The Marvels: The comic book history of Monica Rambeau
Monica Rambeau has been part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe since 2019's Captain Marvel, in which she appeared in flashback as the child of Carol Danvers' friend and ally Maria Rambeau (who is herself the Captain Marvel of an alt-Universe seen in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness).
But in The Marvels, Monica, played by Teyonah Parris, finally takes on a starring role as a superhero alongside Carol Danvers and Kamala Khan, following up on her appearance in the WandaVision streaming series, in which she gained powers of her own.
Now, the first trailer for The Marvels offers an explanation of what Monica's MCU powers are - she can "manipulate light energy."
So with Monica's MCU origin and powers established, we're looking back into her comic book history, including how she got her powers and how they compare to the MCU, her many superhero codenames, and her time as the leader of the Avengers.
Monica Rambeau first appeared in comics in 1982's Amazing Spider-Man Annual #16. Created by writer Roger Stern and artist John Romita Jr., Monica got her powers while investigating a criminal plot as a Harbor Patrol agent in New Orleans.
In the story, Monica is exposed to a strange kind of energy extra-dimensional that alters her body and gives her the power to transform her body into any kind of energy in the electromagnetic spectrum - including light, Cosmic Rays, Gamma Rays, and much, much more.
Initially dubbed 'Captain Marvel' by the media, Monica Rambeau became the second Marvel character to take on the name after the deceased Kree hero Mar-Vell, who died in the 1980 graphic novel The Death of Captain Marvel. Though she was at first wary of taking on the name of the fallen hero, she was assured by Mar-Vell's ally
Read more on gamesradar.com
