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[[caption-width-right:300:[[ComicBook/{{Shazam}} SHAZA]]--whoops, wrong hero.]]
As seen in the ComicBook/CaptainMarvel article, that name has been applied to various characters in American ComicBook history. This article is about the ones created by Creator/MarvelComics.
During the [[TheSixties 1960s]], writer Creator/StanLee noticed that the name's trademark from [[ComicBook/{{Shazam}} the Fawcett Comics character]] was available again, and decided that Marvel should own it (Marvel Comics, Captain Marvel... makes sense, right?). So he created a new superhero named that, one quite different from the previous ones. The new character first appeared in ''"Marvel Super-Heroes''" #12 (December, 1967). Given the value of the name to DC and the utter obscurity of the Marvel version of the character (at least nowadays; he was big back in the 70's), you'd think Marvel would cash in and make a mint selling the name back to DC at an enormous profit... except for the fact that he's called "Captain Marvel" and they're called "Marvel Comics" and you just can't let that kind of synchronicity slip away from you.
This "Captain Marvel" was an alien (from the Kree, a race that looked ''[[HumanAliens exactly]]'' [[HumanAliens like humans]] except that [[RubberForeheadAliens most of them are blue]].) His name actually ''was'' Mar-Vell and he ''was'' a captain in the Kree army. He came to Earth as part of mission to investigate Earth's space technology achievements (later [[JustifiedTrope justified]] by saying that Earth was located near a strategically important space warp.) Mar-Vell is sent to Earth while being monitored from orbit by the rest of his crew, which included his girlfriend Una and his superior, Colonel Yon-Rogg. Mar-Vell discovers he's [[ContrivedCoincidence the exact lookalike of an American senator]], who has just been murdered, so he takes over his identity to further his mission.
However, it turns out that Yon-Rogg secretly ''hated'' Mar-Vell, mostly because he wanted Una for himself. So he tries to have Mar-Vell killed. This forces Marvel (who has SuperStrength due to coming from a planet with higher gravity) to fight openly while wearing his Kree uniform, which caused people to mistake him for a new superhero called "Captain Marvel". He also became a target of a larger power struggle within the Kree government.
The betrayal from his own people (and the eventual death of Una) leads Mar-Vell to adopt Earth (and the name Captain Marvel) as his own. He had a brief relationship with ComicBook/CarolDanvers, a NASA security agent, who later becomes a superhero herself (and eventually takes on the mantle of [[LegacyCharacter Captain Marvel]]). He gains new powers from an Earth scientist, and later, from The Supreme Intelligence, a supercomputer who is the Kree's true ruler. He also gained his more famous, red-and-blue costume from it.
For a period of time, Marvel found himself accidentally "merged" with teenage singer Rick Jones (the same kid who was involved in the ComicBook/IncredibleHulk's origin) so that only one of them could exist in the universe, with the other one stuck in the [[AnotherDimension dimension]] called the [[AntiMatter Negative Zone]] until the one on Earth struck together his "nega-band" bracelets, causing them to switch places. (Writer Roy Thomas has admitted that this was done as a nod to the original Captain Marvel, who was a child who could turn into an adult superhero.) It was later revealed that this was ThePlan of the Supreme Intelligence, who was really a MagnificentBastard whose ultimate goal was to jumpstart the evolutionary potential of the Kree race via Rick Jones's genes. Eventually, Marvel finds a way to bring back Rick from the Zone and they resume their lives.
The ''"Captain Marvel"'' magazine lasted for 62 issues (May, 1968-May, 1979). Tragically, Marvel didn't live long after his series was cancelled. In a very rare case of a comic book character being KilledOffForReal, he died from a cancer he got from exposure to nerve gas during one of his adventures. His death was covered ''The Death Of Captain Marvel'' (''Marvel Graphic Novel'' #1, April 1982, written and illustrated by Jim Starlin), and Mar-Vell's death is universally considered one of the most touching, well-written and dignified in the history of comics.
Despite his death having occurred over thirty years ago and him unusually staying dead (save for a brief return during ''ComicBook/AvengersVsXMen''), he and his legacy still exert a powerful influence on the Marvel Universe today. His children [[ComicBook/{{Quasar}} Phyla-Vell]], Genis-Vell, and ComicBook/{{Hulkling}} remain prominent supporting players.
And in an age when ComicBook/JeanGrey, ComicBook/BuckyBarnes, ComicBook/GwenStacy ([[ComicBook/SpiderGwen sorta]]) and even Mar-Vell's enemy ComicBook/{{Thanos}} have all [[ComicBookDeath returned from the dead]] (and that's only sticking with examples within Marvel), Mar-Vell is still usually considered the last great symbol of death meaning something in comics. (Aside from Uncle Ben.) There have been a handful of stories where it ''seems'' like Mar-Vell has somehow returned to life, only for it to be revealed to be some kind of fake-out.
The ''ComicBook/UltimateGalactusTrilogy'', set in the ComicBook/UltimateMarvel universe, featured an adaptation of Mar-Vell and the Kree that look more like StarfishAliens than HumanAliens. The new design proved popular enough that it was also used in the animated series ''WesternAnimation/TheAvengersEarthsMightiestHeroes''.
Mar-Vell appears in the 2019 film ''Film/{{Captain Marvel|2019}}'' -- which features Carol Danvers in the title role, not Mar-Vell -- albeit with some significant changes.
[[folder:Successors]]
!! ComicBook/MonicaRambeau
To keep the trademark over the character's name (especially given that Creator/DCComics had since gained ownership of the original Captain Marvel character) Marvel Comics later created a new character who had ''nothing'' to do with the first, an African American cargo ship captain and harbor patrol lieutenant with the power to turn herself into PureEnergy. Monica first appeared in ''"Amazing Spider-Man Annual"'' #16 (1982), created by Roger Stern and John Romita, Jr. She would soon become a member of ComicBook/TheAvengers.
Monica was regularly featured in ''"Avengers"'' vol. 1 #227-294 (January, 1983: August, 1988). With most of her appearances written by Roger Stern. She has had several subsequent appearances among their ranks, typically in storylines involving reserve members called back to action, not as one of the regulars. She also starred in two one-shot ''"Captain Marvel''" publications, one in 1989 and the second in 1994. She has not been forgotten though as she has since had appearances as a member of ComicBook/{{Nextwave}} and the Marvel Divas, and was featured as a major character in the 2013 ''Mighty Avengers'' relaunch. She changes her codename a few times (the first two changes were as a direct result of Genis-Vell), most recently taking the name Spectrum.
!!Genis-Vell and Phyla-Vell
In ''"ComicBook/SilverSurfer Annual"'' #6 (1993), a new character, calling himself [[LegacyCharacter "Legacy"]] was introduced. Created by Ron Marz and Ron Lim. He was Genis-Vell, the son of Mar-Vell, created via cloning by Mar-Vell's last lover, Elysius, one of the [[{{Immortality}} Eternals]] of Titan (Saturn's largest moon.) He would later take over his father's identity and become the new Captain Marvel, and starred in his own series. (Rambeau changed her name to Photon out of respect) He is best known for having gone insane (from being given the same omniscience power as his father) and becoming both a hero and a menace until his death.
Genis appared in ''"Captain Marvel''" vol. 3 (1995-1996), vol. 4 (1999-2002), and vol. 5 (2002-2004). For a total of 66 issues, most of them written by Peter David. He then appeared as a member of the ComicBook/{{Thunderbolts}}. He was killed in ''"Thunderbolts''" #100 (May, 2006).
