'The Marvels' Who Is Monica Rambeau in the Comics?

The Big Picture

Monica Rambeau in the MCU has a complex relationship with Carol Danvers and gains her own powers through encounters with Wanda Maximoff.
Monica's comic book history is full of achievements and leadership roles, with multiple identities including Photon, Pulsar, Spectrum, and Captain Marvel.
In The Marvels , Monica, Carol, and Kamala Khan must work together to navigate their powers and defeat the villain Dar-Benn with the help of Nick Fury.

The Marvels premieres in theaters this weekend, marking the return of Teyonah Parris as Monica Rambeau. But while the Marvel Cinematic Universe has created its own narrative for the hero's origin story, the comic books that inspired the franchise saw Rambeau develop in a very different direction, far from what the cinematic version of the character has established. Her direct involvement with the events that shaped the Marvel Universe's reality gave Rambeau a very respectable reputation, as she continued to find her own place in the universe when she wasn't fighting an alien army. Here's everything you need to know about Monica Rambeau's comic book history before seeing The Marvels.

The Marvels

PG-13SuperheroActionAdventure

Carol Danvers gets her powers entangled with those of Kamala Khan and Monica Rambeau, forcing them to work together to save the universe.

Release Date November 10, 2023 Director Nia DaCosta Cast Brie Larson , Samuel L. Jackson , Zawe Ashton , Iman Vellani Runtime 105 minutes Main Genre Superhero Writers Nia DaCosta , Megan McDonnell , Elissa Karasik Expand

Who Is Monica Rambeau in the MCU?

When Captain Marvel flew toward the big screen in 2019, Carol Danvers (Brie Larson) and her best friend, Maria Rambeau (Lashana Lynch), felt like they could save the entire universe while being a part of the United States Air Force. Some of Carol's favorite moments when she returned to Earth involved a younger version of Monica (played by Akira Akbar), who turned out to be one of her biggest supporters. Unfortunately, their healthy relationship wouldn't last for long, because the lifestyle of an Avenger isn't exactly the best guideline to being a good mentor figure.

Carol Danvers spent years of her life trying to find a new home for Talos (Ben Mendelsohn) and the rest of the Skrull population seen in her film, but since that proved to be a harder task than originally thought, she never got to return to her home planet. This meant that she was never there for Maria when she got diagnosed with a terminal disease that would end up taking her life. Since Captain Marvel wasn't around to mourn the loss of who she claimed was her best friend, Monica began to feel resentful towards the hero. And soon enough, Rambeau would gain powers of her own.

During the events of WandaVision, Monica was introduced once again, this time as an adult portrayed by Teyonah Parris. As an agent of S.W.O.R.D., Rambeau tried to find out why Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen) took over the entire town of Westview, New Jersey. Her quest would lead her to a direct encounter with the Scarlet Witch, and the barrier that protected her territory wasn't supposed to be crossed by regular humans. Constantly trespassing the wall of energy left Rambeau with a new set of powers that she hasn't been able to explore, setting up the events of The Marvels.

What Is Monica Rambeau's Marvel Comics History?

While Monica Rambeau seems like the type of character who could've made her debut in a cosmic story, she was actually introduced in issue #16 of the annual The Amazing Spider-Man book. She was created by Roger Stern and John Romita, and after spending five years as an official member of The Avengers, Rambeau became the leader for a short period of time. Her firm personality and unique set of powers made her the perfect candidate to lead Earth's Mightiest Heroes, as they had to face multiple threats coming from both their own planet and from outer space.

Monica also took on several different identities throughout her career, including the names Photon, Pulsar, Spectrum, and Captain Marvel herself. Her rich history in the comics includes many adventures where she crossed paths with characters such as Thor and the Hulk, with her multiple identities and leadership roles not being the path placed in front of her when it comes to the version played by Parris. The Monica Rambeau from the comic books could only be compared to Steve Rogers' Captain America when it comes to accomplishments alone depicted in the MCU. More recent developments have seen her appearing in her first series as the lead, appropriately titled "Photon." The comic launched in December 2022 to create anticipation for The Marvels, releasing a single story arc with Rambeau having to face off against a powerful enemy.

What Is Monica Rambeau's Mission in 'The Marvels'?

The fact that the cinematic version of Monica Rambeau is making her comeback in a project led by Carol Danvers gives her the opportunity to talk directly about her feelings towards the hero as an adult. While a reunion to discuss what happened in the past would be interesting enough to justify their adventure, both characters will cross paths again after they find out they keep swapping places with each other, and with Kamala Khan (Iman Vellani), the young hero who was introduced in Ms. Marvel last year.

As if the mystery behind their teleportation wasn't enough of a problem, Dar-Benn (Zawe Ashton) has a fight to settle with Captain Marvel and anyone who would dare to become her ally. The three heroes will have to find a way to work together despite the fact that they can't control their own powers and how they transport them to different places. With the help of Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson), the three leads of The Marvels will need to come up with their brightest ideas in order to defeat Dar-Benn before it's too late.

Even if Teyonah Parris' version of Monica Rambeau doesn't have the same accolades her comic book counterpart does, she still has a lot left to prove as a hero and as a remarkable human being. With The Avengers: The Kang Dynasty making its way to the big screen in the coming years, Rambeau could position herself as one of the best members of the team, slowly working her way up toward the center of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

The Marvels is in theaters now.