"G'iah, we're a people without a planet. We depend on the goodwill of our hosts. We just have to keep showing them who we are. We just keep contributing, show them our hearts. They will see us."
Talos was the former General of the Skrull Council who collaborated with Mar-Vell in order to save his fellow Skrull refugees from the Kree Empire. In 1995, as the Kree-Skrull War progressed, Talos managed to extract information about the Light-Speed Engine from Carol Danvers and arrived on Earth to retrieve it, where he shapeshifted into S.H.I.E.L.D. Director R. Keller and met Nick Fury. Talos helped Danvers realize that the Kree had manipulated her and teamed up with her, along with Fury and Maria Rambeau, to fend off an attack from the Kree Starforce. Talos and the Skrulls then left Earth to find another planet to live on. In 1997, Talos, his wife Soren and their daughter G'iah returned to Earth after failing to find a new home. Bringing a handful of Skrulls with him, Talos led them for decades as they impersonated humans to perform spy work and gather intel in order to further Fury's career in exchange for Fury promising to find them a new planet to live on.
In 2018, Talos and his family survived the Snap, although Fury perished. When Fury chose to abandon Earth and relocate to space after being resurrected five years later in the Blip, Talos sent a signal to all remaining Skrulls to immigrate to Earth. Months later, Talos and Soren were asked by Fury to impersonate himself and Maria Hill respectively in order to deliver E.D.I.T.H. to Peter Parker. In doing so, Talos took command of Fury's tactical team and came into conflict with the rising global threat of the Elementals, working alongside Quentin Beck and Spider-Man before realizing Beck's fraudulence.
Talos, who sought to find a solution so that humans and Skrulls could co-exist in peace, was exiled from the Skrull Council and replaced by the radicalized Gravik, who killed Soren and recruited Talos' daughter G'iah to begin a secret invasion of Earth. Calling Fury to return from S.A.B.E.R., Talos joined forces with him to stop Gravik and the Skrull Resistance from taking over Earth as their new home. However, Talos was murdered by Gravik while protecting President James Ritson during an ambush.
"Your people are terrorists. They kill innocents. I saw the ruins on Torfa." "Ruins that the Accusers are responsible for! My people lived as refugees on Torfa. Homeless, ever since we resisted Kree rule and they destroyed our planet. And the handful of us left will be slaughtered next unless you help me finish what Mar-Vell started."
A General for what was once the Skrulls' military, Talos had been leading the losing side of the Kree-Skrull War ever since the destruction of their home planet Skrullos at the hands of the Kree Empire and the Accusers. By 1989, Talos brokered an alliance with the rogue Kree scientist Mar-Vell, who offered Talos and the surviving Skrulls refuge on her spacecraft in the orbit of Planet C-53, while she would engineer a Light-Speed Engine to allow the Skrulls to escape Kree opposition.
Unfortunately, Mar-Vell's assassination executed by Yon-Rogg put an indefinite hiatus into her research and set back the Skrulls' opposition in the war. By 1995, a remnant of the Skrulls led by Talos had sought refuge on Torfa as fugitives from the Kree Empire.[2]
The Skrulls, led by Talos, organized an ambush in Torfa with the objective of capturing Vers. On Torfa, Talos successfully kidnapped Soh-Larr to find the coordinates for Mar-Vell's Laboratory, which contained the Tesseract.
They lured Starforce members into the planet by impersonating Soh-Larr and using a code that only he would have known. The Starforce operatives quickly realized that Torfans were disguised Skrulls, led by Talos. As most of the Skrulls were made quick work of by the Starforce, 'Soh-Larr' lured Vers to him, and exclaimed his verification code to prove that he wasn't a Skrull. Despite this, Talos revealed himself and abducted her to the Skrull flagship.[2]
The Skrulls hooked Vers to a Fracking Pod, allowing them to visualize scenes of her memories, from where they were able to uncover the alias that Mar-Vell used in Planet C-53. Once Vers got back her consciousness, she escaped from the Fracking Pod and promptly started attacking every single Skrull on site. Talos tried to stall her on her way to the ship's escape pods, though his efforts were futile.[2]
The four pods carrying Talos, Norex, and twoother Skrulls crash-landed in the Pacific Ocean, on the coast of California, and later emerged at a beach during a sun-sprawling morning in Los Angeles. While familiarizing themselves with their surroundings, Talos gave orders to the three Skrulls under his command to locate Vers. To blend in with the rest of the beach, Talos and the Skrulls simmed several human surfers.[2]
"If she can tell us why these lizards are here... maybe she can tell us how to kick 'em to the curb." "Good. Do it alone, though. You can't trust anyone."
During the Chase of the Skrulls, which resulted in the death of his subordinate at the hands of Nick Fury, Talos confronted and assumed the guise of R. Keller, in order to gain the trust of his situational enemies.
Talos arrived at the autopsy of the deceased Skrull alongside Fury and the Medical Examiner, pretending to be as confused over the strange alien as Fury was to avoid any suspicion. Still motivated to capture Vers, he instructed Fury to track her down and keep him updated, before sending him off. Once he was alone, Talos began mourning the death of his fellow Skrull and vowed to complete their mission, before leaving as well.[2]
Later, Talos was contacted by Nick Fury via his pager, who told him that Vers was with him at the Joint Dark Energy Mission Facility in Nevada, where she was attempting to find some more information regarding Mar-Vell. Talos informed Fury that he and several S.H.I.E.L.D. agents were coming to apprehend the threat. Arriving at the facility, Fury became suspicious that his superior was a Skrull impersonator when Talos referred to Fury by his first name when they boarded an elevator to capture Vers.
During the elevator ride down, Fury attempted to test "Keller" to confirm his suspicions by asking him if he remembered a strategy during a fictitious mission that he supposedly did with the real R. Keller in Havana.
