Marvel announced they will introduce a brand new Arab-American superhero in the pages of Magnificent Ms. Marvel.
This new superhero is named Fadi Fadlalah, but goes by Amulet. The character will make his first appearance in Magnificent Ms. Marvel #13 by writer Saladin Ahmed.
Ahmed revealed that Amulet’s powers are magical and he comes from Michigan.
“Amulet is a fun, mysterious new character who will be playing a role in MAGNIFICENT MS. MARVEL for months to come. We’re keeping most of the details of him close to our chests, but I can tell you that his powers are magical in nature, and that he is an Arab-American Super Hero from Michigan.”
Sara Alfageeh, who designed the character, added that Amulet’s powers are primarily defensive in nature. She also elaborated on his background and indicated that he is of Lebanese heritage.
“Saladin let me have a lot of fun with this concept. We talked about his defensive-style powers and how they tied into his background as a Lebanese kid.”
She also detailed that his blue and white color scheme comes from the Nazar.
“The blue and white color palette and the circular design were pulled from the Nazar, a symbol that pops up all over the Middle East that protects the wearer from the evil eye — the harmful intentions of others. A bit of a historical, supernatural touch.”
She added that she purposely made him round despite his big size.
“We tend to associate sharp corners and edges with evil, and rounded designs and circles with good. This character is a gentle giant, so I wanted to make sure that even with his size he was shaped like a friend!”
Related: Wonder Woman and Ms. Marvel Writer G. Willow Wilson Shares “Throw Out The Whole Man” GIF
On Twitter Alfageeh added, “4 years ago reading Ms. Marvel vol 1 convinced me to become an illustrator. AMULET means so much to me as a nerdy lil Arab kid.”
UHM. SOME NEWS. I designed the newest superhero for Ms. Marvel!
Meet Amulet.
4 years ago reading Ms. Marvel vol 1 convinced me to become an illustrator. AMULET means so much to me as a nerdy lil Arab kid.
Thank you @saladinahmed for trusting me with him!https://t.co/XEhnS4JGyu pic.twitter.com/0Flozk99lK— Sara Alfageeh (@SaraAlfageeh) December 18, 2019
Marvel’s VP of Content and Character Development, Sana Amanat also commented on the new character saying, “Important to realize how many folks you are inspiring now to follow their dreams, Sara Alfageeh.”
Amanat added, “So happy you are part of the Kamala fam.”
Important to realize how many folks you are inspiring now to follow their dreams, @SaraAlfageeh. So happy you are a part of the Kamala fam. 💜
— sana amanat (@MiniB622) December 19, 2019
Magnificent Ms. Marvel #13 by Saladin Ahmed and Minkyu Jung will be available in March 2020.
The series does appear to be struggling as the most recent numbers from Comichron reveal that Magnificent Ms. Marvel #9 only shipped 12,230 issues to comic shops. The first issue, which debuted in March 2019 shipped 27,706 copies. The title has lost more than half of its readership in less than 9 issues.
What do you make of this new character?