"First Look at the New Ms. Marvel, a 16-Year-Old..." Topic

… Muslim Superhero.

"Late last year, Marvel Comics announced that it would reboot Ms. Marvel in February and put an all-new superheroine at the helm: Kamala Khan, a 16-year-old Muslim girl who lives in New Jersey. WIRED has the first look at Kamala from her Ms. Marvel debut, a preview that also will appear in the All-New Marvel NOW! Point One issue on sale in print and digital versions tomorrow.

Kamala, a second-generation Pakistani-American, isn't Marvel's first Muslim superhero, but she is the first to get a solo title — and certainly the first to get the title of Ms. Marvel. Although the most popular superheroes tend to be white guys created decades ago, legacy heroes who pass their familiar names to new characters are one way publishers like Marvel and DC Comics have brought greater diversity to their fictional worlds. (They do tend to revert to their original hosts as time goes on, however, making the added diversity seem a bit more tenuous.) If you're wondering what happened to the original Ms. Marvel, Carol Danvers, she's helming her own title under the moniker Captain Marvel — another legacy title.

The new Ms. Marvel, which comes out in print and digital on Feb. 5, is illustrated by Adrian Alphona (Runaways, Uncanny X-Force) and scripted by G. Willow Wilson, a writer and novelist whose work includes the comics Cairo, Air and Mystic, as well as the World Fantasy Award-winning novel Alif the Unseen. Wilson, a convert to Islam, spoke to WIRED about the challenges of writing a high-profile Muslim superheroine who struggles with identity issues even before acquiring shapeshifting powers…"
Full article here
link

Hope you enjoy!.

Amicalement
Armand

Could be interesting.

Did you actually check out the other panels?

Because this looks not interesting plus the writing is horrible.

Just pushing an one of the $%^&(&*^ agendas.

This comic will tank.

IF they had this new Ms Marvel go to say, Pakistan into the tribal areas and help stop honor killings and the acid burning of young girls' faces, would be bold. But they'll use this to preach the CAIR message, what a waste.

Bah.

I guess you can't make a final decision based on just a few pannels, but color me underwhelmed.

I know I'm a traitor to all male-kind for saying this, but at least they're trying to do something other than glamorize the under-sweater beach ball smuggling racket.

I'd care about a book with a character with some space to evolve a lot more than cleverly spandex ensconced illustrated ladies. I certainly hope their writing staff is up to the task.

Could work – there must be some people in the world that are an obvious demographic..

There's been some hate from people who don't read comics, which I ignore because in terms of this medium, they are illiterate.

No, we just have better taste than you! What a maroon.

I don't get it. I can understand having a new superhero being a muslim girl with shapeshifting powers… why does she have to be named Ms. Marvel?

I don't get it. I can understand having a new superhero being a muslim girl with shapeshifting powers… why does she have to be named Ms. Marvel?

Because "Don't step out of the house or I will honour kill you-Girl" was too long.

I'm with you haywire. I really could give 2 flips about if they make these agenda plays in comics but what really gets me is when they feel the need to shift established characters to meet their social agendas. Then you get moronic conversations about if a character should or shouldn't be gay or get a same sex marriage. Changing religions and all that other political crap. There is an entire ted talk about a guy making muslim superheroes for muslims. how about DC buy that guys stuff and publish it. I'm all for alternatives to the typical super hero model but why destroy established characters to make a political statement.

Could work – there must be some people in the world that are an obvious demographic..

A better demographic would have been ethnic Indian-American. The US population of ethnic asian Indians is more than than twice that of Muslim Americans, and would also have helped them crack into the Indian market (1 BILLION people) in a marketing/sales sense.
There's no cross-market sales in this book -- heck, it wouldn't even be possible to sell it in many areas of Pakistan, land of the character's parents!

And would be lots of story lines to follow, tension between traditional Indian family and US culture, she could have had a Dark Phoenix moment -- maybe taking on a Dark Shiva aspect as she struggles with her powers, etc. Religion? It's an easy bet that Americans know more about Islam than they do Hinduism. As it is, they will be preaching to their choir and applauding themselves for their good works on creating cultural sensitivity, yadda yadda. And another comic book character bites the dust.

