Ms. Marvel Joined the MCU and We Have the Jewelry to Prove It!
Marvel does like to self-reference, at least more than DC. There’s never been a Captain DC, although, ironically, there was a time that DC had a Captain Marvel. Confused yet? Just wait.
As we’ve already mentioned in another blog entry, the history of superheroes named “Marvel” is complicated. Carol Danvers-who we know in the MCU as Captain Marvel, and Kamala Khan- who we know as Ms. Marvel, are two different people with two distinct superhero personas. However, there’s been a number of Captain Marvels, the first being a Fawcett Comics character with powers similar to Superman…so much so that National Comics (what we now know as DC) sued Fawcett comics. Long story short, DC eventually bought the name and rights to the character, which is the hero associated with the Shazam franchise. While we are officially licensed for DC, we don’t have any Shazam merch available, but we WILL be featuring his antihero counterpart, Black Adam, in jewelry form, in connection with the upcoming Black Adam film later this year.
The second Captain Marvel was a short-lived comic about alien android, published by the equally short-lived M.F. Enterprises. (Imagine how well that name would go these days.)
The first Captain Marvel, as published by Marvel, was originally a male character who debuted in Marvel Super-Heroes #12, in December 1967, and had his own title the next year. This version of Captain Marvel, also known as Mar-Vell, was a Kree alien who came to earth, as opposed to the MCU’s Captain Marvel who was an earthling living among the Kree, named Carol Danvers. The character of Carol Danvers first appeared in Marvel Super-Heroes #13 in March 1968 as an USAF officer with no powers until she returned as Ms. Marvel in the first issue of the comic book series of the same name in January 1977. The original story had it that her superpowers were due to an explosion causing her DNA to mix with Captain Marvel’s. Mar-vell died in Marvel Comic’s first graphic novel, appropriately titled, The Death of Captain Marvel .
Over the years, Carol used codenames such as Binary and Warbird, before taking on the name Captain Marvel in 2012, in honor of the now deceased Mar-Vell. After that, Ms. Marvel was adopted by Sharon Ventura and Karla Sofen at different points. In various comics, Carol Danver’s friend Monica Rambeau, Mar-Vell’s children Genis-Vell and Phyla-Vell, and fellow Kree Noh-Varr have all used the name “Captain Marvel,” in addition to a number of other names.
In the MCU, this is all streamlined, and Carol Danvers is shown to be the first and only Captain Marvel, and doesn’t have the other monikers. Like most of Marvel Studios’ productions, her storyline was updated to have her be a contemporary character, not someone who was an adult in the ‘60s. She first appeared in the eponymous 2019 film, and made a spectacular appearance in Avengers: Endgame.
Kamala Khan, the protagonist of the Marvel Studios show on Disney+, first appeared in Captain Marvel #13 in August 2013 before going on to star in her own self-titled comic. Much as Carol Danvers changed her name to “Captain Marvel” in honor of her predecessor. Kamala took on “Ms. Marvel” to honor Carol Danvers, who she idolizes (And while Kamala does not take the name Captain Marvel, she does dress like her!) Kamala Khan joins the ranks of many popular superhero characters with alliterative names, but stands out as the first Muslim superhero comic book star.
You can see the updated story of Kamala Khan as Ms. Marvel on Marvel Studios’ Ms. Marvel, streaming on Disney+ . (Which is why this article didn’t go too much into her story- no spoilers here!)
If you’re a fan of Captain Marvel, you can find a range of related Captain Marvel Jewelry here on our site, and we also have a growing selection of Ms. Marvel Jewelry! Currently, you can choose between two versions of her logo necklace, one larger and darker, one brighter and more colorful!
Carol and Kamala will appear on the big screen together in the 2023 film, appropriately titled, The Marvels! (Which is less officially being called Captain Marvel 2.)