With The Marvels set to hit theaters in 2022, a new Captain Marvel comic clarifies who "The Marvels" actually consists of. The Marvels will be a sequel to 2019's Captain Marvel but promises to include much more than the titular character. Set to hit Disney+ sometime in the next few months, Ms. Marvel will introduce MCU fans to Iman Vellani's Kamala Khan. With the series wrapping up before The Marvels is released, it's a safe bet Kamala Khan will appear in the film.
Captain Marvel, set in the nineties, featured Monica Rambeau heavily at 11 years old. Having gained superpowers as an adult in the modern-day with WandaVision, she is likely to be considered one of "The Marvels" as well. The plural title, however, leaves the door open for additional characters who have held the moniker in some shape or form. Marvel comics has now ended the ambiguity in the latest arc of Kelly Thompson's consistently stellar Captain Marvel series.
The newly released Captain Marvel #33 features a powerful figure from Carol Danvers' past targeting characters who are associated with the title "Marvel". It's up to Carol to stop the villain from capturing and controlling the characters against their will. With Carol scrambling to identify and save characters who would fit the bill, readers get a clear definition of which heroes qualify as "The Marvels".
So far the label of Marvel is being given to a few notable heroes. Carol Danvers, of course, is one of "The Marvels". In the comics, she first obtains her powers through an accident involving the original Captain Marvel. She takes on the moniker Ms. Marvel and eventually takes the title of Captain Marvel in 2012.
One of the other heroes to go by Captain Marvel is Monica Rambeau, who gained her powers through exposure to extradimensional energy. Though she was Captain Marvel for a time, she later went by names such as Photon, Pulsar, and since 2013, Spectrum.
Kamala Khan, the first Muslim character to headline a Marvel comic book, is a teenage girl from Jersey City. She is an inhuman with the ability to shapeshift, stretch her limbs, and morph in size. Inspired by her hero Carol Danvers, she takes on the mantle Ms. Marvel.
The original Captain Marvel was Mar-Vell, debuting in 1967. Rather uncommon in comics, the Kree character's death in Marvel's first graphic novel The Death of Captain Marvel (1982) has remained largely permanent. In the MCU, Mar-Vell was a Kree scientist living on Earth under the pseudonym Wendy Lawson, played by Annette Bening.
Genis-Vell is the son of Mar-Vell, born after his death using his genetic material, and Elysius, an Eternal. Originally a hero, the magnitude of Genis-Vell's powers drive him mad and he eventually becomes a supervillain. He has gone by the names Captain Marvel, Legacy, and Photon.
Phyla-Vell was created through the same means as Genis-Vell, making her his younger sister. She has used the names Captain Marvel, Quasar, and Martyr. She joins the Guardians of the Galaxy and has a prominent relationship with Moondragon.
Noh-Varr has used the codenames Marvel Boy, Protector, and Captain Marvel. He is a Kree super-soldier from an alternate universe. He ends up in the primary Marvel comics universe, designated 616, when his interdimensional ship The Marvel is shot down.
With "The Marvels" clearly defined in Captain Marvel #33, fans will have to wait and see which characters make the cut and join Carol Danvers when The Marvels comes to theaters next year.