[Spoilers beyond this point.]
Ms. Marvel #9 was a lot about the side characters that make
up her life, but this latest issue puts the spotlight squarely back on Kamala, and her
reaction to everything that’s been happening, as her senses finally catch up
with her.
Every month, I find myself wondering how G. Willow Wilson
and Adrian Aphona are going to top the opening flashback sequence from the
previous issue, and every month they blow me away. Kamala on her first day of
second grade is one of the most adorable things I’ve ever had the privilege of
reading in a comic book (keep you eyes peeled for Aphona's fun background details), and her first encounter with Bruno makes the sudden
cut to him grown up and unconscious on a hospital bed all the more devastating.
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| I can't handle the adorable. |
A more cynical person than me would call it emotional
manipulation. I was too busy sobbing to call it anything.
Her eyes finally opened to the results of the work she’s
been doing, Kamala goes off to confront “Basic Becky and the Junior Fascists,” as Bruno dubbed them in the last issue.
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| Apparently they skipped the morality lessons to spend time practicing that pose. |
Unfortunately, Captain Marvel swoops in at that moment, and,
despite everything, Kamala still doesn’t have it in her to say no to her face
as she’s asked to get back to work. She instead resolves to prove that Ulysses
can be wrong in her own way, and for that she needs help from a particular
Canadian Ninja (never before have I been so glad to see a running joke pay off
like this).
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| He's wearing crocs! With kittens on them! |
Everything’s not ok though. Bruno’s vitals begin to crash as
Kamala is visiting him again, this time as herself, and the issue ends on an
uncertain note regarding his fate. It’s also worth observing that even if he
survives, he’ll have lost the use of his dominant arm, which means the story
has already had some very real, very heartbreaking consequences.
I can’t take this, have another panel of 2nd
grade Kamala instead.
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| Winged sloth! |
This was definitely a darker issue than most, but one that
sets up the finale for this arc amazingly. While her cohorts may not have much
character, Becky herself seems to be an interesting antagonist, a darker
version of Ms. Marvel (and perhaps even more sinister than that, as it happens).
This is also the third meeting between Kamala and Carol in as many issues, and
each one has been more abrupt and stiff than the last.
Really makes you yearn
for the good old days of this:
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| She's just so happy! |
On a side note: Carol’s completely
unyielding attitude towards Kamala isn’t entirely unjustified, as explored in Captain Marvel #8.
Overall, I absolutely cannot endorse Ms. Marvel enough. Even if you aren’t reading any other comics, or
are avoiding anything related to Civil War II (not something I can blame you for), read this. It's worth it.
Aranwe Quirke is a totally real, definitely not made up name. No, you may not see the birth certificate.
