Tags
Avengers, generational stereotype rant, Inhumans, Ms Marvel, When is there going to be a Black Widow movie?
I read and very much enjoyed Ms Marvel, Volume One, No Normal earlier this year so I was really looking forward to volume two, Generation Why. And I wasn’t disappointed!
What I love about Kamala and the whole Ms Marvel thing is that she is not a white, blonde super-babe with curves and cleavage. And more than any other superhero comic, this one is real in a way they others often aren’t. Kamala struggles to figure out who she is and what kind of person she wants to be. She has to find a balance between being a good daughter, a good Muslim, a good student, a good friend and a superhero. She has a friend who knows about her abilities but she keeps it a secret from everyone else. And since she doesn’t want to put her friend in danger, she thinks she has to do the superhero stuff by herself.
In volume two Kamala learns an important lesson, that you need allies and most of all, sometimes you need help. Wolverine from X-Men shows up and there is some giggle worthy fan girl moments when Kamala tries not to squee but utterly fails. We also learn a little about the green mist that gave Kamala her abilities and I know just enough about the Marvel Universe (Agents of Shield! Avengers movies!) to have enjoyed a shiver of recognition.
Kamala is also being watched over, and even rescued, by the mysterious Medusa, ruler of New Attilan and Queen of the Inhumans. Medusa sends a gigantic teleporting dog named Lockjaw to keep an eye on Kamala and be her companion. Lockjaw is the best sidekick ever!
Along with her do-gooding, Kamala also offers up a healthy dose of inspiration and encouragement. In this story problem teens are being kidnapped and used as a power source for the evil villain’s killer robots. The “worthless” teens have all been convinced that being used as a power source will allow them to do something good instead of being parasites. Kamala of course sees things differently. She needs their help to defeat the villain and convinces them that they should not give up on themselves or their generation.
What is it with adults telling teens that their generation is no good? When I was your age, blah blah blah. They are only kids! How can anyone know what they will do when they are older? As a member of Gen X I recall hearing over and over how my generation was nothing but a bunch of cynical, do-nothing, slackers. Barack and Michelle Obama are in the gray area between generations but I’m claiming them for X. Same with Mark Zuckerberg. Google co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin are definitely Gen X. So is Angelina Jolie. No one would dream of calling any of them slackers.
Ok, veering back on course now.
Ms Marvel is a wonderful comic series and I wish comics were like this when I was a kid. I would have gobbled them up for sure. The nice thing is though that even not being a kid anymore, I can still enjoy them. And if you are looking to try an entertaining, well-written and empowering comic, you really can’t go wrong with Ms Marvel.
Generation Why! I love it. This sounds really excellent Stefanie. I wonder if my son would like it. His birthday is coming up and he’s always been into comics and graphic novels.
As for generation bashing, yes, I totally agree. It’s always gone on and speaks of not understanding change, really.
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whisperinggums, it would make a great birthday present 😉
As for generation bashing, I am determined to not be one of those old grumpy people who do nothing but complain about younger generations!
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Good for you, me too.
As for the book, I think I will get it for a gift.
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I love how Ms. Marvel is so very different from the traditional super heroes!
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cirtnecce, I love that too!
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I’ve been drooling over the Kamala Khan comics from afar, my library doesn’t have them and neither does Scribd. I think I’ll have to splurge!
Ehhh the generation thing, such a stupid tactic of dividing us. The young ones are apparently always doomed, yikes!
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Bina, what a shame your library doesn’t have Ms Marvel. If you decide to splurge I hope you enjoy them! Yup, the young are always doomed because the older generations always have everything figured out and have solved all the world’s problems, right? 😉
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http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2014/11/wonder-womans-kinky-feminist-roots/380788/
Aha! But the best female super hero ever was neither blonde, nor a babe, nor necessarily white! When first created, Wonder Woman was a dark-haired feminist living in the Amazon. I’ve attached a link to an absolutely fascinating story about her creator(s) and her creation. Later on she morphed into something else, but she began life far differently than we think of today. I hope the link works. I really don’t know how to do it very well. But it was in The Atlantic Magazine and perhaps you can find it some other way.
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Grad, ah, Wonder Woman has changed quite a lot since her creation then! It is unfortunate. Perhaps she will eventually morph back to something closer to the original? Thanks for the article link! It tempts me to read the book about it!
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As a child I devoured every superhero comic that I could get my hands on. I would be waiting at the newsagents every day just to see if he had had a new delivery. Somehow I have stopped reading them. Your post makes me realise yet again what a loss that is. I hope Ms marvel is available in the UK. I shall have to do some investigating.
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Alex, ah, well then I think you would really like Ms Marvel! I hope you can find it in the UK!
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It is super important to me that I not ever, ever become the kind of adult who gets all scoldy at the younger generation. My generation of millennials (I think that’s what I am? I dunno, I don’t get the delineations) is constantly being scolded at for living at a time when the economy is bad and it just is not our fault. Also I am totally financially independent so there thinkpieces. :p
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Jenny, heh, I know, don’t you love it for being blamed for things you can’t control? I make it a point to not be scoldy to younger generations too. At the moment I am having a hard time not being angry at older generations, particularly the Baby Boomers!
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I read and enjoyed the first one in this series – I’ll try to get this after my Triple Dog Dare TBR challenge is up in April!
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Laila, if you liked the first one you will definitely like this one! Something to look forward to come April 🙂
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