'Ms. Marvel' Episodes 1 & 2: Recap and Review
WARNING: THIS RECAP CONTAINS SPOILERS
It’s been four years since Marvel Studios first announced that it would developing a Ms. Marvel series for Disney+. This week, that series finally premieres on the streamer. With the hit-or-miss track record shows set in Marvel’s Cinematic Universe have had - coupled with a so-so trailer - it’s understandable why there hasn’t been much hype for it. Having seen the first two episodes, however, I believe that Ms. Marvel is a blast of fresh air.
Created by Bisha K. Ali, who previously contributed to the first season of Loki as a writer and story editor, the series revolves around the relatively recent Marvel Comics character Kamala Khan. It explores how Khan, a Pakistani-American high schooler from New Jersey, goes from being an Avengers fangirl to a superhero herself after discovering a magical bangle in her parents’ attic. Newcomer Iman Vellani stars as Khan, and within the first five minutes it’s easy to see why Marvel fell in love with her. She exudes innocence, charm, and charisma in a way that is reminiscent of Tom Holland’s performance in his first few appearances as Peter Parker/Spider-Man.
In fact, I’d argue there are a lot of (good) similarities between this show and Marvel Studios’ first solo Spider-Man outing, Spider-Man: Homecoming. In fact, one of the funniest similarities the two have is that they both start with videos documenting how much they admire some of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes. Where Homecoming begins with a first-person vlog recorded by Peter Parker expressing his gratitude towards Tony Stark, Ms. Marvel begins with Kamala showing the audience a multimedia presentation that expresses her admiration towards Captain Marvel. It’s through this presentation that the audience comes to understand Kamala’s profound obsession with superheroes and her belief that Captain Marvel is the strongest Avenger, a belief that I’m sure lays the foundation for an inevitable encounter.
After meeting Kamala through the video, we are taken through the motions of a day in her life. We meet her very overprotective and traditional parents, her soon-to-be-married brother, her supportive best friends, and her eccentric guidance counselor. The latter who notices that her head is always in the clouds and warns her that real life is “right around the corner.” There’s no better example of how distracted Kamala is than the fact that, despite her brother’s wedding being on the forefront of her family’s mind, she only cares about finishing her cosplay for the (hilariously self-indulgent) AvengerCon. In another one of the first episode’s hilarious bits, Kamala is told that she can’t go to the convention unless she goes with her dad dressed as Hulk. Wanting to go as Captain Marvel instead, Kamala turns down the idea and is then told that she cannot go. You don’t have to be a rebellious teen to guess what happens next.
Kamala decides to sneak out, but not before checking her family’s attic for something from her culture to incorporate into her cosplay. That’s where she finds a mysterious and magical bangle. And that’s where most fans of the comics might start to notice the story begin to differ from the source material too. In the comics, Kamala inherits her abilities from a Terrigen Mist. This results in her genes mutating and becoming an “Inhuman”. Traditionally, she develops the ability to “embiggen” parts of her body. This allows her to grow her fists and stretch her limbs, similar to Mr. Fantastic, without the need of any external attachment. After putting on the bangle though, Kamala is infused with what looks like some sort of cosmic energy. Through that, she’s able to project anything she thinks of in the form of a crystallized energy, similar to The Green Lantern. By the end of episode two, it’s still not entirely clear whether the power is magic or cosmic, but it is clear that the bangle and all of its mysteries are tied to Kamala’s family past.
Now, to her surprise, her newfound powers reveal themselves at AvengerCon. This sets off a chain reaction that causes her to be on the radar of the government’s Department of Damage Control and Arian Moayed’s Agent Cleary - who most will remember from Spider-Man: No Way Home - by the end of episode one.
Episode two offers a deeper dive into Kamala’s culture especially as she learns to control her powers. This is where her best friend Bruno, played by Matt Lintz, gets to shine. Introduced as a prodigy genius in the vein of Tony Stark, he is the equivalent and arguable amalgamation of both Ned Leads and MJ Watson in the Spider-Man films. Not only is he there to see Kamala’s powers first hand at the convention, but he eventually helps her control them. He is her best friend, her “man in the chair”, and obvious love interest, but she just hasn’t figured out the latter yet. Lintz and Vellani have such great chemistry that their relationship easily becomes one of the best things about the show. And it even makes you hope that he’ll get to do more than just sit in the background as the story continues to ramp up.
Speaking of ramping up, the series has some of the best pacing compared to previous shows. In my opinion, nothing feels rushed and no one feels underused. With one of the largest casts of any Marvel show so far, I count that as an accomplishment. But I also must add that by the end of episode two it’s also still unclear who the true antagonist will be. Could they be shoehorned in and then throw off the pacing completely? Absolutely. But at the rate that everything is going, I’d be surprised.
While reminiscent of the Spider-Man films, the show feels like something totally different. I think that’s also largely in part to its visionary risks. From the beginning of episode one it feels like you’re watching a comic book come to life. It may not have literal split screen panels like Ang Lee’s Hulk, but it’s much more aware of its space and loves to incorporate animation at any opportunity just like Edgar Wright’s Scott Pilgrim vs. The World. This is literally the first Marvel project that incorporates every bit of space available in any shot. I know that sounds like a very bold statement, but you’ll know exactly what I mean instantly. The show engages the audience in ways that are rarely done in film anymore and I think the directors of the first two episodes, the critically acclaimed Adil & Bilal and Meera Menon, deserve even more praise for their commitment and execution.
I also enjoyed how seamless the integration of Pakistani culture is. The series highlights the culture by normalizing it, and as a result the viewer never feels isolated from conversations Kamala has with her parents or any of the traditional events she attends. Truthfully, my only concern is the way the show leans too heavily into the culture with the bangle. There are a multitude of other ways Marvel could have introduced Kamala’s powers. While I somewhat understand the reasoning for changing her origin, the way it’s done feels too convenient here. Not to mention, it feels kind of lazy considering that there’s another novice Asian-American hero in MCU with a few powerful bracelets: Shang-Chi.
Nevertheless, I think Ms. Marvel is great so far. I haven’t been this excited to see where a show goes since Loki, and that has nothing to do with Ali’s involvement in both. Not only is Kamala a new character that few have had the fortune of truly knowing, but she’s at a point in her life that I think everyone can relate to. I’m sure that intrigue, to know what she’ll do in this iteration of the story and who may show up along the way, is sure to get both newcomers and fans on the same page.