The Magnificent Ms. Marvel #12 (Review)
THE MAGNIFICENT MS. MARVEL #12
Writer: Saladin Ahmed
Artist: Minkyu Jung
Color Artist: Ian Herring
Letterer: Joe Caramagna
Publisher: Marvel
Score: 7.5/10
I'm glad this arc has finally moved forward as while I love the premise because it really plays heavily off a lot of what's been established with Kamala since her first series. And because of all the setup and time we've spent with Kamala in her parents, it definitely makes the chance that her father may not survive really hit. However, I don't think this should have taken as long as it did, the side story of Hyde showing up around the hospital and Kamala's Kree suit freaking out felt a bit like padding and an excuse to get rid of the new suit.
As a fan of the Surgeon Supreme series, I did really appreciate that Strange was the one operating on the Kamala's father as this kind of story is exactly what I hope we get more of from Stange's current series. The added touch of hearing Strange's inner thoughts while going through the procedure and talking to Kamala's parents was great and I think worked really well to flesh him out a bit as an actual character rather than just a cameo.
The idea that Kamala has to weigh her options of helping her father or stopping her suit from killing someone was great and is an example of what I think works so well with this character. Kamala reminds me so much of a young Peter Parker or Miles Morales but with her own unique spin. So even though Bruno just saved her and brought her old costume to help her feel like her old self and she finds out that Strange has found a way to cure her father, the good news is short lived as she realizes her responsibilities as a hero are more important. I also really appreciate that because she couldn't immediately help her father, there are now consequences as her father has suffered some permanent damage. It's a classic super-hero/Spider-Man scenario.
The art was fantastic, I love how most artists on most of the Ms. Marvel series follow a similar style that feels a bit anime inspired and use great vibrant colors. For being such a consistently tragic series, the visual aesthetic is vibrant throughout. The figure work in action scenes in particular stands out, given Kamala's powers I think the dynamic style really works well in the brief fight scene in the middle of the issue but in the series as whole
Overall it was a solid issue with a bittersweet ending and I'm sure now the, sort of maybe romantic, relationship with Bruno will probably continue the tragic tone that Kamala's story has continued to have.