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For the other Marvel Comics character called "Ms. Marvel", see She-Thing.

Ms. Marvel (Carol Danvers) is a Marvel Comics superheroine. Created by writer Roy Thomas and artist Gene Colan, she first appears in Marvel Super-Heroes #13 (March 1968).

Danvers is a retired U.S. Air Force Intelligence agent turned NASA Security Chief, and a romantic interest to the extraterrestrial hero Captain Marvel. After exposure to technology from Marvel’s Kree home world, Danvers gains superhuman strength and the ability to fly, among other abilities, and becomes Ms. Marvel.

An eponymous series in the late 1970s features Ms. Marvel, casting her as a distinctly feminist hero. After the series' short life span, the character associates with the Avengers and X-Men, although a series of personal tragedies have complicated her career. Throughout the years, she also uses the codenames Binary and Warbird.

Publication history

Carol Danvers has had two on-going series named Ms Marvel. She has also featured prominently in the Spotlight on... the Starjammers as Binary and in both the X-Men and Avengers titles.

Ms. Marvel's solo series was cancelled with #23. Marvel Super-Heroes #10-11 (1990) reprint the stories originally intended for Ms. Marvel #24-25, though much of #11 is new material. In the story for Ms. Marvel #24, Ms. Marvel battles Sabretooth in a NYC subway; and the story for Ms. Marvel #25 features a run-in with Pyro and Avalanche of the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants.

The new Ms. Marvel comic book series debuted in March 2006, and one of her first battles was a rematch with the Brood and a new enemy: the alien hunter known as Cru.

Also new to the Ms. Marvel rogues gallery is Warren Traveler, the sorcerer supreme of the House of M.

Fictional character biography

Early years

Carol Danvers, born in Boston, Massachusetts has two brothers, Steven and Joseph (Joe) Jr. Steven died in the Vietnam War. Years later, while Carol's memories were inside Rogue, she would visit his name on the Vietnam Memorial, apologizing to him for not being able to visit him recently. When Carol was a young girl, she hitchhiked to Cape Canaveral to see a shuttle launch. Her father "beat the tar out of her", but she never stopped wanting to fly. Since her father didn't want her to go to college, Carol instead joins the United States Air Force to fulfill her love of flying. She's a pilot who later becomes an Air Force intelligence operative. She serves alongside her mentor/lover Michael Rossi and encounters Wolverine, Nick Fury, and Ben Grimm during this time. She becomes a close ally and romantic interest to Captain Marvel (Mar-Vell), an alien of the Kree military who gave up his mission of conquering the Earth and instead chose to protect it.

Ms. Marvel

Carol Danvers becomes Ms. Marvel after she is subjected to the "psyche-magnitron", a device of Kree origin. The device alters her DNA to resemble that of the Kree, and in the process, she gains superhuman strength and durability, the ability to fly, the ability to instantly change to her costume and back, and a precognitive "seventh sense" that provides her with a feeling of what is immediately about to happen (for example, where a foe is about to hit her). Her first costume is based directly on Mar-Vell's second costume, a red outfit with blue mask, gloves and boots; her later, more prominently featured costume is a blue ensemble with a stylized starburst across the chest, along with a red sash around her waist.

Danvers experiences blackouts, during which she transforms into her Ms. Marvel alter-ego. Soon Danvers and Ms. Marvel learn of each other and remeld into one mind. Danvers becomes editor of Woman Magazine under J. Jonah Jameson and considers dating her psychologist, Michael Burnett. As Ms. Marvel, she fights a number of villains, including Mystique, Deathbird, M.O.D.O.K., A.I.M., and the Scorpion.

Ms. Marvel's first solo series was cancelled with issue #23. Marvel Super-Heroes #10-11 (1990) reprint the stories originally intended for Ms. Marvel #24-25. In the story for Ms. Marvel #24, Ms. Marvel battles Sabretooth in a New York City subway. The story for Ms. Marvel #25 features Pyro and Avalanche of the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants.

Avengers

Ms. Marvel joins the Avengers shortly before her solo series folded, but several months later is sidelined due to a surprise pregnancy. As shown in Avengers #200, her pregnancy progresses at an abnormal speed, and she gives birth to a son within weeks. Her son, Marcus, quickly grows to adulthood and reveals that he is from Limbo, a dimension outside of time and that he has fallen in love with Danvers. The story reveals that Marcus kidnapped Danvers during a previous mission and used mind-control devices to force her to fall in love with him. He seduced and impregnated her, transferred his essence into her womb, becoming his own son. After he makes this revelation to Danvers and the Avengers, she agrees to be his partner, and leaves the team to be with him.

