Who are Clan Destine? Ms Marvel villains comic book origins explained
Marvel Studios have made some big changes to this obscure team of characters. **Contains episode 3 spoilers**
A new threat to the Marvel Cinematic Universe revealed itself in Ms Marvel episode 3, when Kamala Khan was thrown into a chaotic battle with a group known as the Clan Destine.
The team is very loosely based on characters from the Marvel comic books, although major changes to their origin and line-up have been made in this adaptation for the screen.
Luckily, it's hard to imagine many viewers having an issue with that given the obscurity of the Clan Destine, who haven't had their own comic book since the '90s.
Nevertheless, we've rounded up all the information you need on their comic book origin and how it compares to their MCU debut, which should set you up nicely as the second half of Ms Marvel kicks off on Disney Plus – and be warned, there are episode 3 spoilers ahead.
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Who are the Clan Destine in Ms Marvel?
Ms Marvel episode 2 revealed that Kamala Khan's new crush Kamran is no ordinary high schooler, but rather the son of someone with a mysterious connection to her new powers.
This week's instalment elaborated on that bombshell twist with a flashback to 1942, where we see Kamran's mother, Najma, searching for a pair of magical bracelets in British-occupied India with Kamala's great-grandmother, Aisha.
In the ruins of the temple, Aisha comes across one of the two garments and quickly puts it on, but is separated from Najma and other members of their group as everyone scatters to escape incoming British soldiers.
In the present day, Najma relays this story to Kamala after rescuing her from the Department of Damage Control, explaining that she and her team – the Clan Destine – are from a different dimension.
For decades, they have longed to get home but can only do so by harnessing the power within the bracelet, now in Kamala's possession, which is derived from their home reality: the Noor Dimension.
At first, Najma comes across as kind and caring but it isn't long before she drops this facade, losing patience as Kamala worries that helping the Clan Destine get home could lead to cataclysmic destruction in our own reality.
A brawl at the wedding of Kamala's brother, Aamir, ends with the Clan Destine in cuffs, but you can bet that they won't be giving up on their mission so easily.
How are Clan Destine different in the Marvel comics?
The Clan Destine's appearance in Ms Marvel is very different to how they are depicted in the comic books.
The characters made their debut on the printed page back in May 1994, where they were depicted as the family of an immortal human known as Adam of Destine.
He miraculously gained eternal life in the year 1184 AD and later met an ancient Djinn called Elalyth, with the two falling in love and creating an immortal family over the course of several hundred years.
In total, they have 14 children, each with their own skills and abilities: Albert, Gracie, Jasmine, Newton, Walter, Thaddeus, Maurice, Florence, William, Dominic, Vincent and Samantha, as well as twins Rory and Pandora.
Initially, they were depicted as villains, but over time they have evolved into antiheroes due partly to Rory's good influence, with the youngest Destine son being particularly keen to use his powers to help people.
There are few similarities between the Clan Destine of the comics and that which we see in Ms Marvel, but some parallels can be found.
While not blood relatives in the MCU, the Clan Destine are shown to have a very close bond and due to their vastly decelerated ageing process (a result of the power of the Noor), they seem close enough to being immortal.
Meanwhile, as a Djinn with a matriarchal role in the gang, Najma can be viewed as a substitute of sorts for the character of Elalyth, while Kamran's disapproval of her tactics suggests he could become a hero in the same vein as Rory.
Overall though, it appears that Marvel Studios are borrowing only certain broad strokes from the Clan Destine of the comics, which makes it harder to predict how these characters will evolve in future episodes.
Ms Marvel is available to stream on Disney Plus – sign up for £7.99 a month or £79.90 a year.. Check out more of our Fantasy coverage or visit our TV Guide to see what's on tonight.
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Authors
David Craig is the Senior Drama Writer for Radio Times, covering the latest and greatest scripted drama and comedy across television and streaming. Previously, he worked at Starburst Magazine, presented The Winter King Podcast for ITVX and studied Journalism at the University of Sheffield.
