Kree vs. Skrull: Why Were They at War and Who Is the Bad Guy?

Marvel’s ‘Secret Invasion’ recently premiered, and we’ve landed in the middle of the conflict between humans and Skrulls. As we know by now, Skrulls have been living among humans for quite some time, under the protection of Nick Fury and Captain Marvel, who offered them a helping hand in their time of need, and the story behind this is really interesting as the upcoming conflict with humans is not the first time that Skrulls have been at war with another race. Of course, we’re talking about Kree, who aim to expand their empire as far as the cosmic eyes can see. Due to that, we’ve decided to revisit the conflict in a bit more detail. Why are Kree and Skrulls at war with one another & who is the bad guy?

Kree and Skrulls are at war because Skrulls refused to submit themselves to Kree control and Kree rules. They have been at war for thousands of years which eventually culminated with the destruction of Skrullos, the home planet of Skrulls. Kree are definitely the bad guys in the MCU, as Skrulls are depicted as victims of an oppressive regime. In the comics, however, both races are considered to be evil with hidden goals, and there really is no “right side” to take in the conflict.

Now that we’ve covered, in short, what the Kree-Skrull war was about, it’s time to explore it in a bit more detail. If you’re interested in more, stay with us and keep reading!

Differences between Skrulls and Kree

Before we can tell you what the Kree-Skrull war is about, we need to explain the alien races taking part in the conflict.

Kree are a militaristic, extremely technologically advanced race native to the planet Hala. Kree are genius, to put it mildly, they have all that crazy tech are their disposal, and they are using it to expand the borders of their empire and bring “order” to other planets.

Kree are obsessed with control and view other alien races as “lesser,” this is why they often dabble with genetics, and notably, they are responsible for creating Inhumans. They are also famous for their war efforts, as there never was a moment in their long history that they haven’t been at war with some other alien race. Notably, they are battling it out with Nova Empire, as they consider them a big rival.

The most distinctive feature of Kree are their blue skin. They were introduced to the MCU with the ‘Guardians of the Galaxy,’ when Ronan the Accuser, a famous Kree Accuser, debuted as the movie’s main villain.

Skrulls, on the other hand, are also a technologically advanced alien race, although they weren’t focused on warfare as much as Kree. Kree often spreads the propaganda that Skrulls are using their shapeshifting abilities to infiltrate other planets and species and secretly take them over. How much of that is true, it yet remains to be seen.

Skrulls are distinctively green, although they can take other forms at will. They debuted in ‘Captain Marvel,’ the most famous representative of their race so far being Talos, who we will have the pleasure of seeing more of in ‘Secret Invasion.’

To sum up the main differences, Kree- blue, Skrulls – green.

Why are Kree and Skrulls at war?

Kree and Skrulls are at war because Kree are constantly looking out to expand their empire. Kree are extremely Imperialistic in nature and look down on other races. They also have the means to spread their influence as much as they can, as they are among the most technologically advanced species in the universe.

The conflict between Kree and Skrulls really began thousands of years ago when Skrulls refused to submit to Kree rules. They refused to be “secondary” on their own homeworld. The conflict lasted for a long time. Since Skrulls were also technologically advanced, they had the means to defend themselves (just like Nova Empire), but eventually, Kree were successful in destroying the homeworld of Skrulls called “Skrullos,” which displaced them all across the universe. The Skrulls are still technically at war with Kree. And everywhere they go, the rumors that they are shapeshifting deceivers follow them, making it difficult to integrate peacefully with other races.

However, the comics paint a different picture completely.

About a million years ago, the Skrulls expanded their empire from the Andromeda Galaxy and discovered the Kree homeworld of Hala, where the Kree coexisted with the Cotati. To determine the superior race, the Skrulls created the Blue Area of the Moon and placed groups of Cotati and Kree there to test them. After finding the Cotati’s work superior, the enraged Kree attacked and killed the Cotati and Skrull judges, stealing their technology in the process.

Due to the vast distances between galaxies, it took the Skrulls decades to discover what the Kree had done. By then, the Kree had established their own regime and launched an attack on the Skrulls in Andromeda. This led to the Skrulls transitioning into a warlike race capable of conducting an intergalactic war against the Kree. The eons-old conflict between the two evenly matched empires continued without a clear winner, resulting in both alien races growing stronger and prospering, with periods of open warfare and a Cold Warlike state.

So are there any good guys in this conflict?

In the MCU, Kree are definitely the bad guys in that conflict because we’ve seen the race commit atrocities not only with Skrulls but with several other alien races, as well as due to their tendencies to play villains in the movies. Skrulls are presented in a more sympathetic light because they are refugees who lost their home planet to the conflict. In the ‘Secret Invasion’, they are villains yes, their frustration and longing for their own place are understandable, but still, the end doesn’t justify the means. So I would say, at this point, Skrulls are sort of “grey” in the MCU. Maybe they have been from the start.

In the comics, both Skrulls and Kree are considered to be villainous in nature, with both sides having their heroic characters as well as atrocious villains.

What do you think about the Skrull-Kree conflict? Let us know in the comments below!

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