Talos, unable to determine if the mission was real or not since Skrulls can only remember recent memories from the people they replicate, said he remembered the fake mission, confirming Fury's suspicion. Talos soon realized that his cover was blown and attempted to disarm and kill Fury, only to be stunned by Vers with a photon blast. While Talos was incapacitated, Fury and Vers escaped to the facility's hangar. After Talos sent several S.H.I.E.L.D. agents after the fugitives, the agents opened fire when the Quadjet became airborne and fled the facility.
Frustrated by losing Vers and Fury, Talos took a moment, when he was interrupted by an agent who informed him about their process of locating the Quadjet, which Talos was confused on how they weren't able to do it quicker. He was then handed a file from Whitcher on a crash that occurred six years ago that matched Vers' memories. Talos then asked if there was a record of the crash, which Whitcher informed him of a Black box that they had, which Talos later instructed Norex to retrieve. Talos then looked at the files and discovered Maria Rambeau and her address, leading him to head to the location.[2]
Talos and Norex tracked Vers to the Rambeau Residence, after she found out the truth about her real origins, about her being from Earth and previous Air Force pilot working with Mar-Vell. At first Carol, Maria and Fury believed him to be there for evil intentions. Talos was able to convince them that he was there to negotiate a peaceful deal, and everybody calmed down.
Once the negotiation is successful, restoring Carol Danvers' memories of her crash, Talos alongside Maria Rambeau and Nick Fury began to find Mar-Vell's hidden Laboratory ship at space nearby Earth, while Norex remained on Earth as a decoy to lure the Starforce, by disguising as Danvers. With the distraction a success, at cost of Norex's life, Talos and his allies finally arrived at Mar-Vell's hidden lab ship, reuniting with his family and the fellow surviving Skrulls hidden by Mar-Vell once more.[2]
Yon-Rogg learned of the laboratory in orbit and attacked it alongside the rest of the Starforce, capturing Talos and his people, alongside Nick Fury, Maria Rambeau and Goose who were put in other cells, while Carol Danvers was sent to commune with the Supreme Intelligence. During a mental battle with the Supreme Intelligence, Danvers managed to break free of its control and awaken her true power which caused all electrical devices aboard the laboratory to overload, including the cells Talos and his people were kept in, freeing them. Talos then managed to dispose of and disguise himself as one of the Kree soldiers.
Talos disguised as a Kree soldier
While disguised as a Kree soldier, Talos and his people reunited with Fury, Rambeau, and Goose. Talos was shot and injured by Yon-Rogg, but he managed to escape Mar-Vell's lab with his allies in a Quadjet. Minn-Erva attempted to shoot down their Quadjet, but Rambeau killed her in air combat, saving Talos and his people on board the Quadjet. Meanwhile, the Kree army finally retreated because of Danvers' undefeatable power.[2]
Finding a New Home[]
Talos awaits to find a new home with his family
"It's been a rough journey. We went looking for a home, found nothing but violence. And hate."
Once the battle was over, Talos and his family sought temporary refuge at the Rambeau Residence, joining them for dinner. Afterwards, Captain Marvel left to search the galaxy for a habitable planet for the Skrulls to live. Using the Light-Speed Engine, Talos and his family followed suit.[2] However, during their adventures to find a suitable home planet, the Skrulls found nothing but violence and hate from other species.[5]
"All of us have lost someone. Or everyone. And our entire species is scattered across the galaxy, but for those of you who braved the journey here to Earth, you did so for one reason. This man. This man that I trust. You know I don't use that word lightly."
Talos and Nick Fury made an agreement that the Skrulls would live on Earth in exchange for serving as a spy network for Fury, until they could find the Skrulls a more permanent home. They organized a meeting, which Talos started by mentioning the group's shared loss during the Kree-Skrull War. He introduced Fury, who explained the deal they had made. Talos smiled as all the Skrulls agreed to help Fury, and Fury promised that he would keep his word.[5]
Working for Nick Fury[]
"You didn't start ascending the ranks until me and nineteen of my people signed on as your invisible spy network. You know, we fed you more dirt and intel than you could've uncovered on your own in a lifetime, so please. I mean, every time you were promoted inside S.H.I.E.L.D., we did that. Every terror attack you prevented, we did that. Every enemy you sabotaged and ally you leveraged with dirt no one else in the world had access to, we did that."
Throughout the years, Talos and the Skrulls continued work as a spy network. He received several promotions, stopped multiple terrorists attacks, and made allies using information provided to him by the Skrulls. This continued as Fury was promoted to director of S.H.I.E.L.D., which Talos was happy to help with despite Fury never thanking the Skrulls.[6]
Snap and Blip[]
"What happens when the host disappears, huh? 'Cause you were gone! And I didn't think you were coming back, I really didn't. And even when you did come back, there was no talking to you about anything real. Your boots barely hit Earth. And, 'Oh, it's too heavy here, man. I gotta go up to my space station.' You've been up there for years!"
Nick Fury was killed in the Snap,[8] leaving Talos and the Skrulls alone. Talos mourned his friend and did not believe that Fury would be returning.[5] However, five years later, the Avengersresurrected all of the victims of the Snap, including Fury.[9] Even though Talos wanted to talk to Fury about recent developments and what was happening on Earth, Fury started to have a crisis of faith and went to work for S.A.B.E.R. on their space station shortly after his resurrection. Wanting to rescue his people from being hunted, Talos sent out a call to all of the Skrulls which had fled the destruction of Skrullos. Although multiple Skrulls had gone to Emperor Dro'ge's colony and stayed there, all of the rest of them answered and started living on Earth.[5]
Suddenly, Quentin Beck appeared at the scene and successfully defeated Sandman, to Talos' and Soren's surprise. Beck informed Talos and Soren that the Elementals were from another Earth and that he had come from the same Earth and following them to their Earth to take them down. Together with Beck, Talos and Soren traveled to Morocco where they seemingly defeated Cyclone. Realizing that they needed help in dealing with the Elemental Attacks, Talos decided to enlist the aid of the Avengers. However, as he was unaware of who or where the remaining Avengers were, Talos decided to recruit Spider-Man, the only Avenger whose identity and whereabouts he was aware of.[4]
Talos called Peter Parker and Happy Hogan multiple times but was unsuccessful, as Parker did not wish to speak with "Nick Fury." As a result, Talos awaited him in his room at the Hotel DeMatteis. When Parker and Ned Leeds arrived in the room, Talos tranquilized Leeds before noting that he had been fed up with Parker ghosting his calls. Talos then explained that it was nice to finally meet him as he had sarcastically noted that he had seen Parker at Tony Stark's funeral.
