An exciting new trailer revealed that the official title of Captain Marvel 2 is The Marvels, a probable reference to the three women at the heart of it: Carol Danvers, Monica Rambeau, and Kamala Khan (Ms. Marvel). All three share a powerful connection to the legacy of Captain Marvel, and many of their classic comic book stories could be the inspiration for the new movie.
All three women have significant comic book stories from the recent past and a bit farther back in the history of comics that could be adapted for the movie. Many of them could build off stories and characters already gathering steam in other upcoming movies and series in the MCU.
Secret Invasion
Secret Invasion is set to be a major MCU event on Disney+ in the near future, with Emilia Clarke possibly playing a significant character from the comics. The original comic book storyline, based on a Skrull invasion of Earth, involved Carol Danvers and could sprawl beyond the confines of the series.
Depending on when Secret Invasion lands, The Marvels could either tie directly into it or perhaps deal with the fallout of the massive and consequential invasion. Given Carol Danvers' connection to the Skrulls, it's possible she will be involved somehow.
No Normal
Kamala Khan first appeared in a cameo in Captain Marvel #17 in November 2013 and has been a major part of the Marvel Universe ever since. She's going to be the star of a major Disney+ streaming series soon, which is likely to adapt parts of her origin from the story No Normal.
Knowing Kamala Khan will appear in The Marvels, it's possible that this story could be broken up into chunks for both the movie and series. Carol Danvers plays a major role in inspiring Kamala in the comics, with the two crossing paths in the course of the original storyline.
Civil War II
Kamala and Carol's early team-ups were very positive, but things hit a sour note in Civil War II, the 2016 sequel to the epic original from 2008. It might be too soon for the two to be at odds in the movie, but given where things are going in the MCU with The Contessa, 'things are about to get weird' and anything could happen.
In the comics, Carol spearheads an initiative to use precogs to identify criminals before they act. This sets off a battle with other heroes, led by Tony Stark, who oppose this. Kamala eventually sours on Carol's ambition to apprehend people before they have actually committed crimes.
Secret Wars
Secret Wars was the first major inter-company crossover for Marvel Comics in the 1980s. During this story, all of Earth's heroes and villains are pitted against each other by The Beyonder, including Monica Rambeau, who at this time was Captain Marvel. This could be an aspect of the upcoming movie.
While it's very unlikely that all of the MCU heroes and villains appear in the movie, Monica being whisked away to outer space by a cosmic force is possible. This could also be how Kamala Khan gets involved. If the story takes any cues from the 2015 version of the story, multiple Captain Marvels from alternate realities could show up.
The Once And Future Kang
Monica Rambeau served as the leader of the Avengers through much of the 80s and during that time, faced many of its greatest villains. One of them was Kang The Conqueror, in a number of stories, including The Once And Future Kang.
With Kang appearing in Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, he could easily play a role in other movies. This story, which ran in Avengers #262-269 back in the late 80s, pitted Monica and the Avengers against Kang as he fought Immortus through space and time.
Galactic Storm
Galactic Storm was a crossover from the 90s that is mostly forgotten in the comics but could have huge implications for the movie. In this story, the Avengers intervene to prevent a war between the Kree and Shi'ar Empire. This is the type of cosmic event that could draw all these characters together.
Monica leads the diplomatic effort by going to the Kree homeworld. At this time, Carol is Binary, one of her most powerful forms, realized after she escapes the mental exile she was in thanks to Rogue from the X-Men.
Avengers Infinity Team
Avengers Infinity is another late '90s comic that could have implications for the movie. This brief mini-series brought Monica Rambeau together with a team of other Avengers including Thor and Quasar to combat cosmic threats in the Marvel universe. A version of this could be how the movie gathers the heroes.
The so-called Infinity Team, which also includes members Photon, Tigra, Moondragon, and Starfox, goes up against the Infinities, a trio of cosmic beings of unimaginable power. They were intent on aligning the energies of all universes to their liking, regardless of the consequences.
Down
Down, from Captain Marvel #7-12, includes scenes that may play some role in The Marvels. In this story, Carol Danvers and Monica Rambeau have their first real talk in years. Monica used to go by Captain Marvel, and Carol has adopted it, without talking it over with her friend first.
The scene is dramatic and funny, thanks to the fact that both women have gone by numerous superhero identities over the years (including Photon, Spectrum, and more). With their added connection in the MCU, it's sure to be an interesting moment in the movie if it gets adapted.
Last Days
Last Days is a major comic book storyline from 2014 and 2015 that spawned a number of Marvel books. The story saw the Avengers, led by Sam Wilson as Captain America, heading up a team including Monica against The Maker, an evil version of Reed Richards from the Ultimate Comics universe.
This story sees time and the universe collapse as a result of The Maker's ambitions. An evil Reed Richards might be a stretch to introduce before the heroic one, but this character plays a big role in other storylines involving The Marvels.
Eternity War
The multiverse is about to become a major aspect of the MCU it seems, which could potentially involve The Maker. He hails from Earth-1610, one of the infinite alternate universes in the greater Marvel multiverse. In Eternity War, he tries to collapse them all to restore his own.
This could potentially serve as some inspiration for the plot of The Marvels, as Monica and Carol both faced off against him as part of a group called The Ultimates. This cosmic team initially forms to try and take on the cosmic threat of Galactus.