Secret Invasion: The Infiltration

Secret Invasion

by Brian Michael Bendis, Stan Lee, Brian Reed

Retrace the roots of "The Infiltration" all the way back to the beginning of the Marvel Age of Heroes! First, in Fantastic Four #2 (1962), it's a close encounter of the Skrull kind as four shape-changing aliens pose as Mr. Fantastic, the Invisible Girl, the Thing, and the Human Torch in an attempt to destroy the fledgling Fantastic Four! Then, flash-forward to the present day as the "Secret Invasion" stands revealed in the pages of New Avengers: Illuminati, New Avengers, Mighty Avengers, and Avengers: The Initiative. Conspiracy. Paranoia. Betrayal. Who do you trust? Collecting Fantastic Four #2, New Avengers: Illuminati #1 and #5, New Avengers #31-32 and #38-39, Mighty Avengers #7, and Avengers: The Initiative Annual #1.

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Marvel, Comic Book, Superheroes, Fiction, Graphic Novels Comics

198 pages, Paperback

First published April 16, 2008

About the author

A comic book writer and erstwhile artist. He has won critical acclaim (including five Eisner Awards) and is one of the most successful writers working in mainstream comics. For over eight years Bendis’s books have consistently sat in the top five best sellers on the nationwide comic and graphic novel sales charts.

Though he started as a writer and artist of independent noir fiction series, he shot to stardom as a writer of Marvel Comics' superhero books, particularly Ultimate Spider-Man.

Bendis first entered the comic world with the "Jinx" line of crime comics in 1995. This line has spawned the graphic novels Goldfish, Fire, Jinx, Torso (with Marc Andreyko), and Total Sell Out. Bendis is writing the film version of Jinx for Universal Pictures with Oscar-winner Charlize Theron attached to star and produce.

Bendis’s other projects include the Harvey, Eisner, and Eagle Award-nominated Powers (with Michael Avon Oeming) originally from Image Comics, now published by Marvel's new creator-owned imprint Icon Comics, and the Hollywood tell-all Fortune and Glory from Oni Press, both of which received an "A" from Entertainment Weekly.

Bendis is one of the premiere architects of Marvel's "Ultimate" line: comics specifically created for the new generation of comic readers. He has written every issue of Ultimate Spider-Man since its best-selling launch, and has also written for Ultimate Fantastic Four and Ultimate X-Men, as well as every issue of Ultimate Marvel Team-Up, Ultimate Origin and Ultimate Six.

Brian is currently helming a renaissance for Marvel’s AVENGERS franchise by writing both New Avengers and Mighty Avengers along with the successful ‘event’ projects House Of M, Secret War, and this summer’s Secret Invasion.

He has also previously done work on Daredevil, Alias, and The Pulse.

Reviews

[Greg · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really wanted to give The Infiltration five stars! I love big cross-over events and the very premise of Secret Invasion is so intriguing. Basically, post Civil War, the super hero world is in shambles. Many of the big teams have broken up and many heroes have gone into hiding rather than sign up in Tony Stark's dumb-ass Registration Act. I really don't want to spoil anything, because the reveals are so much fun, but in short, the New Avengers take on a mission to rescue one of their own. One body is left behind after the battle, a Skrull in a super hero costume. A top ranking super hero was a Skrull. No one knows how long they've been playing the role of that hero or where the real hero is (or if they are even alive). Spider-man's senses couldn't pick out that the hero was a Skrull, nor could Dr. Strange's mysticism or whatever you want to call Wolverine's animal sense of smell. This causes mass paranoia; if no one noticed this body-snatchers scenario, who knows how many other heroes are actually Skrulls. The Infiltration is basically The Road to Secret Invasion. We get the original Fantastic Four issue #2 that first introduced the Skrulls and their shape-shifting abilities, and some random Avengers titles that tell the stories to set up Secret Invasion. The story was great: A+ pacing, exciting and very interesting plot, and tons of super heroes. The only thing stopping me from giving this 5 stars is some of the art work. The New Avengers issues look terrible, absolutely atrocious. Micheal Gaydos does the worst, but David Mack's are is almost as bad. It looks like a mixture of shitty water-coloring and basic preliminary story board sketches. It's worse than the art in Dark Knight Strikes Again and I didn't think that was possible. Half the time Luke Cage's face looks like he's sporting a stereotypical old Asian man Fu Manchu mustache, but no, it's just terrible drawing and awful shadowing. The story is so good that I want to over look the shitty art, buy it's so fucking bad that i can't forgive it. Terrible art aside, The Infiltration has me sufficiently stoked for the Secret Invasion.

