New Avengers: Illuminati #5
New Avengers: Illuminati #5 is the issue that detonates the central mystery of Brian Michael Bendis's years-long Secret Invasion build: it reveals that Black Bolt, Inhuman king and one of the most powerful beings in the Marvel Universe, had been secretly replaced by a Skrull infiltrator, retroactively recontextualizing events across multiple titles—including the Hulk's victory over 'Black Bolt' in World War Hulk. As the first story in the Illuminati miniseries to be directly and officially tied into the Secret Invasion event, it forces every reader to question who among Marvel's inner circle could be compromised, a paranoid premise that would power the entire 2008 crossover. The issue also closes the loop on the Skrull-Elektra body recovered in New Avengers #31, dramatizing how Iron Man used that corpse to drag the fractured, post-Civil War Illuminati back together—only for the meeting itself to confirm their worst fear.
New Avengers: Illuminati #5 (2008) delivers a sharp, intrigue-laced twist as Nick Fury’s hidden archive reveals a meticulously compiled list of obscure X-Men facts—gathered not for curiosity, but as a strategic tool. With art by Jack Kirby, John Cassaday, and David Finch, the issue blends espionage and mystery in a story that quietly redefines what it means to be a secret agent in the Marvel Universe. The cover by Jim Cheung and Mark Morales captures the tension with a striking, enigmatic image.
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We Buy Collections ▸History
The five-issue limited series was written by Brian Michael Bendis and co-writer Brian Reed, with pencils and cover art by Jim Cheung, inks by Mark Morales, colors by Justin Ponsor, letters by Cory Petit, and editing by Tom Brevoort. Bendis had been quietly constructing the Secret Invasion storyline since New Avengers #1 in 2005, using the Illuminati miniseries as a retroactive-history vehicle to seed Skrull paranoia across Marvel's past continuity, with issue #5 serving as the payoff issue that bridged that backstory directly into the main 2008 event. The issue carried a cover date of January 2008 and went on sale May 7, 2008 as part of the collected trade paperback; the single issue shipped in late 2007.
Trivia · 8 facts
- Written by Brian Michael Bendis and Brian Reed; pencils, inks, and cover by Jim Cheung and Mark Morales; colored by Justin Ponsor; edited by Tom Brevoort.
- Cover date: January 2008 (single issue); the collected trade paperback (ISBN 978-0-7851-2437-5, collecting #1–5) was released May 7, 2008.
- Officially designated the first story in the Illuminati series directly and formally tied into the Secret Invasion event, serving as its narrative prologue.
- Black Bolt (Blackagar Boltagon) is revealed to have been replaced by a Skrull impostor—a variant Super-Skrull engineered with the combined powers of the Illuminati members, per the Marvel Database.
- The reveal retroactively explains why 'Black Bolt' was defeated by the Hulk during World War Hulk: the figure who fought the Hulk was the Skrull substitute, not the real Inhuman king.
- Two additional Skrulls attack the Illuminati meeting; writer Bendis confirmed in a post-issue Newsarama interview that these are a new class of Super-Skrull, appearing to model the powers of Colossus and Thor.
- Iron Man convenes the group—for the first time since Planet Hulk and Civil War—specifically to deal with the Skrull-Elektra corpse recovered in New Avengers #31, making this issue a direct continuation of that plotline.
- The full five-issue series was also reprinted in Secret Invasion Chronicles Vol. 1 #1, underscoring its role as essential reading for understanding the mechanics of the Skrull infiltration.
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Reprints
Reprinted in Secret Invasion: The Infiltration #[nn] (2008), New Avengers: Illuminati #[nn] (2008), Marvel Heroes #10 (2008), Avengers Unconquered #17 (2010), New Avengers #4 (2010), New Avengers by Brian Michael Bendis: The Complete Collection #3 (2017), Secret Invasion by Brian Michael Bendis Omnibus #[nn] (2018), Marvel Comics - La collection #201 (2022), Illuminati #[nn] (2022), New Avengers Modern Era Epic Collection #3 (2025), New Avengers Omnibus #2 (2025)
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