Made of energy. Leader of the Avengers. Leader of Nextwave. Captain Marvel. Monica Rambeau has held all these titles at one point or another and is always made of energy whether she knows it or not. How do you get to be made of energy or become a Captain Marvel? Let’s find out!
Monica Rambeau was born to Frank and Maria Rambeau, a firefighter and seamstress, respectively. Born and raised in New Orleans, Monica would become the lieutenant of harbor patrols. It was during this work that she would come across an experimental weapon made by a criminal with extra-dimensional energy, the machine would transform her. Now made of energy but taking human form, Monica would try the hero game, she would befriend Spider-Man. The media would begin calling her Captain Marvel and Spider-Man would introduce her to the Avengers. Soon, she was a member and even leading the team, she would drop the Captain Marvel name when it was brought to her attention that there was already a Captain Marvel (Mar-vell) and he had a son who was now being a hero, she gave the name back to him and started going by several other names like Photon.
She lead the Avengers for many adventures and mission, until she used her power to turn into a lightning bolt and missed her target, striking the ocean which caused her to spread herself over most of the ocean, when she was able to reconfigure herself, she was physically weakened and had no powers. She would take leave from the Avengers and begin recuperating, eventually rebuilding her strength and powers. She would rejoin the team but in a reserve position, often taking on her own adventures but getting back into the fray with the Avengers when needed, even taking a leadership role again when other leaders were dealing with other missions. When Mar-Vell’s son decided to change his name to Photon, Monica would be slightly annoyed but realized she preferred the name Pulsar and begin her career with this new name.
Monica would be recruited into Nextwave, a super team for the Highest Anti-Terrorism Effort (H.A.T.E.) agency. Along with the other members of Nextwave, Monica would deal with bizarre creations and villains often involved with the Beyond Corporation, a former villain organization gone legitimate business, so far more evil than they were before. Monica found her team trying but also annoying. When it was discovered that H.A.T.E. was actually funded by the very Beyond Corporation they were fighting against for an eternal loop of conflict, Monica and the rest of the team disbanded.
Deciding to go by another name change, Monica would go by Spectrum and learn that her friend Carol Danvers was now going by Captain Marvel, who did apologize for not coming to her to ask for permission, Monica joked with her but said it wasn’t her name anymore either. Monica would join Luke Cage‘s Mighty Avengers team, working more on a street level to help citizens with a hotline. The team would face the end of the world when their reality would collide with another, Monica was ready to use her powers to destroy the other reality but when she saw children playing on the other Earth, she knew she couldn’t go through with her plan.
When reality was saved, Monica would join a new team dealing with cosmic scale threats from outer space and beyond with the Ultimates. This team dealt with near impossible tasks like restructuring Galactus from a destroyer of worlds into a creator of them. The team would be disbanded by the government due to the second hero civil war but they would regroup to aide the new Galactus on a mission. Eventually the team would be brought into Alpha Flight, the Earth’s first line of defense against alien threats.
There you have it! Monica Rambeau was one of several people to go by Captain Marvel and is my favorite of those who have held the title, Carol is a close second. She’s been in the recent Captain Marvel film but as a young child in the 1990s. Will we get to see adult Monica with powers in the MCU? We can hope! See you next time!
Suggested Reading
Giant-Size Special Captain Marvel #1
Amazing Spider-Man Annual #16
Avengers: Unplugged #5
New Thunderbolts #9
Nextwave, Agents of H.A.T.E.
Mighty Avengers Vol. 2
Captain America and the Mighty Avengers
The Ultimates
Dr. Bustos
drbustos@comicattack.net