He then informed Parker about the situation about a mysterious Cyclone appearing at Morocco. As he kept on talking, he was repeatedly interrupted by Parker's tour group members at the door. Furious, Talos threatened Parker by saying if another person knocked on that door that they were going to attend another funeral. They then relocated to his hideout in Venice. On the way, Talos handed Parker the glasses that Tony Stark was going to give him before his death.
When they arrived at the base, Talos introduced Parker to Soren, who was impersonating Maria Hill, Quentin Beck and Dimitri Smerdyakov, who explained the situation. Talos told Parker that Beck was from a different world. Once Talos told Parker that he was going with him and his class to Prague, Parker told him that this all seemed too difficult to handle for just a 'friendly neighborhood Spider-Man.'
As Talos tried to justify his duty by him being in space, Parker noted that he was only there on accident. When Parker asked why Talos didn't seek the help of Thor, Doctor Strange, and Captain Marvel, Talos told him that Thor was off-world, Strange was unavailable and told him to not mention Captain Marvel's name.
He then requested Parker to help in their mission to destroy the Elementals, with Molten Man projected to appear in Prague. Talos agreed when Parker stated that he wanted to stay in the trip to please his aunt and protect his identity so he could not be seen or else the whole world will find out who he really is.
Parker then thanked Talos for the offer on the mission before he was escorted back to his hotel by Smerdyakov. Since Parker wanted to continue his vacation, Talos hijacked the travel itinerary of his European tour to change the Paris stop to Prague to "respect" Parker's wishes of staying on his vacation while ensuring the mission succeeds.[4]
"You got gifts, Parker. But you didn't want to be here. I'd love to have you in Berlin, but you've got to decide whether you're going to step up or not. Stark chose you. He made you an Avenger. I need that. The world needs that. Maybe Stark was wrong. The choice is yours."
Talos rerouted Peter Parker's travel group to a rest stop in Austria where the Seamstress would deliver Parker stealth Spider-Man Suit. However, he later learned the incident of Parker's negligence calling for an inadvertent drone strike on his tour bus endangering his friends. The night of Parker's arrival in Prague, he yelled at him to focus on planning the mission out.
When Mysterio justified the distraction, Talos noted that Parker had obstacles and had to completely remove them. When Talos asked Parker about the plan, he told the group that he will be at the cathedral to keep an eye on the Fire Elemental, contact the crew, and fight it along with Mysterio, much to Beck correction on the name. Once Parker left, Quentin Beck followed momentarily. Talos then berated Parker for his negligence in the endangering his friends. Feeling bad for yelling at Parker, Talos sent Mysterio to comfort him.
As Parker and his class were seating in the State Opera, Talos called Parker through the latter's earpiece to determine if he was in position. As Parker was attempting to talk his way out of the opera, Talos urged him to move. Once Parker was set in the predicted coordinates of the Molten Man that arose from the ground and began the assault.
During the battle where Beck and Parker were struggling to suppress the creature, Talos and Soren in their respective forms raced with their assault teams to reach the duo. They arrived at the climax of the battle, where just as the Molten Man was gaining too much mass, Beck seemingly sacrificed himself to destroy it and emerged victoriously.
Maintaining his persona, Talos approached Beck to propose a new team and to rendezvous in Berlin for talks. While Beck agrees candidly, he approached Parker to tell him that he wants him in Berlin as well. Talos then told Parker that he has gifts and he's got to decide if he's going to step up, but while the young hero was gifted, he needed to find focus in how he used himself.
Talos further noted that Tony Stark chose him and made him a member of the Avengers. Talos noted that he needed an Avenger and the world as well but wasn't sure if Spider-Man was the one to be that. Talos then told Parker that Stark might be wrong before departing with his team for clean-up and mission report activity, while Beck invited Parker to a pub.[4]
"It's all the Elementals! They're somehow merged into something else! Something more powerful! It's drawing energy from the Earth's core!" "See, now that's some bullshit."
An unexpected resurgence of Elemental activity made Talos call in Mysterio to scout the city of London to report what had happened. After Beck departed, Talos received a call from Happy Hogan with a coded message, alerting him of Beck's deception. As the Elemental Fusion attacked Tower Bridge, Beck's report of the matter finally convinced Talos that Beck was lying.
Readying for a potential attempt on his life, Talos sent Soren to the top of the roof of the office building in which they were supervising the battle from with a rocket launcher. When Spider-Man exposed the illusion of the drones, including the cloaked drone sent to assassinate Talos, he signaled to Soren, who replied by firing at the drone and destroying it with the rocket launcher.
Following Spider-Man emerging victorious after a one-on-one confrontation with Mysterio, Talos wanted a debrief with him, which was denied by Happy Hogan, stating that Parker wanted to enjoy what was left of his vacation. Talos chuckled at the response before demanding that Hogan ensure a debrief or there would be consequences.[4]
"Come off it, how was I supposed to know that the whole thing was fake? I mean, that was all very, very convincing. The performances, the illusion, that costume, the craftsmanship in that. I mean, this is just embarrassing for a shapeshifter."
Following the Battle of London, Talos attempted to brush off Mysterio's machinations as being fine, citing that Spider-Man had handled it, although he stated that, as a shapeshifter, it was embarrassing to have been tricked by illusions and holograms. Regardless, Soren compelled him to report the events to Nick Fury.
Talos then called Fury and confirmed that he had delivered Tony Stark's E.D.I.T.H.glasses to Peter Parker, but was hesitant to go into full detail about the events that had transpired. Talos notified Fury that everything had gotten out of control and that people kept asking him about the Avengers, which he was unable to adequately answer, and thus requested that Fury return. While Talos was delivering the long message, Fury disconnected the call.[4]
"Angry that our people still don't have a home. Many of them are upset. I got kicked off the Council, pushed into exile. But, Gravik... Gravik, mate, he took your abandonment that much harder."
