How ‘Ms. Marvel’ Is Using Misdirection to Introduce Kamala’s Actual Powers

Marvel Studios ruffled a few feathers when it revealed Ms. Marvel would not feature Kamala Khan’s polymorph powers but rather a new ability to manifest light.

Despite these changes, the show has won over fans for its devotion to Kamala’s Pakistani-American coming-of-age tale. Yet, the series continues to dodge questions about her powers, complicating the matter with magical bangles and family secrets.

Ms. Marvel Season 1 Episode 3, “Destined,” finally offered answers when Kamran’s mother Najma branded Kamala a Clan Destine, a.k.a Djinn. But the lore’s vagueness and Najma’s shifty behavior stink of misdirection. So, could the Djinn be weak pivoting, or is Ms. Marvel introducing Kamala’s actual powers?

First, let us look at the reasoning behind Ms. Marvel’s power change.

In the comics, Kamala discovers she has Inhuman abilities after exposure to the Terrigen Mist. This mist unlocks her dormant polymorph abilities, leading to her signature fist and ability to shapeshift into anyone, including Carol Danvers.

Inhumans are a race of genetically modified humans experimented on by the Kree (a blue-skinned alien race featured in Captain Marvel). As a result of these experiments, ancestors with Kree DNA become Inhumans when they are exposed to a Terrigen Mist and undergo the process of Terrigenesis, giving them superhuman abilities.

The Inhumans and their power-unlocking mist are not a new entity within the Marvel universe either. Despite a failed Inhumans series, Agents of SHIELD spent several seasons exploring these superpowered beings in-depth.

Unfortunately, when Disney scrapped Marvel’s ABC television series, the Inhumans were also erased from the narrative.

Kamala’s introduction would mark the Inhumans’ return to the Marvel Cinematic Universe (ignoring that brief, anticlimactic cameo from Black Bolt in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness), so the power change suggests Marvel isn’t serious about addressing its previous Marvel TV projects yet beyond a Daredevil reboot.

Ms. Marvel’s power change could also be a byproduct of introducing John Krasinski’s Reed Richards into the MCU during Multiverse of Madness, with the studio viewing their powers as too similar. While she and Reed share a super elasticity, Kamala’s ability to shapeshift is unique to her.

The “too similar” reasoning falls short when we consider that Marvel’s universe is full of superhero doppelgangers.

These Disney+ series have spawned three new versions of Captain America, including a gang of rogue super soldiers. Loki introduced a gaggle of trickster gods, and Natasha freed an army of Black Widow assassins from the Red Room.

So, perhaps the biggest issue for Ms. Marvel is practicality. In theory, polymorphs are cool, but CGI body elasticity has limitations and can cheapen Kamla’s stylistic lens when scaled down for television.

Even so, She-Hulk is facing similar special-effect hurdles and isn’t backing down from the challenges of adapting its larger-than-life superhero, even at the cost of quality.

Is it possible that Ms. Marvel is using the Djinn as a red-herring to reveal the true nature of Kamala’s powers and her Inhuman connections closer to the big finale?

All evidence points to yes.

This theory first surfaces on Ms. Marvel Season 1 Episode 2, “Crushed,” when Bruno reveals Kamala’s power isn’t coming from the bangle. Instead, he tells her, “It’s coming from within you. Like the bangle unlocked the superhuman part of you.”

This confirms Kamala has always possessed superhuman genes and the bangle only activated them, it doesn’t necessarily mean it unlocked her powers. Instead, the unremovable piece of jewelry looks to be suppressing them.

The light Kamala wields through the bangle seems to produce a protective barrier around her. When Kamala uses her powers, we can see brief glimpses of her stretched arm and gigantic fist encased in a layer of crystallized light.

It suggests that Kamala’s polymorphic powers are present, but the bangle creates a restrictive casing that prevents her from fully accessing those shapeshifting abilities.

For this reason, the bangle could be acting as a safety net for Kamala as she learns to control her abilities.

When Kamala’s bangle acts up, crystallized light forms in her fingers and nose, body parts that would notably stretch if she had her original powers. It could allude that her shapeshifting abilities are fighting back against the bangle.

So far it sounds like Kamala does not possess super strength or healing. But during “Crushed,” Kamala is on a rescue mission and flattened against one of her light platforms. Yet the hero is unphased by the impact, indicating that she possesses elasticity qualities.

And, Interestingly enough, Kamala describes the bangle’s powers as “an idea come to life,” hinting that Kamala is manifesting how the power appears, not the bangle. The light would mimic her desire to lean on Captain Marvel’s identity without needing to morph into Carol fully.

If the bangle is connected to Carol and the Kree, as the blue hand in “Destined” suggests, it would explain why Kamala can also see flashes of the past.

Kamala is a big player in Marvel’s framework moving forward, and her team-up with Captain Marvel in The Marvels is fast approaching.

So it does not make sense that Kamala’s “power” would be defined by a bangle. Just as Spider-Man had to be more than the suit, Kamala’s legacy cannot be tied to a piece of jewelry. Eventually, the bangle will have to come off, and Kamala will still have to possess powers.

As for the Djinn, at first glance, their powers are not that similar to Kamala’s. They lean on deadly weapons and super strength, whereas Kamala’s powers are more defensive. They claim this is because they cannot access their full powers in a different dimension, and Kamala can because she’s from Earth.

But Kamala is not related to these Clan Destine. She is related to Aisha, who is the only member of Najma’s group to wield the bangle and whose powers have yet to make an appearance.

So as of now, there is no evidence she and Kamala are Djinn beyond Najma’s unsupported narrative.

Ms. Marvel could continue pivoting away from Kamala’s comic origins to separate her from the Inhumans and Fantastic Four properties, or the series will execute what could be a game-changing twist in Kamala’s superhero evolution.

If the bangle were to break and reveal her true abilities, it would be most fitting to have this occur at the end of Ms. Marvel‘s first season, completing Kamala’s character arc.

Kamala will likely have these light abilities in her final stand during Episode 6. However, removing the bracelet would symbolize the final step in this stage of her superpowered evolution as she accepts the bangle’s burden and learns to hone her powers.

It’s the cliche teen trope the grand finale deserves as the heroine realizes the extent of her potential, stepping out from her family’s symbolic restraints and the bangle’s physical restraints.

In this context, the bangle could be a literal tool in Kamala’s evolution if it breaks, triggering Terrigenesis. Or, when the bracelet is out of commission Kamala could learn to harness its hard light as an amplifier, similar to Shang-Chi’s ten rings.

This reveal would signal a powerful narrative shift for Ms. Marvel, as the show chose to execute this first season with sleek simplicity rather than fumbling special effects, while still paying homage to Kamala’s origins. It would make for one hell of a final twist — perhaps even in a post-credit scene.

All signs point to Kamala’s polymorph powers from the comics existing in some capacity after the finale, but she won’t access them until the bangle comes off.

That removal of Kamala’s superhero crutch will inevitably come, forcing her true self to emerge. As for what form that transformation takes, we will have to wait and see.

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New episodes of Ms. Marvel stream Wednesdays on Disney+.

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