An accidental [[RealityWarper change of history]] had previously resulting in his gaining a "sister", [[ComicBook/{{Quasar}} Phyla-Vell]], who would also take over the Captain Marvel identity for a while. More recently, Mar-Vell has been revealed as the father of Hulkling of the ComicBook/YoungAvengers, the result of a dalliance with a Skrull princess.
!!Khn'nr
During the events of the ''ComicBook/CivilWar'' series, the original Mar-Vell reappeared, apparently having been accidentally transported from the past. He tried to fit in the present, knowing he would have to go back in time and die at some point... until it was revealed during the events of the ComicBook/SecretInvasion that he was actually a spy for the alien Skrull race -ironically the Kree's biggest enemies- named Khn'nr who had, like many other such sleeper agents, been brainwashed into ''thinking'' that he was the real Marvel. Still, he ends up embracing the Mar-Vell identity and becoming a true hero anyway. Before he died.
!!Noh-Varr
The torch was then briefly passed to Noh-Varr, a Kree SuperSoldier from another dimension (originally known as "Marvel Boy"). Although he declared war on Earth at first, he was encouraged by the Skrull Captain Marvel to fight the good fight. He was manipulated to become "Captain Marvel" in the ComicBook/DarkAvengers, but left when he saw the team for what it really was. For a while, he became Protector after contact with this Universe's Kree Supreme Intelligence, before deciding to drop the codenames in the ComicBook/YoungAvengers, where he's simply Noh-Varr.
!! ComicBook/CarolDanvers
In July 2012, a new ''Captain Marvel'' series was launched, with Carol Danvers taking on Mar-Vell's title, while [[ComicBook/MsMarvel2014 teenager Kamala Khan]] uses the ComicBook/MsMarvel name.
[[/folder]]
----
!! Captain Mar-Vell provides examples of:
* AbledInTheAdaptation: The [[ComicBook/UltimateMarvel Ultimate]] version of Mar-Vell had all his run, including his death, without cancer being mentioned at all.
* AbortedArc: Before it was decided that the mysterious Captain Marvel who had been glimpsed during ComicBook/CivilWar was the "returned" Mar-Vell (see Back from the Dead below), it was intended to be the recently introduced character Gravity, who had somehow been given the costume and the role of Earth's protector. One can only assume it would have eventually been revealed just who gave Gravity the costume and the job.
* TheAce: Handsome, heroic, powerful, and possessing the willpower necessary to utilise Cosmic Awareness without being driven mad by the ability. In life and death, Mar-Vell won the respect of many of his universe's greatest heroes, some of its vilest villains, and a number of the sublime abstracts who lord above all.
* AdaptationNameChange: The character in the ComicBook/UltimateMarvel universe is called "Mahr Vehl", but the mispronuntiation as "Captain Marvel" stays the same.
* AffectionateParody: Peter David's run on the Genis version of ''Captain Marvel'' started as a tongue in cheek take on the superhero genre with a few LampshadeHanging moments delivered by [[UnfazedEveryman Rick Jones]].
* AffirmativeActionLegacy:
** Monica Rambeau and Phyla-Vell. Carol Danvers claimed the title for herself, as mentioned above, and it will be this version that will be used in the 2019 film.
** The openly-gay Teddy Altman is the new Captain Marvel in the BadFuture seen in ''[[ComicBook/YoungAvengers Children's Crusade]]''.
* ArchEnemy: The original Mar-Vell is often considered this to Thanos, and his cancerverse version retains this animosity.
** Before Thanos, the archenemy role was occupied by Colonel Yon-Rogg.
* BackFromTheDead: Mar-Vell. [[spoiler:But not really.]]
* BewareTheSuperman: A darkly comical version of this story played out in Genis-Vell's second run, partly driven by his deciding to become a NietzscheWannabe.
* CaptainSuperhero: A superhero named Captain Mar-Vell. He actually did hold a Kree military rank equivalent to captain before being exiled to Earth.
* CerebusSyndrome: The second half of Peter David's run. See DarkerAndEdgier below.
* DarkerAndEdgier: About halfway through Genis's run under the name, his title was retooled from a comical series about the relatively earnest Genis to a dark series in which Genis became a RealityWarper with a god complex.
* DeadPersonImpersonation: For a time, Mar-Vell posed as a deceased scientist named Walter Lawson.
** [[spoiler: And a NotQuiteDead Walter Lawson returned the favor in the 2019 series Marvel Team-Up.]]
* DeathIsCheap: Notably averted, as Mar-Vell is pretty much the only major Marvel superhero who died and has never been resurrected. This is because everyone seems to agree it would be distasteful to reverse a memorable, touching, and realistically (for superhero comics) depicted cancer death.
* DeadlyGas: Nitro's debut was him try to steal some for the Kree, only to be stopped by Mar-Vell -- but the canister sprung a leak in the battle and while Mar-Vell did reseal it, the gas was also carcinogenic and resulted in the cancer that would kill Mar-Vell.
* DisappearedDad: Captain Marvel never met any of his children: [[ComicBook/YoungAvengers Hulkling]] was kept by the Skrulls, and Genis and Phyla were created using his DNA after his death.
* DistaffCounterpart: The more popular Ms. Marvel.
* DownerEnding: Genis-Vell ends his adventure by [[spoiler:experiencing an [[WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity extreme bout of madness]] twice, [[HerowithBadPublicity has the whole galaxy hate and fear him,]] suffers torture at the hands of his family [[GetAHoldOfYourselfMan to pacify him]] by [[NoHoldsBarredBeatdown beating him]] and [[IWillTearYourArmsOff nearly tearing his limbs off]], [[TimeTravel goes to see a future]] that only [[BadFuture becomes more and more dystopian,]] watches his own [[KidFromTheFuture future son]] [[AntagonisticOffspring get corrupted by The Magus]] who goes on to slaughter 5 star systems and threatened the whole galaxy to free his master, [[OffingTheOffspring forced himself to erase his son in the timeline by promising to smother his son in the crib,]] watches Rick and Marlo leave him behind and later [[CruelAndUnusualDeath dies himself via interdimensional dismemberment]] due to meddling from Helmut Zemo that causes him to become a threat to the universe with [[ShootTheShaggyDog few mourning his passing or remembering him at all.]] The only bright spot is Eulogy being proven wrong that Genis’ fans didn’t want or need him anymore when the phone rings for Genis after he had left, implying there’s people who still want Genis even after his adventure is over.]]
* EndOfSeriesAwareness: During Creator/PeterDavid's run, Rick Jones developed "comics awareness", knowing he's in a comic book and that it was about to be cancelled. The final issue of the series was entirely about the fact that it was the final issue of the series.
* EldritchAbomination: Eon from Jim Starlin's run is a rare benevolent example.
* EvilCounterpart: A post-mortem one. In the [[MirrorUniverse Cancerverse]] Mar-Vell made a pact with a pantheon of {{Eldritch Abomination}}s on his deathbed. Not only did he live, he obliterated death in that universe and turned the Avengers into Lovecraftian horrors under his command.
* ExactWords: In a case of a cover doing this, the cover to issue 34 of Mar-Vell's introduced Nitro and boasted he'd be "the man who killed Captain Marvel." It just didn't say ''when'', as while Mar-Vell was still alive at the end of the issue, the events of it, more specifically, the exposure to the DeadlyGas Nitro was trying to steal, would indeed be the cause of the cancer that claimed Mar-Vell.
* FantasticRacism: Most Kree are blue-skinned, but some like Mar-Vell have pink skin (i.e., like that of northern Europeans) and are treated as inferior by the blue-skinned Kree. The extent to which this applies to Mar-Vell (and his status as a hero or a traitor to the Kree) depends on the writer.