In the time following the Blip, Talos noticed a change in Nick Fury's behavior, which was marked by Fury leaving Earth to work on S.A.B.E.R. Gravik was deeply upset by this abandonment as he thought Fury and Danvers didn't deliver their promise to bring the Skrulls hiding on Earth to a new home, and he thought Talos was weak and cowardly as Talos only wanted humans and Skrulls to coexist on Earth. As a result, Gravik gained a position on the Skrull Council and pushed Talos off of the Council, forcing him into exile and as a result, Talos lost the position of General.[3] Gravik offered Talos the chance to work together, but Talos turned it down to continue following Fury.[6] He contacted Maria Hill, and the two started working together to stop Gravik.[3]
Losing His Family[]
Talos worked with Maria Hill, G'iah and Soren to oppose the Skrull Resistance, although G'iah became frustrated that the Skrulls still did not have a home, prompting her to defect to Gravik's side of the invasion. Gravik later killed Soren, whose last words were to tell Talos to find G'iah.[3]
Talos learned that a Skrull had impersonated Everett Ross and was getting information from Donald Prescod, so he impersonated a Russian man and started following the Skrull after the meeting. The Skrull figured out that he was followed and called for an extraction, which Maria Hill was prepared to provice. Talos chased the Skrull to a rooftop, where he tried to jump between buildings but fell to the ground. Talos rushed to ground level and found Hill aiming her gun at him, but he revealed himself, explaining to Hill that he was chasing the Skrull, who was working with Gravik.[3]
"We've been helping you for all these years to ensure that you kept your promise. But after the Blip, you were different. And then you disappeared. Carol Danvers disappeared. And so did G'iah."
Talos pleaded with Maria Hill to contact Nick Fury and ask him to return to Earth. When Fury returned, he met Talos on the roof of his apartment building and discussed the Santo Millika that Talos was caring for. Fury extended his condolences about Soren's death, and Talos said that Soren was worried that Fury would only return to Earth in an emergency.
Fury asked about Gravik, but Talos wanted to check in on Fury, noting that he was different since the Blip. Talos told Fury that G'iah had defected to Gravik's side and that he was exiled from the Skrull Council. He and Fury went downstairs to discuss Gravik's plans to start a war between Russia and the United States of America. Talos warned that the war would end humanity, frustrating Fury, who decided to go for a walk despite Talos' warning.[3]
The next morning, Talos, Maria Hill and Nick Fury spied on a meeting between Sonya Falsworth and Derrik Weatherby, during which Falsworth expressed her suspicion that Vasily Poprishchin was making the bomb Gravik planned on using. Fury made fun of Talos' appearance, and they planned to incapacitate Falsworth's MI6 operatives and visit Poprishchin, despite Talos' hesitance to hurt people.
Talos impersonated an MI6 agent and incapacitated a second, telling Fury that they were clear to enter the building. Talos broke open a lock for Fury and they broke into the building. They confronted Poprishchin and demanded answers. Poprishchin said he had to meet with his wife, but Talos revealed that they already knew Poprishchin was divorced. Poprishchin lied about knowing what dirty bombs were, so Talos attacked Poprishchin, demanding to know where the bombs were. However, Poprishchin used enhanced strength to stop himself from getting hurt, revealing that the real Poprishchin had been replaced by a Skrull.
The two fought as "Poprishchin" realized Talos' identity, and Talos told Fury that he could handle the fight and not to shoot. Fury kept his gun aimed, but Talos continued fighting and again told Fury not to fire. Talos got "Poprishchin" into a chokehold and demanded to know where the bombs were, but Poprishchin called Talos a traitor and broke free. Fury shot and killed "Poprishchin," upsetting Talos, who refused Fury's help getting up and reminded Fury that he told him not to shoot.
Talos went underground and found Hill on the ground, running after her attacker, who he discovered to be G'iah. Talos tried to convince G'iah to hand the bombs over, revealing to her that Soren had been killed by Gravik. He attempted to ask for the bombs, but G'iah pushed him away and left.[3]
"Your mother died while you were working for her killer. So do not take me down that road, G'iah. You have one chance to save yourself. And I think you know that. I think that's why you're here." "The attack is planned for tomorrow. Unity Day. There are three bombs. And Gravik knows you'll be there."
Talos arranged a meeting with G'iah, so he disguised himself as a taxi driver and took her to a remote location where they could talk. Talos thanked G'iah for coming, reiterating that Gravik killed Soren and telling G'iah that she had one chance to save herself. G'iah told Talos that the Skrull Resistance would be attacking the next day using three bombs. Talos said that Soren would be proud of her for meeting with him, and G'iah told him that she would mark each bag with infrared spray so they could see it. Talos then told Nick Fury and Maria Hill about G'iah's help.[3]
The next day, Nick Fury, Maria Hill, and Talos tracked G'iah's backpacks containing the bombs. Although they missed the moment when G'iah passed the backpacks off, Fury was able to find them. Talos went after Brogan, but lost him in the crowd with Hill. Talos chased the Skrull and found the bag to be empty while Gravik set off the real bomb. Hill was killed by Gravik during the chaos,[3] and Talos saw Fury crying over her body. He disguised himself and pulled Fury away, forcing him into the back of the car. Talos watched Brogan get arrested by Russian police before returning to his default form and driving away.[5]
"My hope is that with your help... Skrulls and humans can coexist here on Earth." "Humans can't coexist with each other, Talos! You've been here long enough to know that!"
Talos and Nick Fury took a train to Warsaw, when they were approached by Russian forces. Talos disguised himself as a woman and opened the door while Fury hid. The officer said that they were looking for Fury, but Talos countered that they would be more likely to encounter aliens than a black American man taking the train from Moscow to Warsaw. The soldiers left Talos alone, allowing him to change back to his default form and tell Fury they were clear. Fury asked about G'iah, but Talos said that he had not heard from her.
