After giving spectacular hits, Disney+ launched last month something that immediately became the talk of the town. Yes, I'm talking about none other than the latest addition to the Marvel Universe: "Ms. Marvel".
This miniseries is the first MCU show to feature a Muslim hero. The series showcased Muslim and Pakistani cultures. The creators of the show and most of the main characters are also either from Pakistan or are of Asian/Arab descent.
Ms. Marvel's protagonist
The main character of the coming-of-age Disney+ miniseries "Ms. Marvel" – Kamala Khan – is played by a Pakistani-Canadian actress named Iman Vellani.
Born in Karachi, Pakistan in 2002 and stepped into the world of MCU through this debut project, Vellani herself is a diehard Marvel comics fan. The supporting cast included Pakistani, Indian, and American artists as well.
Plot
The plot revolves around the story of a teen girl, Kamala, who discovers her ancestries. She lives with her family in New Jersey and believes she doesn't belong to this world and her only cause of happiness lies in her obsession with imagination and Captain Marvel. It is not until when something unusual yet extraordinary happens at an event, that makes her curious about where her roots lie and for what cause she's been gifted with these superpowers.
'Ms. Marvel': reasons to watch
Though the show couldn't bag enough IMDb ratings, one would assume it’s not a good watch. But after reading many reviews and watching it myself, I can say it's one of the spectacular works of Marvel.
From portraying a different culture in its rich form without degrading any other sect to the performances and music, nothing was compromised.
The show featured some top-notch music and artists. The miniseries made Muslims feel seen by breaking stereotypes of their cultures and changing their representation in Hollywood. From the main character to all the supporting cast, they've shown all of them being vocal about their opinions and notwithstanding any racial behavior, which set this show apart from others of its kind.
The show enlightened one of the darkest moments of South Asian history, which is the Indo-Pak partition in 1947 and what struggles people of that time had to face. There was though some difference of opinions over the depiction of pre-partition times by the show.
It was also encouraging to see a massive show like "Ms. Marvel" featuring brown-skinned artists in their unfiltered looks and not instead getting white-skinned artists tanned. I can't say the series was without any flaws, but overall it exceeded expectations.
According to MCU, the journey of Ms. Marvel will not end with this series, and she will continue to appear in the sequel of the 2019 Captain Marvel “The Marvels” alongside Carol Danvers and Monica Rambeau.
