Next year will see the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s 31st feature film debut in the form The Marvels (2023). The MCU Phase Four sequel to Captain Marvel (2019) sees the return of Carol Danvers/Captain Marvel (Brie Larson) from her first solo outing, as well as WandaVision‘s Monica Rambeau (Teyonah Parris) — Maria Rambeau’s (Lashana Lynch) daughter. Iman Vellani will also appear as superhero newcomer, Kamala Khan AKA Ms. Marvel. Vellani will, of course, star in her own series on Disney+ this year.
However, while The Marvels is already pretty stacked with some of the MCU’s most powerful beings, the forthcoming “Captain Marvel #38” from Marvel Comics will introduce Carol Danvers’ replacement after the female superhero goes missing.
When Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck’s Captain Marvel debuted in 2019 shortly before the Infinity Saga conclusion, Avengers: Endgame (2019), it drew criticism of its leading star, Brie Larson. Over time, the controversy over Larson’s casting has never truly waned with a portion of the Marvel fandom slamming the Oscar-winner’s portrayal of one of the Marvel Universe’s most powerful superheroes.
Where Captain Marvel was in many ways a buddy cop movie, with Larson’s Danvers teaming up with a young Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) to unearth her mysterious past, the sequel from Nia DaCosta looks set to be a more rounded ensemble movie. This was further evidenced when the slated Captain Marvel 2 title, was eventually confirmed as The Marvels in 2021.
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Fans of Kevin Feige’s MCU will have seen in vivid detail just what superpowers Carol Danvers has as Captain Marvel. Danvers tapped into her Binary powers at the end of Captain Marvel after breaking free from the control of the Supreme Intelligence (Annette Bening). The Marvel hero also uses her true potential when battling Thanos (Josh Brolin) in the Russo Brothers‘ Avengers: Infinity War (2018) sequel, Avengers: Endgame (2019).
But, for a true reflection into the history of her powers, as well as the beginnings of the Binary force, Marvel Comics has the answers. It was in the 1980s that Binary gained prominence when the creation debuted in relation to the X-Men. In brief, Binary draws cosmic energy from a phenomenon called the White Hole, generating the immense power of a star.
In the MCU, there is not a specific mention of Danvers’ Binary alter ego but, after unlocking her power from the Tesseract accident, it is easy to draw comparisons between the comic book Binary character and the fiery powers Captain Marvel illicits when fighting Kree Yon-Rogg (Jude Law), Minn-Erva (Gemma Chan), and the rest of the Starforce team.
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Now, in a new story arc in the ongoing Marvel Comics “Captain Marvel” series, a new character will replace Carol Danvers after she goes missing. Who? Binary. And not Danvers’ Binary, someone completely different. “The Last of the Marvels” storyline will be seen this May in “Captain Marvel #38”. The series is written by Kelly Thompson with cover art by RD Silva and penciled by Julius Ohta. Russel Dauterman designed this modern new look for Binary.
Thompson and Dauterman recently spoke to Comic Book Movie about the next chapter for Carol Danvers and Binary. Thompson said:
I’m really excited for this wild new arc for Carol and Binary — it’s called “Trials” — and lemme tell you, these ladies are going through it. Carol Danvers’ time as Binary was one of her most fascinating – and also one of her best and most powerful looks. And while Carol sometimes taps into that power – it’s a name and look that’s been just sitting on the shelf, unused – so we thought, why not have both? There’s no reason we can’t have Captain Marvel and also Binary.”
Dauterman went on to add:
“I was very happy to design this! I love Dave Cockrum’s original design (ever since I first saw Binary, when she punched Rogue through a roof!) — I wanted to keep that vibe, but modernize the look a bit and pull in some of Carol’s current iconography.
What will be interesting to see is whether The Marvels will introduce Binary as a named force or character. With this comic book arc and Ms. Marvel debuting this year — not to forget Monica Rambeau’s seemingly new Photon powers uncovered in WandaVision –, The Marvels looks set to delve deeper into the mythos of the Marvels characters, their powers, and their history. It is an exciting time for Captain Marvel fans, for sure.
Captain Marvel was last seen in the MCU in the animated series What If…?, although here the superhero was voiced by Alexandra Daniels and not Brie Larson.
The Captain Marvel sequel, The Marvels, will also star Zawe Ashton and Park Seo-joon in undisclosed.
Do you think Binary should enter Kevin Feige’s Marvel Cinematic Universe? Let us know in the comments down below!