I was being tongue-in-cheek – there's no guaranteed niche comic, it's just what sells and what doesn't.

For example, despite a promising start, "Arak son of Thunder" folded after about 40 issues…

He was the Native American Conan link

Kinda hilarious that they jumped on the Captain Marvel moniker now that DC has officially gone with 'Shazam'. Maybe its time for the big two to just mutually retire that name?

I doubt that this decision is market based, its just topical to have a Muslim headline character. A bow to PC it may be, but I don't really have a problem with that since superheroes were 100% Caucasian in comic books' first few decades. But overall, I think I prefer religion to be 'off-screen' and not front and center. I mean, have we ever seen Batman or Spider-Man go to church (Aunt May marrying Doc Ock aside)?

I dont mind Marvel tackling social issues but they do it so damn baaadddd!!!!

link

After looking at the panels, with luck she'll explode at the end of issue 1.

There is an entire ted talk about a guy making muslim superheroes for muslims

link (warning – auto-playing video)

"issue 0" is available free:

link

LOL big time. morrigan naughty man you. As for DC + Marvel. beh! + beh! They are dated as far a comics and graphic novels go. Read Sin City much better and the movie was not half bad either, much more gritty than PC Super heroes ( how about Vegan Atheist Ms. Marvel Nonsexest Person Thing ;-) for their next title. Heh.

For example, despite a promising start, "Arak son of Thunder" folded after about 40 issues…

LOL! This weekend I was just looking at my stack of Arak 20+ reader copies. It's been sitting in my man room for three years on the same table untouched. It was such a bad comic! Don't ask why it has been sitting there. The stack is going to the thrift shop.

If you want to read the BEST comics ever written, read the Carl Barks Uncle Scrooge comics. One cannot call themselves a true comics aficionado until they have read the master adventure storyteller, Barks.

BTW you will not be reading Ms Marvel in any bookstore. Disney has/is yanked/yanking all Marvel monthly comics from mainstream book sellers, focusing on digital and comic stores.

I know I'm a traitor to all male-kind for saying this, but at least they're trying to do something other than glamorize the under-sweater beach ball smuggling racket.

Leave Power Girl out of this.

For example, despite a promising start, "Arak son of Thunder" folded after about 40 issues…

For the record I have all of these issues and actually it was 50 issues not 40.

link

It was a far better comic then this new Ms Marvel comic.

Whole world of -fuelled racist stereotypes oozing to the surface here.

Nice one, TMP'ers. Just when I was thinking you lot were a reasonable bunch, and not .

Oh well, set my sights too high again.

and what does being white have to do with anything? Glass houses and rocks, bucko.

Just when I was thinking you lot were a reasonable bunch, and not .

It is even better over in the Blue Fez, because if this post was over there I wouldn't had to use $%^&(&*^.

Come on this is pushing at least 4-6 agendas and I did read the other panels that the above link had.

She is fighting a Trash Monster so there is the Green energy agenda and mankind is killing the earth agenda.

That is two agendas and I will not touch the one that could get me put back into the Dawghouse but that one is the most plain to see.

Did you check out the image of her and her family at the bottom of that link?

We are not the ones who will be offending a certain bunch of individuals.

Nope that will be DC comics.

As I stated before this comic will tank and will not even get close to the number of issues that Arak Son of Thunder did.

Which by the way is a far better comic.

Not interested. I will say no more as my opinion will upset too many people with any comment I make in that peace of trash comic. Ooops.

I don't read comics, I literally had to google who "Mrs Marvel" was. What is she, like a 3rd stringer that isn't even in the avengers? At least it wasn't a character I knew anything about aside from hearing the name once in a while.

"Black Nick Fury" was more bold than this. THAT was a front and center character. Aside from being NAMED Marvel, I don't remember ANYTHING about this character other than her name being the punchline to jokes at the comics and gaming store I grew up at.