[C.J. Edmunds · Rating 3 out of 5]

Most would take from history lessons learnt in order to understand the present, internalize the mistakes of the past and synthesize both for usage & safekeeping of the future. But at times, what we don't count on are the truths we uncover & the lingering effect it has on us.

Secret Invasion: Infiltration traces & collects several issues of different Marvel titles dating back from the 1962 issue of Fantastic Four, to the more recent issues of Mighty Avengers, The New Avengers featuring The Illuminati comprised of Iron Man, Professor X, Reed Richards, Black Bolt, Namor & my favorite Dr. Strange to the events following Civil War & the death of Captain America as depicted in Avengers Initiative Annual #1.

While it doesn't require one to read it to know & understand the intricate & main plot of Secret Invasion, it does help one to appreciate the length & scope of the Skrull invasion & the implications to the Marvel universe; as well as the hard work Brian Bendis had put on to create a scope of an event which was nothing short of kick ass & monumental.

[Patrick Book · Rating 3 out of 5]

A lot of the Marvel space junk is…junk. But this is sneaky and dark and pretty good.

[Adam Stone · Rating 3 out of 5]

I asked some friends to recommend a series to reread during the month of September, and my former cohost from The VeXed Men (rest in reruns), suggested revisiting The Secret Invasion.

If you want the full, full, full experience, you just have to read about a billionty Marvel books stretching all the way back to Fantastic Four #2 (that's right, not the 1998 #2 or the 200whatever #2, the 1961 flagship Marvel title). Luckily, Marvel stitched together a Most Important Pre-Secret Invasion Collection, and it's ... adequate.

The book opens with Fantastic Four #2 by Stan Cameo King Lee and Jack I Will Punch A Nazi To Death Kirby. It's absolute silver age silliness. The characters are waaaaaaaaaaaay Over The Top, they speak their every woeful thought, and almost every non-hero character's dialogue makes them sound like a complete idiot. It's the template of Silver Age comics, and it focuses on The Fantastic Four being mimiced by a group of shape-shifting aliens called The Skrulls. An aboslutely silly 3/5*

Next up is the opening issue of Brian Michael Bendis's "Illuminati". This is his retcon that there has been a secret cabal of six of the most important superheroes who meet in secret and help control the fate of the Marvel Universe. It was a fun series, and this issue made me want to go back and read the whole Bendis Avengers era starting with Mark Millar's Civil War: A Marvel Comics Event. This issue shows them attacking the Skrulls on their homeworld. It's fun to see that the Secret Invasion was definitely being planned even as Civil War unfolded. It's why this era of Marvel was so tightly plotted (not necessarily tightly written). And this was the issue that really started to pull everything together. 4/5*

New Avengers #31 & #32 are the actual first shot in the Secret Invasion, as the New Avengers team battles the hand, only to discover that one of their enemies is a Skrull, and has probably been a Skrull for a long time, meaning theMarvel Universe has been manipulated by The Skrulls since even before the Civil War. These issues were so good, that I thought When I'm done with this, I'm going back to read Civil War, and I'm going to read every Avengers and Ms Marvel book that feed into this event. God, I love Bendis, why don't I read him all the time? 5/5*

Oh, Mighty Avengers #7 is why. His writing is uneven, especially during this period where he was writing five million books a week or so. If you're spread out among so many stories, they're probably not all going to be great, and this one is a clunker. I don't remember Ultron making Tony Stark a woman, and then manipulating the weather like some 1940s Batman villain. I don't want to read that. And every character in this book had thought balloons in nearly every panel. It felt like Bendis thought this book was somehow So Smart that he had to explain every character's motivation in thought balloons, and it totally doesn't work. It kills any momentum threatened to be built up, and it makes every character sound like a whiny middle-schooler with wet pants. This was definitely skippable. But it does lead into the Venom Bomb storyline, which I'd totally forgotten about. 2/5*

