Kamala gets switched out with Carol while she is in mid-combat with the Kree. While Kamala barely has a moment to recognize her precarious position, the cute little Flerken named Goose opens her jaw and unleashes all those hungry tentacles. Seconds later, the Kree soldiers are kitty snacks. Kamala Khan reacts like any sane person would, with complete and utter terror. Iman Vellani nails the scene, continuing to be the perfect audience conduit.
It’s nice to know that Carol Danvers eventually retrieved Goose from Nick Fury’s office. After she scratched out his eye, I’m sure the S.H.I.E.L.D. agent wanted nothing to do with the alien beastie. Even better, it appears Goose has sired some Flerken offspring as we see many Flerken kittens descend a starship staircase. One Goose is great; a family of Gooses (a family of Geese?) is pure magic.
Prince Yan, is that you?
The Marvels trailer also gives us our first proper gander at Park Seo–joon‘s mysterious character. While we have no official word on who the Parasite star is playing, the teaser offers enough clues to allow a guess. We see an alien world that contains a big dance number. For a while, rumors circulated that the planet Aldana would appear in The Marvels. The location originated from Captain Marvel (Volume 8) #9. They’re a unique species that speak exclusively in rhyme and could easily elevate to song-and-dance.
The colorful costumes worn by the trailer’s dancers and the soldiers backing up Park Seo-joon are not an exact duplicate of what we observe in the comics, but they’re not too far off either. Park Seo-joon could be the Aldanan prince, Yan. In the books, he’s trapped in a marriage proposal he wishes to break. He asks Carol Danvers for help in the endeavor after she touches down on his planet. Through ceremonial combat, she creates a loophole that allows Yan to marry who he chooses.
The dance scene in The Marvels trailer could be part of some complicated marriage ceremony, and the headdress we see Carol wearing, along with a very concerned expression, could indicate a tricky proposal she needs to ditch. Not every precarious situation must involve a Kree or a Skrull.
The Marvels arrives in theaters on November 10th.
Related Topics: Marvel Explained, Marvel Studios, The Marvels
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