*Marvel: “This Female Fights Back!” was the tagline of Ms. Marvel, Marvel Comics’ attempt to publish a solo heroine with a bit more longevity than 1972’s Claws of the Cat. Spinning out of Captain Marvel, former background character Carol Danvers got her own set of super-powers and a whole new supporting cast (including J. Jonah Jameson) as she attempted to discover the mystery behind her own origins. Although moderately successful, the series was attacked by critics who derided Carol’s derivative costume, which allegedly made her look like Captain Marvel’s sidekick, and the fact that Marvel were offering a ‘powerful, confident’ heroine who suffered from blackouts and amnesia. Despite these jibes, Ms. Marvel has been a prominent member of the Marvel Universe for nearly forty years in one guise or another – whether as Ms. Marvel, Binary, Warbird, or most recently the latest Captain Marvel, her chequered history has provided many intriguing plotlines. Soon to star in a major film, Ms. Marvel’s career starts here, with her first issue in an attractive VF- pence copy (£30), as well as four others from her first series.