Written by G. Willow Wilson
Art by Elmo Bondoc
Colors by Ian Herring
Published by Marvel Comics
This month, Ms. Marvel ships twice, and issue number twelve comes as a Valentine’s Day special where Jersey City’s latest and greatest superhero must contend with the mischievous Loki. While not the most perfect of issues and all around skippable, it’s a humorous romp for Kamala Khan and what is hands down one of the strangest team ups in recent memory.
The story begins when Loki, Agent of Asgard, is sent by his All-Parents down to a pocket of Midgard often overlooked by the gods, New Jersey. The Inventor’s machinations have drawn their attention, and they ask the problem child of all the ten realms to seek out any remaining followers in Kamala’s high school. What follows are misunderstandings, ill-fated romances, and magic trickery aplenty. While the issue is all fun and games, the real problem is that thematically the story is all over the place and lacks any central focus. The entire first half of the issue is Loki simply being amused by the goings on at Kamala’s hangout spot, the Circle Q, and sometimes interfering for a bit of fun. Ms. Marvel is oddly passive in her own series, to the point where she only shows up in costume for the last seven pages. The theme of love is barely present and save for an ongoing subplot with supporting cast character Bruno, this issue could have taken place anywhere with a school dance. There’s not even a character arc for any of the interested parties, save for maybe Bruno, save for some back-and-forth between Kamala and Loki at the end, symbolizing respect for each other. One would say it’s a slice-of-life issue, but even then, most series in that genre have an arc.
This issue, Elmo Bondoc takes up the role of fill in artist. He does an admirable job, perfectly capturing the characters while giving them a look all his own. Bondoc has a particularly talent for drawing Loki as the most self-satisfied immortal in the room with a face you can’t help but feel compelled to sneer at. In fact, what highlights this issue is Loki Laufeyson’s great body language. Bondoc draws him in such a manner that can make almost anyone like him, be when he skips on out the door or casually waves “hello.” Everything from the slightly run-down look of Jersey City to Ms. Marvel’s shape shifting are held intact, throwing in some good looking magic to boot. It helps that this issue is done by regular colorist Ian Herring who helps the book match with previous installments.
Though this does happen to be the first issue of Ms. Marvel that honestly feels like fluff, it’s harmless fluff. It doesn’t interfere with Ms. Marvel’s production schedule, it doesn’t have any foul moments, and the story carries on at a decent pace. It’s quite inconsequential is the point. One can flat out skip this issue but it does have some genuinely funny moments and good characterization. Thematically, it feels empty. Nothing happens that truly required its existence. It’s something worth having for the long-term fan, maybe some plot points from this will be brought up again on a later note, and the art is fun. There is no reason to rush out and buy this issue, but if one’s a fan there’s nothing wrong with picking it up.