Warning: Contains spoilers for Ms. Marvel & Wolverine #1!
The X-Men have finally gained mutant sovereignty through the island nation of Krakoa, but Ms. Marvel shows this freedom comes with a new threat to the rest of humanity. Now belonging to a country of their own, mutantkind at large suddenly finds itself imbued with a great new power: political capital.
While Kamala Khan's relationship with the X-Men has forever been redefined after Disney+'s Ms. Marvel made Kamala a mutant, in the comics she's been a frequent ally of one mutant in particular, Wolverine. One early adventure saw Kamala and Logan team up during a time when Logan's healing factor had stopped working. Because of this, it makes sense that Ms. Marvel's new crossover comic series would see the young hero first work with Wolverine.
A preview of Ms. Marvel & Wolverine #1 by Jody Houser and Zé Carlos shows Kamala Khan track down some sort of robotic insect. As the chase follows Kamala through Central Park, Ms. Marvel & Wolverine #1 shows the drone burrowing itself into a nearby tree. Unfortunately for Ms. Marvel, the tree in question serves as a headquarters for the X-Men. Not wanting to be seen breaking into essentially a Krakoan embassy, Ms. Marvel, wearing only her clothing, tries to retrieve the droid quickly and discreetly from the fort, the tribute to Balck history in Central Park known as the Treehouse. Moments after she gets the bug, however, a voice alerts Kamala to its presence, as Rogue asks what she’s doing digging into the mutant sanctuary. Startled, Ms. Marvel yells, “Not causing an international incident! I swear!” aware that the image of her elbow-deep in the mutant consulate appears less than innocent. See the preview pages below:
Though Ms. Marvel's defense to Rogue embodies Kamala's awkwardness and wit, the semi-jokey remark about stirring up international trouble with the mutants isn't necessarily unfounded. Mutants have faced unrelenting prejudice in the Marvel universe, often fighting for their lives without support from their home countries or even superhero allies. As Emma Frost tells Tony Stark at the 2022 Hellfire Gala, mutants have a history of defending themselves alone "without so much as a wave from 'Earth's mightiest heroes.'" Now that they have their own nation-state, the group obviously has the political power to help stave off some of the bigotry to which they've become so accustomed. The Treehouse's recognition as a consulate was gained in response to an attempt to force the X-Men out of New York - an example of the group using their nation's influence to put their foot down. With mutantkind once again in poor public perception due to the X-Men's big secret immortality being exposed, Ms. Marvel, an ally to the X-Men and an Inhuman herself, understandably fears poking the bear and adding any unnecessary tension between Krakoa and the United States.
Ms. Marvel's worried reaction about causing an international incident by interfering with mutant land, while comedic in tone, paints a picture of a world learning to coexist with a new international superpower. Thankfully for her, Wolverine quickly intervenes, letting Rogue know Kamala Khan means the Krakoan citizens no harm and is an ally to the X-Men. Given that the Eternals are at war with the X-Men, it's not an unreasonable fear. When any move against the X-Men runs the risk of being viewed as a move against Krakoa itself, even fellow heroes such as Ms. Marvel have to worry about causing even more international tension - and after their decades of persecution, can she really blame them?
Ms. Marvel & Wolverine #1 by Marvel Comics hits comic book store shelves this Wednesday.