My thoughts that occurred after reading Ms. Marvel #1

I have to admit, outside of the Scott Pilgrim series, I have not done well in the comic book area. Yes, I did say comic book. Sorry, I can’t help it, I am old school that way. My husband on the other hand is the comic book connoisseur in the house. He recently bought Ms. Marvel.  I wasn’t sure what to expect. I’m not sure if this is a review per say, but these are some of my thoughts after Ms. Marvel.

My first intentional reading I thought, why does Kamala wants to be somebody else? Then after my second reading it hit me. Kamala is going through what every teenager goes through. It’s not that she truly wants to be blonde and blue eyed, it’s that she wants to fit in. And to fit in, we all want it to be in the easiest and simplest way.

Ms. Marvel has the popular girl and her friends that go along with what she says; and the friend who may or may not be secretly in love with Kamala. I think what makes this story relateable, is when we are young we go thought the phase of wishing we were someone else. Wishing we were … less invisible. I think as people we all wish for that the most, not necessarily to be popular, but to be noticed. 

I think that, just as we see in Ms. Marvel, people think if someone is Pakistani that equals a “super religious” family.  However, Kamala’s family and best friend are traditional. When I use the word traditional to me it means a family with strong cultural values and remembering where you come from. And this is the way, I feel, it is perceived in the comic. 

I like that Kamala writes fanfic. Perhaps I am over thinking this, but writing fanfic fits her personality, and her longing to be something greater than who she is. Through writing she is able to be a hero. Someone who is not afraid to live a life that is for a greater good. 

I love that her heroes are Captain America, Captain Marvel, and Ironman. Which got me thinking about my Twitter pictures …

Me: Have you noticed all my Twitter profile pictures have been guys?

Husband: No I hadn’t. They have?

Me: Yeah. Owl Jolson, Mo from Wall-e, and now the worm from Labyrinth.

*stare at each other*

Me: Meh. I don’t think that matters

(Side note: When my husband and I use the term it does not matter to each other. It means that whatever the way someone dresses. Who they would like to cosplay as, etc does not diminish our love and respect for that person.)

Without giving too much away, or perhaps I did not say anything? Anywho, the comic leaves us with a too be continued which is, “is it always a good thing when you get what you wish for?” I am looking forward to seeing if the grass is truly greener on the other side.

How to tell if you are drift compatible.

After my husband and I first saw Guillermo del Torro’s Pacific Rim, we have found ourselves saying “drift compatible!” whenever we say or think the same things. For example, whenever my husband and I say the words “do you” we say it a la Anthony Michael Hall in The Breakfast Club. 

I thought it might be fun to list items, in my humble opinion, that make two people drift compatible. Some are from my personal life, others are things I have thought about recently. So here they are in no particular order.

