Ms. Marvel: Mutant Menace #3: Old Flames

Love is in the air as Red Dagger returns to Jersey City, in hopes of getting answers from a newly resurrected Kamala Kahn. Ms. Marvel Mutant Menace #3 (written by Iman Vellani and Sabir Pirzada with art by Scott Godlewski and Erick Arciniega) is a special romantic zombie issue that centers Ms. Marvel and Red Dagger trying to figure out where their relationship is at. Their romantic moment is abruptly interrupted by a zombified team of X-Men, created by Dr. Nikita Gaiha. To make matters worse, Kamala’s strange body spasms are still causing problems with her powers. Is the spark between Ms. Marvel and Red Dagger strong enough to burn the X-Men zombies?

The writing in this issue is impeccable and really leans into the romance aspect. Iman Vellani and Sabir Pirzada had me kicking my feet in the air reading the dialogue between Red Dagger and Kamala Khan. I felt like Kamala reading fanfiction. This issue is really romantic and really fun, with twist and turns around every corner. I also feel like Kamala’s Muslim culture really shines in this issue. I can’t speak to how accurate this representation is, but it is overall beautiful to see the writers illustrate her culture on the page. It’s also so great to see so many characters of color in one issue, whereas in most comics you’re lucky if you get one character of color. Vellani and Pirzada are doing amazing work for Muslim representation at Marvel, and I hope Marvel allows them to continue writing beyond this mini-series. If I had one complaint about this mini-series it would be that it only loosely ties into the overarching Fall of X event. I wish the idea of Ms. Marvel running around town fighting Orchis was used more in this series. I also wish we got to see more of Kamala in the underground X-Men tunnels. Nonetheless, this series is a fun ride that adds some much-needed lightheartedness to the Fall of X event.

The art in this issue is nothing less than magnificent. This issue is full of splash pages and panels that parallel the fun of Kamala Khan’s character and stories. Artist Scott Godlewski is able to strike the perfect balance of creating teenage characters that feel age-appropriate, but not too child-ish. The beautiful panels and splash pages are enhanced by imaginative colors by Erick Arciniega. The clever use of zombie Cyclops’ eye blasts during the relationship talk between Red Dagger and Ms. Marvel exemplifies the romance in this issue and creates a stunning backdrop.

The entire creative team behind this mini-series has made Ms. Marvel’s transition as a mutant more palatable to comic readers. I feel safe in these creator’s hands and have enjoyed the way they have progressed Kamala’s character throughout her several mini-series.