Ms. Marvel No. 37 review: Kamala’s adventures in babysitting
By Alex Widen
The end of the run is Nigh! Can Ms. Marvel survive a sitcom’s plot?
Ms. Marvel No. 37
Writer: G. Willow Wilson
Artist: Nico Leon
Colorist: Ian Herring
More from Comics
- X-Men: 6 reasons why Marvel’s mutants are the best superhero team
- Harley Quinn renewed for a fifth season on Max (and it’s well-deserved)
- Marvel Comics announces seven important X-Men comic books
- The X-Men were betrayed by Captain America in Uncanny Avengers
- Spider-Man: Miles and Peter team-up for their first ongoing series
After five years, two volumes and all but redefining what “teenage superheroes” can be, G. Willow Wilson’s run on Ms. Marvel is nearing its end. There will only be one issue left, and then a fresh creative team with a new “number one” issue — the third since 2014. It is difficult to imagine the market now without the influence of this series, which helped spark the Champions relaunch as well as helped cap off the notion of more diverse superheroes being a mainstream choice. As such the next issue will be a celebratory farewell. So, where does this leave this one? The answer is nowhere major.
Image by Marvel Comics
Much like the previous issue, Wilson has chosen to close her run with simpler “slice of life” issues. At best, they are a return to a simpler time when not every comic had to scream in its solicitation about death, crossovers, and “nothing will be the same.” At worst, it may remind some readers of routine plots from classical sitcoms. The previous issue saw the cast inserted into a period piece, mostly as themselves. This one has another old sitcom script premise — the babysitting episode!
Image by Marvel Comics
Is a Crying Baby More Dangerous Than the Shocker!?
Kamala Khan’s elder brother Aamir has married Gabriel Hillman’s elder sister — making them “friends in law.” This also makes them the top choices to babysit their newborn nephew, Malik. As Kamala narrates, as difficult as being a superhero is, handling real life is often more complicated. When a restless baby starts to cry for no seeming reason, there’s no way to solve it by growing to giant size or throwing a car! The best the pair can do is flee to the “Circle Q,” the local grocery store!
Image by Marvel Comics
Bruno, as usual, is doing clerk duties at the shop. Considering how often he’s embroiled in Ms. Marvel’s adventures, it’s almost jarring to see him at his usual family “day job.” Sheikh Abdullah, the imam of the local mosque, is just getting his milk and other groceries. Yet when Kamala and Gabe bring in the sobbing Malik, the store grinds to a halt! Hot dog vendors outside and Bruno inside are at a loss as to how to handle it. Is there a doctor in the house, or even a Muppet?
Image by Marvel Comics
Thankfully, as the only mature adult within range, Sheikh Abdullah realizes that the baby is just gassy. A pat on the back and a healthy burp is all that’s needed. The imam uses the opportunity to once again muse to Kamala and her pals about the routine of every generation. It seems like every generation acts like they’re experiencing life for the first time in the universe — whether it is kissing boys or facing crying infants. It follows up on their “Red Dagger” chat after in No. 29.
Image by Marvel Comics
At Least the Sewer Water Is Clean!
All is peaceful for Jersey City — for about five minutes. Suddenly there is a series of underground explosions and a flood sweeps over the land! Kamala changes into Ms. Marvel in record time and sets out to once again save her neighborhood. Yet as the local, and weary, cop indicates, this isn’t the work of some villain like the Inventor or even Hydro-Man. The conspiracy responsible isn’t run by Hydra, but indifferent bureaucrats and crumbling infrastructure — the real enemies of America!
Image by Marvel Comics
To say this complicates the task of babysitting Malik is an understatement. While Ms. Marvel hops about trying to plug leaks with giant hands, Gabe and Bruno are determined to keep the infant safe and dry. Despite their ability to cobble together a functional raft within a panel, it isn’t long before Malik slips from their grasp. As typical in virtually any “baby escapes from their guardian during a disaster” plot, Malik finds flying through the air or crashing into rowboats hilarious!
Image by Marvel Comics
Thankfully, Kamala has one of the best supporting casts in superhero comics right now. Much as they did when she took a sabbatical during the Inventor’s return, everyone in Kamala’s life does their part to help. Naftali manages to catch Malik in his rowboat with his sister and Zoe. Harold, the plucky World War II veteran, has modified his go-cart into an amphibious craft. He manages to take the babe to higher, and drier, ground, only to run into Nakia and Michaela protecting the area.
