Carol

Biodata

Power Progression

Background

Carol saved a group of Skrull refugees when the Kree pursued them to Earth in the 1990s. She promised to help them find a new home, and she and Nick Fury sheltered the refugees. Coulson also remembered her single-handedly breaking through a Kree fleet and forcing it to retreat 52 98 99.

She subsequently spent years traveling through space and fighting for justice. By her return to Earth, she was familiar with interstellar civilizations and knew of Asgard and the existence of gods across the universe 99.

Her promise to the Skrulls later became a source of resentment. Gravik grew convinced that neither she nor Fury would fulfill it and organized followers who intended to seize Earth as their new homeworld 158.

Appearance

• Hair: Long; left disheveled after Wenwu’s counterattack during their island battle 126.
• Combat attire: Skintight armor, much of which shattered under the release of her own accumulated energy 126.
• Energy aura: Brilliant blue-gold or golden Cosmic Energy; in Binary state, she resembles a blazing sun 100 126.
• Final appearance: Altered by Wenwu after her defeat; the resulting features are not described 170.

Personality

Carol is proud, confrontational, and confident in her strength. She refuses Thor’s request for the Tesseract despite his explanation that Asgard needs it to repair the Bifrost. Her refusal reflects both distrust of Asgard’s promise to return it and her realization that the artifact resonates strongly with her own powers 99.

She shows sympathy toward displaced peoples, openly defending the Skrull refugees and offering the Inhumans a settlement on Earth. Her offer to the Inhumans, however, requires them to submit to the United States’ camp 99 134.

Her impulsiveness and demands for obedience alienate other heroes. After the Ten Rings escape with captured mutants, she accuses the heroes who declined to intervene of treason, drawing rebukes from Tony Stark and Steve Rogers. Tony later condemns her disregard for civilians when she prevents him from moving their fight away from New York 126 153.

Her loss of control during the first New York battle is also deliberately aggravated by Wenwu’s psychic influence. When the Ancient One makes her confront the destruction, Carol initially feels guilt before turning her anger back toward Wenwu 101.

Abilities & Skills

Cosmic Energy

Carol’s powers derive from a Tesseract-induced mutation and manifest as immense reserves of Cosmic Energy 98.

• Destroys more than half of the invading Chitauri forces within seconds of arriving in New York 98.
• Passes through the Tesseract-powered magic barrier by using her compatible energy, after a direct attack fails to break it 98.
• Senses a strong resonance with the Tesseract and feels capable of controlling surrounding space while holding it; sustained mastery is not demonstrated 99.
• Can have her energy absorbed and redirected by Wenwu, who uses this method to defeat her during their island battle 126.

Superhuman Strength and Durability

Carol initially overpowers Wenwu even when he combines the Ten Rings, his Uru Divine Steel body, and the Godslayer Battle Armor 100.

• Smashes through a giant hand formed from nearly thirty thousand tons of metal and several thick alloy barriers 100.
• Survives Wenwu’s first stored-energy counterattack without injury 126.
• Defeats Tony Stark after his armor’s energy reserves run low 152.
• Cannot immediately break Apocalypse-enhanced Magneto’s magnetic shield with a full-powered punch 123.
• Is eventually surpassed in raw strength by Wenwu’s clone 164.

Flight and Speed

Carol flies as a brilliant streak of light and operates beyond Earth’s atmosphere 98 134.

• Rapidly destroys airborne Chitauri craft during the invasion 98.
• Travels from the Moon toward Earth after meeting Black Bolt 134.
• In Binary state, moves quickly enough that Wenwu’s enhanced senses can barely track her attacks 126.

Binary State

Binary is a temporary higher-output state that greatly increases Carol’s strength and speed 126.

• Lets her overwhelm Wenwu in direct exchanges during their island battle.
• Can only be maintained briefly; her power gradually returns to normal.
• Leaves her vulnerable to Wenwu’s counterattack once the transformation fades 126.

Mental and Spiritual Defenses

Carol has a tenacious will, while her Cosmic Energy protects her soul 125.

• Resists direct control even after Wenwu acquires Professor X’s full telepathic ability 125.
• Remains susceptible to emotional manipulation, which Wenwu uses to intensify her anger in New York 101.
• Has a comparatively fragile soul. Wenwu ultimately separates it from her body and overcomes its energy protection with Life Control 170.

