Helmed by Bisha K. Ali, Ms. Marvel follows the story of Kamala Khan (Iman Vellani), a Muslim American teenager growing up in Jersey City. An avid gamer and a voracious fan-fiction scribe, Kamala is a Super Hero mega-fan with an oversized imagination – particularly when it comes to Captain Marvel (Brie Larson). Yet Kamala feels like she doesn’t fit in at school and sometimes even at home – that is, until she gets superpowers like the heroes she’s always looked up to. Life gets better with superpowers, right?
Ms. Marvel is one of the most interesting young heroes among Marvel’s massive library of characters, not only being a massive superhero fan that becomes a hero herself but is also the first Muslim superhero, which gave her a massive following. With the MCU’s inclusion of Carol Danvers aka Captain Marvel and Monica Rambeau, Kamala Khan was expected to join sooner or later and she finally does with this six-episode series that has her join the ever-expanding universe and gives us her origin story.
I wasn’t sure how I was going to feel about the series compared to the others that came before but I found Ms. Marvel to be a pleasant surprise that I very much enjoyed from beginning to end. It’s greatly acted, vibrant, has a lot of heart, very well directed, has great themes, and has its own creative visual identity that makes it stand out from the other shows. It might be aimed towards a younger audience at times but there are things here that adults can love and find investing if they are willing to open up themselves to it.
It is not your typical superhero show as it has many slice-of-life elements that serve as the core aspect of this series rather than fully relying on superhero action. It’s a very grounded show even with its cosmic inclusions and focuses on being more character-driven rather than plot-driven. There are stakes involved but they are more personal than world-ending, having a very similar feel to Spider-Man Homecoming.
In fact a lot of this series feels very much like Homecoming, especially the coming of age story that is told through our lead character Kamala Khan, who might just be one of my new top favorite characters in the MCU largely due to the pitch-perfect casting of Iman Vellani, who stands out easily in this very meta role. She’s geeky, imaginative, hilarious, passionate, and above all extremely lovable. From the very second she spoke she was instantly Kamala Khan. She wasn’t a person playing Kamala, she is Kamala.
While her exact origins and abilities have been changed the main core elements of the character from comics have been brought to life beautifully from the comics to live action. Everything from her personality to her culture was done perfectly in this series, thanks to both the writing and Iman’s extremely dedicated performance. She was meant for this role as she gives us a truly investing character that endures many personal struggles, ranging from relatable life and family issues to her new double life as a super-powered individual. She wants to grow up so fast, but she doesn’t even know anything about herself or who she wants to be. She goes through a great journey of self-discovery and identity in this series, all while having superpowers and it’s handled fantastically. And as for her newfound powers and origin, while widely different from her comic, I actually really liked them in this and how they were adapted.
Visually they are awesome and lead to fun and intense moments of action as she does her best to learn how to properly use it and learn of its strange origins through the Bengal throughout the series. Elements of her comic powers and origin however are littered throughout the series including her shapeshifting abilities that look damn good and visually pleasing despite being in a lower-budget series. And for those who might be wondering, her powers do not come from the Bengal itself but rather it unlocks something inside her that remained dormant till now.
What she is is largely teased in the series but never directly answered until the end where we get a massive clue that is likely to be further answered in The Marvels. But overall, I didn’t mind her new powers and I can’t wait to see them in action again in the future. I also love how her suit comes to fruition in this series. We don’t get to see the full suit until the finale, similar to some of the other shows, but we get to see various parts and pieces of it come together that she collects on her journey. My favorite among them is the new meaning behind her bolt symbol on her suit which they make to be a letter of her name in Arabic that they subtly set up in episode 1.
The rest of the characters and their respective cast in this series are absolutely delightful and awesome as this probably offers the best supporting cast I’ve seen among all the MCU installments. No matter how large the roles were they left an impact on Kamala’s story and are extremely enjoyable thanks to their performances and writing. Kamala’s family in particular was absolutely amazing including her mother Muneeba Khan (Zenobia Shroff), her father Yusuf Khan (Mohan Kapur), her brother Aamir Khan (Saagar Shaikh), and her grandmother Sana (Samina Ahmad).
I loved the way the family was portrayed in this series, offering a lot of emotional and sincere family moments that many will recognize in themselves. Their culture might be different but they are still surprisingly relatable, investing, and extremely likable. We get to see the relationships between Kamala and her family members in great detail in this series following a theme of family that is central to the story of the series and furthers Kamala’s journey in many emotional ways. For me, this was easily the strongest part of the series that I felt incredibly attached to and all the emotional moments felt truly earned because of how much time we got with everyone. The Muslim and Pakistani representation of her family, other characters, and the story are also extremely authentic, organic, and surprisingly educational as we get to see what the culture is truly like without the filters of American media.
