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Marvoul-ous Monday: Getting To Know Carol Danvers (a.k.a Captain Marvel) And Other Crucial Characters

Ah, 2019 is finally upon us, and with this new year, Marvel fans are hoping to receive some much-needed closure in response to the company’s stellar set of 2018 films.  Yes, Avengers: Endgame will be the prized jewel of 2019, but I really hope fans don’t view the March release of Captain Marvel as simply a placeholder for bigger and, presumably, better things to come, especially those who claim they are only into the film for the post credit scenes.  Why? Because Carol Danvers is a freaking awesome character, and, for one reason or another, most casual fans do not know much about her.

Let’s face it—as with any Marvel character—one could spend pages upon pages discussing a specific super hero, and psychoanalyzing Carol Danvers would be no exception.  Instead, I wanted to try to briefly introduce the character to build interest in the upcoming film on multiple levels.  Hopefully, after reading this brief blurb, fans will check out some graphic novels or comic books featuring our part Kree hero and newest addition to the franchise.  With a character of such grave importance (implied via Nick Fury transmission) to the MCU, I really hope the film uses Carol Danvers to headline the ever-so-hypothesized Phase Four team of Marvel super heroes, but even her usage in the current Phase Three is up in the air.  Fan theories are all over the place regarding Captain Marvel, so here are some things to consider…

Captain Marvel Origin: Oh, this is a bit complicated. To begin Carol Danvers is not the first Captain Marvel, but I would argue that she is Marvel’s most popular/recognized character to wear the suit.  In terms of Marvel comic lore, Mar-vell (thought to be played by Jude Law) was the first Captain Marvel created by Stan Lee and Gene Colan in the 1960s, so it will be interesting to see how his character is utilized in the film.  There have been copyright issues and legal disputes surrounding the character of Captain Marvel prior to Marvel’s inception of him, so there is a lot going on in terms story lines and characters. Apparently, he is similar to another famous blue- and red-wearing super hero who is from an alien race sent to protect Earth (ah, sarcasm).  Regardless of which is better or who was truly created first, Captain Marvel is consistently seen as a humanity first-type hero.  The Captain Marvel persona is often virtuous and true to equality, yet somewhat brash in response to misguided authority figures and villains alike.  Aside from Mar-vell and Danvers, there have been five other Captains over the last several decades; for example, another popular character to take on the persona would be Monica Rambeau, but I’ll save that character breakdown for a later discussion.

Background:  To focus on Carol Danvers, she began her heroic tract as Ms. Marvel, which I would associate with a side kick-like persona to Mar-vell’s Captain Marvel.  Whoa, how did a human get into contact with a Kree?  (Kree is an alien race within Marvel lore known for their intelligence and military presence in the universe.)  Well, the basic premise of her change began as she was working as an officer with the U.S. Air Force.  Here, our pilot met Dr. Walter Lawson, who is actually Mar-vell in disguise. Long story short, Mar-vell was sent to spy on Earth to see if humans were a threat, but he ultimately denounces Kree rule to help our planet and its people.  A Kree militant by the name of Yon-Rogg–who we will talk about later–attempts to take out his adversary Mar-vell, but the weapon explodes and causes injury to Carol, who has befriended Mar-vell at the military base. Mar-vell fuses his Kree blood with Carol’s DNA to save her life, and such decision results in the creation of super human abilities. Carol then took on the persona of Ms. Marvel to aid Captain Marvel in his intergalactic affairs and the protection of Earth. She even fought alongside the Avengers on a few occasions; however, Carol’s full transition into the Captain Marvel role is relatively new in terms of comic book years. To further complicate the story of Carol Danvers, there is a point when she also takes on another super hero persona by the name of Binary, but, again, that story line will have to wait.

Powers: When it comes to super powers, Captain Marvel possesses many.  In no particular order, she possesses  superhuman strength, which also aids in her agility and endurance. Second, she generates energy blasts with her hands, and she can also take in energy to create stronger blasts.  Third, Carol possesses the ability to fly in space, which can be done at light speed, and she can also breathe in space.  Additionally, her ability to move so quickly heightens her senses and reflexes. Although she does not use this specific power often, she does have the ability to control gravity and radiation to some degree to boot. Lastly, her Kree blood  makes her immune to Earthly poisons and toxins.  So, in a nutshell, she is pretty much the complete package with her god-like powers and near immortality.

Possible Film Direction: With multiple story lines and a vast array of characters, Captain Marvel can go in many different directions; however, I believe one universal concept to be true: Carol Danvers will anchor our team of new Avengers from this point forward in the MCU. With some secrecy still surrounding the film, one of the biggest questions is that of who will be opposing our title character.  There have been some “leaks” regarding characters featured in the accompanying toy line, and it looks like the previously mentioned Yon-Rogg will be making an appearance alongside known Kree extremist and later hater of the Guardians of the Galaxy Ronan the Accuser.  Yon-Rogg has had a strange run in the comics, so his assumed incorporation into the film will be somewhat mysterious.  In a nutshell, he is a jealous jerk who envies Mar-vell and wants to eliminate him and Earth at all costs. One key idea makes me believe he will be in Captain Marvel: He is credited with wiping Carol’s mind and giving her amnesia, which is often hinted in the trailers as Carol tries to remember who she is/was.  Even though the film will be a prequel of sorts in relation to our current Phase Three track, the post credit Infinity War scene and Nick Fury’s involvement makes me believe Carol Danvers will play an intricate part in more movies to come.