Kamala Khan has been through a lot since gaining her superpowers and taking up the mantle of Ms. Marvel the hero of Jersey City. She’s gone through love and heartbreak, made friends, made enemies, and had some epic team-ups. Now she’s back for an all-new adventure in The Magnificent Ms. Marvel #1, written by Saladin Ahmed with pencils by Minkyu Jung, inks by Juan Vlasco, coloring by Ian Herring, and lettering by VC’s Joe Caramagna.

   Kamala seems to finally have the whole superhero/secret identity balance figured out. Her friends have her back, the citizens of Jersey City love her, and she’s started a new school year. But things can’t stay perfect forever and at not only does her father figure out her secret identity, but now there’s some sort of monsters attacking the town.

   Ahmed manages to hit the ground running with the plot without losing new readers. There’s a brief explanation of how Kamala got her powers before the latest arc begins, orienting both new and old readers without bogging down the story with a total rehash of what happened in the previous series. Ahmed also begins to develop the voice he gives Kamala through her interactions with her friends like Bruno and Nakia and her parents.

   The art style feels very animated and fluid. Jung and Vlasco draw smooth, bold lines that help the characters stand out against the background. Herring’s colors pair perfectly with the linework. They’re bright and extremely saturated without being overpowering. They also help to enhance the mood of the story.

It would have been easy to imitate precisely what was done in the previous series, but the creative team appears to be building on what happened while adding their own unique spin to the story. If the first issue is anything to go by, The Magnificent Ms. Marvel is going to be a can’t miss series.

Grade: A