Captain Marvel: 20 Easter Eggs And References Explained
4. Goose's Flerken Reveal
Marvel Studios
Comics fans will have had a hard time keeping the secret of Goose's true identity under wraps before Captain Marvel's premiere, but now that the cat is quite literally out of the bag, it's time to talk about the film's scene-stealer in greater depth.
In the comics, Goose is actually called Chewie, and is also Flerken. In the comics, Carol didn't find out Chewie was a Flerken until years into their adventures together, where he laid eggs. Like the cat-like-creature in the film, Chewie had tentacles that could spring from his mouth, as well as the added ability of being able to house various objects in pocket dimensions located within their body.
Goose's name is in itself a reference to Val Kilmer's tyre-kicking character from Tony Scott's Top Gun, while his ginger appearance is lifted straight from the comics themselves. Here's hoping he returns for Endgame.
WhatCulture's very own resident movie guy, Ewan has been working in the content creation biz for over 10 years now, having started as a freelance contributor to WhatCulture Gaming all the way back in 2015. After graduating with a First-Class Honours in History from Northumbria University in 2017 (where he won a prize for a totally killer dissertation on the Watergate years), Ewan took on the role of Comics Editor at WhatCulture and quickly developed WhatCulture Comics into one of the biggest superhero-focused channels on YouTube. He followed this with a brief hiatus at Screen Rant in 2021, where he worked across the Gaming and Film sections as a writer and editor, before returning to WhatCulture as a Senior Content Producer / Presenter in 2023. He started his own podcast, We Love Dad Movies, in 2022, and has contributed several written pieces to the Eisner-nominated comics website Shelfdust as well.
In his current role, Ewan incorporates his love of cinema, comic books, and history into written pieces and video essays for WhatCulture's Film & TV channel, as well as WhatCulture Gaming and WhatCulture Horror, with a particular focus on nineties-era Dad Movies, old school Westerns, and Golden Age Hollywood Noir. John Carpenter is his fave, and he thinks Batman Beyond should never have been cancelled. If that's your vibe, you'll probably like his stuff.
