By now, most of us have seen the two trailers for Captain Marvel. After going through the emotional cinematic journey Avengers: Infinity War twice now, I’m just waiting to see how Marvel will bring this colossal epic to a close.
But before we get to that, here’s a lowdown on the MCU’s most powerful superhero.
The symbol on Nick Fury’s futuristic-yet-clunky pager was a minimalist version of the insignia of soon-to-arrive onscreen superhero Captain Marvel.
She’s the newest entry into the Avengers roster and possibly the most powerful superhero in the franchise yet.
In the comics, Captain Marvel’s origin story dates back to the 1960s.
Carol Danvers started her career as a CIA agent turned United States Air Force fighter pilot. And eventually, she became the security director at NASA’s headquarters in Florida.
During her tenure at NASA, she got romantically involved with her colleague, Dr. Philip Lawson, AKA Mar-Vell, a Kree superhero disguised as a human (the Kree are the same race as Ronan The Accuser, remember him from GOTG?). Using their relationship as leverage, Mar-Vell’s commanding officer and super-villain, Yon-Rogg kidnapped Danvers to lure Mar-Vell into a trap.
At the site where Danvers was kept, Rogg had set up a Kree weapon — the Psyche-Magnitron — which turns thoughts into reality. On Mar-Vell’s arrival, it exploded leaving him no option except shielding her with his own body.
During the blast, Danvers ended up absorbing a large chunk of Mar-Vell’s genetic template.
This made her the perfect amalgamation of Human and Kree DNA and she soon became one of the most powerful beings in the Marvel universe, often fighting alongside Mar-Vell.
Initially titled Ms. Marvel and later known by names such as Warbird and Binary, Danvers took on several supervillains from Earth and beyond.
After the death of Mar-Vell in later comics, Danvers herself took up the mantle of Captain Marvel.
To delve further into her origin story, you can read Ms. Marvel #1 (1977).
When it comes to superpowers, Captain Marvel is a literal force to reckon with. She possesses superhuman strength, the ability to fly, sixth sense, and the power to travel at super-speed.
She is highly durable, resistant to poisons and toxins, and she has the ability to survive in outer space. Danvers can also absorb various forms of energy and redirect it as energy blasts from her bare hands.
Apart from her otherworldly powers, Danvers is also an expert hand-to-hand combatant, espionage agent, pilot, and superior marksman.
So, if Nick Fury sent her a distress signal, we can trust our fallen Avengers shall be in good hands.
In the MCU, this super-being will be played by Oscar-winner, Brie Larson and the film will be set in the 1990s.
She will also possibly be closely linked to S.H.I.E.L.D. as the film stars Clark Gregg reprising his role as Agent Phil Coulson. Not much is known about the plot as yet, but according to IMDb, we can expect an inter-galactic battle in the film.
Now that even the uninitiated know about her colossal powers, the question about her absence in the Avengers films still remains.
While there are theories about her fighting bigger battles on other planets, a popular speculation is that she is only meant to be called when things get THIS bad.
After all, her powers are equal to nearly all the first class of Avengers combined, if not more.
She’s a good backup for Nick Fury to keep on speed-dial.
Captain Marvel, the film is slated for release in March, 2019 (only two months before the next Avengers film). So, it’s safe to say that the MCU is priming us for her epic entry into Avengers 4.
