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Ms. Marvel is the MCU’s newest kid on the block. Far from being wheeled off the conveyor belt, however, Marvel’s first Muslim superhero (played by Iman Vellani) leads a show packed with charm, color, and a surprising amount of heart.
Early reviews for the Disney Plus series have been quick to praise Vellani’s performance, the show’s sense of style, and a mature take on culture identity. If Ms. Marvel wasn’t on your radar before, it sure will be after a quick glance at the critical reaction to the Marvel newcomer’s solo gig. Read on below for a beat-by-beat overview of Ms. Marvel’s first reviews, with spoilers kept to a minimum.
The Verge
"Watching Ms. Marvel, you get the sense that it’s precisely the kind of project that Kevin Feige and the rest of Marvel brass always intended to populate Disney Plus with: stories that require little homework to get into and come in the midst of a character’s brand-wide multimedia roll out. It’s rare that either of the big studios putting out comic book movies manage to get their ducks lined up just so, but all of that time, care, and attention shows in Disney Plus’ Ms. Marvel."
Variety
"When combined with Ali’s breezy pilot script and Adil El Arbi, Bilall Fallah and Meera Menon’s fluid directing, the seamless integration of these visuals makes it especially easy to understand Kamala from the outside in. (Credit here should also go to the production and set designers, who create impressively textured scenes for the actors and animation alike to play with.) In fact, the closest Marvel comparison point for Ms. Marvel has to be Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, the 2018 animated film about thoughtful teen Miles Morales becoming an unlikely new Spider-Man in Brooklyn. Just as Into the Spider-Verse found innovation and joy in the bright colors and imagery of comic books, so too does Ms. Marvel in its most immediately compelling moments."
IGN - 8/10
"Ms. Marvel is another piece in the expanding MCU, but thankfully, it also shines on its own. Questions of identity and belonging are a repeat superhero theme. Still, showrunner Bisha K. Ali is not doing a paint-by-numbers origin story with a multiculturalism twist. Instead, the first episode keeps the heart of the comic book while exploring how this beloved character fits into the MCU landscape in a visually arresting and fun manner."
The Hollywood Reporter
"Vellani is all youthful verve and irresistible moxie, as believable playing the clumsy nerd slinking unnoticed through high school hallways as she is manifesting the cool, confident super-being Kamala daydreams of becoming."
TechRadar - 3.5/5
"Ms Marvel is more than just a by-the-books high school drama with a smattering of superhero content littered throughout. It's a fun, colorful, fantastical, and optimistic series that the MCU needs after the weightier feel of other recent productions. There are elements of Marvel's latest Disney Plus show that are somewhat predictable and labored; incidences that'll likely prevent it being as revered as Loki, Moon Knight, or WandaVision. Even so, Ms Marvel is a largely entertaining series that does more right than wrong."
Excited? Find out when every episode drops on Disney Plus with the Ms. Marvel release schedule. For more on the MCU's future, check out our guide to Marvel Phase 4 and new Marvel TV shows.
