Avengers #200 is one of the most controversial issues of the entire series. It’s the one where Ms. Marvel is raped, gives birth to, and then marries her son. It sounds stupid, but I actually dug this book in a wild, weird way. I know it’s sexist and gross and all, but I guess I just have poor taste. In the eyes of some–like author Jim Shooter–it’s so bad, he’s actually disavowed having written it.
For obvious reasons, it’s one of the most written-about issues of the series. It starts with a pretty standard scene: Men outside the delivery room, pacing.
Ms. Marvel has the child, and it quickly starts to age.
But nobody other than Ms. Marvel seems to recognize that this thing is not a normal child. Oddly, we learn how she feels about it while seeing her pose in her post-birth body before the mirror.
Her figure certainly has bounced back fast. Wonder Man thinks she should see her new child and, like I said, she seems to recognize that it’s something other than normal. Meanwhile…
Meanwhile, we get a neat little moment with Hawkeye using his abilities to crush Beast at pool until Beast uses his knowledge of physics to skunk him.
Marcus’ manifestation makes some normal people get a little crazy…
I love these kinds of exchanges. this one reminds me of the classic Fabian Stankowicz appearance in Avengers #221. One of my favorite single comics of all time.
This is called the “Limbo Effect” and it has implications all over the world.
It includes dinosaurs.
Carol’s child, Marcus, quickly becomes a teen…
…then a brown eyed handsome man and Ms. Marvel forgets that it’s the same guy who raped her, forgets that she gave birth to him after the rape, then falls in love and runs away with him.
So, she quits the team.
And they LET HER GO WITH HER RAPIST. Not just let her–ACTIVELY HELP HER.
Ugh. I mean, they shouldn’t forcibly prevent her–but they could have tried a little harder to let her know that it was a bad idea.
As soon as Marcus and Carol leave Earth, the Limbo Effect ends.
Yeah, this whole business of Ms. Marvel being raped by her own son/giving birth to said son/rapist, and then running off to Limbo with said rapist-son definitely stinks to high Heaven. I heard Michelinie lost his career over it, ( why didn’t the editorship catch it, and stop it, or at least get fired along with the author??? ) but after having reviewed the scene where Ms.Marvel announces to the team that she is leaving with Marcus, they DO raise some objections to the idea, but Ms. M does seem intent on the idea, so what else were the guys SUPPOSED to do??? Nevertheless, this entire storyline was a grossly unnecessary clusterfuck, ( npi ) which should have been vetoed at the editorial level. And I don’t even care for Ms. Marvel.