Carol A. Strickland harshly criticized the Marcus storyline in an essay titled "The Rape of Ms. Marvel" that appeared in comics fanzine LOC #1 (1981). Chris Claremont, writer of the Avengers Annual #10 (the next story involving Danvers) noted in 1982 that he had read, and found himself in agreement with, Strickland's analysis.

It is later revealed that Carol's departure with Marcus occurred against her will while she was under his control. After their departure, Marcus' accelerated aging continues until he withers away to a husk. This allows Carol to appropriate his advanced technology so that she can return to Earth.

Loss of powers to Rogue

In Avengers Annual #10 (1981), Ms. Marvel loses her powers when the mutant Rogue ambushes her and steals them. Later it is revealed that Rogue's foster mother Mystique had sent Pyro and Avalanche to fight Danvers, but Danvers defeated them. Mystique murdered Dr. Michael Barnett and then read his personal medical files regarding Ms. Danvers. Mystique's partner, the precognitive mutant Destiny, warned Mystique not to pursue her vendetta against Danvers any further, but Mystique reminded Destiny of an earlier prediction that Ms. Marvel would be involved in a tragedy that would harm Rogue, and said she would not allow that to happen. Rogue overheard Mystique and decided to deal with Ms. Marvel herself.

Rogue attacks Danvers at her home in San Francisco. The fight continues longer than Rogue expects, and she permanently absorbs Danvers' abilities and memories and throws Danvers off the Golden Gate bridge. The intervention of Spider-Woman saves Danvers' life, and while Professor X helps Danvers recover her memories, he can not restore her emotional connection to them; Danvers is unable to feel the emotions she once felt for friends and family.

When re-united with the Avengers, the members of the team express sorrow over Marcus' demise: they fail to comprehend that Carol was under Marcus' power when she left the team as his companion. Carol berates the Avengers for having allowed her to leave with Marcus in the first place.

Carol would continue on without an emotional connection to her memories; her personality and memories would haunt Rogue's psyche for years.

Binary and the X-Men

Danvers stays away from the Avengers for quite some time and has a series of adventures with the X-Men.

Her adventures with the X-Men eventually culminated in the entire team’s being kidnapped to outer space by the alien race known as the Brood. The Brood perform painful medical experiments on Danvers which cause her to gain tremendous superpowers, including the ability to survive in space, the ability to manipulate cosmic energy, and superhuman strength; the source of these powers are attributed to a "white hole" – a virtually limitless source of cosmic power. Danvers becomes known as Binary; in her Binary form, her hair becomes a corona of flame and she dons a red-and-white costume with a stylized black starburst on the breast. When the X-Men choose to let the severely disturbed Rogue join their school, Danvers cuts all ties to the group and spends several years in space, often battling alongside the Starjammers.

Eventually, Carol briefly became a slave of the Shadow King and took on the appaerance of a zombie so as to attack Rogue and drain her powers. The King's eventual defeat reversed this procedure.

Warbird

Eventually, Danvers' link to the white hole is broken, and as a result, she loses her cosmic-level powers as Binary. She retains a level of superhuman strength, flight, resistance to injury, and enhanced senses comparable to those she once possessed before her battle with Rogue, as well as the power to manipulate and absorb energy. She rejoins the Avengers and changes her code name to Warbird, again donning her classic Ms. Marvel costume. She did not use the codename Ms. Marvel, because during her absence from Earth superhero work, Sharon Ventura, a member of the Fantastic Four, took that name.

Insecurity about her powers no longer being what they once were, combined with a brief restoration of the emotional ties that Rogue had drained, cause Carol to become an alcoholic. When she is unable to function in a coherent capacity, a humiliated Danvers quits the Avengers rather than be expelled. With the help of fellow alcoholic Tony Stark, Danvers curbs her drinking and stabilizes her powers. She rejoins the Avengers for a few missions but leaves again in 2003 to work for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. She works as a parole officer for the newest incarnation of the Thunderbolts.

Ms. Marvel reborn

When Quicksilver convinces his sister Scarlet Witch to create a world where mutants are the dominant species on Earth, most normal humans are viewed as second-class citizens with some exceptions. Danvers is one of these but still becomes the "greatest hero" on this Earth, going by the name "Captain Marvel". When the world reverts, Danvers retains her memories and is motivated by the realization of her potential, and she concentrates on reinvigorating her career. Danvers retakes the name Ms. Marvel and strikes out on her own, turning down an offer to join the reformed Avengers and leaving her Homeland Security job. Danvers hires a public relations firm.