* FourthWallObserver: Rick Jones, long-time superhero sidekick, has developed 'comics awareness' as detailed in Captain Marvel #60.
* AGodAmI: Genis-Vell during his crazy period where he restarted the universe.
* TheGoodCaptain: Mar has always been unusually altruistic for a Kree military officer.
* GracefulLoser: When he realises that there's no swaying [[spoiler:Entropy]] from recreating the universe and thus subjecting him to the burden of cosmic awareness once again, Genis willingly helps the entity get started by [[spoiler:shooting him in the head.]]
* TheHedonist: Genis spent his life gambling and drinking booze before meeting Silver Surfer, who convinced him to continue his father's heroic legacy.
* TheHeroDies: Mar-Vell's life ends in the self-titled ''The Death of Captain Marvel'' one-shot.
* HeroKiller: Nitro's debut also is also the incident that'd cause Mar-Vell's death.
* HoistByHisOwnPetard: Mar-Vell's nega bands, which granted him many of his powers, also included a healing factor that kept the cancer that would eventually kill him in check. Unfortunately, the cancer eventually mutated to the point where the nega bands could no longer stop it, and made Mar-Vell reliant on them to the point he would die in a matter of hours without them. Worse, the mutated cancer was now linked to the nega bands, meaning that a cure would not only have to overcome the cancer itself but the bands as well. Unfortunately that led to Mar-Vell's death.
* HyperAwareness: His Cosmic Awareness.
* IHaveManyNames: Multiple:
** Common trait among those that take 'Marvel' in their title, outside of the original Mar-Vell himself, is that they will eventually have to change their alias at some point.
** Monica Rambeau's been hit with this so many times it's a running gag. She lost the Captain Marvel moniker to Genis-Vell, and took the name Photon. Then Genis-Vell changed ''his'' name to Photon, having forgotten that Monica was using it; so she changed her name to Pulsar. In at least one storyline she just went by Monica, but has since adopted the name Spectrum.
* KilledOffForReal: One of the comic book examples that actually ''stays'', unlike [[ComicBook/CaptainAmerica the other Cap]].
* LifeWillKillYou: While the cause was mildly fantastic, his death from cancer was played realistically and affectingly, which may be related to his never having been resurrected.
* LoveHurts: Mar-Vell lost his first love Una due to his own recklessness, and while he and Carol Danvers had a mutual attraction they were never really able to hash things out between them. He eventually found a new love in the Titan Elysium, to the point he semi-retired to the moon of Titan to be with her and they discussed having children. The cancer would put an end to those plans.
* MidSeasonUpgrade: Mar-Vell receiving the Cosmic Awareness from Eon during the battle against Thanos. Before that, he received his more well-known blue and red uniform (previously having worn his Kree military uniform) from the Kree Supreme Intelligence as a reward for his help in thwarting a coup.
* MisplacedRetribution: Phyla-Vell wants to kill Comicbook/{{Gamora}} for destroying the universe, even though the nature of Marvel's "[[TheMultiverse mutliverse]]" means that was a different universe with a different Gamora... not that 616 Gamora is totally innocent but she was never ''that'' bad.
* MyGreatestFailure: Mar-Vell never really forgave himself for Una's death, even when he found new loves. Part of this is because during the battle that eventually claimed her life she was badly wounded in the crossfire between the Kree under Colonel Yon-Rogg and a force of alien enemies Yon-Rogg lured in to kill Mar-Vell for him. An enraged Mar-Vell directly attacked Yon-Rogg before coming to his senses and desperately taking Una off the field, to the point he stole a rocket from the Earthlings who'd come to see him as a hero. Alas, she succumbed to her wounds en route to their orbiting spaceship where the advanced healing tech could've saved her. Mar-Vell would often wonder if he could've saved her if he hadn't been so blinded by rage.
* NaiveNewcomer: Noh-Varr both to the Dark Avengers (he didn't even know he was in a team full of villains until Moonstone let it slip) and to the true Avengers.
* NeverLiveItDown[=/=]OnceDoneNeverForgotten: Mar-Vell is best known as "that guy who died from cancer", both in-universe and out. As a career soldier, he ([[spoiler:actually Khn'nr]]) wasn't happy to find out he died on a sickbed instead of in battle.
* ObfuscatingInsanity: [[spoiler:After rebooting the universe he destroyed with the help of Entropy, Genis was cured of his insanity after being subsumed by the lucid new version of him.]] Still haunted the spectre of his past failures, he chose to maintain a demented persona to ward off anyone expecting to much from him.
* PietaPlagiarism: The cover of The Death of Captain Marvel graphic novel, featuring the GrimReaper holding the captain's body. Of all the examples of this trope it's the closest to a true imitation of the Michelangelo work, explicitly borrowing the pose of a sitting Mary with her son's body in her arms.
* PunnyName: "Phyla-Vell" is a taxonomical pun off of "Genis-Vell" ("phylum" and "genus", respectively)
* RasputinianDeath: [[spoiler: Genis-Vell about a year after joining the Thunderbolts as resident {{Gamebreaker}}]]
* RatedMForManly: Genis-Vell more than qualifies. Musclebound and square-jawed with a crewcut, Genis is the only Captain Marvel thus far that has slept with women all across the galaxy. Helps that he's got a lot of swagger and charisma. This [[http://tinyimg.io/i/ww9n4L5.jpg image]] really sells that.
* RealityWarper: Genis-Vell
* ReedRichardsIsUseless: A variant: Rick Jones comes to Reed and the other superintelligent superheroes of the era and asks them to use their great minds to cure Mar-Vell's cancer. They come to the uncomfortable realization that they could have been doing that for everyone in the world ''the entire time''. However, when their efforts fail to bear fruit in time to save Mar-Vell, they '''just stop trying'''. Nevermind that '''other''' people might be helped in the future, nope, it was "save Mar" or nothing.
* ReTool: The original series underwent a few as it struggled to find its identity.
* SanityHasItsAdvantages: As a Kree, Genis had the ability to simply shutoff Moonstone's(Meteorite's) gravity stones even before he gained cosmic awareness, which should have let him identify the devices even sooner. But by the time they had any confrontations he was too detached from reality to settle on a simple solution.
* SpiderSense: Cosmic Awareness, once appointed Protector of the Universe, Mar-Vell seemed to control it well enough that whenever universal threats or changes occurred that related to him he could but perceive them. When Genis took the power on it drove him crazy because he couldn't fully control it and kept getting [[GoMadFromTheRevelation more information then he needed on possible outcomes]].
* {{Sucksessor}}: Those who have attempted to take on the Captain Marvel name after the original have all met with immense hardship with some even outright dying as they tried to live up to his daunting legacy while others simply suffer through the misfortune the title seems to bring.
* SuperheroesInSpace: Essentially anyone who has the Marvel title ends up in space.
* SwapTeleportation: For a time, Captain Mar-Vell was trapped in the Negative Zone, and could only leave when Rick Jones struck together a pair of "Nega-Bands" he wore on his wrists, causing the two to switch places.
* TimeTravelEscape: Mar-Vell [[spoiler:but not really.]]
* TokenEvilTeammate: Noh-Varr among his original crew who embodied the very best of the Kree's "zen facist" doctrine while he was a wrathful skeptic they were trying to turn around into being a hero like them. Him being their ship's sole survivor winds up being a major headache for just about everybody during his series.
* TheTopicOfCancer: Possibly ''the'' classic Creator/MarvelComics example: the death of Captain Mar-Vell.
