Ms Marvel Review: A Coming-Of-Age Story About Unrestricted Female Fandom

In Ms Marvel, the recent small-screen entry into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, a superhero—and a star—is born. The hero is Kamala Khan, a Pakistani-American teen who became Marvel's first prominent Muslim character in 2014, with her debut in a solo comic book series. On the other hand, the star is Iman Vellani who has impressed the viewers with her charisma, comedic timing, and acting prowess in every scene.

Her second appearance will be in The Marvels, the upcoming MCU movie, which is a follow-up to Brie Larson-starrer Captain Marvel and will focus on our Ms Marvel. You would be concerned for a young performer, trying to hold her fort in a cinematic universe that has a legendary stature but Vellani seems so fit for the role that you almost have to shrug and tell her that it is her destiny, much like an older superhero might tell a budding one in an MCU project.

Ms Marvel review

At the time this review is being written only three episodes of the web series are available for viewing. So far, the plot seems thin and predictable. The web series is posed to be a coming-of-age tale as much as a superhero origin story at this point. Kamala, 16, is a talented artist, vlogger, and ardent admirer of the Avengers in general and Captain Marvel in particular. She greets us with an enthused recounting of the animated tales about her icons.

She spends the majority of the first episode trying to convince her parents to let her attend the Avengers comic convention, which is located a short bus ride away, perfect her Ms Marvel costume, and appease the school principal after he summons her to his office because she is always "doodling" and daydreaming. It is so wonderful it is to see an accurate, loving, and unrestricted depiction of passionate female fandom, so often derided or ignored while “boy geeks” get to inherit the world. Even though it will likely get lost in the deeper joy and wider significance of seeing a Muslim character come to life.

Screenshot from wedding sequence of Ms Marvel

Kamala eventually makes it to the cosplay ball with the assistance of her best friend Bruno (Matt Lintz), who is also, conveniently, a tech genius. She suddenly decides to add an old family bangle to her outfit, giving herself the power to fire energy beams that take on a semblance of solid form and enable her to walk on platforms she can create ahead of herself in the air in place of flight or superspeed.

Her abilities can be connected to Kamala's Pakistani origin and the agony of Partition especially because of the bangle. It belonged to her great-grandmother, one of the numerous people who vanished at that time and who now seems to be channeling back  to Kamala via her powers.

Suggested Reading: Here Are All The Cast Members Of Ms Marvel And The Characters They Play

The interactions between Kamala and her family at their home are the early episodes' greatest strength, but there is a delightful twist at the end of the second episode that promises a fulfilling growth of this element. Unapologetic and unfussy representations of Kamala's culture and religion are made on both large-scale (we witness her and her companion Nakia, played by Yasmeen Fletcher, praying at a mosque and lamenting the condition of the women's side compared to that of men's) and small-scale ways (Kamala was scared of the Djinn in the dark when young, not ghosts).

Some people might interpret Kamala's attempts to flee her family's constraints as yet another unwanted or unjustified depiction of Islam's oppressive attitudes toward women. But other will see it as the series creator and head writer Bisha K Ali undoubtedly intended - a straightforward admission that parents of all creeds and colours are protective about their children.

According to a quick study of the show's stats, viewers over 30 account for the majority of the low ratings. The average ratings for people under the age of 18 and those between the ages of 18 and 29 are 7.7 and 7.2, respectively. The show, however, only received a 6.3 average rating from reviewers aged 30-44. The average rating from those over the age of 45 was significantly lower: 5.9.

An MCU property has previously been review-bombed, so this is nothing new. Some fans have found cause for complaint as the franchise prioritises representation for religious, ethnic, sexual, and other minorities and welcomes more People Of Colour characters.

The second episode of Ms Marvel continues to develop this narrative in captivating ways that combine actual historical occurrences with Kamala's talents, which she is still only beginning to use. From the new crush to the chat with best friend Nakia in the high school restroom, humour and heart are also skillfully served. 

With its training montage, Ms Marvel borrows from well-known coming-of-age and superhero clichés, but it also offers a novel interpretation of this genre fusion. Let's just say Kamala faces more challenges than the typical teen as the series goes on.

We hope that the series continues to build on the solid ground work it has created for itself in terms of character development. If only the plot solidifies a bit too, to ensure that Ms Marvel can be more than just another Marvel project.

The views expressed are the author's own.