Ms. Marvel: Crushed

June 15, 2022 7:33 AM - Season 1, Episode 2

Kamala and Bruno explore the source of her newfound powers just in time for a perilous adventure.
posted by 1970s Antihero (22 comments total)

I'm always going to cackle when my people resort to praising God when actively appreciating beauty.
posted by cendawanita at 8:38 AM on June 15, 2022 [4 favorites]

So good! Absolutely loving this so far. Highest critic reviewed Marvel show on RT too!

"Don't even try!" Ms. Marvel's Iman Vellani and Rish Shah on who's the biggest Marvel nerd
posted by ellieBOA at 8:54 AM on June 15, 2022 [4 favorites]

Another really fun episode. It's really great how Iman Vellani inhabits the role. I am really enjoying how they are nailing the vibe of the comics. They were a fun read and this is a fun watch!
posted by Fleebnork at 9:32 AM on June 15, 2022 [2 favorites]

People always talk about RDJ being the perfect Tony Stark, but I think Iman Vellani might be the most perfect casting in the MCU.
posted by Pendragon at 10:49 AM on June 15, 2022 [18 favorites]

It’s pretty hard to pick a “most perfect casting in the MCU” since they’ve been consistently hitting that particular ball out of the park from 2008 on (with Ed Norton being a notable exception). But Iman Vellani certainly doesn’t break the perfect casting streak they’re on.
posted by wabbittwax at 12:35 PM on June 15, 2022 [1 favorite]

Incredible how good this is given how much pressure it’s under. A Muslim American teen girl star in a show that doesn’t shy away from her religion or origins? Criticising Britain’s responsibility for Partition? Talking about the FBI’s surveillance of mosques? Multiple scenes in and around a mosque that aren’t scary or miserable? Talking about hijabs?!

And all without the scaffolding of prior MCU stars or storylines – AND with the most visually inventive and colourful cinematography? Give these people all the money, now!
posted by adrianhon at 3:11 PM on June 15, 2022 [37 favorites]

I’m glad that the show has continued to focus on everyday life. My favorite scenes are the interactions between Kamala and her family and friends. I loved the little details which added so much, like that it being clear that Bruno’s invited along to Eid celebrations tells the viewer that he’s basically treated as one of the family. And it’ll be fun to see where Nakia’s run for the mosque board takes her. Oh, and Tyesha is a delightful addition to the cast.

I’ll admit that I was a bit skeptical of the characterization of Kamran at first, he seems a bit too flashy for the world of the show, but his conversation with Kamala when they run into Aamir was a joy.
posted by Kattullus at 6:06 PM on June 15, 2022 [7 favorites]

There were a few references to the MCU aside from Carol; Kingo was in The Eternals (he's Kumail Nanjiani's character), and there's a "Trust a Bro" truck (from Hawkeye) in the end credits. And the agents pursuing Kamala are from the Department of Damage Control, which we've seen in Spider-Man: Homecoming and No Way Home and have apparently taken over dealing with superhumans from SHIELD. (I have a sneaking suspicion that Valentina Allegra de Fontaine--Julia Louis-Dreyfus' character from The Falcon and the Winter Soldier and the Black Widow movie--may be involved with them.) I also suspect that, because of Kamala's family history and last-minute meeting, we'll find out that her origin tracks with that of the comic version's, although I'm a bit hesitant to write it out in case a) I'm wrong or b) I'm right and that would be a spoiler.

Oh, and aside from the above geekery, I like the ep! Someone else getting the social media awards tracks, I really liked the breakdown of the mosque factions, ditto Nakia's conversation with Kamala in the bathroom. And I'm very interested to see what the deal is with Najma.
posted by Halloween Jack at 9:01 PM on June 15, 2022 [5 favorites]

I'm so wildly in love with this show. It's an outstanding, high-quality teen comedy, with a small but increasing side of superhero-ness, and it just does so well on like... everything. The acting, the energy, the comedy, the creativity. The graphics. Like, the comic had so many great little background visual gags thrown in there by the artist (I asked G Willow Wilson about this at a con and she said it was 100% the artists' doing), so while we don't get the same gags here we still get all these great little graphic gags in the background.

I think Marvel, Feige, etc. knew they had to knock this particular character and show out of the park. Kamala has been lightning in a bottle for the comics. She's the spiritual successor to Peter Parker that Marvel has been trying to create for literally decades. They knew this show had to soar, and so far, it totally does.
posted by scaryblackdeath at 11:33 PM on June 15, 2022 [13 favorites]

Yeah loving this so far. I'm a sucker for this kind of well told story, it feels, at least to me (a white cis guy) as a really authentic take on Kamala's culture and life. I loved the Illuminaunties as a name in particular, just great!