• When you say, “check you later” they automatically think “alright, alright, alright.”
• Whenever you discuss or mention Doug Jones, the other person knows exactly who you are talking about. You even share the same favorite funny seen in Hellboy when, Abe and Hellboy are sharing a beer and discussing their women troubles. “You’re in love. Have a beer.”
• While watching the premier of J.J. Abrams, Star Trek, both of you geeked out when you saw Noel Clarke. And at the same time said Mickey! While looking around to see if anyone was excited as you were to see a companion.
• When you hear that someone has not seen Doctor Who, you or your significant other say “you’ve never seen Doctor Who?” in your best British accent. Saying it in that accent is a result of seeing Revision 3’s “Welcome Back, Doctor Who” one too many times on YouTube.
• Speaking of YouTube, one of the other videos you’ve both seen together a billion times is Portlandia’s Battlestar Galactica - One More Episode. Edward James Olmos and James Callis make a guest appearance. Ron Moore also makes a cameo, however not in the way you would think.
• You both said Whaaat! When you realized it would be the last time you would see Scott Wilson play Hershel in Too Far Gone. Yes admittedly one of you did have to comfort the other because while Beth and Maggie began crying that started the water works.
• You both feel like Rob Gordon in High Fidelity when everyone starts talking about The Walking Dead, Sherlock, and Doctor Who because you liked these shows first. Which makes you feel like a hipster for saying don’t infect my beautiful shows with your main stream. However, secretly you both need others to watch so the TV networks can keep the show going for as long as it can. The only reason you know the term “infect it with your main stream” because you’ve both seen Soundly Awake’s Hipsters On Valentine’s  Day a bunch of times. Okay let’s face it you both go on YouTube one day binges, but there is no judgment.
• Your significant other can recognize a Bear McCreary musical compositions before knowing it is him. Like when you watched season 1, episode 1 of Defiance, and heard the theme music the other person says that sounds like Bear.
• While watching the entire Star Trek series (yes all of them) you both say at the same time hey it’s Kate Vernon (aka Ellen Tigh)! Or, hey it’s Rick Worthy (aka Number Four)! But when watching Battlestar Galactica, you both say hey it’s Sam Witwer! Or, when Roslin was getting chemo you both say, isn’t that Kira (Deep Space Nine)?
• Whenever the computer messes up, acts strange, or you see a news article about another advancement in robotics or technology - your significant nods in agreement when you say “Skynet.”

I smile when I hear the word Toronto because I know my husband will say “in Toronto” a la Brandon Routh in Scott Pilgrim vs the World. Because its moments like these when we make a reference the other one gets, we simply look at each other and know we are thinking the same thing … drift compatible.

Hello, my name is Melissa and I'm addicted to BBC shows, John Hughes movies, and...

You know how some film classes have certain movies on their curriculum? There are days when I tell my husband if I had a class about films, this movie or show would be watched. The following are my favorite movies and television shows. In no particular order because they are all equally awesome.

The Breakfast Club. There are some youngsters today (hehe I said youngsters) who will not know the joy and heartache of being a teenager. Before there was the WB and such we had Pretty In Pink, Some Kind of Wonderful, and Sixteen Candles. John Hughes movies should be required class materials.

The IT Crowd, the BBC version. Two words, Moss and Roy. One question, “Hello IT have you tried turning it on and off again?” It’s hard to explain The IT Crowd if you have not seen it. And I don’t mean that in a “don’t worry citizen I can take it from here” kind of way. If you are every on the YouTube you’ll have to look this up.

The Muppets Take Manhattan. I can’t say that I do not care for cartoons or kids shows today because I have never really seen them. But what I can say is that Jim Henson was a genius. In my humble opinion, he led the path for studios like Pixar to have a comedic balance that is funny for both kids and adults. Let’s not forget Labyrinth. Magic Dance. And don’t forget my favorite phrase, "It’s not fair!"

My So-Called Life. If John Hughes is the King of teenage angst, Winnie Holzman is the Queen of Teenage Angst. In my humble opinion she has a way of writing her characters true to life. Even now when I watch this show it takes me back, and I say to myself I remember feeling this way, or that character reminds me of the friend I had. I think her and John Hughes’s stories stand the test of time and can be relatable for young people today.

(Side note, as I am writing this I know I will keep thinking of more to add to the list. Then once I am done I will say, I can’t believe I forgot this one.)

Dazed and Confused. One time my husband played Slow Ride for a class presentation when getting his RTF degree. Afterwards some of his class mates said hey that’s a great song, where is it from? He replied Dazed and Confused. They had no idea what he was talking about. Never hear of it. To which my reply was the same as his, mouth opened in disbelief. It’s hard to believe some people will never know where All right, all right, all right come from when referring to Matthew McConaughey.

The funny thing is that not much separates these films and TV shows from others. The events and situations range from simple to crazy. Muppets are on the list. It’s the characters that make all the difference and the little details that make them unique and memorable. There are reasons why they stand the test of time and become part of our lives.

“Sometimes someone says something really small, and it just fits right into this empty place in your heart.” – Angela Chase