* TotallyRadical: Genis characterisation in the nineties.
* TwoferTokenMinority:
** The second Captain Marvel, a black woman named Monica Rambeau. Done as a pretty earnest attempt to create a strong Twofer superhero.
** Phyla counts as on as well, being a lesbian.
* VillainProtagonist: Genis-Vell in the 2002 relaunch.
* WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity: The omniscience afforded by Cosmic Awareness has some serious downsides to those who possess it after Mar-Vell himself.
* WorthyOpponent: This is part of the reason Earth became a battlefield between various spacefaring empires. Mar-Vell was sent as part of a team to investigate Earth after the defeats of both a Skrull Sentry and Ronan the Accuser at the hands of the Fantastic Four. The Skrull Empire wondered why such a valiant and decorated war hero would be sent to such a backwards world and decided to investigate by sending in the Super-Skrull. After Mar-Vell defeated the Super-Skrull, the Skrull Empire decided that if the Kree Empire sent someone of Mar-Vell's stature to protect Earth, it must be valuable.
** Later on, the news of Captain Mar-Vell's impending death due to cancer was described as causing mixed feelings among the Skrulls, their happiness at his death being tempered with disappointment and sadness that so great a warrior would die in a sickbed instead of in battle (ideally with the Skrulls themselves). The Skrull Empire eventually sent one of their top generals to visit Mar-Vell and present him with the highest decoration of the Skrull Empire, praising him for his courage and skill before wishing him a swift death and great rewards in the afterlife.
*** {{ComicBook/Thanos}} considered Captain Mar-Vell to be this, to the point that he decided to welcome Mar-Vell into death's embrace personally. Later on during the Infinity War, he described Quasar (who had inherited Mar-Vell's role of protector of the universe) as a poor replacement to Mar-Vell. During one of his other brushes with ultimate power Thanos even briefly resurrected Mar-Vell to speak to him, and after the conversation when Mar-Vell asked to be allowed to return to his rest Thanos let him go.
* WritingAroundTrademarks: The reason why Marvel Comics makes sure to publish a comic with a character named Captain Marvel in it at least [[http://www.oafe.net/blog/2006/12/captain-marvel-addendum-part-1/ once every few years]].
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[[caption-width-right:300:[[ComicBook/{{Shazam}} SHAZA]]--whoops, wrong hero.]]
As seen in the ComicBook/CaptainMarvel article, that name has been applied to various characters in American ComicBook history. This article is about the ones created by Creator/MarvelComics.
During the [[TheSixties 1960s]], writer Creator/StanLee noticed that the name's trademark from [[ComicBook/{{Shazam}} the Fawcett Comics character]] was available again, and decided that Marvel should own it (Marvel Comics, Captain Marvel... makes sense, right?). So he created a new superhero named that, one quite different from the previous ones. The new character first appeared in ''"Marvel Super-Heroes''" #12 (December, 1967). Given the value of the name to DC and the utter obscurity of the Marvel version of the character (at least nowadays; he was big back in the 70's), you'd think Marvel would cash in and make a mint selling the name back to DC at an enormous profit... except for the fact that he's called "Captain Marvel" and they're called "Marvel Comics" and you just can't let that kind of synchronicity slip away from you.
This "Captain Marvel" was an alien (from the Kree, a race that looked ''[[HumanAliens exactly]]'' [[HumanAliens like humans]] except that [[RubberForeheadAliens most of them are blue]].) His name actually ''was'' Mar-Vell and he ''was'' a captain in the Kree army. He came to Earth as part of mission to investigate Earth's space technology achievements (later [[JustifiedTrope justified]] by saying that Earth was located near a strategically important space warp.) Mar-Vell is sent to Earth while being monitored from orbit by the rest of his crew, which included his girlfriend Una and his superior, Colonel Yon-Rogg. Mar-Vell discovers he's [[ContrivedCoincidence the exact lookalike of an American senator]], who has just been murdered, so he takes over his identity to further his mission.
However, it turns out that Yon-Rogg secretly ''hated'' Mar-Vell, mostly because he wanted Una for himself. So he tries to have Mar-Vell killed. This forces Marvel (who has SuperStrength due to coming from a planet with higher gravity) to fight openly while wearing his Kree uniform, which caused people to mistake him for a new superhero called "Captain Marvel". He also became a target of a larger power struggle within the Kree government.
The betrayal from his own people (and the eventual death of Una) leads Mar-Vell to adopt Earth (and the name Captain Marvel) as his own. He had a brief relationship with ComicBook/CarolDanvers, a NASA security agent, who later becomes a superhero herself (and eventually takes on the mantle of [[LegacyCharacter Captain Marvel]]). He gains new powers from an Earth scientist, and later, from The Supreme Intelligence, a supercomputer who is the Kree's true ruler. He also gained his more famous, red-and-blue costume from it.
For a period of time, Marvel found himself accidentally "merged" with teenage singer Rick Jones (the same kid who was involved in the ComicBook/IncredibleHulk's origin) so that only one of them could exist in the universe, with the other one stuck in the [[AnotherDimension dimension]] called the [[AntiMatter Negative Zone]] until the one on Earth struck together his "nega-band" bracelets, causing them to switch places. (Writer Roy Thomas has admitted that this was done as a nod to the original Captain Marvel, who was a child who could turn into an adult superhero.) It was later revealed that this was ThePlan of the Supreme Intelligence, who was really a MagnificentBastard whose ultimate goal was to jumpstart the evolutionary potential of the Kree race via Rick Jones's genes. Eventually, Marvel finds a way to bring back Rick from the Zone and they resume their lives.
The ''"Captain Marvel"'' magazine lasted for 62 issues (May, 1968-May, 1979). Tragically, Marvel didn't live long after his series was cancelled. In a very rare case of a comic book character being KilledOffForReal, he died from a cancer he got from exposure to nerve gas during one of his adventures. His death was covered ''The Death Of Captain Marvel'' (''Marvel Graphic Novel'' #1, April 1982, written and illustrated by Jim Starlin), and Mar-Vell's death is universally considered one of the most touching, well-written and dignified in the history of comics.
Despite his death having occurred over thirty years ago and him unusually staying dead (save for a brief return during ''ComicBook/AvengersVsXMen''), he and his legacy still exert a powerful influence on the Marvel Universe today. His children [[ComicBook/{{Quasar}} Phyla-Vell]], Genis-Vell, and ComicBook/{{Hulkling}} remain prominent supporting players.
And in an age when ComicBook/JeanGrey, ComicBook/BuckyBarnes, ComicBook/GwenStacy ([[ComicBook/SpiderGwen sorta]]) and even Mar-Vell's enemy ComicBook/{{Thanos}} have all [[ComicBookDeath returned from the dead]] (and that's only sticking with examples within Marvel), Mar-Vell is still usually considered the last great symbol of death meaning something in comics. (Aside from Uncle Ben.) There have been a handful of stories where it ''seems'' like Mar-Vell has somehow returned to life, only for it to be revealed to be some kind of fake-out.
The ''ComicBook/UltimateGalactusTrilogy'', set in the ComicBook/UltimateMarvel universe, featured an adaptation of Mar-Vell and the Kree that look more like StarfishAliens than HumanAliens. The new design proved popular enough that it was also used in the animated series ''WesternAnimation/TheAvengersEarthsMightiestHeroes''.
Mar-Vell appears in the 2019 film ''Film/{{Captain Marvel|2019}}'' -- which features Carol Danvers in the title role, not Mar-Vell -- albeit with some significant changes.
