What Is Ms. Marvel’s Bracelet? Origins & Powers Explained

The release of Disney+’s Ms. Marvel has allowed the internet to talk more about the character and how she was made to be different compared to her comic book origins. Of course, the major difference that we can see in the live-action series is the fact that her powers are different from the ones in the comics. Kamala Khan’s powers come from a bracelet or bangle instead of being innate to her. So, what is Ms. Marvel’s bracelet?

Right now, there are no exact answers to what Ms. Marvel’s bracelet is, but it is quite possible that it is something that is cosmic in origin because of its cosmic properties. The bracelet allows Kamala Khan to create constructs from her arm out of will instead of being a polymorph in the comics.

Fans were surprised by the fact that Ms. Marvel has different powers in the live-action series, considering that her character has already been explored well enough in the comics and in the Avengers video game. But while she may be different in terms of her powers, Kamala Khan is still the same person and hero. So, let’s talk more about Ms. Marvel’s bracelet and its origins and powers in the live-action series.

What Is Ms. Marvel’s Bracelet?

The release of Ms. Marvel has introduced a new character into the MCU as we are now getting younger and younger characters in the Disney+ Marvel Studios world. And it is becoming clear that the future of the MCU is in good hands because of these younger characters that today’s fans are going to grow with.

In that regard, Ms. Marvel is a young teenage girl named Kamala Khan, who lives an ordinary life as a Muslim American-born Pakistani. She is a big fan of the Avengers, and her favorite hero is Captain Marvel. However, her parents aren’t exactly in line with what she wants to do in her life because they are very traditional in the way they approach their way of living.

This puts Kamala in a situation wherein she doesn’t know who she is or what she wants to do in life. Her American-born and Avengers-crazed personality is basically in conflict with her identity as a Muslim living with parents that still hold their traditions close to heart. And that is where her powers come in.

In episode 1, Kamala Khan found a bracelet that was sent to her by one of her relatives in Pakistan. She wore that bracelet to the Avengers-con so that she could honor her heritage in her Captain Marvel costume. However, she realized that this bracelet had powers, and that was when she decided what she wanted to be in life—a hero.

Still, one of the things that fans were quick to point out was the fact that Ms. Marvel in the live-action series is very different from the one in the comics in terms of their powers. Nevertheless, this bracelet is what gives her powers in the live-action version, unlike in the comics and in the Avengers game, where Kamala’s powers are innate and were the result of an accident.

Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige is aware of the fact that diehard fans of Kamala Khan weren’t exactly too thrilled with the changes in the character’s powers. Nevertheless, he still said that the live-action adaptations are never always exact translations of their counterparts in the comics, as there is no real reason for them to truly translate the source material using a 1:1 ratio. And the fact that this bracelet is what gives her powers answers a big plot hole in relation to the overall narrative of the MCU, especially the Inhumans.

Basically speaking, in the comics, Ms. Marvel’s powers come from the fact that she was exposed to a mist that gives people Inhuman powers. That is why she was able to have powers that were innate to her, as she no longer needed to use any kind of tool or equipment to become powerful. But the fact that there are no Inhumans in the main MCU timeline fixes the plot hole that would have arisen had she been given the same origin story in the comics.

Nevertheless, Kamala Khan is still the same Ms. Marvel in the comics, as her personality and journey are more or less the same. Feige himself said that they would stay true to the storytelling that has already been told in the comics. It is only the fact that her powers are different that doesn’t exactly make her a carbon copy of her comic book counterpart.

Where Does Ms. Marvel’s Bracelet Come From?

In the show, Kamala Khan’s family received a package that came from her great-grandmother. It was this package that contained a lot of family heirlooms, which included the bracelet that Kamala Khan later wore. However, her mother took this package to the attic, thinking that it was all nonsense and trash.

In that regard, Ms. Marvel’s bracelet comes from her mysterious great-grandmother, who could have used it in the past. However, there is more to this bracelet than meets the eye because it might be possible that it is cosmic in nature.

From what we saw in episode 1, there is a good chance that this bracelet is actually cosmic in nature because of how it has powers that are more or less cosmic. And this isn’t something that is odd in Phase Four in the MCU because of the fact that there are more cosmic objects and beings getting introduced.

For example, the Eternals themselves are cosmic entities that serve even more powerful cosmic entities. Meanwhile, we learned in the post-credit scene of Shang-Chi that the Ten Rings could also be cosmic in origin because their power signature isn’t something that is mystical or supernatural.

This makes it even more possible that the bracelet that Ms. Marvel uses is cosmic in origin because it does look like it has been around for a long time as it was passed on as a family heirloom by Kamala’s great-grandmother. It could even be possible that it has the same origins as the Ten Rings, given that they are both ancient objects.

What Are Ms. Marvel’s Bracelet’s Powers?

We did say that there are some differences between the Ms. Marvel versions in the live-action series and in the comic books. And it is their powers that are quite different because the powers that Kamala Khan has in the live-action series are not the same as the ones she has in the comics.

As mentioned, Kamala Khan’s powers in the comics come from her exposure to a kind of mist that gave her Inhuman powers that allowed her to morph her body. That’s why she is known to use enlarged fists as her main weapons in the comics.

But in the live-action series, Ms. Marvel has the capability to create constructs using her bracelet. She was shown to be able to create anything from her arm through sheer will, and these constructs are crystalline and quite solid. Think of the bracelet as something that’s very similar to Green Lanter’s ring in DC.

“Her being a polymorph seemed to make sense. There’s a really great message there when you think about a young girl, who doesn’t like the way she looks and doesn’t think she fits in, who can change to look like anything,” Sana Amana, one of the heads of the series, said. And Kamala even used her powers to make herself look like Carol Danvers. “That was a very specific choice we made because of her thinking that the ideal and the concept of strength and beauty and perfection is someone who is literally her opposite in terms of looks.” 

There’s also the fact that Kamala Khan’s bracelet and her powers are what allow her to come into terms with her identity. Her story is one that explores her growth as a character as she struggles to accept who she is and how she can reconcile her identity with her personality. This is why the fact that her powers allow her to change her appearance and create something out of nothing is perfect for her, considering that she doesn’t even know who she is and what she wants for herself.