This is definitely one of the major benefits of having a Muslim creative team helming the series as I feel in anyone else’s hands it wouldn’t be done right. And given that this is a major part of the character in terms of her story and identity I’m glad it was treated right.
Also treated right are her best friends Bruno (Matt Lintz) and Nakia (Yasmeen Fletcher) who share a great dynamic with her on-screen just like the comics and are definitely heroes to her in their own way without the need for superpowers. There are several other characters this series brings in, all played by fantastic actors that I enjoyed including Red Dagger (Aramis Knight) who I would love to see more of in the future whether it be in another season or one of the films.
There is however one set of characters that did end up being a largely mixed bag for me and was my only big issue with the show and that is the villains. There are two factions, the first being Damage Control returning from the Spider-Man films, and then the newly introduced group the ClanDestine, who are beings from another mysterious dimension and are labeled as Djinn by certain individuals. Both do a decent job in giving the stakes in Kamala’s journey and serve as serviceable first-time opponents, getting her to take things seriously, but other than that they aren’t all that memorable or impactful compared to other villains in the previous shows.
Damage Control is mostly displayed as your typical shady task force agency we have seen several times before that considers any enhanced individual to be a danger to the public regardless if they are good or bad. That being said, their presence in the show provides an interesting setup for something bigger that could be tackled in future installments, and it kind of feels there might be more to the group than we know.
The ClanDestine have more of an impact on Kamala and her story as they are shown to have a direct link to her powers and one of her ancestors.
The group’s motives are basic but they do serve as good menaces as they show they are willing to do anything to get what they want, including killing innocents without hesitation or care for the consequences. Coupled with the fact they are willing to go as far as killing a kid and her family makes them terrifying villains that give the series an unexpectedly dark turn.
The problem is that the group ends up being underutilized, despite their connection to Kamala, and end up being dispatched way too early. It’s a shame because the idea of a Pakistani superhero going up against beings called Djinn, which according to their culture are nightmarish creatures, sounds like a fun and interesting concept. While we do get some great action with them there’s not much of it, and while the performances they give are great, like with their leader Najima (Nimra Bucha), they aren’t that memorable or standout compared to what we have had before. There’s more I wish to know about them and their world and apart from a few details we get they aren’t focused on as much compared to Kamala’s story. Granted, I do love the character and her story so it doesn’t bother me too much, plus they leave open opportunities for these beings and their dimension to be explored and improved on in the future, whether it be a part of Ms. Marvel’s story or something else.
Aside from the way the villains were done the rest of the series is incredibly well done, giving the series its own special identity from everything else, similar to Moon Knight. It all wraps up nicely in a really awesome kick-ass finale that brings everything together neatly and is very heartwarming in many places. But then they end up dropping a massive reveal at the end with the post-credit scene that perfectly sets up The Marvels and I couldn’t be more excited to see what becomes of it.
With a character full of energy and creativity like Kamala we get to see that same energy and creativity shine in the show’s technical elements. From the visuals to the effects to the costumes to the action to the cinematography we get a series that oozes with vibrant life and has many creative directors of Muslim descent display their best work on screen.
Easily my favorite episodes from a technical standpoint are the ones directed by Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah who go for fun action and visual storytelling, giving us hugely Scott Pilgrim-inspired episodes that have many unique visual elements throughout most of the series. There are times when it isn’t present in order to not undermine the more serious and darker moments which was a great choice as it provides a perfect balance between the imaginative fun parts and the serious reality in Kamala’s journey.
There’s great style in the editing and cinematography that goes both full-on energetic in the action and imagination yet also slows down and feels more impactful in the appropriate moments. And going back to the representation that I mentioned before I’m really glad we get to see the country Pakistan visually shown that captures its beauty but also shows its historical scars mainly as a result of the Partition of India. American media tends to misrepresent certain countries by only showing the worst parts of them but lately, Marvel has allowed different directors to show the best and true faces of these places and their people through these superhero stories both through writing and visually. It brings people and cultures together and that is much more prevalent in this series especially.
Another technical highlight worth mentioning is the music of this series made by composer Laura Karpman, which has a mix of fun heroic superhero themes and culturally rich Pakistani themes that add to the small and emotional moments of the series. It’s very enjoyable to listen to both on its own and in context with the series.
This series felt very personal and was made with great passion that you can see and feel, making it really stand out in the MCU in the best way possible. I didn’t expect myself to feel so hugely invested in the character or her story but here we are. Now even though the other MCU shows had better villains I definitely feel this show has become another new favorite of mine that I may end up watching again more frequently than the others. And I am eager to see what crazy escapades will occur next for our young hero. Whatever you do don’t skip out on this show. It truly is worth watching. I’m going to give Ms. Marvel an A = 96.
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