[[folder:Successors]]
!! ComicBook/MonicaRambeau
To keep the trademark over the character's name (especially given that Creator/DCComics had since gained ownership of the original Captain Marvel character) Marvel Comics later created a new character who had ''nothing'' to do with the first, an African American cargo ship captain and harbor patrol lieutenant with the power to turn herself into PureEnergy. Monica first appeared in ''"Amazing Spider-Man Annual"'' #16 (1982), created by Roger Stern and John Romita, Jr. She would soon become a member of ComicBook/TheAvengers.
Monica was regularly featured in ''"Avengers"'' vol. 1 #227-294 (January, 1983: August, 1988). With most of her appearances written by Roger Stern. She has had several subsequent appearances among their ranks, typically in storylines involving reserve members called back to action, not as one of the regulars. She also starred in two one-shot ''"Captain Marvel''" publications, one in 1989 and the second in 1994. She has not been forgotten though as she has since had appearances as a member of ComicBook/{{Nextwave}} and the Marvel Divas, and was featured as a major character in the 2013 ''Mighty Avengers'' relaunch. She changes her codename a few times (the first two changes were as a direct result of Genis-Vell), most recently taking the name Spectrum.
!!Genis-Vell and Phyla-Vell
In ''"ComicBook/SilverSurfer Annual"'' #6 (1993), a new character, calling himself [[LegacyCharacter "Legacy"]] was introduced. Created by Ron Marz and Ron Lim. He was Genis-Vell, the son of Mar-Vell, created via cloning by Mar-Vell's last lover, Elysius, one of the [[{{Immortality}} Eternals]] of Titan (Saturn's largest moon.) He would later take over his father's identity and become the new Captain Marvel, and starred in his own series. (Rambeau changed her name to Photon out of respect) He is best known for having gone insane (from being given the same omniscience power as his father) and becoming both a hero and a menace until his death.
Genis appared in ''"Captain Marvel''" vol. 3 (1995-1996), vol. 4 (1999-2002), and vol. 5 (2002-2004). For a total of 66 issues, most of them written by Peter David. He then appeared as a member of the ComicBook/{{Thunderbolts}}. He was killed in ''"Thunderbolts''" #100 (May, 2006).
An accidental [[RealityWarper change of history]] had previously resulting in his gaining a "sister", [[ComicBook/{{Quasar}} Phyla-Vell]], who would also take over the Captain Marvel identity for a while. More recently, Mar-Vell has been revealed as the father of Hulkling of the ComicBook/YoungAvengers, the result of a dalliance with a Skrull princess.
!!Khn'nr
During the events of the ''ComicBook/CivilWar'' series, the original Mar-Vell reappeared, apparently having been accidentally transported from the past. He tried to fit in the present, knowing he would have to go back in time and die at some point... until it was revealed during the events of the ComicBook/SecretInvasion that he was actually a spy for the alien Skrull race -ironically the Kree's biggest enemies- named Khn'nr who had, like many other such sleeper agents, been brainwashed into ''thinking'' that he was the real Marvel. Still, he ends up embracing the Mar-Vell identity and becoming a true hero anyway. Before he died.
!!Noh-Varr
The torch was then briefly passed to Noh-Varr, a Kree SuperSoldier from another dimension (originally known as "Marvel Boy"). Although he declared war on Earth at first, he was encouraged by the Skrull Captain Marvel to fight the good fight. He was manipulated to become "Captain Marvel" in the ComicBook/DarkAvengers, but left when he saw the team for what it really was. For a while, he became Protector after contact with this Universe's Kree Supreme Intelligence, before deciding to drop the codenames in the ComicBook/YoungAvengers, where he's simply Noh-Varr.
!! ComicBook/CarolDanvers
In July 2012, a new ''Captain Marvel'' series was launched, with Carol Danvers taking on Mar-Vell's title, while [[ComicBook/MsMarvel2014 teenager Kamala Khan]] uses the ComicBook/MsMarvel name.
[[/folder]]
----
!! Captain Mar-Vell provides examples of:
* AbledInTheAdaptation: The [[ComicBook/UltimateMarvel Ultimate]] version of Mar-Vell had all his run, including his death, without cancer being mentioned at all.
* AbortedArc: Before it was decided that the mysterious Captain Marvel who had been glimpsed during ComicBook/CivilWar was the "returned" Mar-Vell (see Back from the Dead below), it was intended to be the recently introduced character Gravity, who had somehow been given the costume and the role of Earth's protector. One can only assume it would have eventually been revealed just who gave Gravity the costume and the job.
* TheAce: Handsome, heroic, powerful, and possessing the willpower necessary to utilise Cosmic Awareness without being driven mad by the ability. In life and death, Mar-Vell won the respect of many of his universe's greatest heroes, some of its vilest villains, and a number of the sublime abstracts who lord above all.
* AdaptationNameChange: The character in the ComicBook/UltimateMarvel universe is called "Mahr Vehl", but the mispronuntiation as "Captain Marvel" stays the same.
* AffectionateParody: Peter David's run on the Genis version of ''Captain Marvel'' started as a tongue in cheek take on the superhero genre with a few LampshadeHanging moments delivered by [[UnfazedEveryman Rick Jones]].
* AffirmativeActionLegacy:
** Monica Rambeau and Phyla-Vell. Carol Danvers claimed the title for herself, as mentioned above, and it will be this version that will be used in the 2019 film.
** The openly-gay Teddy Altman is the new Captain Marvel in the BadFuture seen in ''[[ComicBook/YoungAvengers Children's Crusade]]''.
* ArchEnemy: The original Mar-Vell is often considered this to Thanos, and his cancerverse version retains this animosity.
** Before Thanos, the archenemy role was occupied by Colonel Yon-Rogg.
* BackFromTheDead: Mar-Vell. [[spoiler:But not really.]]
* BewareTheSuperman: A darkly comical version of this story played out in Genis-Vell's second run, partly driven by his deciding to become a NietzscheWannabe.
* CaptainSuperhero: A superhero named Captain Mar-Vell. He actually did hold a Kree military rank equivalent to captain before being exiled to Earth.
* CerebusSyndrome: The second half of Peter David's run. See DarkerAndEdgier below.
* DarkerAndEdgier: About halfway through Genis's run under the name, his title was retooled from a comical series about the relatively earnest Genis to a dark series in which Genis became a RealityWarper with a god complex.
* DeadPersonImpersonation: For a time, Mar-Vell posed as a deceased scientist named Walter Lawson.
** [[spoiler: And a NotQuiteDead Walter Lawson returned the favor in the 2019 series Marvel Team-Up.]]
* DeathIsCheap: Notably averted, as Mar-Vell is pretty much the only major Marvel superhero who died and has never been resurrected. This is because everyone seems to agree it would be distasteful to reverse a memorable, touching, and realistically (for superhero comics) depicted cancer death.
* DeadlyGas: Nitro's debut was him try to steal some for the Kree, only to be stopped by Mar-Vell -- but the canister sprung a leak in the battle and while Mar-Vell did reseal it, the gas was also carcinogenic and resulted in the cancer that would kill Mar-Vell.
* DisappearedDad: Captain Marvel never met any of his children: [[ComicBook/YoungAvengers Hulkling]] was kept by the Skrulls, and Genis and Phyla were created using his DNA after his death.
* DistaffCounterpart: The more popular Ms. Marvel.
