Ms. Marvel: Episode 5

5. Time and Again

British Occupied India, 1942. Aisha meets the soon-to-be father of her child as she escapes with the bangle. They eventually start a family, but their lives are interrupted by the Partition as well Najma, who wants to complete their plan of using the bangle to go home. The family tries to escape but are separated at the train station. Aisha is confronted by Najma and is stabbed, while the father loses Sana in the crowd. Kamala emerges and meets Aisha, who gives her a family picture before dying from her stab wound. It is Kamala who ends up leading her grandmother back to her father, making sure that the two make it to the last train leaving India for Pakistan. As Kamala comes back from the interdimensional flashback trip, the Veil of Noor opens up and one of the Djinns approaches it but instantly dies. Najma sacrifices herself to close the veil, her powers transferring to Kamran as she is consumed by the portal’s energy. Back in Jersey, Kamran drops by Bruno’s house to ask for his help. A surveillance drone of the DODC finds him, which he blasts away with his new powers.

Aww, touching episode. I must admit that I wasn’t completely sold on the show during the first few episodes but as it progresses, it just dives deeper into history, particularly that of the Partition which I’m only stumbling upon now. Of course, this is no documentary, but enough to spark curiosity for further reading down the line should you decide to pursue it. Because history is important, not mere gossip, and chronicles the story of a nation. Lose that and you end up losing your collective identity. In this regard, Marvel must be doing something right, even though I understand why some western audiences are turned off by the prospect because obviously the storyline is not all about them. I am a bit disappointed because I thought the flashback will be tackling the story of the bangle more but we end up with a concise family history instead, which isn’t bad because that has been the battle cry of the show since it started after all. Just one plot point question: Is Kamran’s new powers his mother’s or is he going to be a host for the Noor turning him into a villain?

“Like Spyware for parents?” –Muneeba

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