Ms. Marvel joins the faction of superheroes aligned with Iron Man in enforcing the Superhuman Registration Act. She battles fellow Avenger Silverclaw. Danvers then works with Wonder Man and Arachne to train novice superheroes and hunt down anti-Registration heroes. Her first recruit is Araña. Araña is later critically injured while attempting to help Carol against Doomsday Man, as he rips off the carapace which becomes part of her body when she is in battle. Arana recovers, but her father takes out a restraining order against Carol. Arachne is revealed to be acting against the Superhuman Registration Act, which results in Carol arresting her. Carol believes she has done the right thing but is upset by the trauma the incident causes Arachne's daughter. Arachne (Julia) later escapes from custody and confronts Carol about the whereabouts of her daughter. Carol tells Julia her daughter was left at the Carpenter family home with her parents. When Julia tells her the house is empty, Carol reluctantly uses her government connections to help Julia track down her daughter, and to take her from Julia's parents, even though they have custody. Carol and Tony Stark work out an agreement for Julia to serve her time out to the government by joining the Canadian superteam Omega Flight, which Julia accepts, although she says she can never forget what Carol did to her and her daughter.

Carol vs. Carol

A week after the incident, Carol returns home to find Rogue in her apartment. Rogue informs Carol there's a problem between them, and that they're going to solve it.

The problem is the discovery of another woman in Carol's apartment, whom the Beast deduces to be an alternate-Earth Carol Danvers. The alternate Carol, named Warbird, earlier attacked Rogue.

Warbird, who has never fully recovered from her battle with her Earth's Rogue, is an embittered alcoholic. When the Avengers send out a call for assistance during the Brood's assault, she ignores it and, consequently, her Earth is destroyed. A combination of the shockwave released by the planet's destruction and her own energy absorption powers tosses Warbird across several universes before bringing her to the "real" Earth.

Upon learning of Warbird's behavior, Carol does not hide her rage and disgust, and a fight between the two ensues. During the course of the battle, Rogue intervenes; in a fit of anger Carol attacks her and breaks her ribs. Warbird tells Carol that since her world was destroyed, she has been to dozens of alternate Earths, and not only did she kill every version of Rogue she has found, she has murdered every version of Carol Danvers as well. (Each Carol would intervene on Rogue's behalf.) Infuriated, Carol defeats Warbird, who is taken into custody.

Carol later returns to the Xavier Institute to check on Rogue, and questions whether she has truly forgiven her. After the ordeal, Carol flies into space where she can unleash her rage in a place that "nobody can hear her scream."

Mighty Avengers

Carol is at a crossroads: her personal life is complicated, and her activities during the Civil War have added to the pressures she faces. She accompanies Tony Stark as he investigates an A.I.M. terrorist attack in Indianapolis that killed ninety-six people, and the two argue over the Civil War. Carol punches Tony, knowing his armor will protect him. She is surprised when he later offers her leadership of the Mighty Avengers. Carol's publicist, who had suggested the new team name to Tony in the first place, encourages her to accept the job. Carol is tempted by the chance of leading such a prominent team, but is disturbed by the number of smaller attacks that go unanswered due to bureaucratic red tape. Tony agrees to allow her access to S.H.I.E.L.D. files and personnel (Agents Locke, Baines, and Sum) in order to take out developing threats. Carol announces the Initiative (Operation: Lightning Storm) at a press conference, announcing that in their first mission, they took down the A.I.M. cell responsible for the Indianapolis attack.

Carol assumes leadership of the Mighty Avengers, despite her reluctance to work against some of her old comrades who are members of the New Avengers.

World War Hulk

Carol is listed on the Hulk's hit list.

Powers

Ms. Marvel possesses a wide array of superhuman powers. Initially, they include superhuman strength , endurance, formidable resistance to physical injury, the ability to fly, and a precognitive sense.

As Binary, she can manipulate every form of energy in the electromagnetic spectrum on a cosmic level, has vastly increased strength, and can fly at speeds exceeding light speed. After her link to the white hole from which she drew her powers is severed, she loses the bulk of her cosmic powers, but still retains her energy manipulation powers on a smaller scale. In addition to her original powers of superhuman strength, injury resistance, and flight, Ms. Marvel can absorb and manipulate any kind of energy. She can focus this energy into her others abilities like her photonic powers, explosive blasts of radiant energy, which she fires from her fingertips. These blasts are comparable in power to her fellow Avenger Iron Man's repulsor rays. By focusing her powers outward in all directions, she can surround herself with an energy aura which deflects most attacks. She also has some gravitational powers which allow her to boost her already tremendous strength by absorbing the gravitational forces around her. She also demonstrates the ability to absorb other forms of energy, such as electricity, to further magnify her strength and energy projection. As seen in Avengers (vol. 3) # 41, when augmented by enough energy, she can withstand 92 tons of pressure and strike with a similar level of force. Hank Pym theorized that probably would still not be her limit, although absorbing too much at once or being taken by surprise by an energy-based assault can overwhelm her and cause her physical pain. Absorbing magical energy is also an enigma to her, and Carol remains unsure if she can do so.

