This article is about Carol Danvers. For the original Captain Marvel, see Mar-Vell.
Carol Danvers, also known as Captain Marvel, is a superheroine from Marvel Comics. An Air Force lieutenant turned Colonel and a Captain in the Kree army, an explosion from a lighter-than-speed engine powered by the Tesseract gave Carol cosmic powers, which she uses as a protector of the universe, taking the mantle of Captain Marvel from the heroic Kree who invented the engine (and befriended Carol), Mar-Vell.
She has appeared in several Marvel animated series and debuted in the Marvel Cinematic Universe as the protagonist of the 2019 live-action film, Captain Marvel.
Background
Born as Carol Danvers, Captain Marvel grew up engaged in numerous sports and activities. However, she grew estranged from her father because he thought none of her hobbies were healthy for females to be involved in. After becoming disconnected from her family, Carol joined the United States Air Force, where she met Maria Rambeau and became her best friend. Thanks to her hardships in childhood, she had an unquenchable thirst to prove herself, which allowed her to conquer the trials she faced during her training in the navy. Later on, she became the godmother of Maria's daughter, Monica. Around this time, she befriended a scientist named Wendy Lawson and her "cat", Goose. She helped Wendy in developing an engine for an aircraft that could aid in ending wars.
Personality
Before becoming a superhero, Carol was dedicated and proud in her work and achievements, never allowing the antics of others to distract her or others from their more important and urgent matters. She believed in keeping a professional level in dealing with other coworkers. Even without powers, she was shown to be brave and bold. Only when a situation seemed disastrous did she even consider changing her mind. She protected and helped others. She was shown a dry wit and that she is has a short temper. She also seems to be quick to judge others.
Powers and abilities
Powers
- Superhuman Strength: Captain Marvel is superhumanly strong to an unknown limit.
- Superhuman Durability: Captain Marvel's skin, bones, and tissue are far denser and resistant to damage when compared to an ordinary human. Like her physical strength, Captain Marvel's maximum durability has been compared to Hulk and Thor, who are both incredibly durable themselves. Her durability is increased by the fact that she is able to absorb energy, both by the fact that most energy based attacks are rendered ineffective, and because the absorption of said energy actually increases the amount of damage her body is capable of taking.
- Flight: Captain Marvel is able to soar through the air at high speeds and with great maneuverability. Her top speed is unknown. Her flight speed could presumably be increased by the absorption of energy.
- Energy Manipulation: Carol's altered physiology has endowed her with the ability to naturally harness all forms of energy and to utilize in battle.
- Energy Projection: Captain Marvel is able to project bursts of energy from her hands as a form of ranged combat.
- Energy Absorption: Captain Marvel is able to absorb various kinds of energy. This energy serves to increase her other abilities, allowing her to become far stronger, take more damage, fly faster, and produce even more powerful energy blasts. This power also means that most energy attacks are rendered completely ineffective against Captain Marvel, leaving foes with such powers defenseless against her.
Appearances
Marvel Cinematic Universe
Captain Marvel
Set in the 1990s, Captain Marvel makes her cinematic debut in the titular film, serving as the MCU's first female protagonist. She intends to end the Kree-Skrull War.
Avengers: Endgame
Captain Marvel rescues Iron Man and Nebula after the two get stranded in outer space. Later, after Hulk/Bruce Banner uses the Infinity Gauntlet to undo the snap and bring everyone back to life, Captain Marvel joins the rest of the heroes in their fight against Thanos and his army of Chitauri, Outriders and the Black Order.
Marvel Animated Universe
The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes
Carol Danvers as Ms. Marvel as she appears in The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes.
Carol Danvers appears as a member of the United States Air Force's 102nd Squadron under the call sign "Warbird". In the present day, she works alongside Dr. Philip Lawson in a special satellite base in Colorado. After an attack by a 459 Sentry, Lawson revealed himself to be a Kree warrior/scientist known as Mar-Vell. During the battle, an explosion caught both Marvel and Danvers in the middle, causing Danvers to be exposed by the cosmic energy flowing around Mar-Vell. Carol was transferred to a hospital for recovery, where she discovered she had gained powers from her exposure. She was later tasked as second-in-command to the S.H.I.E.L.D. Extra-Terrestrial Division known as S.W.O.R.D.
Later, Danvers returned to S.W.O.R.D. as second-in-command at Damocles Base. As the Kree landed their ship and got on the ground, Carol questioned Captain Marvel's motives behind allowing the Kree to invade her planet, as she had thought all the time he was in space he was fighting for the rights of the planet. She was quickly brushed aside by a few Kree soldiers. When the Kree attacked, she teamed up with Iron Man, "Captain America", and The Hulk against Ronan and the now-enemy known as Mar-Vell. After the battle, both were imprisoned in Area 42 and Iron Man offered Ms. Marvel a spot on The Avengers as a reserve member, which she excitedly accepted.
Later, Ultron, a previous foe of the Avengers, returns with a new AI: Vision. The robot attacked a few Avengers in Wakanda and faced Carol when he abducted Wasp. While saving Wasp, she encountered a few robotic versions of the Avengers, including a robotic version of herself. This leads to confrontation between her and her robotic counterpart, resulting in her as the winner. After Vision saved Wasp and defeated Ultron, she welcomed Vision to join the Avengers, after repairs.
During the Galactus invasion, Ms. Marvel participated with Iron Man's team to infiltrate the flagship. Her link with S.W.O.R.D. was useful in the coordination of forces. When hope seemed lost, she returned to New York to fight Galactus on the ground until the team was successful.
Avengers Assemble: Ultron Revolution
Carol Danvers as Captain Marvel as she appears in Avengers Assemble.
