Theory Thursday! December 05, 2019

TLDR: The second Captain Marvel film will partially adapt the concept of the Secret Invasion (setting it up for future films like the HYDRA twist in TWS) while being mostly Earth-based and focusing on her rivalry with Rogue. This plot-line is mainly inspired by some basic ideas that u/ThisIsNotMelTorme previously posted a few weeks ago.


In the first act, Carol joins forces with Talos (still impersonating Fury to everyone else) when a cell of his Skrulls betray him and try to take over the Earth’s governments. For this mission, Carol is partnered up with Rogue, a young mutant with the ability to absorb people’s memories and consciousness by touching them. Carol attempts to mentor Rogue, but while they work together fine there is still a notable awkwardness between them, especially on Rogue’s end.

They track the Skrulls to an old SHIELD facility and the battle results in a large explosion. When Carol manages to fly Rogue to safety, it is revealed that Rogue is working with these Skrulls and touches Carol to knock her unconscious. At the insistence of the agent helping them on the mission, who is also working with the Skrulls, Rogue keeps holding Carol until she absorbs her abilities of strength and flight, getting the white streak in her hair before the agent kicks Carol’s body into the explosion, seemingly killing her.

This agent is revealed to be Rogue’s mother Raven Darkholme, the shapeshifting mutant known as Mystique. Unlike the Fox films’ more heroic portrayal, Raven is presented as a cold and callous assassin, caring more about her daughter’s new powers as well as constantly avoiding any physical contact whatsoever with her. Rogue is torn apart with guilt about what she did to Carol, but Raven is shown manipulating and gaslighting her similar to Yon-Rogg, constantly causing Rogue to cower in fear of her mother despite being more powerful. Raven resumes her disguise and reports back to Talos, claiming that Carol died saving Rogue’s life but passed on her powers for Rogue to succeed her as Captain Marvel. Talos is clearly not convinced, and contacts the Rambeau family for help.

In the second act, Monica finds Carol’s body and takes her to her home where an older Maria still lives. Instead of being in a coma, Carol is conscious but her powers are now notably weakened, and they don’t go back to their original levels at the end of the film. Much like Thor when he lost Mjolnir, she falls into a deep depression and starts to drink heavily until Maria talks her out of it (though her drinking problem is not fully resolved until a later film). She spends two weeks retraining herself with Monica’s help, and they eventually learn that Rogue will be unveiled as Carol’s replacement at the United Nations, with Raven and the rogue Skrulls impersonating many of the foreign representatives.

In the third act, Carol goes with Monica to stop Raven’s plan, enlisting help from the real Fury (who nonchalantly returns to Earth after his vacation) Goose, Talos and Kamala Khan (who is at the UN summit to meet Rogue and pay respects to Carol). They expose the zealot Skrulls and Raven tries to escape in a quinjet during the ensuing panic. Rogue fights Carol to keep her away from Raven, but Carol manages to tries to get through to her by relating Raven’s abuse of Rogue to her own mistreatment by the Kree, eventually culminating in her hugging Rogue to show compassion and care that Raven never would.

Carol flies up to catch Raven’s quinjet, and Rogue eventually catches up to dismantle the engine and causes the jet to crash-land. On the ground, Raven is infuriated and tries to intimidate Rogue again, but Rogue finally stands up to her mother and easily overpowers her. She is about to kill Raven when Carol stops her, telling Rogue that she has nothing to prove to her mother and shouldn’t become the killer Raven wants her to be. Rogue relents and Raven is taken into custody.

Carol retakes the mantle of Captain Marvel and Rogue leaves on her own despite Carol’s offer to train and support her. The film ends with Carol and Talos debriefing Fury about the rogue Skrulls that are still on Earth, as all three acknowledge that finding them is going to be a lot more difficult.

In the mid-credits scene, Talos inspects the ship Fury was commanding at the end of Far From Home. He learns that near the end of the ship’s travels they were able to find and rescue the Kirby-61, a spaceship belonging to the Baxter Corporation that had disappeared on the day of the Snap, along with the four crew members inside of it.

In the post-credits scene, Rogue is sitting in a bar alone when she is approached by an African woman with white hair. The woman introduces herself as Ororo Munroe, and offers to take Rogue to a safe place to better control her powers and unlock her true potential.

/r/marvelstudios Thread