The Avengers have assembled in the highly-anticipated blockbuster video game Marvel’s Avengers with a welcome addition to the team – Ms. Marvel (a.k.a. Kamala Khan).
When I learned Crystal Dynamics was developing Marvel’s Avengers, I was admittedly excited but when the news dropped about the inclusion of Kamala Khan in the game, I was absolutely thrilled.
While Kamala Khan is a relatively new addition to the Marvel Universe-only having made her comic book debut in August 2013 (Captain Marvel #14)-she has made waves in her role as Ms. Marvel. From the moment Marvel announced she would be their first Muslim character to headline a comic book and then became Marvel’s #1 digital seller with her popular monthly comic series, she has never ceased to impress.
Now the Pakistani-American teenager from Jersey City is slated to star in her own Marvel Cinematic Universe television show on Disney+, and not only is she a playable character in Marvel’s Avengers, she will serve as the game’s central protagonist.
As a long-time fan of the character, I have been deeply touched by both Marvel and the community of fans who have embraced and pushed the character’s growth as she weaves herself into the fabric of mainstream culture.
The first time I turned the pages of a Ms. Marvel comic I was equal parts shocked and enamoured. It was the first time in my life I had seen an authentic representation of myself in any medium.
For years I had been frequenting used book stores and local comic book shops with my dad. He fuelled my interest in literature with an endless supply of novels but up until that point I only had a casual interest in the Batman, Watchmen, Spider-Manand X-Men comics he would bring home.
My interest was peaked when I saw the first issue of Ms. Marvel on display in one of our local comic books shops. I didn’t know anything about the character or her story but I was drawn to the comic because she looked like me.
Reading the first issue was a singular experience for me because as I absorbed every word and every drawing, I felt understood. Especially when Kamala, who is struggling with the duality of her identity as a Muslim Pakistani-America and her desire to fit in with the kids at school, “to be normal”, says to an imaginary Captain Marvel, “I don’t know what I’m supposed to do. I don’t know who I’m supposed to be”.
When I finished the last page of that first issue a funny thought wormed its way into my head.
I am Ms. Marvel.
I understood the experience of belonging to two places, to two cultures. Of being a nerd and a writer. Of having friends from all walks of life. Of belonging to a Muslim family. Of being a young woman of colour.
I understood the desire to do good.
It was gratifying to see a character who looks like me, who despite our differences was someone in whom I could see myself. It was something I had neither realized I wanted or needed because I can and do identify with many other characters but never have I felt such kinship.
As I have continued to follow Kamala’s story through the years I have been overjoyed to accompany her on her journey as she discovers who she is, where she belongs, what she stands for, and becomes a force to be reckoned with.
While I was first drawn to Kamala because of the identifying labels we shared I have learned as I have followed her story, issue-by-issue, that Ms. Marvel’s story is universal, it is a story about confronting the labels you’ve been imposed with and defining your own identity.
As she transcends the labels assigned to her, Kamala’s story is as original as as it is a classic coming-of-age story in the Peter Parker tradition. I am now beyond thrilled to see that Marvel now considers her to be on par with the Avengers as she stands side-by-side these seasoned heroes in Marvel’s Avengers.