* DownerEnding: Genis-Vell ends his adventure by [[spoiler:experiencing an [[WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity extreme bout of madness]] twice, [[HerowithBadPublicity has the whole galaxy hate and fear him,]] suffers torture at the hands of his family [[GetAHoldOfYourselfMan to pacify him]] by [[NoHoldsBarredBeatdown beating him]] and [[IWillTearYourArmsOff nearly tearing his limbs off]], [[TimeTravel goes to see a future]] that only [[BadFuture becomes more and more dystopian,]] watches his own [[KidFromTheFuture future son]] [[AntagonisticOffspring get corrupted by The Magus]] who goes on to slaughter 5 star systems and threatened the whole galaxy to free his master, [[OffingTheOffspring forced himself to erase his son in the timeline by promising to smother his son in the crib,]] watches Rick and Marlo leave him behind and later [[CruelAndUnusualDeath dies himself via interdimensional dismemberment]] due to meddling from Helmut Zemo that causes him to become a threat to the universe with [[ShootTheShaggyDog few mourning his passing or remembering him at all.]] The only bright spot is Eulogy being proven wrong that Genis’ fans didn’t want or need him anymore when the phone rings for Genis after he had left, implying there’s people who still want Genis even after his adventure is over.]]
* EndOfSeriesAwareness: During Creator/PeterDavid's run, Rick Jones developed "comics awareness", knowing he's in a comic book and that it was about to be cancelled. The final issue of the series was entirely about the fact that it was the final issue of the series.
* EldritchAbomination: Eon from Jim Starlin's run is a rare benevolent example.
* EvilCounterpart: A post-mortem one. In the [[MirrorUniverse Cancerverse]] Mar-Vell made a pact with a pantheon of {{Eldritch Abomination}}s on his deathbed. Not only did he live, he obliterated death in that universe and turned the Avengers into Lovecraftian horrors under his command.
* ExactWords: In a case of a cover doing this, the cover to issue 34 of Mar-Vell's introduced Nitro and boasted he'd be "the man who killed Captain Marvel." It just didn't say ''when'', as while Mar-Vell was still alive at the end of the issue, the events of it, more specifically, the exposure to the DeadlyGas Nitro was trying to steal, would indeed be the cause of the cancer that claimed Mar-Vell.
* FantasticRacism: Most Kree are blue-skinned, but some like Mar-Vell have pink skin (i.e., like that of northern Europeans) and are treated as inferior by the blue-skinned Kree. The extent to which this applies to Mar-Vell (and his status as a hero or a traitor to the Kree) depends on the writer.
* FourthWallObserver: Rick Jones, long-time superhero sidekick, has developed 'comics awareness' as detailed in Captain Marvel #60.
* AGodAmI: Genis-Vell during his crazy period where he restarted the universe.
* TheGoodCaptain: Mar has always been unusually altruistic for a Kree military officer.
* GracefulLoser: When he realises that there's no swaying [[spoiler:Entropy]] from recreating the universe and thus subjecting him to the burden of cosmic awareness once again, Genis willingly helps the entity get started by [[spoiler:shooting him in the head.]]
* TheHedonist: Genis spent his life gambling and drinking booze before meeting Silver Surfer, who convinced him to continue his father's heroic legacy.
* TheHeroDies: Mar-Vell's life ends in the self-titled ''The Death of Captain Marvel'' one-shot.
* HeroKiller: Nitro's debut also is also the incident that'd cause Mar-Vell's death.
* HoistByHisOwnPetard: Mar-Vell's nega bands, which granted him many of his powers, also included a healing factor that kept the cancer that would eventually kill him in check. Unfortunately, the cancer eventually mutated to the point where the nega bands could no longer stop it, and made Mar-Vell reliant on them to the point he would die in a matter of hours without them. Worse, the mutated cancer was now linked to the nega bands, meaning that a cure would not only have to overcome the cancer itself but the bands as well. Unfortunately that led to Mar-Vell's death.
* HyperAwareness: His Cosmic Awareness.
* IHaveManyNames: Multiple:
** Common trait among those that take 'Marvel' in their title, outside of the original Mar-Vell himself, is that they will eventually have to change their alias at some point.
** Monica Rambeau's been hit with this so many times it's a running gag. She lost the Captain Marvel moniker to Genis-Vell, and took the name Photon. Then Genis-Vell changed ''his'' name to Photon, having forgotten that Monica was using it; so she changed her name to Pulsar. In at least one storyline she just went by Monica, but has since adopted the name Spectrum.
* KilledOffForReal: One of the comic book examples that actually ''stays'', unlike [[ComicBook/CaptainAmerica the other Cap]].
* LifeWillKillYou: While the cause was mildly fantastic, his death from cancer was played realistically and affectingly, which may be related to his never having been resurrected.
* LoveHurts: Mar-Vell lost his first love Una due to his own recklessness, and while he and Carol Danvers had a mutual attraction they were never really able to hash things out between them. He eventually found a new love in the Titan Elysium, to the point he semi-retired to the moon of Titan to be with her and they discussed having children. The cancer would put an end to those plans.
* MidSeasonUpgrade: Mar-Vell receiving the Cosmic Awareness from Eon during the battle against Thanos. Before that, he received his more well-known blue and red uniform (previously having worn his Kree military uniform) from the Kree Supreme Intelligence as a reward for his help in thwarting a coup.
* MisplacedRetribution: Phyla-Vell wants to kill Comicbook/{{Gamora}} for destroying the universe, even though the nature of Marvel's "[[TheMultiverse mutliverse]]" means that was a different universe with a different Gamora... not that 616 Gamora is totally innocent but she was never ''that'' bad.
* MyGreatestFailure: Mar-Vell never really forgave himself for Una's death, even when he found new loves. Part of this is because during the battle that eventually claimed her life she was badly wounded in the crossfire between the Kree under Colonel Yon-Rogg and a force of alien enemies Yon-Rogg lured in to kill Mar-Vell for him. An enraged Mar-Vell directly attacked Yon-Rogg before coming to his senses and desperately taking Una off the field, to the point he stole a rocket from the Earthlings who'd come to see him as a hero. Alas, she succumbed to her wounds en route to their orbiting spaceship where the advanced healing tech could've saved her. Mar-Vell would often wonder if he could've saved her if he hadn't been so blinded by rage.
* NaiveNewcomer: Noh-Varr both to the Dark Avengers (he didn't even know he was in a team full of villains until Moonstone let it slip) and to the true Avengers.
* NeverLiveItDown[=/=]OnceDoneNeverForgotten: Mar-Vell is best known as "that guy who died from cancer", both in-universe and out. As a career soldier, he ([[spoiler:actually Khn'nr]]) wasn't happy to find out he died on a sickbed instead of in battle.
* ObfuscatingInsanity: [[spoiler:After rebooting the universe he destroyed with the help of Entropy, Genis was cured of his insanity after being subsumed by the lucid new version of him.]] Still haunted the spectre of his past failures, he chose to maintain a demented persona to ward off anyone expecting to much from him.
* PietaPlagiarism: The cover of The Death of Captain Marvel graphic novel, featuring the GrimReaper holding the captain's body. Of all the examples of this trope it's the closest to a true imitation of the Michelangelo work, explicitly borrowing the pose of a sitting Mary with her son's body in her arms.
* PunnyName: "Phyla-Vell" is a taxonomical pun off of "Genis-Vell" ("phylum" and "genus", respectively)
* RasputinianDeath: [[spoiler: Genis-Vell about a year after joining the Thunderbolts as resident {{Gamebreaker}}]]
* RatedMForManly: Genis-Vell more than qualifies. Musclebound and square-jawed with a crewcut, Genis is the only Captain Marvel thus far that has slept with women all across the galaxy. Helps that he's got a lot of swagger and charisma. This [[http://tinyimg.io/i/ww9n4L5.jpg image]] really sells that.
