Ms. Marvel's Representation Shines In The Most Subtle, Nuanced Ways

gamespot.com:

On Ms. Marvel, when Kamala Khan's brother Aamir finds her hanging out with a boy named Kamran at a restaurant, he pokes fun by calling him «Haram-dot-Kamran»--«haram» being a word used to refer to so something as «forbidden» in Islam. I cackled because it gave me a new way to tease my husband, Kamran, but also because it was so pleasant hearing familiar names on screen and pronounced correctly. This level of relatability isn't something I envisioned from a Disney+ superhero show set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe–not for someone of my background as a South Asian Muslim. In the lead-up to its release, I didn't know how to feel about the culture and religion it aimed to represent, and my skepticism felt warranted given that it's the same MCU that made Eternals' Kingo, one of precious few South Asian characters in Marvel, a Bollywood star. He could have been anything, but they went with a stereotype.

However, a couple of episodes into the first season, Ms. Marvel has surpassed my expectations by depicting South Asian culture in ways that are both subtle and uncompromising. It goes beyond casting Pakistani-Canadian actor Iman Vellani as the bright-eyed main protagonist Kamala Khan. Ms. Marvel is a culture-focused narrative that features a range of Muslim characters that are purposeful and important parts of the story. As an artist who does primarily South Asian-centered art, I couldn't get enough of the music and artwork that are showcased each episode. And it was common for me to go on social media and see South Asian artists ecstatic that their art was featured in the show. Moments like these make representation valuable because the good that comes from it is tangible; the show makes it easy to draw a line from a moment