Marvel. Whether you are into superhero movies or not, we have all heard of it. Like many other franchises, people love Marvel because they can see themselves in the characters. But for many years the cast was primarily white, causing people of other ethnicities to feel left out. Even so, the producers continued to whitewash characters, turning the Scarlet Witch, who was originally a person of color, white in the movies and TV shows she was featured in. Over the years however, they have diversified their cast and in turn, their heroes.
There are so many superheroes it is hard to keep track, but none are more important to recognize than Ms. Marvel. The 2022 mini series Ms. Marvel reimagined the iconic 1968 character as a Pakistani-American teenager who is an avid yet awkward fangirl of the Avengers, until she gains her own powers. Kamala Khan, better known for her superhero persona isn’t a popular girl in her daily life. Khan being portrayed as a nerdy mixed race teenager certainly spoke to an audience that finally felt that they had the recognition they wanted. Having characters that are outside of the norm not only appeal to a larger audience, but create another layer of depth to a character’s personality and how they are trying to fit into society. This is the whole point of the show, as Khan struggles to fit in being the child of immigrants and a superhero.
As Khan battles her way through high school and the dangerous villains she faces, she learns how to be herself and fit into her life properly, balancing the difficulties of everyday life and life as a secret superhero. Her character is powerful and self-reflective, painting a good picture of her and her family. It is important to have positive representation of minority groups in popular media, and the show does a good job treating all the aspects of her life with positivity and care. The plot doesn’t shy away from difficult topics and really shows how complicated life is as a person of color in this country. Even superheroes, as it turns out, still have to deal with racism and hate.
The show is funny without being offensive and is generally entertaining to watch. It is a quick watch, being a miniseries of only six episodes, but feels like a lot more. The fight scenes are really creatively made and the overall structure of the narrative holds up really well. All of the characters are complex and interesting, and Kamala Khan is so fun and is someone you would want as a friend. It is important that Marvel is now creating such specific and complex characters, not only so they can create less one dimensional media, but also so people can see someone like them on screen. There are a lot of Marvel Universe related shows worth watching and this is definitely one of them.