Fury told Talos about a game he and his mother played going up called Tell Me Something I Don't Know. He suggested they play, and Fury asked Talos to tell him something about the destruction of Skrullos. Talos explained that when they could no longer hold of the Kree, the Skrulls fled. Fury asked about the Skrulls who fled, prompting Talos to reveal that he had summoned all of them and did not tell Fury. Fury got upset that Talos lied to him, but Talos scolded him for using the Skrulls as his spy network and disappearing twice. Fury noted that Talos could have contacted him during his second disappearance, but chose not to, guessing that it was because Talos did not want Fury to know about the new Skrulls. Talos expressed his hope that Skrulls could coexist with humans on Earth, but Fury countered that humans could not even coexist with each other. The train came to a stop, so he told Talos to leave. Talos disguised himself again and left the train car.[5]
"You think I'll let you continue this war under the cover of anonymity, you're very much mistaken. I'm gonna tell every army on Earth who it is that's attacking them. You'll lose the element of surprise. You and your rebels will be put down like the rabid dogs you are."
Talos received a call from the Skrull impersonating Shirley Sagar, who told him that Gravik had taken control of the Skrull Council, offering help. Talos asked "Sagar" to set up a meeting between him and Gravik. "Sagar" attempted to tell Talos that Gravik had changed and would kill Talos, but Talos said that he had also changed since Soren's death. "Sagar" told Talos that if he could not keep himself composed, he would not survive, but Talos insisted that she set up the meeting and to say it was about G'iah before hanging up.[5]
Talos and Gravik met at the National Portrait Gallery, where Gravik used the painting Statesmen of World War I to highlight the difference between statesmen and soldiers, claiming that statesmen posed for pictures during the war while soldiers actually fought it. Talos noted that Gravik was willing to let others die for his cause, sarcastically calling him brave. The two then sat down for the parley, and Talos asked Gravik to stop killing humans. Gravik suggested that he should kill Talos, so Talos agreed to an honor meeting. However, Gravik suggested that it would not be fair due to the new imbalance of power between them. Gravik mocked Talos regarding G'iah's presence on his side of the fight, so Talos attacked him. At that moment, everyone in the room stood up and revealed themselves to be Skrulls, forcing Talos to stand down.
Talos said that the Skrulls would be brought to extinction due to Gravik, who replied that humans only understood murder. Talos countered that humans are most formidable when threatened, threatening to reveal the existence of Skrulls to the public. Talos explained that the Skrulls who were not on Gravik's side would show humanity difference between Talos and Gravik. Gravik made another comment about G'iah, prompting Talos to take his knife and stab it into Gravik's hand and threaten him before walking away. As Talos exited the museum, a man bumped into him and apologized before picking up a cell phone and handing it to him. Talos thanked the man before the two walked away. Talos looked at the information on the phone and realized the man was G'iah, warning him about an upcoming attack on the United Nations.[6]
"Your life got a hell of a lot more charmed once I came into it. And do you know something? I don't even need to hear a bloody thank you from you. It was my pleasure, mate. Least you can do is not rewrite history when the guy who helped write it with you the first time is sitting right next to you."
Talos went to a bar and had breakfast, where he was confronted by Nick Fury. Talos scolded him for coming to ask for help, but Fury claimed not to be, so Talos sarcastically proposed other reasons he could be there. Fury confessed that he had a line on a Skrull which had infiltrated the United States government and was in London, so Talos asked what he could do. Fury claimed to have just told him, but Talos said that they would no longer be operating under the implicit understanding that Talos would readily help and demanded that Fury ask him directly for help, which he did.
The two left together, and Talos told Fury about the upcoming attack. Realizing that the attack was coming from a Britishsubmarine, Fury called Sonya Falsworth, who revealed that Bob Fairbanks was the commander of the submarine. Fury and Talos went to Fairbanks' house, and as they drove through Portsmouth, Talos commented on the relationship between dogs and humans, finding it weird that it was acceptable for humans to pick up dogs' feces. Fury suggested that he had been cleaning Talos' mess, prompting Talos to remind him that Fury got his respect and power because of the Skrulls acting as Fury's spy network, claiming that each of Fury's actions were due to the Skrulls. Fury revealed that they had arrived, yelling at Talos for the way he was speaking. The two then left and prepared to confront Fairbanks.[6]
Talos disguised himself as Bob Fairbanks and passed his guards, making the excuse that he needed to avoid his wife. However, he was found out by a guard who was with Fairbanks leaving, so he reverted to R. Keller's body and took out the guard. Nick Fury fought the guards while Talos entered the house and came across the real Fairbanks' son, Zachary.
Talos found "Bob," who overpowered and impersonated Talos, telling Fury to join them. However, "Bob" called Fury by his first name, allowing him to realize that it was not Talos. Fury arrived with Zachary at gunpoint, so "Bob" let Talos go as Fury did the same for Zachary. Fury asked Talos to find something to tie "Bob" up, and Talos responded with sarcasm, prompting Fury to sarcastically thank himself for rescuing Talos on Talos' behalf. "Bob" was tied up, and Zachary was brought out of the room. Talos attempted to give Zachary some water, but Zachary asked if Talos would be killing his "father." Talos said that he simply needed "Bob" to do the right thing and again offered the water, but Zachary refused it.
Talos returned to "Bob Fairbanks," offering protection from Gravik should "Fairbanks" call off the strike. However, "Fairbanks" noted that Talos could not protect himself that night. Fury suggested that Talos shapeshift into "Fairbanks" and order the strike to be canceled, but Talos said that only "Fairbanks" knew the passcode to do so. "Fairbanks" noted that the Skrulls would have stood with him had he agreed to fight with the Skrull Resistance, so Talos told "Fairbanks" to stand with him and give them the code word. Fury got impatient and shot "Fairbanks" in the leg, threatening to kill "Fairbanks" if he did not reveal the password. Talos yelled at Fury and took the gun, so Fury yelled back that they only had minutes to figure out the code.
