The Ending Of Ms. Marvel Episode 2 Explained
Contains spoilers for "Ms. Marvel" Season 1, Episode 2
Marvel Studios has introduced an important new cosmic hero in the Disney+ series "Ms. Marvel," starring Iman Vellani as Kamala Khan, a Jersey City high school student who suddenly develops superpowers when she receives a mysterious bangle in the mail from her grandmother. The six-episode miniseries marks an important moment for the Marvel Cinematic Universe; Kamala is one of Marvel's most popular comic book heroes in recent memory. The character is already expected to appear alongside her hero, Captain Marvel (Brie Larson), in the upcoming 2023 movie "The Marvels" — in fact, Marvel Studios executive Kevin Feige has said that "Ms. Marvel" will directly set up the "Captain Marvel" sequel (via Deadline).
Episode 2 of "Ms. Marvel" features Kamala, Bruno (Matt Lintz), and other characters contending with the fallout of the AvengerCon incident as Kamala starts to dig deeper into her family's past. The Department of Damage Control emerges to investigate and grills Zoe Zimmer (Laurel Marsden) on the unknown new superhero's identity while Kamala and Bruno test the limits of Kamala's new powers — and the fledgling superhero starts spending time with a dreamy new student at school. Kamala wants to immediately jump into using her superhero powers to help people, but understanding the limits of her own abilities — and where they stem from in the first place — stands as a priority for the MCU's newest young hero. With all that in mind, let's get into the nitty-gritty of "Ms. Marvel" Episode 2.
The Department of Damage Control is back
The mid-credits scene in "Ms. Marvel" Episode 1 teased the return of the U.S. government's Department of Damage Control (DODC), now chiefly represented by Agent Cleary (Arian Moayed), who also briefly appeared in "Spider-Man: No Way Home." Cleary and another DODC agent receive footage of the incident at AvengerCon and resolve to track down whoever is responsible.
While the MCU's DODC has been around for a long time, it's clearly grown more antagonistic in the wake of "Avengers: Endgame." Agent Cleary briefly investigates Peter Parker (Tom Holland) for his role in Mysterio's (Jake Gyllenhaal) death, but in Kamala's case, the agents take on a strikingly more sinister tone as they specifically resolve to search temples, community centers, and mosques all over the tristate area for this new enhanced individual. Cleary even suggests to Zoe Zimmer that the enhanced individual at the event actually tried to kill her; it would seem that nothing good can come from Kamala interacting with the DODC.
Clearly, tact is not in the DODC's wheelhouse; they approach Kamala with drones and a strike team at the end of Episode 2, prepared to straight-up fight rather than talk. Kamala escapes, but the brief confrontation raises a few questions about the series' primary villain so far. Why is the DODC only selectively interested in apprehending superheroes? The department is nowhere to be found in either "The Falcon and the Winter Soldier" or "Hawkeye," which both feature superheroes operating of their own accord, but it's spending time investigating teenagers in the form of Peter and now Kamala.
Kamala's extended family has some secrets to reveal
Speaking of raising questions, "Ms. Marvel" raises plenty about Kamala's extended family by Episode 2's end. In the episode, Kamala's father, Yusuf (Mohan Kapur), tells Tyesha (Travina Springer) about Muneeba's (Zenobia Shroff) family during the 1947 partition of India, in which Kamala's grandmother is said to have mysteriously found her way back to her father to make the last train as a mere toddler. Yusuf says that Kamala's grandmother said she followed a trail of stars to find her way back and that Kamala's great-grandmother also disappeared during this event.
Kamala's bangle starts glowing during this story, bringing about a vision that knocks Kamala out. When Kamala calls her grandmother, Nani declines to elaborate on the bangle beyond affirming that it belonged to her mother. Muneeba says that her grandmother brought shame to their entire family and urges Kamala to forget it, and she pointedly declares the bangle that awakens Kamala's powers junk when Kamala first discovers it; it sure seems like "Ms. Marvel" is teasing that Muneeba's family has some sort of experience with superpowered individuals.
More visions Kamala has and additional info Kamala receives during the Eid Mubarak celebration indicate that her great-grandmother must have also developed superpowers. Early in the episode, Bruno claims that it seems Kamala's bangle only unlocked powers within her rather than granted her powers — it's quite possible that superpowers run on Muneeba's side of the family. "Ms. Marvel" seems to change the origin of Kamala's powers from her comic origin story, which heavily involves the Inhumans, and the MCU version of the character's powers seems to stem directly from her Pakistani heritage instead (via Marvel).
There is more to Kamran than meets the eye too
Episode 2 of "Ms. Marvel" also fully introduces Kamran (Rish Shah), a new student at Kamala's school whom Zoe invites to her party. Kamala instantly develops a crush on Kamran, and it seems that he's also interested in her since he makes a point of getting to know Kamala throughout the episode. However, his acrobatic pool dive at the party suggests some hidden athleticism, and his just-in-time arrival in a getaway car to save Kamala from DODC agents at the episode's end suggests he already knew that Kamala was the enhanced individual at the mosque. As they drive away, Kamala realizes there's another passenger in the back seat — a woman whom Kamran introduces as his mother just before the episode ends.
While no definite familial connections have been made yet, it seems possible that Kamran and his mother are related to Kamala's mother's family. The women at the Eid Mubarak party tell Kamala that rumors suggest her long-lost great-grandmother hid a second family. In the comics, Kamran isn't related to Kamala, but he develops superpowers via the Inhumans too and turns into something of a villain, even kidnapping Kamala's brother, Aamir. Kamran could grow into a villain over the final four "Ms. Marvel" episodes, but while his motives in this episode seem a tiny bit questionable, it seems he and his mother hold some answers for Kamala ahead.
Kamala has more to learn about herself and her powers before she can be a superhero
Through two episodes of "Ms. Marvel," Kamala is eager to step into her newfound powers and live like her favorite superhero, Captain Marvel. Kamala even performs fairly well in a surprise high-stress ambush when the DODC attempts to apprehend her at the end of the episode. However, her nose randomly glows in school, and she has abrupt visions that completely knock her out in one scene. Kamala's first intentional attempt to save someone — a boy falling from a mosque tower at the Eid Mubarak celebration — is a so-so effort; she certainly prevents the boy from dying, but Kamala's still unclear understanding of her own abilities does result in him taking a hard fall onto a car.
It's evident that Kamala needs to train further and learn more about her powers before she takes on any larger-scale problems. That's not a bad thing; "Hawkeye" made Kate Bishop's low-level superhero training enticing and entertaining too. MCU fans can look to heroes who are busy traveling the Multiverse for larger-scale conflicts, and audiences already know Kamala will play a role in the sure-to-be-cosmic movie "The Marvels." Kamala being forced to reckon with the unclear range of her newfound abilities and her family's mysterious past keeps her and her friends grounded and dealing with real-world problems in addition to superpowered ones.