You want to end "white washing" in comics? Wonder Woman is supposedly an "amazon", make her Hispanic or Native (south) American. Make the "changes" where it makes sense. (yes I know she's DC but that's the first and most obvious example I could come up with)

and not

Who's scruffy looking?

not

Technically, this statement is an example of

As for the comic, I found the example pages, while of artistic interest, both visually confusing and tritely written. And I, too, don't like the constant "retconning" of established (if usually minor) characters into whatever social or ethnic group is the current cause celebré. It strikes me more often than not as simply a way of generating quick sales for a dying title via notoriety, rather than a sincere effort to address any real social issue.

I don't read comics, I literally had to google who "Mrs Marvel" was. What is she, like a 3rd stringer that isn't even in the avengers? At least it wasn't a character I knew anything about aside from hearing the name once in a while.

Carol Danvers, a.k.a. Captain Marvel, created back in the 60's, has been one of the major characters in the Marvel universe for maybe a decade now, and her book is selling consistently well. She's featured in Marvel's recent cartoon shows, and there is talk of adding her to the Marvel movie lineup.

The new Ms. Marvel is a separate, new character, taking the name Ms. Marvel to honor Danvers. Her book hasn't even come out yet, which means that all the criticism about her religion and background is people speaking out from uninformed opinions.

Oh, and she is from New Jersey.

Parzival, we are not complete idiots (well, most if us at any rate).

What i am getting at is

Part of not being a Bigot is Not Being a Bigot.

It does not matter

I haven't been into comics in a long time. So can anyone explain or show examples of other religious specific heroes? I mean has there ever been a Jewish, Christian, etc. comic hero before? Did they even have any decent market share?

8)

PS- Power Girl does look Hot but she needs to work on those hips. Not enough junk in the trunk for me. But the rest does make up for it.

Part of not being a Bigot is Not Being a Bigot.

That's worth repeating.

Actually 20thMaine, at least one non-white main character has lasted.

Turok Son of Stone has been around in slightly different guises since 1954. Evan has a video game.

As to the OP those panels do look lame…

Part of not being a Bigot is Not Being a Bigot.

Which was, of course, my point.

I mean has there ever been a Jewish, Christian, etc. comic hero before?

Yes, actually. I know that DC had established a minor character as being explicitly an evangelical Christian (some magician girl in a top-hat, IIRC. Name began with a Z). Others in both major publisher's lines have been implied to be either Catholic or Protestant simply through their established relationships with different clergy members or depictions of appearances at services in their "normal person" form), though this was mostly just cultural dressing rather than presented as a significant part of the characters' backgrounds. But again, IIRC, several X-men have been specifically presented as having Christian faiths, among them Nightcrawler, a devout Roman Catholic.

Jewish heroes include Moon Knight, Kitty Pryde, Doc Samson and the FF's "The Thing," aka Benjamin Grimm. Yep, that's right, folks. The master of Clobberin' Time is a good Jewish boy from the Lower East Side!

I actually got a couple of students that are observant Muslim girls interested in comic books because of this. They've never really had a superhero or really teen appealing hero that looked like them. So don't sell it short having comic book characters that appeal to people that haven't really been appealed to before.

I actually got a couple of students that are observant Muslim girls interested in comic books because of this.

A potential plus, assuming that "getting interested in comic books" is indeed a plus, which is not necessarily a given— the quality and content of the comic book is a matter to be considered as well, as with any artistic work. But, assuming the book is at worst merely innocuous and entertaining, then I would consider the expansion of readership in general a plus.

But I will say that having a strong, independent Muslim female hero does strike me as a general plus in the scheme of things. And maybe the decision to make it a recognizable name (with a very Western twist in the honorific 'Ms.',), in the context of attracting a broader readership, isn't a bad thing. (My doubts regarding the artistic quality of the sample not withstanding.)

This whole thread makes me a bit sick to my stomach. It makes me really worry for my 9 year old daughter as she grows up. She's brown and doesn't know just how much the world will label her before she's even done anything right or wrong.

Well like 70-75% of Pak Moslems are Sunni … so maybe the Shia in the US may not like that … And the US is really only about 1% moslem. So I don't see a big following, I could be wrong … I don't think it is going to curry much favor with fanatical islam outside the US, in Europe, the Middle East, SWA, etc. … Beside it's a female super hero (and we know how strick moslems feel about females), and like has been said before the average moslem in the Middle East and SWA don't read the NY Times (or Western comic books, I think they are outlawed in some of the those countries ?).