She is first seen in the episode "Avengers World" on a holographic globe as one of the heroes Iron Man and Captain America consider potential Avengers. Later, in the episode "Captain Marvel", she teams up with Captain America, Thor, and Falcon to battle a group of Kree soldiers led by Galen-Kor who are planning to give the recently-emerged Inhumans to the Kree Empire and even plan to give them Captain Marvel as a bonus. Throughout the episode, she and Captain America display a friendly rivalry, calling each other "Army" and "Air Force" respectively. However, they eventually put aside their differences and defeat the Kree. Captain Marvel then thanks the Avengers for their help and has grown closer to them, to the point where they even made her a reserve member.
In the multi-part season three finale, the Avengers disassembled and cut their ties to the United States government after learning that government intended to register Inhumans. The team's government liaison, Truman Marsh, recruits a new group of heroes to form the government-sanctioned Mighty Avengers, including Carol, Black Panther, the Vision, Ant-Man, Red Hulk, Ms. Marvel, and Songbird. Carol was glad to find a protege in the young Ms. Marvel, who had named herself after Carol. Marsh sent them to stop Baron von Strucker. They did so, but not without help from the Black Widow and Iron Man. Carol criticized the original team, calling them "vigilantes" and "renegades". Later, Marsh sent them to intercept three runaway Inhumans. They were met by the Avengers, who had come to warn the runaways of the raid. Carol tried to reason with Captain America, but she and his team stood firm. Neither side would give in, and a brawl broke out between the two Avengers teams. Captain Marvel went toe to toe with Captain America. The battle ended in favor of Carol's side. While Black Widow managed to escape, the rest of the renegade Avengers were taken into custody.
Soon after, it became apparent that the Inhuman registry had never been intended to protect people; in fact, any registered Inhuman became a target of mind control. Marsh attempted to force Ms. Marvel to register, despite the fact she had already vowed her loyalty to him and the United States government. Horrified, the older heroes on the Mighty Avengers decided this was the last straw. While the girl went into hiding, her teammates quit working for Marsh and sought out the other Avengers team, now also joined by Medusa and Black Bolt. Unfortunately, by the time Captain Marvel found the girl, it was too late and Ms. Marvel had already succumbed to mind control. Carol tried to break Marsh's hold on Ms. Marvel, reminding the girl of how much she admired Captain Marvel but had no success. Ms. Marvel was eventually freed when Vision removed the registration device. Carol and all the other Avengers returned to Avengers Tower, only to find Marsh there waiting. She gasped when she sees Marsh morph into Ultron. The real Truman Marsh was long dead and Ultron had been manipulating everyone all along and declared he was finally ready to take over the world with his army of sentries and mind-controlled Inhumans.
The Mighty Avengers and the Avengers worked together against Ultron and his army, but the sentries regenerated as fast as they were getting destroyed. Iron Man developed a plan and took Falcon, Ant-Man, Hawkeye, Black Panther, the Hulk, and Captain Marvel to his father's lab. Carol worked with the Panther and the Hulk to protect the lab from the Inhumans Karnak, Gorgon, and Inferno, while Ant-Man, Falcon, and Iron Man successfully broke Ultron's control over the Inhumans. However, while Ultron had the heroes distracted, he stole a new body for himself from Wakanda's armory and traveled to the source. All the Avengers pursued, and the villain was seemingly defeated. Unfortunately, Ultron managed to transfer himself into a new body at the last second: Iron Man's. Carol and her teammates were horrified to realize that Ultron had successfully hacked Iron Man's very mind. Doctor Strange managed to work a spell to keep Tony Stark alive and stop Ultron, but it kept him trapped halfway between the Dark Dimension and the natural world. The Avengers vowed to honor their friend's sacrifice and find a way to bring him back. In the meantime, Carol formally accepted the offer to join the Avengers, her first order of business was to restore peace in New York City.
Marvel Super Hero Adventures: Frost Fight
Carol Danvers as she appears in Marvel Super Hero Adventures: Frost Fight.
Carol Danvers appears in this Christmas special.
She tells of how, when she was younger, she asked Santa for a toy plane for Christmas, but instead received tickets to an air show, where she got to sit in the cockpit of one of the planes. This inspired her to become a pilot, and what would lead to her being Captain Marvel.
Video games
Disney INFINITY: 2.0 Edition
Captain Marvel appears in the game as a mission giver for the Avengers playset.
Marvel vs. Capcom series
Captain Marvel was recently confirmed as one of the first four playable characters, the first of two brand new characters, and the first female character, to be playable in the upcoming Capcom crossover fighting game Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite. She also made a cameo appearance in Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 as an ability card in Heroes and Heralds Mode under her original codename of Ms. Marvel.
Gallery
Trivia
- Originally, the character was labeled as Ms. Marvel in the comics and other media, partially due to the fact that DC Comics has a character of the same name (later renamed "Shazam" for DC Comics media) and partially due to the fact that she originally worked alongside a man who previously held the codename Captain Marvel, whose real name was Mar-Vell. In 2012, Carol officially assumed the "Captain Marvel" title. In the comics, prior to becoming Captain Marvel, she also previously went by the codenames Binary and Warbird. Currently, the character Kamala Khan uses the codename Ms. Marvel in the comics and other media. The DC Captain Marvel had a movie released in 2019, Shazam, set in the DC Extended Universe. Due to Marvel owning the rights to the Captain Marvel name, Captain Marvel in Shazam is never called as such or given any superhero name (the closest being when Freddy Freeman calls him "Captain Sparklefingers").
- In the post-credits scene for Avengers: Infinity War, Captain Marvel was alluded to when the device Nick Fury uses to send a "Code Red" on, right before he and Maria Hill fade away, displays her insignia as a mean to summon Captain Marvel back to Earth quickly for the emergency situations Thanos caused.
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