The Life of Captain Marvel #4

[lordultimus]

Comments

[coldfury]

This is probably the most blatant MCU alignment course correction since Nick Fury Jr.

Nothing outright objectionable here, but I don't feel like a biopic of the history of Carol's family is that gripping, you know? But maybe I'm jaded. If this helps solidify Carol as a thing post movie, I guess I've got no complaints.

It feels silly to hold on to Captain Mar-vell as this guy who should be central to her when he's been gone for so long.

[lordultimus]

It seems odd since most synergy that isn't aesthetic happens after the movie is released. I always thought that writers didn't know what happens in the movies until after they're released, the same as the rest of us.

[long_silence]

It'd be funny if they didn't actually know and are just guessing wildly.

And once the movie comes out they'll have to scramble wildly to change it once again

[cyberghostface]

Ever since Carol became CM she seems to be the most deliberately manufactured into becoming Marvel's 'big thing' to prepare for her eventual role in the MCU (outside of the Inhumans but we all know how that turned out once Feige gave Perlmutter the boot).

[lordultimus]

Yeah, but not retconning her origin in such a way. Typically, before the movie is released, the MCU takes elements from the comics, not vice versa. Even the Inhumans stuff was done years in advance, and they didn't change anything to match the show once it was coming out.

[mazway_75]

"Yes, honey, you're a hero because you always had this power in you. Not like Spider-Man or Daredevil or Fantastic Four or those other frauds who lucked out to get their powers by accident. Nope, you're a REAL hero now because you know it didn't happen that way!"

[rfmcdonald]

It goes back at least as far as House of M.

[katefan]

But that's like saying Peter Parker shouldn't hold on to Uncle Ben's death because it happened so long ago. This massive retcon just feels like somebody saying Carol's powers shouldn't in any way, shape or form originate from some man's involvement. Nope, the men in Carol's life are worthless alcoholics or losers, they aren't strong like her and her super Mom.

[katefan]

You just became my new hero. And I promise I won't retcon you away when a sociopolitical agenda pops up that makes your involvement in my life problematic.

[mazway_75]

"Oh and your love of space was all because of your alien genes and destined to head there not because of some silly wish of a normal Earth girl purusing a lifelong dream!"

[mazway_75]

I read as how someone thought that have Carol connected to a man in either powers or such weakened her and this is a way to fix it.

Because it's not like there's a couple of Spider-Women, a She-Hulk, a female Wolverine clone, a female Thor for a while...

[starwolf_oakley]

Someone has to say "This is Jack of Hearts origin story." BECAUSE IT IS!

[mazway_75]

Just re-read it and...

I'm sorry...

CAR-ELL?!

I can't even....

[stubbleupdate]

It's Invincible

[laughing_tree]

Ben's death was a pivotal moment in Peter's personal development. Mar-Vell is just the guy who by sheer chance accidentally gave Carol her powers.

> This massive retcon just feels like somebody saying Carol's powers shouldn't in any way, shape or form originate from some man's involvement.

I can get behind that. "It's important to the character of Carol Danvers that she gets her powers from a man" said no one ever.

[laughing_tree]

In other words: derivative character, derivative character, some more derivative characters.

Nothing wrong with derivative characters, but it's not a good look when pretty much *all* the major female characters are such while pretty much none of the male ones are. Wonder Woman wouldn't be Wonder Woman if her name was Superwoman.

[katefan]

So you're saying Mar-Vell's involvement in Carol getting her powers was much like, say, a radioactive spider biting Peter Parker or a particular chemical splashing across Matt Murdock's eyes? Sometimes the chance incident is important to the character's origin. How does flushing Carol's origin in favor of this one make her a better character? Why is eliminating chance in her origin so important?

And as far as I know you're right, nobody ever said that in regards to Carol. I don't care whether or not the original Captain Mar-Vell was a man, only that retconning Carol's origin is so unnecessary.

[katefan]

Only with fewer exploding intestines and decapitations.

[mazway_75]

Only the fourth issue, plenty of time to add some.

[katefan]

Wait, there's more to come?! To quote Darth Vader:

"Nnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!"

[kore]

Yeesh, tough room. I thought it was a lot better than most other MCU-type retcons and character fiddling (look what happened to poor Sharon in the movies).

[laughing_tree]

"So you're saying Mar-Vell's involvement in Carol getting her powers was much like, say, a radioactive spider biting Peter Parker or a particular chemical splashing across Matt Murdock's eyes?"

Actually, it's a lot like Daredevil's origin, in that the incident from the original story's been kept (the chemicals; Carol still got zapped by the Psyche-Magnetron or whatever it was called while in contact with Mar-Vell), only they've now added another layer on top of it (Stick's quasi-mystical training; this).

> How does flushing Carol's origin in favor of this one make her a better character?

It makes her origin more streamlined. It makes her less of a spin-off character.

> I don't care whether or not the original Captain Mar-Vell was a man, only that retconning Carol's origin is so unnecessary.

Whereas I don't care if a story's unnecessary. It's fiction; none of is necessary. I just care if it's harmful or not, and it isn't.

Whu...?

[laughing_tree]

Her mom says exactly fuck all about it making her a better hero.

[deh_tommy]

Well, Medusa's hair got shaved off, but I think that worked a lot better in the comics than in the show.

I really don't mind this retcon too much either, but...

[deh_tommy]

What's wrong with being a 'spin-off' character? Lots of the best characters in comics (Scott Lang, Wally West, Kyle Raynor, Kamala Kahn, the various Robins, Robbie Reyes, Wasp) and beyond (Xena, Sarah-Jane Smith, Angel, Annabel) spun off from or owed their existence to another character.

The line of thinking that this is automatically better because now she doesn't "get her powers from some man" reminds me of why Mockingbird's rape was retconned, which (weirdly enough) somehow made that moment even worse.