Secret Invasion Episode 3 ended on a controversial note, and with another shocking death. Given its nature as a gritty spy thriller, casualties are a given, even if Marvel is continuing its most frustrating new habit. Spoilers ahead.
In “Betrayal,” G’iah (Emilia Clarke) is killed after double-crossing Secret Invasion’s Big Bad, General Gravik (Kingsley Ben-Adir). Her death was meant to be a twist, but seeing how little we knew about the character, it felt hollow. G’iah isn’t the first female character sacrificed for shock value in Secret Invasion, nor is she the first character whose potential the series has wasted. Her death just feels like a waste of the talented and high-profile Emilia Clarke.
As disappointing as “Betrayal” felt, there’s a good chance Clarke will return in future episodes. If she does pop up again, it likely won’t be as G’iah, but as a character fans have been anticipating since Clarke’s presence was first announced.
From the moment Clarke joined the Secret Invasion cast, theories swirled about her role. A common suggestion — and one briefly confirmed by redacted casting announcements — was that Clarke would play Abigail Brand, a fan favorite from Joss Whedon and John Cassaday’s Astonishing X-Men. Brand, a half-human, half-alien mutant best known as an agent of S.W.O.R.D, frequently if begrudgingly teams up with the X-Men, and plays a role in the comics during the Skrull invasion.
Clarke, of course, was later confirmed as G’iah, the daughter of Talos (Ben Mendelsohn), but that didn’t stop fans from suspecting a fake-out. Now that G’iah appears out of the picture, a new fan theory has found a way to connect the two characters.
Secret Invasion established the idea of Skrull “shells,” humans the shapeshifting aliens impersonate. These humans are kept alive at Gravik’s compound, New Skrullos, and hooked up to machines that harvest their memories. Though G’iah herself could be dead, her shell could still be alive... and she could be Abigail Brand.
Marvel originally stated that Clarke’s Secret Invasion role would be ongoing, with plenty of crossover potential in Marvel’s Cinematic Universe. If G’iah — or Abigail — survives the events of Secret Invasion, she could pop up in a future film, like The Marvels as an agent under Fury.
Though S.W.O.R.D. only briefly appeared in the MCU, it’s been replaced by another organization, S.A.B.E.R. This new, space-based counterterrorist network was mentioned in Secret Invasion, and will pop up again in The Marvels. Secret Invasion could serve as Abigail’s S.A.B.E.R. agent origins, and The Marvels could continue her adventures.
Brand also shares some connective tissue with Carol Danvers, aka Captain Marvel. She worked under Danvers when the latter led Alpha Flight, a peacekeeping force that briefly stood in for S.W.O.R.D. It seems like S.A.B.E.R. could be the MCU equivalent to Alpha Force, which could make G’iah’s future role in the MCU all the more probable. Time will tell, but it would be a shame to waste Emilia Clarke’s talents, and this theory is a compelling way to bring her back into the fold.
