Ms. Marvel - Vol.3 #8
A new four-part arc kicked off with ‘Generation Why’ and I couldn’t be happier: This issue saw the return of artist Adrian Alphona!
The look I came to love isn’t the only thing back. Issue eight also puts Kamala back into familiar territory where I believe her character really shines: her South Jersey neighborhood. She’s trying to locate the two kids The Inventor had at his hideout, and she enlists Bruno’s help in finding out what happened to Julie - the girl she and Wolverine rescued from the sewer. How did she end up a power source for one of The Inventor’s machines when she was supposed to be on her way to the Jean Grey School? Unfortunately, Julie’s in a coma so they can’t ask her directly.
After finding one of Julie’s social media accounts, Bruno and Kamala figure out that she posted about some kind of “side-trip” on her way to the school, and the geo-tag reveals it’s in a remote location outside of Bayonne. Fortunately for Kamala, the new (and ginormous) dog she found on the street, Lockjaw, came with the power of teleportation.
After defeating yet another of The Inventor’s machines, Kamala discovers the power source was one of the teens she encountered the first time she tried to rescue Vick. It’s not the only thing she finds. She manages to swipe a piece of tech that turns out to be a tracking beacon and one of The Inventor’s machines tracks her down at school. After a massive attack, Kamala finds her powers are failing.
It was great to see Kamala embracing her role as the neighborhood defender, trying to locate the missing teens and what happened to Julie. I also seeing her family again who are woefully underused in the series. Kamala is an extremely relatable character and that’s never more evident than when she’s trying to balance her secret identity with her strict (but adorable) parents and school. Bruno’s own struggles with feeling inadequate next to Kamala’s heroics are a nice touch and I hope to see more of him in this arc. If they keep up this kind of storytelling and beautiful images, this may be my favorite arc of the series to date.
