Incursion of the Skrulls is one of those animated anomalies – a Fantastic Four episode so off-beat and surreal that it’s been quietly exiled from streaming platforms, likely due to its early depiction of the Twin Towers under attack in a scene framed as digital trickery. But despite its absence from circulation, it remains a curious gem: satirical, chaotic, and drenched in meta-awareness. Real-world cameos abound, with President Clinton, Queen Elizabeth II, and Donald Trump (shown welcoming Her Majesty at Trump Plaza alongside Marla Maples) popping up to blur the line between Marvel’s fictional chaos and actual public figures. This clever fold into reality harks back to the Dawn of Marvel, when its heroes weren’t soaring above Metropolis or dealing with the latest double-LL’d politician – they were elbowing through New York crowds and crossing the Hudson to Jersey, firmly part of our world.

The episode kicks off with Emperor Dorekk ranting in Skrull language on the alien homeworld, only for Stan Lee himself to break the fourth wall and kindly switch the subtitles to English. It’s emblematic of the tone: a marriage of cosmic melodrama and media parody, where satire and sincerity cohabitate in uncomfortable harmony. From Reed’s horror-movie illusions to Thing’s punchline quips, the episode juggles commentary on propaganda, consumerism, and the slippery nature of truth. There’s even an unflinching dive into exploitation, with scenes of Skrull slave cruelty that feel startlingly dark for Saturday morning fare.

If the real-world references cement this story in reality, the final gag launches it into absurdity – the suggestion that Skrulls may have slipped into Earth’s food chain is both hilariously disturbing and best left unexamined. But that’s the essence of Incursion of the Skrulls: a narrative that doesn’t ask for approval, just attention, and maybe a little confused applause.

New York trembles under an apparent alien attack… until Ben Grimm casually reveals he’s just playing a handheld video game. The illusion is convincing, though, and that’s no coincidence. As the team winds down for the evening, a call from President Clinton sends them off to investigate sea monsters off the coast. Unbeknownst to them, the “President” is a Skrull agent orchestrating their absence while impostors impersonate the Fantastic Four. With shapeshifting tech and destructive intent, the Skrulls sabotage key sites across the city, all while wearing familiar faces.

The real Fantastic Four end up imprisoned – individually, securely, and wrongly – until they engineer their escape and begin unravelling the Skrull conspiracy. They hijack a Skrull vessel and bluff their way aboard the mothership, where Reed convinces the commander that Earth is too dangerous to invade. His evidence? Movie clips. Not actual footage, just cinematic horror packaged as reality. The ploy works. The Skrull leader awards Reed a medal, aborts the invasion, and sets his sights elsewhere.

The team returns home, clears their names, and even manages to prove the Skrulls’ existence to sceptical military officials. As for the three remaining Skrull agents? They’re last seen grazing in a field – hypnotized into believing they’re goats.

This episode isn’t included with the rest of the series on streaming platforms. It begins with a Skrull invasion, which Ben initially mistakes for a video game but turns out to be a transmission device. The scene depicts the destruction of the Twin Towers of the World Trade Centre.

This episode goes all out to highlight that the Fantastic Four exist in the real world. Sue doesn’t recognize the video game as part of the official FF merchandise, and there are appearances by real-life figures. President Clinton makes a cameo, as do Queen Elizabeth II and Donald Trump, shown with his second wife Marla Maples, who greets the monarch at Trump Plaza.

In the opening scene on the Skrull homeworld, Skrullos, Emperor Dorekk speaks in the Skrull language. However, the moment is humorously interrupted by Stan Lee, who points out that viewers can’t understand Skrull. He then uses a translator device to switch the dialogue to English, making it accessible for everyone!

In this episode, some of the Thing’s other catchphrases start making their way into the dialogue, like mentions of his ‘Aunt Petunia’ and being ‘ever-loving’ and ‘blue-eyed.’ He also nabs the best line of the week: when the Skrulls mistake Reed’s horror movie images for reality and suddenly fall silent, the team looks panicked. Ben quips that maybe the Skrulls “have seen the re-runs.”

At one point in the episode, the screams of slaves in apparent pain can be heard, accompanied by the sound of whipping, as the Admiral announces he’s “bored of this lot” and demands a new batch!

Reed was forced to escape from a government cell in Fantastic Four (2015), while Sue broke into one to talk to Norrin Radd in Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer (2007). The episode itself is based on the Skrulls’ first appearance in Fantastic Four #2 (1962).

LYJA: LOVES, LIVES AND LASERFIRSTS!

Lyja first appeared in Fantastic Four #357 (1991), though her story had already been unfolding under the guise of Alicia Masters. A loyal Skrull agent, she was sent to infiltrate the Fantastic Four and sabotage them from within. To do so, she replaced Alicia – Ben Grimm’s long-time love – and soon found herself entangled with Johnny Storm, in what became one of Marvel’s most complicated romantic arcs.

What began as deception evolved into genuine affection. Johnny married Lyja, thinking she was Alicia, and the betrayal that followed tore through the team. Yet Lyja proved herself more than a spy – saving Johnny, claiming to be pregnant with his child, and later revealing she’d faked that too, all in a desperate attempt to hold onto their fractured love. The emotional fallout lingered, with Lyja never quite leaving Johnny’s orbit.

Revived as Lyja the Laserfist and enhanced with bio-energy blasts, she shifted from lover to warrior, briefly joining the FF and continuing her unpredictable dance between loyalty and longing. Her shapeshifting abilities allowed her to impersonate others – including Susan Richards and Bridget O’Neil – keeping her one step ahead of heroes and enemies alike, though always circling back to the emotional tether of her relationship with Johnny.

Despite her Skrull heritage, Lyja repeatedly rejected the cruelty of her people, even turning against them when their aims conflicted with her own moral compass. She oscillated between allegiance to her roots and her attachment to Earth, never fully fitting into either world, and appearing in events like Secret Invasion with motives more protective than destructive.

Outside the comics, Lyja’s presence remains limited. She makes a brief appearance in the Fantastic Four animated series, including the offbeat episode Incursion of the Skrulls, though without much prominence. Still, her story of love and layered identity holds potential for broader adaptation – one of Marvel’s shapeshifters who, under all the disguises, is still searching for who she really is.

Now Comes the Sub-Mariner | The Silver Surfer and the Coming of Galactus (Part 1)