As it got closer to the time of launch, Talos got stressed. "Fairbanks" starting taunting Talos about G'iah's defection, suggesting that she was the mole within the Skrull Resistance, prompting Talos to shoot and kill him. Talos then called G'iah and asked her to access the real Fairbanks' memories to get the code. G'iah hung up to do so, and Talos waited nervously while she retrieved the password. G'iah called back and told him the password, so Talos told G'iah to run and used Fairbanks' phone to call off the strike. Talos and Fury then watched the computer as UN-1 safely passed the submarine. As they dealt with "Fairbanks'" body, Fury asked why Talos chose not to work with Gravik, so Talos explained that he chose to fight with Fury instead.[6]
"And I believe that I can secure an amnesty for the one million of us to remain." "Don't you want to live in your own skin?" "Of course I do. But we have to deal with reality."
G'iah was shot and killed by Gravik, but healed due to the Extremis abilities she had given herself. G'iah met with Talos and told him what happened, prompting Talos to apologize for getting her into it. G'iah refused the apology, saying that she needed Talos to have a plan for the Skrulls to have a home, adding that Gravik's plan would work. Talos said that once the Skrull Resistance was defeated, he would go to President James Ritson, sharing his belief that he could get permission for them to remain.
G'iah scolded Talos, since the plan would require them to live in disguise, so Talos claimed they had to focus on the reality of the situation. Talos reminded them that they depended on goodwill from their hosts, and claimed that if they kept contributing, humans would see them. G'iah was upset by this, so she called Talos delusional, claiming that it was not who they were or who she had become. She stormed off, and Talos tried calling out for her, but she ignored him.[7]
Talos and Nick Fury went to the hotel where Raava was staying, disguised as James Rhodes. Fury went to Raava's room alone and discretely gave him liquid location tracker, then returned to the car and told Talos what he had done. Talos admired the idea as Raava entered her car, and the two followed the car as it left.
Following Raava, they saw a large explosion in the distance and rushed to see what was happening. As they arrived, they saw Skrulls and United States Secret Service agents fighting at each other, realizing that President James Ritson was attacked. Talos commented on the state of the fight, so Fury noted that it would get worse if Ritson were to die. They armed themselves and joined the fight, rushing to the President's side. Fury realized that he was unconscious, so Talos started punching the reinforced glass on the window. Pagon then shot Talos, who started to revert back to his true form, but kept punching the window. One of the Secret Service aliens realized that Talos was an alien, but Fury got him to stand down and convinced him that Talos was on their side.
Talos successfully broke through the glass, so Fury pulled Ritson out of the vehicle. Talos sat next to the car, bleeding out, as Fury assured him that he would return. Gravik, disguised as a Secret Service agent went to Talos and helped him to his feet. Gravik stopped with Talos in the middle of the fight as Fury saw them, threatening Gravik. Gravik revealed himself and stabbed Talos, killing him.[7]
Legacy[]
Public Reputation[]
Talos' sacrifice is reported on by the news
"In a bizarre twist, President Ritson was rescued from the assault by what eyewitnesses describe as a shapeshifting alien."
Talos' heroic sacrifice was quickly reported on by many broadcasters in the globe, and as a result humans finally learnt of the existence of a shapeshifting alien species hiding on Earth known as Skrulls. The widespread public attention to the failed attack on Ritson's life led many to speculate on the possible involvement of Skrulls in playing a part in the infiltration and ambush of Ritson's convoy.[1]
G'iah's Grief[]
"He died. On a foreign planet. On a foreign road. Nothing will come of it. I ran away from my father because I knew he would lose." "Talos chose the path of struggle, he did not lose."
G'iah struggled with Talos' death and met with Nick Fury. Fury attempted to comfort G'iah, who simply expressed her frustration that Talos died on a foreign planet, adding that nothing would result from his death. However, Fury insisted that since Talos chose to fight for what was right, he did not lose, warning G'iah not to allow her grief to consume her. The two discussed Gravik's experiments and the Harvest, but G'iah interrupted, saying that she needed to bury Talos.
Following Fury's advice, G'iah brought Talos' body to Varra to prepare for a funeral. The pair wrapped his corpse in white cloth surrounded by branches. G'iah was saddened by the fact that her father was once a general and deserved a procession of mourners at his funeral, but Varra explained that Talos did not care about pageantry. G'iah put Soren's ring on Talos' corpse as an offering and Varra helped chant the prayer in Skrulls' native language. G'iah placed the lit fire torch on her father's corpse, wishing Talos to travel well to his beyond.[1]
Personality[]
"You wanna save innocent Skrulls, you'll have to hurt some people." "All right..." "Look, Gravik knows that mercy's your weakness."
Despite appearing to be a fearsome military leader on the surface, Talos was an honorable, kind, and caring leader who wanted the best for the Skrull population and his family, whose safety he put before everything else. He respected diplomacy, often choosing to solve problems through negotiations rather than conflict, as he called out Carol Danvers for being too quick to attack during his visit to the Rambeau Residence. That being said, Talos had an intense hatred towards the Kree and wouldn't hesitate to resort to violence when facing them or those who he thought are their allies, as was seen by how he also attempted to kill Nick Fury when the latter was working with Vers and discovered that he was impersonating R. Keller.
Talos was a compassionate and pragmatic person willing to forgive others and accept his own mistakes, as he decided to seek help from Danvers and Fury upon discovering that they were being misled by the Kree into thinking that the Skrulls were the enemy and wanted to clear the misunderstanding despite knowing that Danvers could eradicate any of his soldiers with ease. Talos was even willing to confront Fury and Danvers in his true form without any shapeshifting as a sign of trust and helped Danvers rediscover her real identity. He also apologized to Fury for their previous encounter. Talos was also willing to forgive othersâ mistakes and give others a second chance, as shown when his daughter G'iah told him that Talos always gave them a last chance after another last chance. However, this should not be mistaken as being weak-willed. Talos deeply loved his family and was particularly sensitive when others threaten his daughter, Gâiah. He would react strongly when others attempt to harass or demean those he love. This was shown when he furiously stabbed Gravik in the palm when the latter threatened to kill G'iah and put her corpse in a bag for Talos. Later, when the Bob Fairbanks Skrull called G'iah a spineless traitor feeding him information and questioned Talosâ ability to keep her loyalty, Talos shot him dead instantly.