* RealityWarper: Genis-Vell
* ReedRichardsIsUseless: A variant: Rick Jones comes to Reed and the other superintelligent superheroes of the era and asks them to use their great minds to cure Mar-Vell's cancer. They come to the uncomfortable realization that they could have been doing that for everyone in the world ''the entire time''. However, when their efforts fail to bear fruit in time to save Mar-Vell, they '''just stop trying'''. Nevermind that '''other''' people might be helped in the future, nope, it was "save Mar" or nothing.
* ReTool: The original series underwent a few as it struggled to find its identity.
* SanityHasItsAdvantages: As a Kree, Genis had the ability to simply shutoff Moonstone's(Meteorite's) gravity stones even before he gained cosmic awareness, which should have let him identify the devices even sooner. But by the time they had any confrontations he was too detached from reality to settle on a simple solution.
* SpiderSense: Cosmic Awareness, once appointed Protector of the Universe, Mar-Vell seemed to control it well enough that whenever universal threats or changes occurred that related to him he could but perceive them. When Genis took the power on it drove him crazy because he couldn't fully control it and kept getting [[GoMadFromTheRevelation more information then he needed on possible outcomes]].
* {{Sucksessor}}: Those who have attempted to take on the Captain Marvel name after the original have all met with immense hardship with some even outright dying as they tried to live up to his daunting legacy while others simply suffer through the misfortune the title seems to bring.
* SuperheroesInSpace: Essentially anyone who has the Marvel title ends up in space.
* SwapTeleportation: For a time, Captain Mar-Vell was trapped in the Negative Zone, and could only leave when Rick Jones struck together a pair of "Nega-Bands" he wore on his wrists, causing the two to switch places.
* TimeTravelEscape: Mar-Vell [[spoiler:but not really.]]
* TokenEvilTeammate: Noh-Varr among his original crew who embodied the very best of the Kree's "zen facist" doctrine while he was a wrathful skeptic they were trying to turn around into being a hero like them. Him being their ship's sole survivor winds up being a major headache for just about everybody during his series.
* TheTopicOfCancer: Possibly ''the'' classic Creator/MarvelComics example: the death of Captain Mar-Vell.
* TotallyRadical: Genis characterisation in the nineties.
* TwoferTokenMinority:
** The second Captain Marvel, a black woman named Monica Rambeau. Done as a pretty earnest attempt to create a strong Twofer superhero.
** Phyla counts as on as well, being a lesbian.
* VillainProtagonist: Genis-Vell in the 2002 relaunch.
* WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity: The omniscience afforded by Cosmic Awareness has some serious downsides to those who possess it after Mar-Vell himself.
* WorthyOpponent: This is part of the reason Earth became a battlefield between various spacefaring empires. Mar-Vell was sent as part of a team to investigate Earth after the defeats of both a Skrull Sentry and Ronan the Accuser at the hands of the Fantastic Four. The Skrull Empire wondered why such a valiant and decorated war hero would be sent to such a backwards world and decided to investigate by sending in the Super-Skrull. After Mar-Vell defeated the Super-Skrull, the Skrull Empire decided that if the Kree Empire sent someone of Mar-Vell's stature to protect Earth, it must be valuable.
** Later on, the news of Captain Mar-Vell's impending death due to cancer was described as causing mixed feelings among the Skrulls, their happiness at his death being tempered with disappointment and sadness that so great a warrior would die in a sickbed instead of in battle (ideally with the Skrulls themselves). The Skrull Empire eventually sent one of their top generals to visit Mar-Vell and present him with the highest decoration of the Skrull Empire, praising him for his courage and skill before wishing him a swift death and great rewards in the afterlife.
*** {{ComicBook/Thanos}} considered Captain Mar-Vell to be this, to the point that he decided to welcome Mar-Vell into death's embrace personally. Later on during the Infinity War, he described Quasar (who had inherited Mar-Vell's role of protector of the universe) as a poor replacement to Mar-Vell. During one of his other brushes with ultimate power Thanos even briefly resurrected Mar-Vell to speak to him, and after the conversation when Mar-Vell asked to be allowed to return to his rest Thanos let him go.
* WritingAroundTrademarks: The reason why Marvel Comics makes sure to publish a comic with a character named Captain Marvel in it at least [[http://www.oafe.net/blog/2006/12/captain-marvel-addendum-part-1/ once every few years]].
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to:
[[caption-width-right:300:[[ComicBook/{{Shazam}} SHAZA]]--whoops, wrong hero.]]
As seen in the ComicBook/CaptainMarvel article, that name has been applied to various characters in American ComicBook history. This article is about the ones created by Creator/MarvelComics.
During the [[TheSixties 1960s]], writer Creator/StanLee noticed that the name's trademark from [[ComicBook/{{Shazam}} the Fawcett Comics character]] was available again, and decided that Marvel should own it (Marvel Comics, Captain Marvel... makes sense, right?). So he created a new superhero named that, one quite different from the previous ones. The new character first appeared in ''"Marvel Super-Heroes''" #12 (December, 1967). Given the value of the name to DC and the utter obscurity of the Marvel version of the character (at least nowadays; he was big back in the 70's), you'd think Marvel would cash in and make a mint selling the name back to DC at an enormous profit... except for the fact that he's called "Captain Marvel" and they're called "Marvel Comics" and you just can't let that kind of synchronicity slip away from you.
This "Captain Marvel" was an alien (from the Kree, a race that looked ''[[HumanAliens exactly]]'' [[HumanAliens like humans]] except that [[RubberForeheadAliens most of them are blue]].) His name actually ''was'' Mar-Vell and he ''was'' a captain in the Kree army. He came to Earth as part of mission to investigate Earth's space technology achievements (later [[JustifiedTrope justified]] by saying that Earth was located near a strategically important space warp.) Mar-Vell is sent to Earth while being monitored from orbit by the rest of his crew, which included his girlfriend Una and his superior, Colonel Yon-Rogg. Mar-Vell discovers he's [[ContrivedCoincidence the exact lookalike of an American senator]], who has just been murdered, so he takes over his identity to further his mission.
However, it turns out that Yon-Rogg secretly ''hated'' Mar-Vell, mostly because he wanted Una for himself. So he tries to have Mar-Vell killed. This forces Marvel (who has SuperStrength due to coming from a planet with higher gravity) to fight openly while wearing his Kree uniform, which caused people to mistake him for a new superhero called "Captain Marvel". He also became a target of a larger power struggle within the Kree government.
The betrayal from his own people (and the eventual death of Una) leads Mar-Vell to adopt Earth (and the name Captain Marvel) as his own. He had a brief relationship with ComicBook/CarolDanvers, a NASA security agent, who later becomes a superhero herself (and eventually takes on the mantle of [[LegacyCharacter Captain Marvel]]). He gains new powers from an Earth scientist, and later, from The Supreme Intelligence, a supercomputer who is the Kree's true ruler. He also gained his more famous, red-and-blue costume from it.
For a period of time, Marvel found himself accidentally "merged" with teenage singer Rick Jones (the same kid who was involved in the ComicBook/IncredibleHulk's origin) so that only one of them could exist in the universe, with the other one stuck in the [[AnotherDimension dimension]] called the [[AntiMatter Negative Zone]] until the one on Earth struck together his "nega-band" bracelets, causing them to switch places. (Writer Roy Thomas has admitted that this was done as a nod to the original Captain Marvel, who was a child who could turn into an adult superhero.) It was later revealed that this was ThePlan of the Supreme Intelligence, who was really a MagnificentBastard whose ultimate goal was to jumpstart the evolutionary potential of the Kree race via Rick Jones's genes. Eventually, Marvel finds a way to bring back Rick from the Zone and they resume their lives.
