2 Hidden Ms. Marvel Moments Perfectly Set Up MCU Phase 4 & 5

Warning! SPOILERS for Ms. Marvel.

Ms. Marvel episode 4 contained two specific moments that perfectly set up aspects of the MCU’s future going into the remainder of Phase 4 and what is to come with Phase 5. Much of the promotion for Ms. Marvel thus far has included taglines such as “the future is in her hands,” indicating that the things introduced in the newest Disney+ show will have significant ramifications for the MCU going forward. Not only is this the case through introducing a brand new hero in Kamala Khan, but in expanding the MCU in other ways.

From the specifics about multiple characters’ MCU origins in Ms. Marvel and the expected MCU links and connections to other properties, Ms. Marvel is only continuing the expansion of the already massive MCU. While episodes 1 through 3 have done this by including a plethora of MCU Easter eggs and references, Ms. Marvel episode 4 expanded the MCU in more subtle ways than the overt references to Captain Marvel and other MCU heroes. In the links to other MCU projects, both past and future, Ms. Marvel offers insight into the last stretch of Phase 4 and the secretive projects of Phase 5.

The scenes in question were featured throughout Ms. Marvel episode 4. Firstly, a scene in which the villains of the show, the Clandestines, escape from Damage Control hints at the futures of both Phase 4 and 5 in a seemingly unimportant title card. The title card labels the compound as the D.O.D.C Supermax Prison in Ms. Marvel. The other scene is when Waleed teaches Kamala about her origins from the Noor dimension.

Ms. Marvel’s Supermax Prison Links To She-Hulk And Thunderbolts

Firstly, the Supermax Prison has some important ramifications for two of Marvel Studios’ upcoming projects. The first and most overt is She-Hulk: Attorney At Law, which will be released on Disney+ in August 2022. The Supermax Prison shown in Ms. Marvel episode 4 is also included in the trailer for She-Hulk. In the trailer for the upcoming Disney+ show is Emil Blonsky/Abomination who is incarcerated. It would seem, given the Clandestines also being imprisoned there (albeit temporarily), that the Supermax Prison is also where Blonsky is being held, with Damage Control using it as a prison for superpowered. This brief scene in Ms. Marvel means that She-Hulk can now spend less time establishing the prison itself and its origins and focus on the character of Abomination, his imprisonment set up in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings – and his future beyond that.

This focus on Abomination could set up the reported Thunderbolts project in development at Marvel Studios. Abomination is one of the many members of the Thunderbolts in the comics with Phase 4 taking steps to set up other known members such as Zemo, Taskmaster, and John Walker/US Agent. In including this simple shot and subheading in Ms. Marvel, Marvel Studios have laid the foundations for the further setup of the prison and Abomination in She-Hulk for Phase 4, and from this the rumored Thunderbolts project for Phase 5.

Waleed’s Dimension Map Sets Up Further Exploration Of Ta-Lo And Noor Dimension For Shang-Chi 2

The other scene from Ms. Marvel that sets up Phase 5 comes from Waleed, Kamala’s ally found in Karachi. Shortly after Kamala meets Kareem, she is introduced to Waleed, the leader of the Red Daggers, with Ms. Marvel episode 4 setting up the hero of the same name from the comics. After meeting Waleed, he begins to explain more of Kamala’s Noor origins to her. At one point, Waleed pulls up a map of the Earth, before projecting it with the hidden map of other dimensions. As seen on the map, there are islands much like Earth’s continents scattered around the globe that indicate other dimensions, including the Noor dimension from which Kamala’s ancestors originated.

It is through this map that the future of the MCU and Phase 5 is set up. This map could link to a future property confirmed by Marvel Studios: Shang-Chi 2. As is known from Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, Ta-Lo exists in an alternate dimension from Earth. Ta-Lo is the home of Shang-Chi’s ancestors who are human only with ancient Chinese mythology-versed powers, not unlike the Clandestines of the Noor dimension and their links to South Asian culture. This map from Ms. Marvel could set up further exploration of both Ta-Lo and the Noor dimension. With Waleed’s map showing other dimensions as continent-like islands, the Noor dimension and Ta-Lo may exist in the same plane. This could mean that their respective positions on the map reflect the cultures of the Earthly nations they are near; Ta-Lo with China in Shang-Chi and the Noor with South Asian countries established in Ms. Marvel.

If Shang-Chi 2 decides to delve deeper into the exploration of Ta-Lo, as the first movie explained that Ta-Lo extends beyond the small valley seen in Shang-Chi, it could also further explore other dimensions like the Noor dimension. One thing that the MCU’s Phase 4 has focused on heavily is the multiverse. However, with Phase 5 and this setup in Ms. Marvel, Marvel Studios could focus on something similar only with alternate dimensions based on different cultures rather than other versions of the same Earthly universe. It is in these specific ways how Ms. Marvel episode 4 sets up potentially intriguing stories about the future of the MCU, from the ground-level anti-heroes of the Thunderbolts to the other-worldly dimensions of Ta-Lo and the Noor dimension.

New episodes of Ms. Marvel release every Wednesday on Disney+.