I think as others have said that Iman Vellani really nails the character of Kamala; this very lovable girl who is clearly quite flawed; she's working out a lot of things at the same time. I really enjoy the balance between the truths that, yes, her family is quite unreasonable in their expectations of her, but she is also not good at compromising with them.
posted by Cannon Fodder at 12:40 AM on June 16, 2022 [3 favorites]

I'm absolutely adoring this. Don't know where the Mosque Board elections storyline is going yet, but I feel like it's a brilliant way to demonstrate the parts of Kamala's daily/weekly routine as a Muslim woman in America for those of us (like me) who are largely unfamiliar with them, while also not exoticizing them, which is a cool needle to thread. Like, "here's the inside of a Mosque, while you will see via cubbyholes for shoes, faucets that aren't working in the Women's side, and Kamala talking back during the lecture. Here's an Eid celebration, which we will show you via the politicking, food trucks, and different cliques involved." It's so great!

Another good trick: actually making the use of superpowers have dramatic tension involved! When the kid fell and her "hand" just missed grabbing him, that was a legitimate "oh shit!" moment, which is hard to pull off in this sort of thing nowadays. Anyway, so much to love here.
posted by Navelgazer at 4:58 AM on June 16, 2022 [9 favorites]

Her powers come from inside her which means we're definitely going to have the scene where she can't get the bangle and has to believe in herself.

For all the internet drama about her powers it seems like we're going to end up in roughly the same place with the giant punching hands being hard light instead of stretchy skin. But this way they start from nothing and build instead of giving her all the powers and then taking away things that don't work (shapeshifting). Not having a giant dog is still a bummer.
posted by Gary at 3:13 PM on June 17, 2022 [3 favorites]

There are so many good conversations with family and friends in this. This might be the most real the MCU has ever been in terms of relationships. (Though the bar is pretty low, save for things like Loki and Thor.)
posted by fifteen schnitzengruben is my limit at 2:48 PM on June 19, 2022 [3 favorites]

I finally had a chance to catch up to this and I'm just in love with it. It's so charming and funny and I love all the little comicsy touches, especially how they're handling texts. I only have one complaint, and it's that they're going the jealousy route with Bruno and I loathe beyond reason jealousy stories, especially ones like this where a boy is pouty at being the friend (I swear to god, if someone says friendzoned...) and watching the girl he likes crush on a different boy. Ugh. I just hate it so, so much. I really pray they will rein that back in. It's gross, it's tired, and it's the worst cliche for a story centering a young woman.

Other than that, I agree with everything everyone is saying. I think Sarah Halley Finn is possibly the best casting director ever. I hope she is paid incredibly well.
posted by kitten kaboodle at 2:18 PM on June 20, 2022 [10 favorites]

kitten kaboodle, my guess is that there's going to be some, ah, clarification WRT Kamran and his reason for being around, which seems tied into whatever Najma's deal is. I'm hoping that Bruno doesn't just become Kamala's "mike guy" (h/t Ned Leeds) and at least gives the Caltech thing (which I guess is just a temp thing, but still, Caltech, man) some serious thought.

Also, I don't think that this has already been posted: Iman Vellani cosplaying as Ms. Marvel when she was 15, not all that long ago, of course.
posted by Halloween Jack at 5:23 PM on June 20, 2022 [5 favorites]

A clip from the upcoming episode and it is wonderful and precious.
(and has one creator cameo that I caught. going back to see if I missed one.)
posted by Mutant Lobsters from Riverhead at 5:21 PM on June 21, 2022 [1 favorite]

I'm hoping that Bruno doesn't just become Kamala's "mike guy" (h/t Ned Leeds)

Guy in the chair, if you please.
posted by ricochet biscuit at 6:34 PM on June 21, 2022 [1 favorite]

Well, who used "mike guy"? Was it one of Ant-Man's crew?
posted by Halloween Jack at 8:20 AM on June 22, 2022

And another charming reaction video (the first one was posted by 1970's Antihero) - here is episode two.
posted by Glinn at 2:21 PM on July 31, 2022

Again, utterly charming and cool.

I'm a little lost on the family relationships - how is Kamran's mom related to everyone else? Does it mean that he is indeed Kamalah's cousin?
posted by medusa at 9:56 PM on September 6, 2022

Kamran's mom, Najma, and Kamala's great-grandmother, Aisha, were both from the Noor dimension. But Najma and Aisha were never stated to be related.
However, my wife and I had the same confusion when Kamran introduced her, because Kamala had seen Najma in earlier visions. Back at that point, we hadn't seen Aisha, so we assumed the vision was of Aisha.
posted by Mutant Lobsters from Riverhead at 3:22 PM on September 7, 2022 [1 favorite]

Quick question: can teenagers actually be part of the governing body of their mosques? I mean, I imagine that's based in fact, given the background of the show creators, but it seems a little unusual
posted by Saxon Kane at 1:43 PM on December 11, 2022