Relationships

• Nick Fury — Longtime friend and ally who shelters Skrull refugees with her and calls for her help during the Chitauri invasion 94 98 99.
• Phil Coulson — Old acquaintance who witnessed her strength against the Kree and welcomes her return 98.
• Xu Wenwu — Principal enemy. Their rivalry escalates from the Tesseract dispute to repeated battles, ending with him depowering her and erasing her identity 99 100 126 170.
• Thor — Opponent in the dispute over the Tesseract and Loki’s custody. Wenwu helps Thor take the artifact and escape her intervention 99 100.
• Tony Stark — Increasingly hostile fellow hero. Their disagreements over her conduct become direct combat when she protects Bucky from his revenge 103 126 152 153.
• Steve Rogers — Fellow defender of Bucky who nevertheless rebukes her accusations of treason and resents her conduct in New York 126 152.
• Bucky Barnes — Protected by Carol after Tony learns that he killed the Starks while controlled by Hydra 152.
• Black Bolt — Prospective ally whose destructive power impresses her. He rejects her demand that the Inhumans submit to the United States 134.
• Gravik — Skrull conspirator who resents her unfulfilled promise and seeks genetic enhancements capable of defeating her 158 160.

Story Role / Major Arcs

Chitauri Invasion and the Tesseract Dispute

Carol arrives in New York after Fury calls for help, devastates the Chitauri army, and removes the Tesseract from its magic array. She then insists that the artifact belongs to Earth and that Loki must stand trial there 94 98 99.

Wenwu secretly knocks the Tesseract into Thor’s hands and blocks Carol while Thor escapes to Asgard with Loki. Her ensuing battle with Wenwu spreads across Manhattan, causing collapsing buildings and military casualties. Wenwu covertly amplifies her anger until the Ancient One intervenes and separates them 99 100 101.

Hamid publicizes footage of the dispute, the destruction, and Fury’s admission that he sheltered Skrulls. Despite the backlash, Carol faces no questioning and becomes a core S.W.O.R.D. combatant. Tony and several other heroes leave to form the Mjolnir Bureau 102 103.

Apocalypse and the Captured Mutants

Carol promises Fury that she will handle the mutant who abducted Professor X. On the island, she fights Apocalypse-enhanced Magneto but cannot immediately penetrate his shield. She later fails to stop Wenwu from killing him 121 123 125.

When Wenwu captures Juggernaut, Pyro, and Rictor, Carol attacks to prevent the Ten Rings from recruiting them. Wenwu withstands her Binary assault, stores her energy, and releases it after her transformation expires. The Ten Rings escape with the prisoners, and her accusations against the uninvolved heroes deepen their estrangement 125 126.

Attilan and Conflict with Tony Stark

Carol discovers Attilan and strikes its failing shield. After Black Bolt demonstrates his sonic power, she offers the Inhumans an American settlement in exchange for joining the United States’ camp. He refuses and chooses direct negotiations on Earth 134.

She later rescues Fury, Steve, and Bucky from their damaged aircraft and defeats Tony when he tries to kill Bucky. After Tony succeeds in killing him, Carol intercepts Tony again. Their battle endangers New York civilians, with Tony relying on Hulkbuster support and satellite-delivered energy cores to resist her 152 153.

Skrull Exposure and the Fall of the United States

Following the exposure of Gravik’s conspiracy, Carol and Fury suspect psychic manipulation involving Apocalypse and Professor X’s powers. She forces her way into the United Nations General Assembly and claims that the Ten Rings controlled the Skrulls into staging the conspiracy 162.

As the Ten Rings offensive overwhelms American and allied forces, Wenwu’s clone prevents Carol from intervening and defeats her in direct exchanges. She eventually attempts to flee, but Wenwu’s true body traps her in the Mirror Dimension 164 170.

Wenwu knocks her soul from her body, drains her Cosmic Energy and life essence, and returns her weakened soul before it dissipates. He then erases her memories, alters her appearance, and leaves her to live as an ordinary person in a border town, cared for by an elderly farm couple 170.