Welcome to our coverage of part three of Disney+’s Noor Girl Ms. Marvel:
“Destined”
Written by Freddy Syborn and A.C. Bradley & Matthew Chauncey
Directed by Meera Menon
Kamala learns about her non-human lineage from Kamran’s mother, Najma (who’s not Kamala’s great-grandmother by the way, whew), who wants her help returning to her home dimension. Kamala’s receptive, but Bruno warns her trying to open a portal could be disastrous. In the meantime, Aamir and Tyesha get married.
1. BOOM! New Origin Story
The second third of the season kicks off with a bang, establishing Kamala is descended from the Clandestines, a group of exiles from a dimension of light (called Noor, the Arabic word for light), who became known by various names in human folklore, including djinn. The Clandestines’ noor keeps them young, but they can’t use their full powers here: however, Kamala’s bangle unlocked hers. Now to be clear (because the episode depicts Kamala as growing up with stories about the evil ones), djinn can be good or bad, much like humans: they’re not all demons, some can even be Muslim.
However, is it rather on-the-nose making Marvel’s first Muslim superhero part-djinn? Sure. Is it weird Kamala’s ancestry ties into mythology, instead of aliens as well? Absolutely, but it’s a relatively grounded take on the concept that fits with the MCU’s take on Asgard, unlike the Egyptian gods in Moon Knight (and that’s not a dig at Moon Knight by the way, it was an intentionally surreal show.) Being jarring is also the point: by comparison, being an Inhuman never caused much existential dread for the comics’ Kamala, whereas this underscores the stress of the changes she’s going through as a teenager.
2. Those Look Familiar
We go back to British-occupied India in 1942, where we see Najma, the other members of her clan, and Kamala’s great-grandmother Aisha (Mehwish Hayat) excavate the noor bangle from a severed arm in a ruined temple. Two things: the temple floor bears the sigil of the Ten Rings, which might just be a cool Easter egg about the spread of their influence, or a sign of a deeper connection to Shang-Chi’s corner of the MCU, whether it’s the pocket dimension Ta Lo, or the origin of Wenwu’s rings themselves. Secondly, the arm is blue, so the bangle might still be Kree technology (it’s possible the Kree inspired the depictions of blue gods in Hindu art), meaning Kamala and Carol Danvers’s backstories would still be linked to some extent (provided that turns out to be the case.)
3. Culture, Culture
Aamir and Tyesha’s wedding was lovely to observe as an outsider to Muslim and South Asian culture, especially the Bollywood-style dance number, which looked like so much fun you wanted to join in — everyone also looked fantastic in their clothes, including Tyesha’s little brother Gabe (Jordan Preston Carter), who was wearing the Hulk outfit Kamala rejected in the first episode. I found the most impactful part though was hearing everyone say “Allahu Akbar” after the exchanging of the vows: that phrase has become synonymous with terrorists in the media, so it was incredibly sweet to hear it just being recited by Muslims wanting to praise God for such a beautiful day — this show is truly a gift.
4. Wow, the Clandestines Aren’t Playing Around
Sadly, the festivities are ruined when the Clandestines attack: golly, for a bunch of immortals, they sure are impatient. Kamala’s first fight was a fun sequence, even if it largely consisted of running and hiding, and I wish they had used a Brown Jovi version of “Livin’ on a Prayer” instead. (Hopefully we’ll hear one in the next three episodes.) The Clandestines aren’t the most powerful foes (they’re apprehended pretty easily by the DODC), but they’re especially ruthless towards our teenage hero and pals, providing Kamala with a suitably intense baptism of fire; it was a thrill to see her throw a punch with her extended fists for the first time, and to start subconsciously using her noor as body armor.
5. The Paradox of Secret Identities
A major theme in this episode is how family and community ensures we’re never truly alone: Muneeba tells her daughter that the mosque shielded her from loneliness when she immigrated to America, while Yusuf tells his son not to feel foolish for spending so much on his wedding, because he has guaranteed he will never be alone. It’s these bonds Kamala’s double life threatens to sever: it causes her to be disinterested when Nakia discloses she’s joined the mosque board, creates suspicion among the Illumin-Aunties, and leaves her parents disappointed when she’s unable to explain where she went during the evacuation of the ballroom.
Continued belowPerhaps Kamala’s secret identity was the real reason she was so eager to help the Clandestines, even though there was probably a good reason they were exiled from their dimension; and where did that lead her? They nearly killed all her loved ones because they were impatient. It just goes to show (to paraphrase Star-Lord), that sometimes the kinship you’re looking for was right there all along. In any case, now that Grandma Sana (Samina Ahmad) wants Kamala and Muneeba to come to Karachi, the secrets between mother and daughter will (hopefully) soon come to an end.
Bonus Thoughts:
– Between Scarlet Scarab’s introduction in Moon Knight, and the borrowing of Alan Davis’s ClanDestine here, it’s amazing how much Marvel are using their most obscure characters lately.
– Kamala’s co-creator Sana Amanat cameos at the wedding, in case you were wondering why the camera zoomed in on that one guest.
– Kamran seems to have a lot more endurance than Kamala, which is probably because he’s the child of a Clandestine, not a great-grandchild.
– I really love Mr. Khan and Bruno’s friendship, and based on what Muneeba said about him working long hours after moving to America, I feel it must be a display of working class solidarity: the poor lad’s work hours probably remind Yusuf of when he was young.
– I didn’t bring up Sheikh Abdullah (Laith Nakli)’s brief debut last week, so I should mention I love him, he’s so chill, and it was great hearing him say the print version of Kamala’s motto (“Good is not a thing you are, it’s a thing you do”) here.
See you all next week for episode 4: Karachi, here we come!
