Magnificent Ms. Marvel: Destined

by Saladin Ahmed, Mikyu Jung, Juan Vlasco, and Ian Herring
collects Magnificent Ms Marvel #1-6
main series: volumes four | five | nine | ten
magnificent ms marvel: volume one

An all-new series of (Magnificent) Ms. Marvel is off to a very strong start! To be honest, I was a bit wary of Ahmed taking over – G. Willow Wilson handed over the reigns at the top of her game, and I wasn’t a fan of Black Bolt – but from the opening pages to the closing Zelda reference at the end, I’m all in for Kamala’s new adventures.

Ahmed, penciller Mikyu Jung and inker Juan Vlasco, as well as colorist Ian Herring (a longtime Ms Marvel colorist!) retain all the essential parts of Kamala – she’s just as headstrong and kind, fiercely loyal and a big fan of video games. Her Muslim identity is just one of the many parts of her.

This opening arc is a space story leaning heavily into fantasy. Just as Kamala’s father learns his daughter is Ms. Marvel – and as we all could have guessed, he’s not happy about it – Kamala is visited by aliens, telling her that she is the Destined One who will save their planet!

Space fantasy is a new kind of story for Ms Marvel – it’s fun, nothing groundbreaking and the aliens themselves are more or less forgettable. The real core of the story is Kamala and her family – in this case, the ones who tag along for the adventure. Kamala’s family, both biological and chosen, has always been the heartbeat for the Ms Marvel series, and Ahmed was wise to keep that narrative thread the whole way through. Several people closest to Kamala even narrate a few issues, showing Ahmed’s clear depth with these characters even in his first volume with them. Shooting Ms Marvel into space removes her from school and most of her secondary cast, but it still introduces new readers to Ms Marvel’s tone and heart, while moving some things forward.

Speaking of which, the emotional reveal in the final issue is somewhat predictable if you were paying attention, but seeing Kamala learn the truth was still emotional and well done. This will force Kamala to grow in ways she’s never had to before, and it’s a bold, smart choice by the team. Plus, this final issue also sees one of the most heartfelt Iron Man cameos I’ve ever seen.

Jung, Vlasco and Herring’s art is consistent within Ms Marvel’s world and the art team does a lovely job contrasting New Jersey with Saffa, an ethereal but believable alien world. Even though Nico Leon remains my favorite Ms Marvel penciller, Jung still faithfully adapts Ms Marvel’s characters well – and gives her a really cool new suit.

spoilers this paragraph. I’m most curious to see if Kamala will take advantage of her parents’ Men in Black-esque memory wipe, or choose to reveal who she is again? Especially since she now has limited time to do so with one of them. Considering the stress about to fall on her family, my guess is this will become a big question for her. I hope this takes center stage rather than extending her will they/won’t they with Bruno. A relationship can still be interesting once it’s in “they will” territory! Aargh!