Which boy is the best boy for Kamala Khan?

A great strength is Ms. MarvelSeason 1 balances the bubbly, youthful vibe of a movie for teens with the exciting MCU Kamala Khan (Iman Vallani) longs to join. After the six-episode season, she’s officially in: a hero with possibly a weightier origin story than the show initially let on after reinventing her powers. But true to the adolescent movies the show takes some of its stylistic cues from, she isn’t immune to everyday things like curfews and crushes.

Kamala’s connections to the world are bigger than just the boys around her. She has a much-needed everyday life, with family and friends who deeply care for her well-being (and will gently rib her at a moment’s notice). Kamala should not take this as a form of insistence. Needs a boy in her life — season 1 of Ms. Marvel was mostly resistant to the idea that boys were Kamala’s priority in any way. Despite being drawn into Kamran’s orbit, then later to the Red Dagger’s, she is now focusing on her superhumanics.

This is more of an intellectual exercise. Kamala, however, and Ms. Marvel are more interested in her family history and the powers she’s adapting to, we’re just thinking about how fun her boy options are.

Bruno: The Case

Photo by Daniel McFadden/Marvel Studios

Look, I’m going to be upfront about this: I think Bruno is the best boy because I’ve read the comics, and I’m attached to that version of the character.

Writer G. Willow Wilson makes Bruno’s socioeconomic niche much more present in the comics. He works at the Circle Q for subsistence, not pocket change; he lives with his grandmother because his mother’s drug addiction became so severe that she lost the capacity to care for him. The same artist Adrian Alphona added a nuance to Bruno’s character design. Bruno has darkened his hair and skin. His Mediterranean-inspired features could make him read anywhere from Italian to Latino or Middle Eastern depending on where he left.

Wilson used the “best friends to… maybe?” dynamic between Bruno and Kamala to explore the tension between loving who you love and wanting to preserve your family’s traditions in the face of cultural assimilation. Wilson’s Bruno is Very aware of all of that nuance, and the way he’d be disappointing her family — who he also loves — by trying to date her.

Image by G. Willow Wilson/Marvel Comics

Even putting aside the comics, TV Bruno is an excellent kid. This is not one of those cases where he’s helping Kamala become a superhero because he expects smooches in return. He immediately jumps for Kamran and helps him. loathesKamran appears at his house in distress.

TV Bruno is earlier in his path than comics Bruno, but now that he’s getting some time away from Jersey City and the Circle Q, he’s going to level up and come back to be an even better boy for Kamala than he started. I’m Team Bruno and proud. —Susana Polo

Kamran’s case

Image: Marvel Studios

Much of the first episode I was rooting for Bruno (the archetypal gear geek and best friend) throughout. Kamran’s suaveness and instant aura of coolness felt off to me — teens aren’t really known for being smooth operators, and I’m personally distrustful of anyone who seems like they have their act together during high school.

Kamran was a special person to me in a couple of moments. One of those moments was when Kamala and Kamran went on a date at a restaurant. Kamala begins to tell a story. ammi means. He pulls her hand into his, reminding her of what he already knew. She doesn’t need to explain. The mood shifts into one of ease — Kamala Get to acknowledge how much time she has to spend explaining her ethnicity, traditions, and existence. Here’s someone who gets it.

The next moments are just some good, old-fashioned heroism: Kamran shows up at Kamala’s brother’s wedding, in direct defiance of his mother’s wishes, in order to protect Kamala. Later, he accepts Kamala’s help and escapes.

I’m not saying Kamran is perfect. Kamran did indeed make the unnecessarily grand swimming pool entry. And yes, I absolutely hate that he kept calling Bruno “Brian.” (We like Bruno, protect Bruno.) It turned out to have been an honest error. And Kamran seems to do the right thing when it actually matters — so far, at least. —Nicole Clark

Kareem/Red Dagger: The Case

Photo: Marvel Studios

Simply put, I believe that every romance should begin with a knife throwing.

I kid, I kid. (Mostly).

Kareem is always my choice for charismatic rogue. Aramis Knight does an amazing job making Kareem charming without sounding cheesy. It’s a dashing escapade that Kamala deserves! Kamala gets the Red Daggers’ context, which gives her valuable information on the source of her power. Kareem also serves as an important plot tool. The Red Daggers’ legacy is on his shoulders. Nearly Kamala is a foil for Kamala but Kamran does not see it as that way. Instead of a complete reflection, they’re more like evocative parallels.

Kareem, despite his mysterious red mask, has flowing hair and knife-throwing abilities. He is also friendly and invites Kamala to join him and the rest of his friends. The charismatic, rogue end up too often being the problem. You can also much of a flirt or jerk — but not Kareem! This is what we love. —Petrana Radulovic

The case for… all of the boys???

Photo: Patrick Brown/Marvel Studios

Photo by Daniel McFadden/Marvel Studios

Photo: Marvel Studios

This isn’t exactly a case for Kamala to end up with all these boys — or to spend a ton of time in a love triangle (quadrilateral?) Any of them. It was important to me that I acknowledge my gratitude for Kamala making flawed, real men friends. All of them are gregarious and have the ability to persevere in spite of harsh situations.

That’s pretty cool! This is a big difference from so many other shows, where each guy friend can be both a jerk or a potential lover interest. It doesn’t matter if Ms. Marvel does head in a romantic direction — and you know I love a kissing show — these all seem like reasonable options. But don’t hold me to that; I haven’t read the comics, so I don’t know if any of them end up becoming jerkface villains. This would be an iconic Marvel move. —NC

No boys are allowed to be in the courtroom

Photo by Daniel McFadden/Marvel Studios

So I know conventional wisdom says that every TV show has to have a will-they-won’t-they plot, to keep people coming back in hopes of seeing how the romantic tension plays out. But in this case, I’m absolutely on Team They Won’t. Kamala Khan’s most interesting feature on the show is her choice of boy. She’s navigating all the pitfalls of being an American kid born to first-generation immigrants. She’s uncovering deep family secrets. She’s figuring out how to be a good Muslim and a good daughter while staying true to herself. She’s figuring out supernatural powers and superheroism, and a heritage that’s apparently part supernatural, part something else entirely. And she’s also working through the perfectly mundane but monumental challenge of being a really imaginative, creative kid surrounded by parents, teachers, and administrators who just want her to settle down and get an education. She’s got a lot going on, and it’s all way more important and engaging than her deciding who to kiss first.

But even if that wasn’t true, I personally think her little harem-anime squad is pretty drippy. Bruno is way too much of a classic Nice Guy™, the kind of boy who hangs around a female friend doing favors for her because he’s carrying secret feelings for her, which he isn’t brave enough to express until she shows an interest in someone else and he starts getting sulky and jealous. Kamran is a straight-up gaslighter who did eventually do the right thing, but still hasn’t really answered for the way he entered her life with lies and manipulation. (Also, c’mon, he’s way too old for her. Vellani has just turned 19 while Rish Shah, 26, looks the same. It’s clear that he looks more like someone she would rather hang around with than an attractive model. And Kareem lives halfway around the world, so he may be a great “Canadian boyfriend” to keep the other boys at bay, but smooching is pretty impractical.

Charm is a huge part of this city. Ms. Marvel This is in Vellani’s youthful appearance, in the way she acts in the role and how distinct and individual she is. It also shows in how she manages her personal life. You like to kiss, shippers. But maybe give her a little space to breathe in her own life before she starts tying it into someone else’s? —Tasha Robinson