Once his trust was earned, Talos was a very loyal ally and respected the wishes of those he worked with; after learning of Fury's preference to only be called "Fury", he used this as a code word to let him know he had disguised himself as one of the Kree attempting to take him and the Skrulls hostage. Talos also felt sympathetic towards Danvers after learning that she had been manipulated by the Kree into becoming their weapon, he did not hold any grudge against her for her previous hostility either. Talos also had a tendency to use humor as a way to defuse tense situations, but due to being unaccustomed to human socialization, he could sometimes come off as awkward when asked about his shapeshifting abilities. Talos was rightly afraid of Flerkens, he often warned Nick Fury to stay away from Goose, which eventually became the ultimate price of his regrets, his left eye along with the rather flippant and hilarious deaths of several Kree soldiers.
Since 1995, Talos and his Skrull network had assisted Fury in his S.H.I.E.L.D. work and allowed Fury to rise through the ranks, thus Talos and Fury maintained a friendship over the years, to the point that Fury allowed Talos to impersonate him in order to investigate the Elementals and track down Spider-Man. During that time, Talos knew Fury's mannerism and history enough that he could convincingly trick everyone around him into thinking that he was the real Fury; however, some aspects of his impersonation were off, most notably Talos' trusting nature made him believe Mysterio's lies rather easily, whereas it is implied that the real Fury would have seen through Beck's deception or been more suspicious of it. Talos was embarrassed for being fooled by Mysterio, being a shapeshifter with extensive experience at deceiving others.
However, Talos' caring and kind traits was thought of as cowardly and weak by some radical Skrulls, who saw Talos' open trust on Fury to deliver their promise (to find a new home for the Skrull refugees on Earth) even many years has passed and his hope of humans coexisting with Skrulls on Earth as being compromising. Due to his trust in Fury, Talos even refused to side with Gravik when the latter invited him to partner together in preparation for the secret invasion, which led many to see Talos as a traitor that sickened them. Talos' willingness to forgive others and his mercy was also seen as weak. This led to malcontent and disillusionment towards Talos' leadership in the Skrull community, which resulted in Talosâ seat in the Skrull Council taken by a much more radical and aggressive individual, Gravik. For a race without a home, Talos sought to allow the Skrulls living on Earth to co-exist with humans by contributing and gaining trust from the human race, so that the Skrulls hiding on Earth are granted hospitality and safety. However, this was seen as fantasy and simply a hopeless and delusional vision even by his daughter, as Fury noted that humans are already at constant conflict and there won't be room for another species; Talos' vision was also disagreed by the radical Skrull Resistance as they see this as Talos' failure to bring their species to a brighter future.
It should be noted that Talosâ seemingly over-optimistic hopes for a peaceful world with humans comes from the fact that Talos was wise enough to able to notice as well as recognize that humans are at their most formidable when they are threatened, therefore advising Gravik not to attempt to go against humans for the safety of the Skrull race. Talos adopts a peaceful approach to coexist with humans but not Gravik's violent ways because he feels that if an all-out war with the humans is initiated, it may instead endanger the Skrull species when the humans feel threatened by Skrulls, but by contributing to humans and earning their trust, the hidden Skrull community on Earth could be better preserved. However, as Nick Fury noted, Talos failed to realize that humans are constantly at war with one another and cannot even live peacefully with one another, and thus would not accept to coexist with another species. Therefore, even when he laid his life to save human President Ritson from Gravik's attack to show his worth to humans in hopes of securing an amnesty for the Skrulls, Ritson on the other hand branded all Skrulls as terrorists and waged war with the remaining Skrulls, making Talos' sacrifice go in vain.
Due to his fall in power, Talos was looked down and disrespected by many other Skrulls, and thus sought to exert authority once again. When he and Fury were interrogating a Poprischchin Skrull and Bob Fairbanks Skrull the Skrull defectors openly expressed their disrespect towards Talos, stating that Talos couldn't even protect himself and was thus unworthy to lead their race, prompting Talos to order Fury to stand down when he and the Poprishchin Skrull fought one on one, and in the case of interrogating "Bob Fairbanks", once again told Fury to leave the room. These acts can be interpreted as Talos' attempt to regain confidence and dignity by winning the enemy. However, when Talos was nearly defeated and Fury had to interfere and shot the Poprishchin Skrull, Talos was angry and saddened as he desperately wanted to regain the respect and trust of his people after the death of his wife and defection of his daughter, but when Fury shot the Skrull, it inadvertently proved Talos' incompetence which further hindered Talos' confidence. Despite his perceived cowardly act to choose a peaceful approach towards humans, all Talos wanted was the best for his people. Without Fury knowing, Talos secretly sent a message to all Skrulls escaping the Kree, letting them arrive and hide at Earth. Furthermore, despite of Gravik's popularity, Talos also still had the support of Skrulls who shared his desire for peace and disgust as Gravik for his crimes against innocent civilians, these supporters including the Skrull Shirley Sagar, who acted as Talos' ally on the Council.
Powers and Abilities[]
Powers[]
"Can you turn into anything you want?" "Well, I have to see it." "Can you all do it?" "Physiologically, yeah, but it takes practice, and dare I say it, talent."
Skrull Physiology: Unlike the many species on Earth, Talos and his people are not carbon-based life and possess a wide variety of superhuman abilities. The most important attribute is the ability to shapeshift.
Superhuman Strength: Talos had considerable levels of superhuman strength and was able to overpower Nick Fury easily and toss him around. In Moscow, he was able to easily rip the chains off of a gate. Talos could stab a knife through Gravikâs palm clean when Gravik angered him by threatening to harm Gâiah. By using his fists, Talos was able to repeated punch the walls of Ritsonâs highly-secured car to rescue the president from Gravik during the attack on Ritson.