Image by Marvel Comics
Didn’t Water Used to Mess up Her Costume? Oh, Well!
Meanwhile, Ms. Marvel realizes she’s barely even making a dent in the flooding. At the urging of the cop, she has to shut down the major water-main below the street level. Unfortunately, this means diving deep into sewer water and plunging underground through another symbol of crumbling infrastructure — a pothole the size of a bus! Kamala manages to hit the right pipe and the flood waters subside, and as a result she is totally wiped out from the strain.
Image by Marvel Comics
Yet it isn’t long when Kamala gets another reminder that “real life” can be harder than superhero life. She’s barely reunited with Malik for a second before learning that Sheikh Abdullah suffered a heart attack only minutes after leaving the Circle Q. Blaming herself for stressing him out with worries over a baby, Kamala barely even covers her costume before joining the imam in the hospital. The rest of her family is already there to comfort him, including Aamir.
Image by Marvel Comics
Thankfully, Abdullah won’t hear any concerns about his health. He repeats his mantra that life is more flexible than Kamala thinks, and that people aren’t broken so easily. Even better, he’s considering asking Aamir to fill in for him at the mosque — a dream job for a devout Muslim. The moral of the episode, er, issue, is for Kamala to learn to be as flexible inside as she is physically. No matter how bad things get, life never ends. It merely changes into another form. Just like she does!
Image by Marvel Comics
Filler, or Funner?
G. Willow Wilson, as ever, is strongest with depicting Kamala’s voice. By now she’s crafted and created the character inside and out, so that every narration panel sounds genuine. It is easy for a reader to relate to Kamala’s struggles to go through life and seem to experience everything for the “first” time regardless of whether they are eight or eighty. The humor is spot on for the most part, and Wilson always makes clever use of Kamala’s supporting cast. They’ve literally carried the book without her, albeit briefly.
Image by Marvel Comics
Yet there are two schools of thought about issues like this. One is that an issue like this may signify that it truly is time for Wilson to leave. As much heart and soul that she has invested in the book, the imaginative plot ideas for forward progress may no longer be there. The plot was a bit formulaic, with an outcome determined by page one. While Wilson is too skilled a writer to shatter everything she’s built and leave things in a corner — as many comic writers do when they end runs — a simple one-shot plot such as this doesn’t progress the overall narrative much.
Image by Marvel Comics
On the other hand, in an era where every plot is stretched to 4-6 issues and promotional teams bleat how everything is “shocking,” a done-in-one tale can be refreshing. Anytime a senior Marvel Comics editor or executive is confronted by fans at a con critical of the latest overpriced, overlong, and overblown crossover, their answer is often smug. “You want comics where nothing happens,” or words to that effect, are a common line. So getting a small yet heartwarming slice of life issue like this helps break up the “routine” of universe shattering climaxes or violent confrontations.
Image by Marvel Comics
It’s Either This, or 117 Issue Crossovers with Thanos!
In truth, few people want stories where “nothing happens.” Instead, most readers crave stories which progress the overall narrative mixed in with periods of rest. While the reliance of a sitcom style premise twice in a row is a little disappointing, Wilson executes them in fun ways and makes full use of her cast. By this stage, the manic quirkiness of Jersey City through Kamala’s eyes almost writes itself. The rafts hawking survival gear and the unfazed pigeons are hilarious.
Image by Marvel Comics
Speaking of which, this is another visual triumph by Nico Leon. The past year have seen Leon emerge as the clear regular artist for the series, and it is a shame this may be his last complete issue. The sheer amount of detail and visual humor he crams is every panel is all but on par with Adrian Alphona, Kamala’s co-creator. Just which gags are from the script and which are Leon’s is unknown, and that’s great. Ian Herring also continues his brilliant uninterrupted coloring run.
Image by Marvel Comics
Next. Kamala Is a Princess of the 13th Century in No. 36!. dark
As great a run as this is, no writer or creative team can remain on a book forever. Even Stan Lee and Jack Kirby parted ways after 100 issues of Fantastic Four. The ideal time to leave is when the audience is still willing to have more, and before they clamor for someone new. Wilson has told many great stories within this series, and crafted many unforgettable characters. Yet she has also repeated herself more than once, and is closing things off on some formulaic premises. The next issue may be the best time to take a well-deserved bow, and let Kamala flourish on her own.