I'm glad to hear Carol Danvers is continuing as Captain Marvel. She is my 3rd favorite Avenger after Captain America and Hawkeye.

Scorpio: Carol Danvers, a.k.a. Captain Marvel, created back in the 60's . . .

Technically correct. The Carol Danvers character first appeared in the 60s (1968 if Wikipedia is correct). But she didn't become super-powered until Ms. Marvel #1 in 1977. She (deservedly) decided to continue the name Captain Marvel much more recently.

Anyway, on topic, this new comic has my eye so I'll check out the first few issues -- which means their marketing has done its job; the days when I could keep up on every title are long long gone.

After that, it'll succeed or fail for me based on its merits. Like all comics pretty much.

This whole thread makes me a bit sick to my stomach. It makes me really worry for my 9 year old daughter as she grows up. She's brown and doesn't know just how much the world will label her before she's even done anything right or wrong.

I think you're misreading the thread. No one brought up the skin coloration of the character at all (the only negative racial statement made was about white people). Religion, political and cultural elements have been brought up, for good or ill, but race has largely been ignored.

If race is the consideration for your daughter, there have been and still are a number of very prominent super heroines from African, Asian and Middle Eastern and Indian sub-continent ethnic groups, including Storm, Doctor Light, Solstice (Teen Titans) and more. Here's a list of Asian superheroes in particular, both male and female, including several from both Marvel and DC: link
I can't speak as to the quality of their books, but they do exist, and with little controversy attached, as far as I know.

I will say, after considering the situation, I have overcome my own "why do they have to change everything" reaction to one of, "I never read any of the old Marvel Captain Marvel/Ms. Marvel stuff anyway, so why do I care if they do this?" Truth is, I don't have any reason to object. And just maybe a positive, strong, strong-willed and independent Muslim teen girl super heroine is indeed what is needed in the world today. Heck, translate it and carpet bomb some of the extremist areas of the Middle East with it. It'd drive the Taliban-ists of the world nuts, and maybe give a little hope and encouragement to those desperately trying to survive against them.

Parzival, I haven't misread anything. You've been arguing semantics up until your last post, the finer points of language. I've been reading the general mood of the posters.

I'm glad your thinking has evolved during the post, the ability to critically think about something and have your opinion changed is a wonderful thing.

Most posts on this thread just make me worry. I don't want to discuss politics or race on this forum unfortunately, I come here to enjoy the talk about comics or our miniatures hobby.

As to why they have to change everything is quite a reasonable thing. Most of these iconic characters were created in the 60's or 70's or earlier when you had very few non-white media role models. So when you re-imagine some characters…

The disheartening thing is that most of the posters here don't feel that a young non-white character can appeal to the masses.

Sorry, just read my last post and was drawn in. I don't really want to discuss this stuff here, please don't think me rude if I don't continue to post on the thread.

Crossover, if you are still there … you certainly could just stop following the thread ? But I think you're over reacting … And I wouldn't worry about your daughter.

So I don't see a big following

This comic is about building a following.

Nope it is about pushing certain agendas.

MacrossMartin never actually said if he was or was not going to buy the comic (or at least bittorrent it) or if he thought it was a good idea. Just saying. I'd like to know.

Most of these iconic characters were created in the 60's or 70's or earlier when you had very few non-white media role models. So when you re-imagine some characters…

My favorite Ms Marvel version is in Super Hero Squad. Modoc is in love with her, she loves organizing paper clips and office supplies and then beating the snot out of people. A real hoot constantly bordering on a bad PMS day.

YouTube link

Here's the agenda – TMP link

Legion 4, please leave ridiculous conspiracy theories over in the Blue Fez where they belong.

Scopio is right.

Don't come our and state the agenda only do what I do and allude to the agenda.

You want to call it out we can do that over in the Blue Fez and irate some of the Fezzians.

Though you can't irate me since I tend to be the one who irate some of the others.

You do it right they will end up calling you things.

Loads of fun.