The final issue of the Illuminati issue reveals that one of the six members of The Illuminati has been a Skrull, possibly since their very first adventure. So the Secret Invasion threat is very real. There are Skrulls Everywhere. Stakes are set, consequences occur, and the Secret Invasion is ready to roll out in full force. 4/5*

The story from Avengers The Initiative Annual #1 was a dud. The idea, at the time, was that Tony Stark had started The Initiative. Basically, every state in the USA gets a superhero team, which means a ton of inexperienced and unqualified heroes are suddenly given access to loads of credibility and power. Oh, and also, it means There's A Skrull In Every State! This whole story could have been a page long and been just as powerful. None of the characters in the issue are memorable, and I'm pretty sure none of them were ever used again once The Initiative book was shut down. 1/5*

I know I'm not being overly positive about this book, but it is a nice collection of stories to lead into The Secret Invasion if you're not going to just start with Civil War and plow through The Age Of Crossover Events (Civil War 2005-7, Secret Invasion 2008, Dark Reign 2009, Seige 2010, Fear Itself 2011). I do recommend it as a jumping on point for people interested in reading The Secret Invasion books before the TV series starts.

I did not include the last two issues of this book (New Avengers #38 and #39), as they are also the first two issues of Secret Invasion, Book 1, which is the next book I'm reading.

[Andrew Garvey · Rating 3 out of 5]

A varied volume this one, focused on the Skrulls' re-Secret Invasion infiltration of, and replacement of superheroes, going all the way back to their first appearance when Stan Lee had them impersonating the Fantastic Four to undermine the public's trust in the team and turn the world against them. It's all dealt with in a single issue but the basic concept would, of course, be expanded upon massively many years later. Aside from that early 1960s issue, the rest of this volume is direct background to, and lays the foundation for the 2008 Secret Invasion event and it's mostly very good. The Avengers: the Initiative 2007 annual is only really relevant for the final page and the rest of that issue is below the standard of the Infiltration comics (#21, #32, #38 and #39) that make up about half this volume. There's a lot of classically Brian Michael Bendis' dialogue-heavy storytelling here, but it fits the mistrust and paranoia being played out. The two Illuminati issues are both very good, both very different and important to the Secret Invasion's history. A good, worthwhile, but not essential collection.

[Ryk Stanton · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was reading New Avengers for some reason and got up to the Secret Invasion storyline and said, “Hey, I have the Mavel Unlimited app, why don’t I just read the entire Secret Invasion storyline? I’d be really interested because I know that the MCU is going to come out with a movie pretty soon.” Great idea, right?

Ugh, that thing is 99 issues long and just starts to d r a g in the middle as Marvel tried to cash in by incorporating as many titles as possible. But I was committed, and I read every single issue. Was it worth it? Absolutely not. Am I glad I read it? I’m not sad, but I wish that Marvel had done a better job writing with concise storytelling. Or that I had not made the decision to read the whole blamed thing.

But, you know, in for a penny, and for a pound. And it’s red and I will never have to read it again and I can enjoy the movie when it comes out. So I’m just going to copy and paste this review in every single trade paperback that contains the secret invasion, storyline and call it a day.

if anyone reads this review, I recommend you just read the essential story itself without all of the side issues.

[Ανδρέας Μιχαηλίδης · Rating 2 out of 5]

However much this volume tries, it cannot convince you it's anything more than a hasty stitching of older Skrull stories with the actual foreshadowings of Secret Invasion - because Secret Invasion itself is sloppy and haphazard, with glaring plot holes and dropped plot points. Not to mention, it explains nothing about how the Skrulls ACTUALLY managed their infiltration or took prisoner all those Marvel heroes.

[ANTHONY FLORES · Rating 3 out of 5]

Este tomo no tiene mucha historia como tal. Solo nos cuentan el momento en el que los iluminatis se enfrentan contra los Skrulls y como esto tiene repercusiones.

Lo que me gustó de este tomo es como retratan de forma muy precisa todo lo que pasa y como se crean las identidades falsas.

[Madeline Rossell · Rating 4 out of 5]

"It never feels like it but then you turn around and all of a sudden it's tomorrow... and yesterday was the glory days," might be one of my favourite lines ever written.

[Jadyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5

[Amy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it. The aliens were awesome.

[J'aime · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Preludes” sometimes miss the mark, either by not having enough or the right material. They are supposed to help orient the reader for the main event by recapping critical scenes that occurred across the many Marvel titles that lead into it. Each of the individual series all have parts of the conspiracy, so while Infiltration is very good, it’s still not enough for readers who don’t read any of the individual titles. I’m still uncertain, even after reading this, the main event and the Mighty Avengers volume, as to when some heroes were replaced.

The Skrulls appeared in Marvel comics way back in the 60’s and the first appearance of them against the Fantastic Four opens this book. Though the story was certainly relevant, I personally don’t care for the golden age comics. The panels are too wordy making this opening story tedious to get through.

The prelude then jumps to the present day where readers get two pieces of the New Avengers: Illuminati arc (why they just didn't include all 5 parts is beyond me!) showing how they, through their arrogance, decided to confront the Skrulls and ended up captured. They provided the knowledge necessary for the Secret Invasion to occur. The prelude also includes interconnected pieces from the New Avengers and the Mighty Avengers of how both groups learned about the Invasion. It has drastic consequences for both teams. Already reeling from Civil War, the heroes do not know who they can trust. I especially liked this section because it is Wolverine who sums up why each team member, including himself, could possibly be an impostor. The book closes with a heart-breaking scene between Jessica Jones and Luke Cage.

The pieces included are all helpful in seeing how Secret Invasion unfolded, but I think it would have been truly valuable for the book to conclude with some “recommended reading” as to which issues reveal who and when the heroes were replaced. Overall, this prelude was helpful, but readers still need to read all the related tie-ins to get a fuller picture. Recommended.

[Holden Attradies · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really good book to read with/alongside the Secret Invasion TPB, although I'm guessing most of these stories were in their respective series Secret Invasion tie ins.

Except for the first story (a re-print of the original Fantastic Four appearance of the skrulls, which felt really out of place here) the stories flowed together really well. So well in fact I can't imagine making enjoying them on their own as part of their own series, but I suppose that's why I'm a book/TPB reader of comics and not a monthly reader.

As for the art, it was all really good except Leinil Yu's stuff. It's not that his stuff is bad, I mean it's way better than I could do. But the excessive and dark lines make everything look like it was his sketches not the finished work, or worse makes everyone look wrinkly and saggy, and makes everything come off as very dark and sinister. It doesn't feel very much like Superhero art, it feels more like it would fit better in a horror setting or with heroes like Batman or Daredevil who are very much creatures of the night.

[Katy · Rating 4 out of 5]

So there was a lady Ultron, and the New Avengers killed the leader of the Hand, Elektra. When she died, her body turned into a Skrull, signalling the beginning of an invasion from the shape-shifting aliens. Infiltration apparently sets up Secret Invasion? Which is the next big arc after Civil War, which I finished just before the Avengers movie came out this May.

The last issue of this (Secret Invasion Saga) is SUPER helpful at setting up the backstory to the Skrull invasion. All my Skrull knowledge comes from the couple of Young Avengers stories about Hulking, so it was great to get the bigger picture and a quick recap. I also liked getting the back story on Ms Marvel, because I'm TOTALLY picking up her new title when it comes out.

So, to recap: after Elektra's corpse goes all Skrully, everyone loses their shit realising that the Skrull could be impersonating anyone. The Illuminati break up, realising they don't want to be in a super secret boy band together can't trust each other.

[Fizzgig76 · Rating 2 out of 5]

Reprints Fantastic Four #2, New Avengers: Illuminati #1 and #5, New Avengers #31-32 and #38-39, Mighty Avengers #7, and Avengers: The Initiative Annual #1. The Fantastic Four encounter the Skrulls for the first time, and through encounters with the Illuminati, the Skrulls stage their invasion. This is Marvel's attempt to make sense of the mess of Secret Invasion. All said, this is probably better than the series which, like this collection, is a jumble of stories that don't seem to quite match up and feel like the reader is only getting part of the story. This collection is a great example of the bigger question if the big publishing companies (Marvel & DC) are writing for the comic book reader or the trade paperback reader. For a comic book reader to undertand the storyline, they would have to buy a hundred comics but Marvel apparantly thinks that the whole thing can be wittled down to these issues, hence wasting the money of the their clients.

