“Generation Why”

Disney+ launches a new hero with Ms. Marvel; a teenage Muslim girl from Jersey City who finds herself dragged into the world of superpowers and heroics.

The introduction of Kamala Khan was a big deal in the comics. She was instantly popular and resonated with a group of people seeking representation in comics. To my mind, she’s on par with Spider-Man in terms of appealing to a wide range of fans through telling relatable stories with the addition of larger than life superhero problems. Her popularity has allowed this show to come into being and bring Kamala to a new audience.

Iman Vellani takes on the role of Kamala and is immediately a perfect choice for the role. The opening replay of the climactic battle in Avengers: Endgame creatively animated by her for a YouTube video she’s making is wonderfully creative and gives a strong sense of Kamla’s personality while setting her up as a fan of the Avengers. Her particular interest is in Captain Marvel so she spends some of the video making excuses for the fact that she left Earth.

The idea of people in the MCU being fans of the superheroes that actually exist in their world has been addressed before in various ways. Tony Stark garnered a following after outing himself to the public as Iron Man, People are showing paying tribute to the Avengers after the Battle of New York in The Avengers in different ways, Thor is ambushed by fans in Thor: Ragnarok who regard him as a celebrity, Peter Parker has been shown to be excited by the prospect of being part of this world after growing up looking up to the Avengers among various other examples. Notably, Kate Bishop in Hawkeye was specifically a fan of Clint and was inspired to follow in his footsteps.

A different approach is used here because Kamala’s fandom is a foundational element of her character but she never feels like she could be a part of the world she idolises so much. One of the central conflicts in this episode is whether defining herself by her fandom is healthy. On a meta-level, this is a question many viewers will likely wrestle with as the lure of fandom is a powerful one and people can get lost in it. In many ways, it can be a satisfying escape from the real world and a way to find a community of like-minded people but without a grasp of reality, it can be all-consuming.

Kamala is set up as feeling trapped in the life she has. Her parents are overprotective and controlling, she feels overwhelmed by all the talk at school around thinking about her future and she has a general feeling that there should be more to life than what is being offered to her. This fuels her fixation on making the best Captain Marvel cosplay to win the cosplay competition at the upcoming AvengerCon. The bulk of her mental energy is focused on this goal and all other commitments dragging her attention away from that are seen as unimportant. There are some compelling details added to Kamala’s character as the narrative progresses. She is shown to be less than capable in various school activities, one such example resulting in a nose bleed after she’s hit in the face by a ball. She is also shown to be clumsy and forgetful on a couple of occasions so clear avenues of development as both a person and a hero are organically established.

One of the most striking things about this episode is its unconventional handling of stakes. The objective is for Kamala to go to AvengerCon and there are obstacles in the way of her doing that. Her parents are an antagonistic force in this context as they initially forbid her from attending because they are worried about the people who attend. Reference is made to girls wearing skimpy outfits and her mother, Muneeba (Zenobia Shroff) takes particular exception to Kamala’s desire to dress as Captain Marvel because she deems the costume to be too tight. She wants her daughter to be modest and respectable which translates to her being really controlling and not trusting Kamala to make the mature decision.

She does suggest a compromise involving her father, Yusuf (Mohan Kapur) accompanying her with them both dressing in a custom Hulk costume. Kamala has a strong negative reaction to this because she considers turning up to Avengercon chaperoned by her father to be humiliating. Her outburst is a very realistically teenage one with her social standing being foremost on her mind in that moment. This causes her to lose sight of the fact that a compromise is being offered and might be worth considering because at least she gets to attend. The viewer is encouraged to make their own mind up on how to interpret this scene as Muneeba is depicted as being flexible in her own way while Kamala throws the offer back in her face. Yusuf is shown to be visibly hurt by her reaction as he leaves the room. This short interaction is dripping in realism and acts as one of several examples of how authentic this family dynamic comes across.

Kamala does take some time to reflect in the wake of her outburst and mulls over her choices with her best friend Bruno (Matt Lintz). She questions the time she spends thinking about fandom and the energy she puts into it. Many people in her life are telling her that it’s a mistake for her to fixate on the Avengers so much which feeds into the self-doubt she experiences after regretting exploding at her parents in the way she did. She expresses that people like her from her background aren’t the types of people who get to be heroes but Bruno reassures her that she’s remarkable and should have greater confidence in herself.

AvengerCon is at the centre of everything this episode covers. Arguably it’s a very low stakes objective in a superhero TV show because it doesn’t involve life-threatening peril or a villain to be defeated in the traditional sense but the episode brilliantly conveys how important it is to Kamala that she attend and do so on her own terms. It’s engaging to see what goes into finding a way to attend and the problem of creating the perfect cosplay is undeniably significant. The single-take scene where Kamala and Bruno are riding their bikes and discussing the potential unique flourishes that could be added to her costume is beautifully done with realistic dialogue and the ideas brought to life through animation in the background. The animated interludes are excellent throughout as they highlight Kamala’s very active imagination in a uniquely creative way. They deliver insight into how her brain works and give the show a strong sense of identity.

