One of the things I was curious to see about Marvel’s MCU as it shifted into Phase 4 was how they would handle coming off the high of Avengers: Endgame. The comic world works by having smaller stories building into larger events and then drifting back into smaller stories. But how does that same idea translate to the large screen? Are audiences going to be fine with the slow after an entire couple years of heavy-hitting film after heavy-hitting film? So far, it’s been touch and go, but with some of Marvel’s biggest names ready to hit the silver screen in the coming months, there’s a strong chance things pick up and pick up quickly.
One of the projects that fans have been waiting for with bated breath is the debut of Kamala Khan AKA Ms. Marvel in her own self-titled Ms. Marvel show. The character will be played by Iman Vellani. But while fans were waiting, news broke that Kamala Khan had undergone a transformation of her powers and the source of her powers. Gone are her polymorphic powers and in their place are cosmic powers instead, which will eventually tie into an upcoming sequel to Captain Marvel titled The Marvels.
In the comics, Kamala gains her powers in the aftermath of Infinity when Black Bolt destroys Attilan and releases a cloud of Terrigen Mist into the world, transforming all of those who had the latent Inhuman gene into Inhumans. As a result of the Mist, Kamala gains the ability of a polymorph or someone who can turn their body into any form. Think Reed Richards of the Fantastic Four. But in the show Ms. Marvel, it appears that Kamala will get her powers from a cosmic powered bracelet and she will have a different set of powers, as well.
Kevin Feige gave a nonsense excuse for why Kamala Khan had her powers changed. I’m sure it made sense to him, but it doesn’t really make sense to most everyone else. I’ll drop the comments below so you can see them and decide for yourself if they make sense, but they’re odd to say the least. He says something about her coming along at a specific time and that’s why she needed those specific powers, but never goes into any sort of detail that would elaborate on what he means. Here’s the quote from Feige:
We adapt the comics; it’s not an exact translation. [Kamala] came about in a very specific time within the comic-book continuity. She is now coming into a very specific time within the MCU continuity. And those two things didn’t match. What we will learn about where those powers come from, and how they come about, is specific to the MCU.
I’ve tried to figure out what he means by that, but the best I can come up with is that they decided to give her those powers because it helped them write the story they wanted to tell with her, I suppose. I’ll admit that I don’t always know what Feige is talking about and I’m sure that’s by design. He is really good about keeping his cards close to his chest. But he assures fans that the character they know and love will be what fans eventually get on the small screen.
Does it bother me that they changed Ms. Marvel’s powers? Yeah. I’m not gonna lie. It does. I think a lot of who Ms. Marvel is as a person comes from her powers. I also think her powers are a great representation of the awkwardness of being a teeenager. The metaphor being that we are all growing into our bodies and that feeling of awkwardness and self-doubt will eventually give way to discovering who we are within ourselves. Part of what made Kamala Khan so amazing was watching her own and grow into her powers and her own abilities. So, yeah, I get a bit worried when the thing they’re tinkering with is part of the soul of the character.
Even though it bothers me, I am still going to give Ms. Marvel a fair shot when it airs for several reasons. The individuals involved with this show include Kamala’s creators and the team that helped edit her first runs. That gives me tons of hope that they know how to keep the core of what makes Kamala herself while also addressing those changes to her powers and their origins. It’s certainly a gamble to change this much about any character let alone one as revered as Kamala Khan. But Disney have done a solid job thus far of handling changes to the characters so that they can write them into the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
We just have to hope that Ms. Marvel delivers on the promise Feige made to fans when he announced her inclusion into the MCU and that’s that they would remain true to the character, her origins, her support system, and make sure she’s one of Marvel’s tentpole franchises going forward. This is one of my favorite characters and I can’t wait to see how Iman Vellani brings her to life on June 8th.
Ms. Marvel releases on June 8th, 2022. It is streaming exclusively on Disney+. BSO will have more to come on this film and anything else in the MCU. Kane Webb covers video games, comics, and film/tv for BSO. He also covers USC football for Athlon Sports and has written for Rivals, Scout, Wisconsin State-Journal, Bakersfield Californian, and many more. You can find him on Twitter: @FightOnTwist