[Victor · Rating 4 out of 5]

I specifically picked up this book to get a feel for the background of this event and I will say that this comic does a really good job of setting up the Secret Invasion. It includes several issues of previous comics that help the uninformed get an idea of what the event is about.

For the most part, the issues chosen do a great job of setting the stage for the crossover and give meaningful detail about what is to come. I will say though that the first issue included was one of the first Fantastic Four comics featuring the Skrulls from 1962, and that particular issue was very corny since it was so dated. There were some parts though where the story was very intense and valuable to the event that I would highly recommend this to anyone interested. This comic really delivers in setting the stage and overall was very enjoyable. Definitely a great read to set up the Secret Invasion.

- V.

[Richard · Rating 3 out of 5]

Secret Invasion: The Infiltration is a collection of various comics that begins Marvel's BIG event after the Civil War story arc. This collection actually starts with the classic Fantastic Four #2 as they first meet The Skulls, a shape shifting alien race. The rest of the TPB is of recent events that include New Avengers and Illuminati as the setting for the Skrulls plan to conquer Earth. Why does The Skrull want to conquer Earth? What is their plan? MINOR SPOILER...Who can be trusted is the main theme of this TPB especially after one character is killed and is revealed as a Skrull.

Even though I though the art was a bit uneven I enjoyed this first TPB and look forward to see where this storyline goes.

[Brad · Rating 3 out of 5]

It'd be nice if this origin story for Secret Invasion could have curated by one of Marvel's writers. As is, it included the first Skrull story from the sixties, then some of Brian Michael Bendis' recent Avengers stories that re-introduce the Skrulls to Earth. Anyone reading Bendis' work, which is good on its own, doesn't need to get this book, since the early Skrull story, which even references a planned invasion and ends with the shape-shifters turned into cows, is a pretty well-known story.

[Jose Monarrez · Rating 3 out of 5]

Realmente dejando de lado dos o tres primicias, es una introducción demasiado inconexa, por lo que deja mucho que desear, esperamos que tenga un mejor desarrollo en la invasión en forma, eso si, te da una introducción solida a los skrulls, lo cual te ayuda a comprender como y por que son considerados una amenaza fuerte para la raza humana.

Creo que lo mas interesante es que da escenario para una union entre las sagas galácticas del universo marvel (Drax y guardianes de la galaxia, los estoy viendo) y el universo terrestre del universo de marvel.

[Todd · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this out of order, so sue me. The Fantastic Four issue is a nice addition but as usual when included in collections like these, it seems a bit out of place. Stan Lee's writing is not the worst but not that great.

The issues of New Avengers and the Illuminati really get you ready for Secret Invasion. The Mighty Avengers issue is nice but not absolutely necessary.

[Moe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good story and art but seriously the Skrull Empire has infiltrated the world's governments, The Avengers, S.H.I.E.L.D., HYDRA, and every level of human society and they don't know that Luke Cage doesn't look a reject from a 1970's "Blacksploitation" action movie anymore?

[Reanne · Rating 1 out of 5]

Ugh, superhero comics have gotten so bleak and cynical, with everyone dying or splitting up or turning on each other. And so much political stuff that's way too close to reality. I hated the whole Civil War thing and this is just more of the same. When will comics be fun again?

[Sylvester · Rating 3 out of 5]

The corpse of a skrull posing as Elektra sparked a panic among the superheroes. More spies were discovered as the story progressed. Some of the stories were quite good while others were completely unnecessary such as Avengers: The Initiative Annual #1

[Gary Lee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great Marvel Readthrough, pt 87

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

There were a lot of issues that were already included in other collections, so it seemed a bit redundant at times.

[Sabrina · Rating 4 out of 5]

[Joe · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very good Marvel Comics work.
I want to read it all, right now.

[Rolands Kalniņš · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good read, that establishes the Secret invasion storyline

[Jacob · Rating 3 out of 5]

As interesting as it is too see all this in once place, it's still just a bunch of reprints