Kamala Khan is now an X-Man! With Orchis hot on her heels, check out how she handles her first mission in Ms. Marvel: The New Mutant #4 by Marvel Comics!
MS. MARVEL: THE NEW MUTANT #4
Writer: Iman Vellani and Sabir Pirzada
Artist: Carlos Gomez and Adam Gorham
Colorist: Erick Arciniega
Letterer: Joe Caramagna
Editor: Jordan White
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Cover Price: $3.99
Release Date: November 29th, 2023
Previously in Ms. Marvel: Kamala has gone undercover to join an Orchis-funded program at Empire State. As she donned her new X-Man costume, she received the negative perception of being a mutant. Despite that, she continues her investigation into the hidden lab at Empire State and has been placed in the crosshairs of Dr. Nitika Gaiha and Omega Sentinels. Dr. Gaiha attempted to use microscopic drones to infiltrate Kamala’s mind, but Kamala was able to rally her mental defenses to break free.
Ms. Marvel: The New Mutant #4 starts with Kamala donning her Ms. Marvel suit to fight the Stark Sentinel sent after her. She knows she can’t win but stalls for Bruno to figure out how to stop the robot. Bruno gives a passionate speech to the other students about why they should help a mutant, who is, in reality, a good person, and the intelligent students of Empire State create a fusion bomb. All Ms. Marvel would have to do is place the bomb on the Sentinel repulsors, and the bomb would go off. After she executes the plan, the explosion reveals the lab underneath the school and unintentionally destroys it. Kamala then flees before Orchis’ backup can arrive.
Kamala succeeded in her mission to find the Orchis lab, but perhaps the most significant accomplishment is that she isn’t beholden to the X-Man or mutant title. It is just a part of her, like her other titles. Still, we may wonder when her mutant power will finally activate.
The best part of Ms. Marvel: The New Mutant #4 wasn’t Kamala but Bruno. Bruno is the unsung hero of this arc, standing beside Ms. Marvel as she deals with this new mutant identity. And for a single panel, he gets his speech and saves the day. The problem is that this isn’t a Bruno comic, and Kamala doesn’t get that good of a moment. We spent the previous issues tackling her identity, and we just sort of wrapped it up in a tight bow and sent it off. I needed three or four more pages where Kamala accepted her role in the team, and I wanted to see more of a hint of her new power. I am disappointed that this is the end, but I hope we are setting up something unique for this character.
The art in this issue is very good, but I don’t see an image that sticks out. Kamala looks excellent on the page, and the Stark Sentinel is intimidating. But I didn’t see the characters used in a way that shocked or surprised me. Still, good work from the creative team for their overall consistency.
Kamala has untapped star power as a character, and I am sometimes frustrated when I don’t perceive them using her to her full potential. In Ms. Marvel: The New Mutant #4, she is on the precipice of being a fantastic story, but we don’t quite get there. Still, despite that, this is a solid 3.5 out of 5, and I’m happy to see where they take the character next.
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Ms. Marvel: The New Mutant #4
Ms. Marvel: The New Mutant #4 feels like a missed opportunity for the character, but it still manages to tell an engaging story.
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Writing7
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Art7
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Coloring7