On at least one occasion, Binary forces open a Shi'ar Stargate, a feat which only Firestar and hosts of the Phoenix Force can manage.

Originally, in Avengers (vol. 3) #4, Hank McCoy, the Beast, after performing several biological tests, theorizes Ms. Marvel will never be able to access her cosmic-level powers again. However, recent events have proven this to be incorrect. It is shown in New Avengers #17 and #18 that Ms. Marvel still possesses all the abilities she had as Binary, but lacks a suitable power supply to maintain them at that level. When Ms. Marvel battles the sentient energy being The Collective, she is struck by a bolt of its energy, which causes her skin to turn fiery red, a side-effect of her cosmic powers. The flaming energy corona that manifests around her head when she uses them also appears.

Alternate versions

• An Ultimate version first appears as a high-ranking officer of S.H.I.E.L.D. in the Ultimate Secret limited series and becomes Captain Marvel's girlfriend shortly after being assigned to him as his security detail .

• In the Marvel Mangaverse series, Lt. Carol Danvers (USAF) is the sole survivor of her squad after an attack by the Hand. (Her call sign is "Warbird" in homage to her Marvel Universe identity.) In her hospital room, Carol realizes she now has superpowers, and swears revenge on those who killed her fellow flyers. After killing Elektra, she assumes the identity of Captain America and proceeds to rescue the captured heroes (Black Cat, Iron Man, Spider-Man, Spider-Woman/Mary Jane Watson, a female version of the Human Torch, and Wolverine).
• In Marvel Zombies, the Avengers were the first on the scene to the site of the crash. Ms. Marvel was one of first infected, and the one to infect Angel.
• In Exiles, an alternate version of Carol Danvers, calling herself Ms. Marvel, is forced to join Weapon X and to repair broken worlds by killing people, as seen in Exiles #38. Danvers accomplishes all tasks with ruthlessness and delight. When Hyperion joins Weapon X, Danvers becomes his lover and henchwoman. She is later killed in combat with Morph in Exiles #45 and her dead body is later returned to her homeworld of Earth-4732, as seen in Exiles #83.

• In Age Of Apocalypse, Carol Danvers works with the Human Defense League. She helps Weapon X (this reality's Wolverine) in battle with the Reavers, and ultimately sacrifices herself in an attempt to kill Donald Pierce.

Appearances in other media

Television

• There were plans for an X-Men cartoon in the mid-eighties (not to be confused with Pryde Of The X-Men, a pilot for a different series concept). Among the X-Men is a character called Lady Lightning, who basically is Carol Danvers. The cartoon was, however, rejected.

• Carol Danvers appears in the X-Men animated series in the Season 2 episode "A Rogue's Tale". Her encounter with Rogue in the flashback of the episode is similar to in the Avengers Annual, minus the involvement of Spider-Woman and the Avengers. Danvers is critically injured in the engagement and is comatose. Rogue and Danvers have a mental fight over control of Rogue's body, which Rogue wins (with a telepathic assist from Jean Grey). Danvers is not seen again, but the episode implies that she will recover. Nevertheless Binary appears with the Starjammers.

Video games

• Carol/Ms. Marvel appears in Marvel: Ultimate Alliance voiced by April Stewart. She appears as one of the playable characters. Her comic book mission is against Super-Skrull. Her powers include flight, super-strength, and the ability to shoot energy beams/blasts. Optional costumes for the character include her Binary form , Classic (her original costume), Warbird (her current suit, default when starting game), and Ventura (Sharon Ventura, most recently known as She-Thing, who went by Ms. Marvel in the 1980's).

Footnotes

1. Uncanny X-Men #246
2. Uncanny X-Men #164
3. Claremont commented upon Danvers and the events of Avengers #200 in the X-Men Companion 2, (Fantagraphics Books, 1982); quoted at http://www.carolastrickland.com/msmrape3.html
4. Avengers Annual #10 (1981)
5. Marvel Super-Heroes vol. 2 #11
6. Civil War #2
7. Fantastic Four vol. 1 #538
8. Ms Marvel vol. 2 #12
9. Ms Marvel vol. 2 #1
10. Ms. Marvel vol. 1 #9
11. Ms Marvel vol. 2 #13
12. http://comics.ign.com/articles/778/778709p1.html
13. Ultimate Extinction #1 pg. 5

External links

• Spotlight on Ms. Marvel at UncannyX-Men.net
• THIS WOMAN, THIS WARRIOR: The Carol Danvers Homepage
• Ms. Marvel entry on the Marvel Universe Character Bio Wiki
• The Rape of Ms. Marvel article for LOC #1

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