The following contains spoilers for Ms. Marvel Episode 6, “No Normal.”The first season of Ms. Marvel reaches its conclusion on Disney Plus with an episode in which Kamala Khan realizes there is no normal anymore, just the fact that she and her friends - and her community as a whole - have to adjust to the reality of powered people. The episode includes Kamala’s family and friends rallying to help her and Kamran when Damage Control agents pursue them.
Because the episode is so focused on the action and the conclusion of this chapter of Kamala’s story, fans might not notice all of the Easter eggs laid out for them right away. There are some from the wider MCU, some from the comics, and some teasing the future.
The Episode Title
“No Normal” isn’t just in reference to the line Kamala has in the episode about there being no normal. It’s also a reference to the comics. The first collected volume of G. Willow Wilson’s Ms. Marvel run is called “No Normal.” The volume features the first five issues of the 2013 comic book series.
Baseball Caps
Bruno and Kamran try to hide from Damage Control in the mosque, but are quickly taken to task by Nakia who informs them it won’t offer them sanctuary since the agents have been there before. When the sheik reminds them they need a disguise to hide from the agents on the streets, he offers them baseball caps.
It’s a sweet gesture, and a reminder that baseball caps are the go-to way to hide someone’s face in the MCU. Of course, there’s also a bit of an inside joke with the use of the baseball caps. Bruno is given the one with “haram” written on it, while Kamran is given the one that says “halal.” Haram is essentially the opposite of halal. Halal is a word that roughly translates to permissible in English; it’s a term used to indicate that something is acceptable under the Islamic faith. Haram, in contrast, means that something is forbidden under the faith.
The Red Dagger Map
When Kamala first visits the headquarters of the Red Daggers, she is shown their map on the wall, one in which they are tracking just where Noor is being accessed. When Kamala calls Kareem for help with Kamran, he’s standing near the map, and the focus location is a different one than it was when Kamala first visited, indicating that someone else on the planet has access to the Noor energy.
When Kareem and Kamran meet, it's also important to note that Kareem doesn't grab food and lead Kamran into the secret headquarters behind the restaurant. Instead, they eat at a table in view of the restaurant's front door, demonstrating that despite offering Kamala his help, Kareem doesn't fully trust Kamran.
“I think Kamala should be able to tell the world when she’s ready.”
When Nakia wonders just why Zoe is helping them, Zoe reminds her that Kamala literally saved her life not too long ago. Zoe has known for a while that Kamala is “night light” as she saw her using her powers in the theater at school, likely in Episode 2 when Bruno and Kamala meet up there. Zoe, however, also offers this quote to Nakia. She has no interest in outing Kamala’s secret because it should be her decision.
This coming from Zoe is even more poignant because, in the Ms. Marvel comics, Zoe is actually a lesbian who initially keeps her crushes a secret, afraid of how others will react.
A Sonic Weapon
Damage Control previously used drones that belonged to Tony Stark to go after Kamala and Kamran. For the confrontation in this episode, they borrow technology from another chapter of the MCU. It’s the same technology used against the Hulk in The Incredible Hulk.
Embiggen
When the confrontation with Damage Control agents comes to a head outside the school, Kamala making discs of hard light just isn’t enough to help Kamran’s powers from going out of control and to keep the agents away from him. As she’s lying on the pavement, she whispers the word, “embiggen,” before her body is coated in hard light that acts as an extension of her, effectively making her nearly as large as Ant-Man in his giant form.
“Embiggen” is the term used for her shapeshifting-like ability to make herself larger, or even just her arms larger, in the comics. The MCU series has utilized it in extending hard light from her arms before, like when she saved Zoe in the first episode, but this is the first time Kamala has named the ability or used it to its full effect.
Kamala Sits On The Streetlight
This particular image, of Kamala in her new uniform, sitting on the streetlight, is one that has been used to promote the show since the first trailer. It’s also an image lifted straight out of the comics.
Genetic Mutation
Bruno gives Kamala some very interesting information when he and Nakia meet Kamala in Kamran’s car. He informs her that while they know her ability to access Noor comes from Aisha and the Clan Destine, there might be more to it than that. So that her family could have more information about what to expect, Bruno compares her DNA to her family members, and finds that Kamala’s genes are somehow different. He calls them a mutation.
Before now, the idea of genetic mutation has never been outright stated in the Marvel Cinematic Universe because of its association with mutants, more specifically, the X-Men, in the comics. Ms. Marvel takes the reveal a step farther though as the opening strands of the 1990s X-Men animated series start to play when Bruno tells her.
Kamala Khan is the first named mutant in the MCU, which isn’t as far of a departure from the Inhuman lineage in the comics as fans will think. While Inhumans are the result of the Kree experimenting on ancient humans, the X-gene found in mutants is the result of Celestials experimenting on ancient humans in the comics. Those ideas could still play out in some form in the MCU.
“Get in losers, we’re getting shawarma.”
Because of Kamala’s love for superheroes and her family’s South Asian heritage, most of her pop culture references have been to Bollywood movies and the Avengers. Nakia, however, demonstrates that the teens are well versed in other areas of pop culture as well.
While the shawarma mention is probably not meant to be a nod to the Avengers grabbing shawarma after the Battle of New York, it still works. Nakia’s line is modified from Mean Girls, and it’s been a meme for years.
The Real GWW
Kamala Khan creator G. Willow Wilson has had plenty of nods throughout the show. Mr. Wilson is named after her and her name appears on the plaque outside of the school. She finally appears in the flesh, so to speak, in the season finale.
Wilson is one of the people talking about Kamala on Tik-Tok at the end of the episode. She remarks that the costumed hero looks familiar.
Funnily enough, one of the other Tik-Tok users that appears alongside her is MasterPaul616 in a nod to Marvel’s 616 universe, the main timeline in the comics. The 616 universe recently got a shout out in Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness as well.
Carol Danvers Appears
Because of Kamala’s love for Carol Danvers as a hero, and the knowledge that she’ll be appearing in the movie The Marvels, fans were waiting for her to cameo in the show. They might not have expected the cameo they got though.
During the credits, just when Kamala is about to start working on her homework, she’s suddenly teleported away and Carol Danvers appears, surprised, in her bedroom. The two appear to have switched places, which only lends more credence to the idea that Kamala’s bangle is one of the MCU’s Nega-Bands. The Nega-Bands normally act as a pair, just as Aisha points out about the bangles in the flashback earlier in the season. In the comics, the bands can allow the wearer to teleport, but if they’re separated, the bands can still work together over long distances.
It’s possible Carol found the other bangle on her search for something else, like information about Shang-Chi’s Ten Rings, which is what the audience last saw her examining in the MCU. They’ll have to wait until The Marvels hits theaters in 2023 to know for sure.
Ms. Marvel is currently streaming on Disney Plus.