Ms. Marvel Meets Captain Marvel: Ms. Marvel #19 – August 1978
Ms. Marvel #19: "Mirror, Mirror!"
We knew it had to happen: Ms. Marvel had to meet Captain Marvel.
This issue opens differently than most. Not with Ms. Marvel, but in Texas where Kree scientists live. As they leave their home in the morning it explodes, and from the fire Ronan the Accuser steps out.
Then we switch to Carol Danvers who is in her office at “Woman” magazine about to grab another cup of coffee, when suddenly she receives a seventh-sense vision. In her vision she is on Kree-Lar in the chamber of the Supreme Intelligence who is about to kill her and tells her that it is time that she will serve the imperial Kree. Then as fast as it started the vision ends, and she is back at her office. Just when she thinks that what had happen was perhaps all a bad dream, Ronan shows up. He knows that Carol Danvers is Ms. Marvel. Good for him. He hits her so hard that she passes through two walls and cuts the elevator cords, but she recovers just in time to catch the elevator. It’s a good thing she caught it, because inside the elevator is her boss, J. Jonah Jameson with another employee. Of course, Jameson curses her endlessly even though she just saved his life. Though to be fair, his hatred of her is included inside of his hate of all superheroes, nothing special in his case. Still, Danvers knows that this incident will give her a headache to deal with later on.
It’s strange that in her mind she sometimes thinks as herself as Carol Danvers and sometimes she thinks of herself in the third person. Like she hasn't fully understood that she is one person.
Ronan tells her that the Supreme Intelligence has ordered her to come to Kree-Lar. Ms. Marvel is not planning on going without a fight and fight they do. However, Ronan is stronger, more experienced and carries a lot of sophisticated weapons. He lets her think that she is winning and then wins with ease.
Captain Marvel shows up just in time and saves Ms. Marvel. He is cosmically aware, so he immediately knew that Ronan was resurrected. Captain Marvel hits Ronan really hard repeatedly and informs him that he: “[doesn’t] know why you’ve attacked this woman -- but as of this moment, the battle is ended!”
Ronan offers a moment of cease-fire as he explains that Ms. Marvel is a danger to all of the universe. She has all the knowledge of a Kree Captain including the ability and knowledge to build some very dangerous weapons. Than maybe because he is cosmically aware or the only one in this comics with common sense, Captain Marvel recognizes that Ms. Marvel is in fact Carol Danvers. Apparently, she not only got his uniform, but also his knowledge, when the explosion that gave her powers occurred. But, Captain Marvel is too absorbed by this information and Ronan attacks him.
When Captain Marvel wakes up, he and Ms. Marvel are on Kree imperial space ship on their way to Kree-Lar.
And now comes the point where I lost my faith in Chris Claremont as a good writer.
Carol Danvers is a woman, so obviously even the Kree will simply see her as a walking womb. Great. The Supreme Intelligence views her as the future of the Kree race as she has both the advantages of the best that the Kree has to offer, through Captain Marvel, and humans. She’ll be the mother of a new race. I guess that’s a lot of babies they expect her to deliver. He intends to erase her humanity and her memories and leave an empty Kree in their place.
During that process in the machine, she remembers her past and the events that led her to this point. She remembers arguing with her father. She wanted to go to college, she has being working part time for two years, but she needs more money. But her father yells that he can send only one kid to college and it’s going to be her brother Steve. Then he tells her that she doesn’t need to go to college to find herself a good husband. He did not have high hopes of her. But our Danvers is not quitter.
When she takes a walk out to vent out her anger, she sees an advertisement calling women to join the air force in exchange for a college education. Danvers who is the first of her class, enlists the moment that she turns 18. Because her father’s opinion about women with education is not going to stop her. But we never find out what she actually studied, sounds like an important detail to me. In the army she was assigned to strategic operation where she was partnered with Colonel Michael Rossi. He later became her lover, she even had a photo of his in her penthouse before it was burned. Then she was assigned as the head of security at the Cape. That is where she meets Captain Marvel and the issue says that she was stuck in the middle of “intersteller vengeance” but we all know that that involved her making the wrong decisions because she was in love with Mar-Vell.
Now we get a different version of her origin. However, it could be different because the first time we saw it, it was through Captain Marvel’s eyes. Now we see it through her eyes. After Yon-Rogg kidnapped her, Danvers was lying under the Psyche-Magnitron and she was wishing she had the power to stand side-by-side with Captain Marvel. The machine turned her dreams to reality. It drew power of Mar-Vell nega-bands (remember those?) and rebuild her physical body. Such process takes time, to literally reshape her anatomy, so the machine gave her a suit with abilities until she will have them on her own. The end result is the perfect combination between human and Kree. Also notice that in this drawing we see her second suit, because the first one had her tummy revealed. Also, now she doesn’t need the suit anymore.
Danvers didn’t just get a Kree body, but also a Kree mind. Thus, leading to her split personality. Or so the issue claims. It still doesn’t sound like a logical explanation to me.
However, this entire trip down memory lane is done by Ronan. In the end Ms. Marvel sees Carol Danvers turning into a monster and takes her out. Ronan thinks that this has completed the process.
Mar-Vell feel bad and responsible for what is happening to Danvers. But suddenly he realizes through his cosmic awareness that nothing has changed inside of Danvers. The Supreme Intelligence’s machine has failed. Because our Ms. Marvel is now totally mentally capable, no more split personality, no more brain wash.
Mar-Vell picks a fight with Ronan in order to buy Danvers some time to recover. His plan works. Just when he is taken out of the picture, Ms. Marvel attack Ronan and defeats him. From some reason her suit got shredded in the process.
Then Ms. Marvel gets on the computer and tells the Supreme Intelligence that if he’ll ever try to do something like this again he will end up like Ronan. It’s a good threat, but I’m not sure that it is one that she can stand behind.
Then we are back on earth with just Ms. Marvel and Captain Marvel. Also, in one of the few times in her history, Ms. Marvel’s scarf is actually useful, as sling for her injured arm in this case.
Ms. Marvel tells Captain Marvel that all of her life she has fought to be her own woman. She never wanted to be a copy of anyone. But she admits that she is a female copy of him, just with a human mind. So, I guess there is a small difference.
Then it says “oh, tell give us a kiss, for old time’s sake.” I don’t know who the speaker is, because even though it looks like Danvers, the “us” makes no sense. But, they didn’t kiss that much in their past, or had a relationship in Captain Marvel comics so it’s an odd choice. The issue ends with them deciding to stay friends and Danvers invites him to breakfast on her.
I am torn about this issue. On the positive side, we get a much more comprehensive look into Danvers’ history. Her problems with her old-fashioned father and her decision to join the army. Her back story is amazing and inspiring. And on the other hand, there is the horrible walking womb plot. Of course, the Kree will see her as nothing, but a walking womb. It’s not her worse plot, but it opens the door for it. And why did she have to kiss Captain Marvel, her male copy, according to her. I have no conclusion about this issue. I will leave you to make your own.
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