2017 Geek-A-Long: Ms. Marvel

It’s easy for legacy heroes to be younger, hipper copies of their older counterparts. Think The Flash. They inherit or adopt the name and attributes of the original. Usually they’re family somehow. It almost never happens that a legacy hero has entirely different powers, and it’s rare form them to not already be an established side character like Wally West. And it’s even more rare that any hero be given an origin that involves protecting New Jersey. This is only a part of what makes Ms. Marvel so awesome.

Kamala Khan is a young pakistani-American girl, who is respectful of her Muslim heritage and is a huge fan of Captain Marvel. When she is transformed into an inhuman, she thinks of Captain Marvel and suddenly develops a costume that pays homage to her. She also has the power to change the shape of her body, kind of like Mr. Fantastic. She takes the name Ms. Marvel, Captain Marvel’s old name, and sets out to protect the streets of Jersey City.

Side Note: I’m referring to Captain Marvel the female Marvel superhero, not DC’s Captain Marvel,
who commonly goes by Shazam now. Confused? You can find a break down of Marvel and DC’s battle over the name HERE.

Every now and then, Marvel tries to recreate the magic of Spiderman. They want a teen hero with new powers and a sense of humor that they can throw into dangerous situations as well as the pit of villainy that is high school. Most of the time it fails, but with Ms. Marvel it worked. She was unique and interesting and readers connected with her immediately. The fact that she is Muslim has become an issue in the real world as well. Some people have said she was Marvel appealing to political correctness, but Kamala Khan is not a stereotype. She has been a source of inspiration in comics and in real life. Her image was used to ‘deface’ anti-muslim ads that ran on some San Francisco buses.

“Help us win the hard way — the right way — not with hate, not with retribution, but with wisdom and hope. Help us become champions.” – Ms. Marvel, Champions Vol. 2

Kamala Kahn was part of the wave of superheroes that appealed to younger girls and has found a significant place in the Marvel Universe. She has stood alongside her heroes and stood up to them when she believed they were wrong. Kamala Kahn is one legacy hero that shows every sign of sticking around. You can start reading the Ms. Marvel comics with functionally no prior knowledge of other Marvel Comics, and I highly suggest you do. She’s my number two superhero right now, with Squirrel Girl being number one.

Whether you’re knitting, crocheting, or cross stitching this square, you can download the Ms. Marvel pattern here. Instructions and charts for both knit and crochet are listed in the pattern. When you’re finished making it, don’t forget to Instagram your squares at us @lattesandllamasyarn with the hashtag #geekalong!

If you’re having trouble with double-sided knitting, we have a how-to video here and a tutorial on crochet here. Want to hang out with other people making the blanket? You can find moral support in the Geek-A-Long group on Ravelry here.

~ Jac
Kamala: You’re WOLVERINE! My Wolverine-and-Storm-in-space fanfic was the third-most upvoted story on Freaking Awesome last month!

Logan: This is the worst day of my life.

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