A review by missnerdinatrix
Ms. Marvel, Vol. 1: No Normal by G. Willow Wilson

2.0

Concept wise it was good. It's VERY nice to see some representation but it...felt wooden. I've read it three or four times now, each time trying to find a reason to like it more and it's just not happening. Kamala feels like she has the potential to be a rich character but the writing gets to a point of developing her deeper and then just stops and falls flat. I was hoping her muslim Pakistani background would be a highlight to that personality but, while an attempt was very much made, that also feels mostly hollow. "Infidel meat" and the struggles of dealing with immigrant parents had me hoping there would be some depth but again it fell flat. Total honesty it felt whitewashy: It felt like a well meaning white woman trying to tip toe around the edge of something without actually jumping in and bringing it to life. This volume wasn't BAD, just not very good. At times it felt like representation was being pushed for its own sake rather than a fleshed out narrative WITH representation. I'm hungry to see protagonists that represent me as much as anyone else, ESPECIALLY in comics and graphic novels which traditionally focus on white male archetypes, but adding in POC and diverse elements doesn't mean the main story needs to feel like it's neglected.