Her desire to go to AvengerCon culminates in an elaborate heist plot where she outlines the steps involved in her sneaking out of the house to attend the convention and returning home before anyone can notice. The scenario is laid out in a quirky and hilarious way with the hand-drawn aesthetic augmenting the delivery. Bruno bursts her bubble somewhat and deflates the excitement by pointing out that her master plan can be boiled down to taking the bus. In true heist plot tradition, none of it goes according to plan. A major obstacle to them is missing the intended bus which threatens to derail everything until they make the next one which costs Kamala her bike. This loss coming across as massively tragic is a testament to how strong the storytelling is. It’s impressive that the framing of Kamala’s objective equates it to the tension associated with the threats typically found in superhero properties.

AvengerCon is an excellent showcase of MCU history with a plethora of Easter Eggs to reward fans. It’s shot chaotically to convey the abundance of activity and the excitement associated with it. The setup is very much in keeping with real conventions and the excitement created is infectious. Little details like alternate Captain Marvel costumes being a cosplayer’s reinterpretation of the existing costume work well and it all comes across as a celebration of the MCU enjoyed by fans of the heroes that really exist in their universe.

Kamala manifesting powers is the weakest part of the episode as the handling of the jeopardy created by her accidentally endangering others when she loses control of her newfound abilities doesn’t really work. It awkwardly drifts between being dramatic and comedic without managing either and the lack of follow-up to what amounts to a major accident at a public event stands out. It’s a small detail in the context of what is otherwise a great episode but it is clumsy and tacked on.

The manifestation of Kamala’s powers begins to expand her world though it’s left as something to be considered at a later time. For now, she has to concentrate on getting home and processing everything that has happened to her. When arriving home she finds her mother waiting to provide a lecture on her life choices. There’s complexity in the way the lecture is delivered with Muneeba being overprotective but also genuinely concerned. She’s a suffocating presence but wants the best for her. Her lecture is around Kamala focusing on herself and thinking seriously about who she wants to be and what she wants from life. She’s disappointed in the rebellious streak Kamala has and wants her to be more responsible. It’s an understandable position for a parent to occupy and the episode does an excellent job building her as a person with very clear expectations of her daughter in contrast to Kamala feeling trapped and looking to escape. Her powers are the enabler of that escape and the episode ends on an optimistic note as she expresses excitement about what she can now do.

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Verdict

An excellent start to the series that introduces Kamala Khan perfectly and presents unconventional yet gripping stakes perfectly aligned to this character and her world. The idea of people in the MCU being fans of the superheroes that actually exist in their world is something that has been covered in different ways since it started but the approach with Kamala is different as her fandom is a foundational element of her character. The opening replay of the climactic battle in Avengers: Endgame creatively animated by Kamala for a YouTube video she is making is wonderfully creative and gives a strong sense of Kamala’s personality while setting her up as a fan of the Avengers. Iman Vellani is perfectly cast with an excellent performance throughout. One of the central conflicts in this episode is whether defining herself by her fandom is healthy. On a meta-level, this is a question many viewers will likely wrestle with as the lure of fandom is a powerful one and people can get lost in it. Kamala is set up as feeling trapped in the life she has. Her parents are overprotective and controlling, she feels overwhelmed by all the talk at school around thinking about her future and she has a general feeling that there should be more to life than what is being offered to her. This fuels her fixation on making the best Captain Marvel cosplay to win the cosplay competition at the upcoming AvengerCon. There are some compelling details added to Kamala’s character as the narrative progresses. She is shown to be less than capable in various school activities as well as being clumsy and forgetful.

One of the most striking things about this episode is its unconventional handling of stakes. The objective is for Kamala to go to AvengerCon and there are obstacles in the way of her doing that. Her parents are an antagonistic force in this context as they initially forbid her from attending because they are worried about the people who attend. Kamala has a strong negative reaction to the suggested compromise and reflects on that reaction when discussing it with Bruno. The short interaction between Kamala and her parents is dripping in realism and acts as one of several examples of how authentic this family dynamic comes across. AvengerCon is at the centre of everything this episode covers. Arguably it’s a very low stakes objective in a superhero TV show because it doesn’t involve life-threatening peril or a villain to be defeated in the traditional sense but the episode brilliantly conveys how important it is to Kamala that she attend and do so on her own terms. The creative flourishes as she plans how to attend such as the single-take bike ride with animation bringing her ideas to life and the beautifully laid out heist plan that is deflated with a reminder that the elaborate planning culminates in simply getting the bus. The failure of the plan resulting in the loss of her bike comes across as massively tragic. AvengerCon is an excellent showcase of MCU history with a plethora of Easter Eggs to reward fans. It’s shot chaotically to convey the abundance of activity and the excitement associated with it. The setup is very much in keeping with real conventions and the excitement created is infectious. Kamala manifesting powers is the weakest part of the episode as the handling of the jeopardy created by her accidentally endangering others when she loses control of her newfound abilities doesn’t really work. It awkwardly drifts between being dramatic and comedic without managing either and the lack of follow-up to what amounts to a major accident at a public event stands out. The lecture Muneeba gives her upon returning home is excellent. Her position is an understandable one from a parental perspective and it gives a strong sense of the sort of person she is. The lecture confirms the clear expectations of her daughter in contrast to Kamala feeling trapped and looking to escape. Her powers are the enabler of that escape and the episode ends on an optimistic note as she expresses excitement about what she can now do.

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