Give the Girl a Big Hand

Ms. Marvel #2

Kamala Khan has just gotten a lungful of the Terrigen Mists, and it appears she had a trace of Inhuman ancestry, because she’s ended up with weird shapeshifting powers. In fact, she spends a decent chunk of the story looking a lot like a blonde white girl, because she’s obsessed with Carol Danvers and Captain Marvel. She manages finally figure out how her powers work, and she even saves a classmate when she falls in the river, but she soon finds superheroism is a mixed bag — she doesn’t like all the attention, she’s not a fan of the skimpy costume she manifests, and the whole thing is a bit overwhelming. She makes her way back home — but learns that she wasn’t actually very sneaky, and her parents are not happy with her for sneaking out.

Verdict: Thumbs up. Loved this one so very much. Kamala’s powers are seriously weird — like Plastic Man with a much more solid and less cartoony body. I’ve heard some folks worry that the art style is going to look weird, but it’s working out really well — seems like she spends a quarter of the issue with an absurdly giant hand, and it’s weird and hilarious and kinda awesome. It’s also a lot of fun to be inside Kamala’s head while she tries to figure out her new powers, and the brief visit we get to make with her family shows that they’re even more awesome that we thought they were last issue. You’re reading this, right? Come on, we’re just two issues in — go pick it up!

Daredevil #1

Another unnecessary number-one issue, mostly because Marvel is kinda absurd with this stuff. No one wants this crap, Marvel — stop trying to pretend it’s important.

Obviously, though, the story here isn’t at all bad, because it’s Mark Waid and Chris Samnee working on Daredevil again. Matt Murdock is living in San Francisco now, working closely with the cops as he uses his superhuman senses to track down kidnappers. But his big problem is that San Francisco isn’t New York City — Matt had the Big Apple memorized, but Frisco is mostly new territory for him. He doesn’t know where the best places are for superhero acrobatics, so he has his sorta ex-girlfriend Kirsten McDuffie yelling directions and instructions to him over an earpiece. He’s trying to rescue a kidnapped little girl, while her kidnappers chase him in rocketcars. And then he realizes that the kid is ticking — the kidnappers have implanted a bomb inside her! Why would anyone put a bomb inside a little girl? And can Daredevil save her in time? And where the hell is Foggy Nelson?

Verdict: Thumbs up. If you enjoyed the previous Daredevil series, it’s clear that you’ll enjoy this one, too. It’s weird to see Daredevil outside of New York, but this is obviously going to be a nice new challenge to keep the series fresh. Loved Matt’s sensory investigation, the extended chase sequence, the fantastic suspense when Matt discovers the bomb — and the entirely unexpected cliffhanger, which definitely makes you yearn for the next issue.