Who Is Ms. Marvel? The Official Marvel Guide

Ms. Marvel has had quite a decade! Debuting back in 2013, this multi-hyphenate hero managed to not only become an important resident in the House of Ideas, but also many readers' hearts thanks to a wonderful mix of super-heroic action and real-life teen drama.

With her profile raised even higher in recent years, now's the perfect time to offer up a number of answers to questions that you might have, whether you just recently discovered the character or have been a longtime fan!

When did Ms. Marvel first appear?

Kamala Khan first appeared in CAPTAIN MARVEL (2012) #14 as a nameless person worried about their safety as the title hero fought Yon-Rogg. In CAPTAIN MARVEL (2012) #17 readers got a brief glimpse of an arm mysteriously busting out with muscle out of nowhere. Then, in ALL-NEW MARVEL NOW! POINT ONE (2014) #1, everyone got just a taste of what Ms. Marvel could do, in a tale set after the ensuing first issue of her series!

How did Ms. Marvel get her powers?

Kamala Khan, a Pakistani-American teen living with her parents and brother, comes from a long line of Inhuman-human hybrids, meaning she carries a gene that reacts to the Terrigen Mists. She was exposed when a mysterious cloud of the stuff was unleashed across the planet. Like her fellow Inhumans, a cocoon of sorts formed around the young woman and resulted in super human powers, as seen in MS. MARVEL (2014) #1.

Though it took her some time to fully explore the extent of her new abilities, Khan quickly realized that she had control over the molecules of her body, allowing her to shrink or grow as needed and morph herself into any desired shape or look, either in whole or various appendages. She learned about her Inhuman side directly from the group's queen Medusa in MS. MARVEL (2014) #9.

What is Ms. Marvel's relationship to Captain Marvel?

When Kamala first developed her powers, she unconsciously transformed to look exactly like Carol Danvers in her black costume because she had been a huge fan of the hero for so long. Khan took on the same form in MS. MARVEL (2014) #2 for her first real heroic moment. By #5, she established her own look and finally met Captain Marvel in MS. MARVEL (2014) #16-18. The timing wasn't great as Incursions threatened to destroy reality, but the two made the most of their time together before going their separate ways. Since then, the heroes have become allies, fighting the good fight together on several occasions.

Did Ms. Marvel die?

Since 2013, Ms. Marvel lead a number of her own solo series and also served time with the Avengers and the Champions, becoming a valued member of the Marvel Universe along the way. More recently she started interning at Oscorp. In this year's AMAZING SPIDER-MAN (2022) #24 she stumbled upon an odd team-up as Spider-Man worked with Norman Osborn to save Mary Jane Watson from another dimension.

That set her up for #26 when the Emissary, the villain who had been hounding the arachnid hero, showed up to make trouble in Jersey. Realizing that the Emissary sought to hunt Mary Jane, Kamala took her form and was killed by the villain, but her sacrifice gave the heroes time to stop Emissary's world-threatening plans.

Is Ms. Marvel a mutant?

As revealed in X-MEN: HELLFIRE GALA (2023) #1, the answer is indubitably yes! Ms. Marvel was as surprised as the readers to find out after being resurrected by The Five on Krakoa and given the news that she was Inhuman, human AND mutant. She was also informed that she would have no memory of her death, though she later got the details from the Web-Slinger in AMAZING SPIDER-MAN (2022) #31.

Shortly after, Ms. Marvel attended the Hellfire Gala, where both Emma Frost and Professor Xavier encouraged her to let the world know that she is a mutant. However, the event was interrupted by a catastrophic attack by the mutant-hating group Orchis that Kamala just barely escaped from.

When did Ms. Marvel join the X-Men?

As revealed in X-MEN (2021) #25, Emma Frost helped Kamala escape the Orchis attack by taking her through the old Morlock Tunnels underneath New York City. The telepath then used her powers to make Ms. Marvel forget that she had died and instead think she had just been on a school trip. Frost also changed her mind and told the young hero to keep her mutantdom a secret for the safety of the Khan family. However, Ms. Marvel could not stand the injustice that had been done to the mutants and reported for X-Men duty in the tunnels. She is currently a member of the team fighting back against Orchis.

To find out more about Kamala Khan, head on over to Marvel Unlimited and started reading all of her greatest hits!