Ms Marvel post-credits scene explained: How that mother-of-all cameos sets up the future of MCU Phase 4

The final episode of Ms Marvel premiered on Disney+ and Disney+ Hotstar on Wednesday afternoon and it saw the action return from Karachi to Jersey City. Having dealt with the Clandestines, Kamala Khan and her family returned home to the US, and face the one loose end in the story. While the previous couple of episodes dealt with the history and culture of the Subcontinent, episode 6 returned to the familiar MCU territory of CGI-driven action. And it ended like most MCU properties end–with a mid-credits scene that sets up the future course for the character. Also read: What Thor Love and Thunder post-credits scenes mean for Chris Hemsworth’s future in MCU

Spoilers for Ms Marvel episode 6 ahead!

Episode 5 of Ms Marvel saw Kamala face off against Najma and the other Clandestines as they attempted to open the Veil to their home–the Noor dimension. The episode’s end saw Najma’s son Kamran–acquire powers through his mother’s sacrifice. And how Kamala and Kamran navigated this new development formed the crux of episode 6.

The episode ended on a positive, hopeful note with Kamala getting the hang of this superhero thing but wait, there is more. As the credits rolled and stopped, we see Kamala again in her room. Her mom’s voice chiding her to do her science homework can be heard in the background. And then, her bangle–the source of her power–glows. Kamala gets up tentatively, checking her bangle and just as she taps it, there is an explosion and the teenager is thrown back into her closet, blowing a hole through the door.

As the dust settles, a figure emerges from the closet and surprise, it’s not Kamala but her hero and idol–Carol Danvers aka Captain Marvel, who seems just as surprised as us to find herself in this place. Carol looks around to see posters and artworks of herself all around in the room she has mysteriously teleported to and does a mini eye roll, saying, “Oh no, no, no!” She then sprints away as the screen fades to black and a message appears on screen: “Ms Marvel and Captain Marvel will return in The Marvels”.

The cameo was not entirely out of the blue. In the comics and the series, Kamala Khan has been a Carol Danvers fan-girl and even her superhero name is an offshoot of Carol’s. But given that for all six episodes, Ms Marvel had been kept away from the grandeur of MCU, it looked unlikely that a huge character like Captain Marvel would appear. In that regards, the writers of the show and the creative minds behind the MCU found a correct and organic way to make it happen.

It was always known that Ms Marvel has a sizable part in The Marvels, the Marvel Cinematic Universe film that is a direct sequel to Captain Marvel. Iman Vellani, who portrays Kamala, is slated to appear as are all the three actors who play her family on the show. But the mid-credits scene did answer how they plan to incorporate her in it. The brief scene shows there is some sort of connection between Carol’s powers and Kamala’s bracelet that seemingly caused them to switch places. It is highly likely that The Marvels will follow the two characters’ journey as they try to make sense of why they have swapped places and how to get things back to normal.

The Marvels, directed by Nia DaCosta, also stars Brie and Teyonah Parris, who will reprise her role of Monica Rambeau from WandaVision. That show had already shown that Monica also has powers that allow her to absorb and use energy. Add this to Kamala’s cosmic bracelet and Carol’s almost invincible powers and they will be a powerful trio. The film also features Zawe Ashton as a villain. Also read: Farhan Akhtar expresses gratitude to Ms Marvel makers

Given that The Marvels releases next July, Marvel Studios still has plenty of projects to set up more back story before the film begins. We may even see how Monica fits in to that story in some future series or film, maybe via even a post-credits scene. But regardless, the film would certainly be a milestone as it would not only be the first MCU film to feature an all female-superhero team, but also that one of them is a black woman and the other a 16-year-old brown girl.