The following contains spoilers for Ms. Marvel Episode 5 “Time And Again.”The Ms. Marvel series continues its journey of self discovery for Kamala Khan in “Time And Again.” The fifth episode, still with Kamala and her mother visiting Sana in Pakistan, doesn’t exactly pick up where the fourth episode ended. Instead, it allows the audience to get to know Kamala’s great-grandparents, Hassan and Aisha, a bit better. The audience gets to see how Aisha went from a member of the Clan Destine trying to get back to the Noor Dimension, to starting a family.
The episode revisits Partition, the splitting of India and Pakistan along territorial lines by the government, and also reveals some family history for Kamala. It takes her one step closer to being a fully realized version of the Ms. Marvel comic book character while leaving the audience a handful of interesting Easter eggs.
The Opening Logo And Title Card
The opening Marvel credits contain their comic book flip and scenes from the MCU as usual, but with a slight change. Instead of the images staying in their digital color, they gradually become black and white with the effect of a filmstrip. It takes the audience back to the 1940s, but it’s also used to call to mind the newsreels that used to run before movies in theaters during World War II, which the MCU has used before in Captain America: The First Avenger.
As with every episode, the Ms. Marvel title card has several options flashed on the screen, this time with the title of the series appearing in numerous South Asian languages. One of the cards features roses in the background, another an illustration of the Red Dagger, and another an English flag, foreshadowing events of the episode. One of the options features a resettlement form for Aisha’s family as the background image. It’s also marked with the numbers 14 and 0012. That might be a nod to Ms. Marvel’s twelfth issue, which did provide much of the inspiration for the previous episode of the series as well. In the first volume of the series (published in 2014) to feature Kamala as the title character, issue #12 is when she traveled to Pakistan and visited family.
A Cocoon From The Noor Dimension
When Kamala returns from her overwhelming trip to the past (which may or may not break the rules of time travel in the MCU as it creates a causal loop instead of a branching timeline), there is still a fissure between the main dimension and the Noor Dimension. One of Najma’s allies tries to go through it, and finds herself cocooned in what looks like stone before she shatters.
The effect for the sequence, which later happens to Najma as well, is very similar to one used in the Marvel series Agents Of SHIELD. There, the stone covering a person in a cocoon is what happens when someone is exposed to Terrigen (a crystal that causes Terrigenesis) and the awakening of Inhuman abilities in someone who is an Inhuman or an Inhuman descendant occurs. Because Agents Of SHIELD didn’t have just the crystals, but metallic casings for them, those humans who touched the casings, but weren’t Inhuman, would be cocooned and then crumble into pieces of rock.
While Ms. Marvel is a NuHuman, or a descendant of Inhumans, in the comics, that origin has been changed for the streaming series. The similar effect may be a coincidence, but it could also be a nod to Kamala’s comic book origin.
Kamala’s Necklace And A New Scarf
Following Kamala’s confrontation with Najma, the necklace that Zoe complimented in the first episode is broken. It used to have Kamala’s name written in Urdu. Now, what’s left of it looks like a lightning bolt on a chain. Also following the fight, Kareem gives Kamala the red scarf he used to mask his identity as a member of the Red Dagger. Those might seem like unrelated mementos from her time in Karachi, but comic book fans will recognize them, especially after Kamala was gifted a blue koti in Episode 4.
The lightning bolt is the symbol Kamala uses on her superhero uniform, a nod to the same symbol used on the Ms. Marvel costume Carol Danvers wears in the comics. Likewise, she has a red scarf she wraps around herself when she does. So far, the series has given Kamala Bruno’s mask, her own necklace, and the scarf and koti from the Red Daggers to begin assembling a comic book accurate costume.
Sana’s Namesake
Though Sana’s name has been mentioned a few times before, it might be interesting for fans to note that Kamala’s grandmother shares her name with Sana Amanat.
Amanat is an executive producer on the television series (and appears as a wedding guest in Episode 3), but she’s also the editor who was instrumental in bringing Kamala Khan to comic book pages.
Kamran’s Abilities
It’s not entirely clear how the abilities of the Clan Destine work, but it does appear that they are able to pass their energy on to the next generation. Aisha seemingly gives both Sana and Kamala a connection to the bangle and their abilities with her dying breaths. Najma appears to give Kamran a connection to Noor in her final moments as well.
Kamran’s abilities are seen in action when he blasts one of Damage Control’s drones away from Bruno’s apartment. The blue light that bathes his hands isn’t unlike Kamala’s hard light, but it’s also how his powers manifest as a NuHuman in the comics. He’s often completely surrounded by blue light. He can also imbue objects with energy or blast that energy away from himself, just as the audience sees him do to the drone.
The Circle Q Destruction
The destruction of Circle Q might look familiar to MCU fans. It’s eerily similar in circumstance and in visual effects to Peter Parker’s favorite bodega being a casualty of the bad guys in Spider-Man: Homecoming. Interestingly, Matt Lintz, who plays Bruno in Ms. Marvel, was once up for the role of Peter Parker!
Ms. Marvel is currently available to stream on Disney Plus.