Longevity: According to Nick Fury, Talos was 136 years old, to which he replied that he is younger than 40 in human biological years, meaning Skrulls age until at least 300.
Like the rest of his species, Talos had the ability to shapeshift into sentient humanoid beings, perfectly matching their height, voice, unique physical characteristics, and even copying their clothing- by way of Skrull co-morphing apparel. However, he had to visually perceive the person who is going to be imitated, and Talos had admitted that this is more of a skill requiring practice, and perhaps some remarkable talent to use. Talos had used this ability most notably to copy Soh-Larr, R. Keller, Nick Fury and a Kree guard.
Vocal Replication: Talos was able to accurately replicate the voice of whoever he was shapeshifting into as a means to further sell the impersonation. However, he was still able to use his normal voice while mimicking someone else.
Memory Replication: Talos was able to mimic the exact memories of anyone he replicated, allowing him to perfectly imitate the person. However, he could only replicate the person's short-term memory and most recent thoughts, making him unable to use information from years ago but recent memory like the last few days. This was how Nick Fury deduced that he was not R. Keller, as Talos referred to him by his first name "Nick," which Keller never did.
Radiation Immunity: According to Maria Hill, Skrulls are immune to radioactivity.
Talos was highly trained in unarmed combat, capable of fighting expert combatants such as Carol Danvers, Yon-Rogg, and Nick Fury.
Expert Marksman: Talos was an accomplished marksman, capable of using a blaster to takedown three Starforce guards with ease. He also precisely shot Ned Leeds in the neck with a tranquilizer dart. He shot the Bob Fairbanks Skrull precisely in the chest even at point-blank range.
Master Tactician: As the leader of the remaining Skrulls, he orchestrated an ambush against the Kree's most elite squad of warriors, leading to the capture of Vers. Even though she proved to be too strong for the Skrulls to keep in custody and easily escaped, Talos again made good use of the situation by infiltrating S.H.I.E.L.D. and gathering information about her, turning her against the Kree and allying with her; a decision that later pays off greatly, as she single-handedly destroys a large armada of Kree warships and helps the Skrulls find a new home.
Multilingualism: Talos was fluent in Skrulls' native language, English and Russian.
Equipment[]
Weapons[]
Skrull Blaster: Talos carried this as a sidearm, standard to all military personnel of the Skrull race.
The SIG Sauer P226 was the standard pistol issued to S.H.I.E.L.D. personnel in the 1990s. Talos obtained one of these handguns when posing as R. Keller, and tried to use it against Nick Fury, as Fury realized he was a Skrull. However, both of them struggled for the weapon and Fury crashed the car, killing the skrull. Fury managed to easily disarm Talos, but the magazine was ejected in the struggle, so Fury resorted to throw the weapon and try to fight Talos, to no avail due to the skrull's strength.
Smith & Wesson M&P: Talos carried a Smith & Wesson M&P while disguised as Nick Fury, the same weapon that Fury would carry. As he and Soren arrived in Ixtenco, Mexico, posing as Fury and Maria Hill, he pulled out his sidearm when Mysterio appeared, but soon draw his aim and fired at Sandman, who emerged suddenly and attacked them.
Tony Stark's Glasses: Talos received this pair of glasses, which housed the E.D.I.T.H. AI, from Fury, who in turn had received them from Tony Stark in the event of his death. The Skrull kept these glasses with him until he gave them to Parker.
Infrared Glasses: Talos used a pair of infrared glasses to track the bags carrying the dirty bombs when Gravik planned to detonate these bombs at Vossoyedineniye Square, although the bags were later revealed to be decoys that are empty.
Vehicles[]
Skrulls' Ship: Talos was the commander of a large ship in Earth's orbit, which served as their flagship. After he captured Vers, he brought her to this ship, as it housed a memory probe that he wanted to use to search her memories.
Space Pod: After Vers accidentally made a hole in one of the walls of Skrulls' Ship and thus initiated its destruction, he and a few other surviving Skrulls took the ship's escape pods to Earth.
Quadjet: Talos' science advisor modified the Quadjet that Vers and Nick Fury had stolen, making it capable of launching into Earth's orbit. Talos then took the Quadjet to Mar-Vell's Laboratory, along with Vers, Fury, Maria Rambeau and Goose. He rode it again when they escaped the laboratory and went back on Earth.
Mar-Vell's Laboratory: Mar-Vell had kept a number of Skrull refugees including Talos' family in her laboratory, but was unable to inform Talos of its whereabouts in Earth's orbit before she was assassinated. Talos, with help from Vers and Fury, eventually found it and reunited with his family. However, they were forced to escape it after the Starforce arrived at the laboratory.
Audi e-tron SUV: Disguised as Nick Fury, he rode this car to missions.
S.H.I.E.L.D. Field Office: After impersonating R. Keller, Talos visited this office. While watching over the Skrull Spy's body, Nick Fury explained his encounter with the Skrulls to Talos, who ordered Fury to track down Vers and investigate the Skrull invasion.
In the comics, Talos was a Skrull who didn't possess the shapeshifting abilities of his species due to a genetic defect, but became respected as a fearsome warrior and gained the nickname of Talos the Untamed.
An early version of the Captain Marvel script had Talos killed off after being shot by Yon-Rogg, but the character was ultimately spared.[14]
According to Jon Watts, the Spider-Man: Far From Home post-credits scene that revealed that "Nick Fury" was actually Talos was only added after he watched Captain Marvel, as he felt the reveal was the perfect explication to have Fury being fooled by Mysterio, arguing that "[Fury's] superpower is being skeptical," yet the film needed the character "to be fooled in order to make the story work."[15]
Talos was the only Skrull in Secret Invasion for whom the prosthetics and make-up were not designed specifically for the series. Rather, the series used the same prosthetics and make-up from Captain Marvel.[16]
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Talos on Wikipedia
Talos on Marvel Database
Talos on Marvel.com