After eleven years and twenty movies, the Marvel Cinematic Universe is finally creating their first female-led superhero movie. Not only that, but it is a brand-new superhero for the fans of Marvel movies, rather than a pre-existing character like Black Widow or Scarlet Witch. This character is Captain Marvel and Kevin Feige has said she is the most powerful superhero that movie fans have met to date.
With that said, how powerful she is and the extent of her powers in the movie world of Marvel remains to be seen. What is known, however, is that the Marvel Comics character – through her highs and lows – it not only one of the strongest in the pages of the books, but one of the most respected as well. Here is a look at everything you need to know about Captain Marvel’s powers heading into the next MCU film.
HOW DID SHE GET HER POWERS?
Carol Danvers was a military girl, her father a Navy officer and her mother a champion of the Kree. When her father chose to send her brother to college over her, Carol joined the Air Force and it was there that she proved herself and moved on to NASA where she met the Kree warrior Mar-Vell.
In the pages of Captain Marvel #16-18, the Kree warrior Yon-Rogg abducted her in order to force a battle with Mar-Vell, Carol had her body altered by a Kree Psyche-Magnitron, giving her superhuman powers thanks to her half-Kree genetics, although it took months for her to fully understand her new powers.
THE ORIGINAL MS. MARVEL
When she gained her powers at the start, she received a share of the powers of Mar-Vell himself and wanted to always stand alongside him as an equal. However, her powers, in the beginning, were not as impressive as they became over the years.
The original Kree Psyche-Magnitron gave Carol increased strength and durability. She could also fly. In a nice protective bit, she also had the power through her Kree physiology to have an immunity to poisons and toxins. This would all change later with an immense boost, but not before she suffered a terrible loss at the hands of a future member of the X-Men.
HOW DID SHE LOSE HER POWERS?
Captain Marvel has a lot of enemies and allies, but there is one person that happens to be a superhero in Marvel Comics that shares one of the darkest moments of Carol Danvers’ past. As Ms. Marvel, Carol went up against some mutant villains in Mystique, Destiny, and Rogue.
During the fight, Rogue used her mutant abilities to suck the powers out of Carol and went way too far. Rogue kept draining Carol and ended up putting her into a catatonic stage, draining her of almost all her powers, and stole her memories as well. It drove both women to the edge of sanity by the time all was said and done.
BINARY/WARBIRD
For the longest time, Carol Danvers was powerless – Ms. Marvel no more. Luckily, she had friends in the X-Men and they took her in and helped her the best they could. Even without powers, Carol was there to help the mutants in any way that she could. When she was abducted by The Brood, they experimented on her and she ended up with new powers – and a new name in Binary.
Her powers were linked to a white hole and she could generate heat, radiation and other forms of energy. The link was broken and she lost those powers, but her original powers returned and she took on the role of Warbird at that time to keep a low profile.
ENERGY ABSORPTION
Through the years, Carol gained more abilities and became very powerful. After Captain America convinced her to take on the name Captain Marvel as a title, much like Mar-Vell used before her, she started to take more control in her life and turned into a true leader.
She also developed a stronger control of her powers. This included energy manipulation, which was a power Mar-Vell also shared. She could control, absorb, and manipulate energy and then discharge it as she pleases. This is a power that she has perfected and molded to her desires as she gains experience as a warrior.
FLIGHT
Captain Marvel has the power of flight. Not only can she fly using the air and vacuum of space, but she can do it faster than almost anyone in the world. She was clocked once at three times the speed of sound and flew this fast for several hours in Captain Marvel Vol. 7 #8.
She is also able to fly in outer space and not need any specialized breathing apparatus. This is due to her energy manipulation as she does not need food, sleep, or to even breathe to survive as she can survive on the energies surrounding her, as shown in Secret Avengers #28.
COSMIC AWARENESS
Similar to Spider-Man’s spider-sense, Carol was able to anticipate the moves of anyone fighting her using what is basically a seventh sense during her time as Ms. Marvel. Carol lost this after Rogue stole her powers and did not gain it back as Binary. However, when she regained her powers after that, the sense was back and stronger.
It turned out this was deeper and more intense than just precognition as her bonding with the powers of Mar-Vell came with the added boost of cosmic awareness. T’Challa hypothesized in Ultimates 2 Vol. 2 #1 that Captain Marvel can see outside reality and see what is binding the entire Marvel Universe.
SUPERHUMAN STRENGTH
Captain Marvel has also proven to be immensely strong in hand-to-hand combat. The exact peak of her strength is unknown and it has changed over the years, but the basic idea, according to the Handbook of the Marvel Universe, is that she is a Class 50. As Binary, she was unstoppable and was easily a Class 100+.
In Avengers Vol. 7 #2, Captain Marvel was able to support the weight of a dead celestial, which puts her at the level of supporting up to 100 tons. She also has superhuman stamina and can fight for at least 24 hours before fatigue slows her down and is durable and basically bullet-proof while also able to withstand high energy blasts.
REGENERATION
As if all those superhuman powers weren’t enough, Captain Marvel has the added bonus of a regenerative healing factor. Yep, Captain Marvel can heal from injuries just like Wolverine, Deadpool, and Hulk. This is, once again, due to her energy manipulation powers, as she is able to absorb enough energy to increase her metabolism and heal from injuries quickly.
Captain Marvel is also able to rapidly heal others by focusing forms of energy into their bodies. This allows her to help them boost their own healing process and recover quickly from numerous injuries, as shown in Iron Man Vol. 3 #7.
NEGA-BANDS
There is one thing that the trailers and photos have shown for Captain Marvel that is not part of her powers in the comic books. In both her green Kree military uniform and her classic red and gold uniform, she appears to have possession of the Nega-Bands – something that Mar-Vell used but Carol never did in the comics.
Here is why this is important. They summon the forces of the Negative Zone. In the MCU, that would likely be the Quantum Realm – which is possibly how Captain Marvel is able to help the Avengers use the powers of that dimension in Avengers: Endgame to possibly alter time and bring everyone back from the dead following Thanos’ snap.
