Written by G. Willow Wilson

Art by Diego Olortegui

Colours by Ian Herring

Letters by VC’s Joe Caramagna

Marvel Comics

Release Date: November 8, 2017

Cover Price: $3.99

Review by Anthony Guia

We get a conclusion to this 2 issue arc, before our New Jersey friendly neighbourhood hero joins Marvel on it’s Legacy run, and it takes our titular hero on a Train ride to self re-evaluation. What does this mean? Read on and find out.

Main Plot (SPOILERS BELOW!)

This issue begins right where the last ended - two trains headed for a collision course inside a dark tunnel. One train is filled with passengers heading straight into the slow moving train with our hero (and Red Dagger). Ms. Marvel gives us an inner monologue of how our biggest tests in life happen when we have only seconds to react, whether they are great heroic ones or dumb ideas. She “embiggens” herself and - in Hulk-style fashion - lifts the slower train to another set of train tracks to avoid the potential disaster.

Ms. Marvel and Red Dagger have a hilarious conversation about how Ms. Marvel is an adjective-less hero when she is called “amazing, incredible, and astonishing”. They follow up on the safety of the train conductor who responds like a child on laughing gas from a video that we have all seen on YouTube.

Red Dagger suggests that they really need to begin looking for a solution to this runaway train problem and notices our hero just looks completely defeated. Defeated in a sense that she is exhausted from being an everyday hero and there are just some battles she has to fight, but can’t and others that she doesn’t want to, but has to. It's a little weird that she comes to this realization during this slow train ride, but sure I'll go with it. He suggests that she should stop and take care of herself, but she comes back to ask who will take her place instead? This is a definite foreshadowing of what is to come for the beginning of her Legacy run. The two continue to have a moment and Red Dagger compares New Jersey and Karachi (his home city in Pakistan) to being held by “magic”. Before the two get a chance to enjoy their own “magic”, they are reminded that they still need to stop this runaway train safely.

The train conductor reminds Ms. Marvel that they are on live television with another hilarious panel of a shot caught by the news team of herself (in one of those candid unflattering shots) and Red Dagger (who is always perfectly photogenic). The conductor shows her a map of where they currently are and how all the tracks either old or new are on the map. Our hero comes up with a solution to use good ol’ gravity to their aid by transferring the train to old tracks that are unused and located on a huge hill to slow it down enough to come to a stop safely.

She moves on ahead at a track junction and “embiggens” her hands to use brute strength to manually adjust the current rails to the older ones. With success she jumps back onto the train and tells Red Dagger it was “easy peasy” and he comments at how she could secretly be the Hulk. Her hysterical response to that was she isn’t, but he is a friend from work (catch the Thor: Ragnarok reference? Ha!). Their temporary victory is quickly short-lived when gravity (and potentially the type of tracks the rails are made of) are working against them and our slow runaway train becomes a deadlier, fast moving runaway train.

Now, the danger of the trains current speed may potentially be used against them when they reach the large hill, where they hoped would slow the train down. Ms. Marvel has to think quickly and she recalls a quote from her father about how whenever “you make a decision, you’re responsible for the outcome, even if unexpected forces intervene”. This brings back my favourite theme of what makes Ms. Marvel similar to early Amazing Spider-Man - responsibility.

Our hero quickly makes her way to the last train and “embiggens” herself to hang on and slow the train itself from behind. Red Dagger feels she needs help and heads down to give her a hand. The train begins to hit the main steep hill they’ve been aiming for and with her grabbing on from behind, it works, however the last train she's holding onto breaks itself from the rest and completely flips itself over. Red Dagger jumps out and saves her from imminent danger.

We conclude the issue with the media reporters all over Red Dagger, while Ms. Marvel has been pushed to the side. She walks away from the crowd and contemplates that it may be time for her to switch focus and take care of the girl behind the mask.

Art

There is honestly no negatives for me with Olortegui’s art and Herring’s colours. Just more beautiful art to page through in this issue. We’ll be switching back to Nico Leon (who is also great) for Legacy, but I’ll be glad to welcome Olortegui’s pencils anytime to fill in.

Bits and Pieces

This was a quick read with some hilarious dialogue and I thoroughly enjoyed this issue. There wasn’t any forced romance with Red Dagger, just self re-evaluation for Kamala’s character. As a filler arc, I didn’t love it or hate it as a whole. In the way she stopped the train, she could have done it when it was only going at a snail’s pace, but we wouldn’t get to see her make a decision and be responsible for it and I liked that aspect of her character, so I’ll overlook that. I’m looking forward to seeing our hero put away the costume and focus on being Kamala Khan for Legacy.