The ''"Captain Marvel"'' magazine lasted for 62 issues (May, 1968-May, 1979). Tragically, Marvel didn't live long after his series was cancelled. In a very rare case of a comic book character being KilledOffForReal, he died from a cancer he got from exposure to nerve gas during one of his adventures. His death was covered ''The Death Of Captain Marvel'' (''Marvel Graphic Novel'' #1, April 1982, written and illustrated by Jim Starlin), and Mar-Vell's death is universally considered one of the most touching, well-written and dignified in the history of comics.
Despite his death having occurred over thirty years ago and him unusually staying dead (save for a brief return during ''ComicBook/AvengersVsXMen''), he and his legacy still exert a powerful influence on the Marvel Universe today. His children [[ComicBook/{{Quasar}} Phyla-Vell]], Genis-Vell, and ComicBook/{{Hulkling}} remain prominent supporting players.
And in an age when ComicBook/JeanGrey, ComicBook/BuckyBarnes, ComicBook/GwenStacy ([[ComicBook/SpiderGwen sorta]]) and even Mar-Vell's enemy ComicBook/{{Thanos}} have all [[ComicBookDeath returned from the dead]] (and that's only sticking with examples within Marvel), Mar-Vell is still usually considered the last great symbol of death meaning something in comics. (Aside from Uncle Ben.) There have been a handful of stories where it ''seems'' like Mar-Vell has somehow returned to life, only for it to be revealed to be some kind of fake-out.
The ''ComicBook/UltimateGalactusTrilogy'', set in the ComicBook/UltimateMarvel universe, featured an adaptation of Mar-Vell and the Kree that look more like StarfishAliens than HumanAliens. The new design proved popular enough that it was also used in the animated series ''WesternAnimation/TheAvengersEarthsMightiestHeroes''.
Mar-Vell appears in the 2019 film ''Film/{{Captain Marvel|2019}}'' -- which features Carol Danvers in the title role, not Mar-Vell -- albeit with some significant changes.
[[folder:Successors]]
!! ComicBook/MonicaRambeau
To keep the trademark over the character's name (especially given that Creator/DCComics had since gained ownership of the original Captain Marvel character) Marvel Comics later created a new character who had ''nothing'' to do with the first, an African American cargo ship captain and harbor patrol lieutenant with the power to turn herself into PureEnergy. Monica first appeared in ''"Amazing Spider-Man Annual"'' #16 (1982), created by Roger Stern and John Romita, Jr. She would soon become a member of ComicBook/TheAvengers.
Monica was regularly featured in ''"Avengers"'' vol. 1 #227-294 (January, 1983: August, 1988). With most of her appearances written by Roger Stern. She has had several subsequent appearances among their ranks, typically in storylines involving reserve members called back to action, not as one of the regulars. She also starred in two one-shot ''"Captain Marvel''" publications, one in 1989 and the second in 1994. She has not been forgotten though as she has since had appearances as a member of ComicBook/{{Nextwave}} and the Marvel Divas, and was featured as a major character in the 2013 ''Mighty Avengers'' relaunch. She changes her codename a few times (the first two changes were as a direct result of Genis-Vell), most recently taking the name Spectrum.
!!Genis-Vell and Phyla-Vell
In ''"ComicBook/SilverSurfer Annual"'' #6 (1993), a new character, calling himself [[LegacyCharacter "Legacy"]] was introduced. Created by Ron Marz and Ron Lim. He was Genis-Vell, the son of Mar-Vell, created via cloning by Mar-Vell's last lover, Elysius, one of the [[{{Immortality}} Eternals]] of Titan (Saturn's largest moon.) He would later take over his father's identity and become the new Captain Marvel, and starred in his own series. (Rambeau changed her name to Photon out of respect) He is best known for having gone insane (from being given the same omniscience power as his father) and becoming both a hero and a menace until his death.
Genis appared in ''"Captain Marvel''" vol. 3 (1995-1996), vol. 4 (1999-2002), and vol. 5 (2002-2004). For a total of 66 issues, most of them written by Peter David. He then appeared as a member of the ComicBook/{{Thunderbolts}}. He was killed in ''"Thunderbolts''" #100 (May, 2006).
An accidental [[RealityWarper change of history]] had previously resulting in his gaining a "sister", [[ComicBook/{{Quasar}} Phyla-Vell]], who would also take over the Captain Marvel identity for a while. More recently, Mar-Vell has been revealed as the father of Hulkling of the ComicBook/YoungAvengers, the result of a dalliance with a Skrull princess.
!!Khn'nr
During the events of the ''ComicBook/CivilWar'' series, the original Mar-Vell reappeared, apparently having been accidentally transported from the past. He tried to fit in the present, knowing he would have to go back in time and die at some point... until it was revealed during the events of the ComicBook/SecretInvasion that he was actually a spy for the alien Skrull race -ironically the Kree's biggest enemies- named Khn'nr who had, like many other such sleeper agents, been brainwashed into ''thinking'' that he was the real Marvel. Still, he ends up embracing the Mar-Vell identity and becoming a true hero anyway. Before he died.
!!Noh-Varr
The torch was then briefly passed to Noh-Varr, a Kree SuperSoldier from another dimension (originally known as "Marvel Boy"). Although he declared war on Earth at first, he was encouraged by the Skrull Captain Marvel to fight the good fight. He was manipulated to become "Captain Marvel" in the ComicBook/DarkAvengers, but left when he saw the team for what it really was. For a while, he became Protector after contact with this Universe's Kree Supreme Intelligence, before deciding to drop the codenames in the ComicBook/YoungAvengers, where he's simply Noh-Varr.
!! ComicBook/CarolDanvers
In July 2012, a new ''Captain Marvel'' series was launched, with Carol Danvers taking on Mar-Vell's title, while [[ComicBook/MsMarvel2014 teenager Kamala Khan]] uses the ComicBook/MsMarvel name.
[[/folder]]
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!! Captain Mar-Vell provides examples of:
* AbledInTheAdaptation: The [[ComicBook/UltimateMarvel Ultimate]] version of Mar-Vell had all his run, including his death, without cancer being mentioned at all.
* AbortedArc: Before it was decided that the mysterious Captain Marvel who had been glimpsed during ComicBook/CivilWar was the "returned" Mar-Vell (see Back from the Dead below), it was intended to be the recently introduced character Gravity, who had somehow been given the costume and the role of Earth's protector. One can only assume it would have eventually been revealed just who gave Gravity the costume and the job.
* TheAce: Handsome, heroic, powerful, and possessing the willpower necessary to utilise Cosmic Awareness without being driven mad by the ability. In life and death, Mar-Vell won the respect of many of his universe's greatest heroes, some of its vilest villains, and a number of the sublime abstracts who lord above all.
* AdaptationNameChange: The character in the ComicBook/UltimateMarvel universe is called "Mahr Vehl", but the mispronuntiation as "Captain Marvel" stays the same.
* AffectionateParody: Peter David's run on the Genis version of ''Captain Marvel'' started as a tongue in cheek take on the superhero genre with a few LampshadeHanging moments delivered by [[UnfazedEveryman Rick Jones]].
* AffirmativeActionLegacy:
** Monica Rambeau and Phyla-Vell. Carol Danvers claimed the title for herself, as mentioned above, and it will be this version that will be used in the 2019 film.
** The openly-gay Teddy Altman is the new Captain Marvel in the BadFuture seen in ''[[ComicBook/YoungAvengers Children's Crusade]]''.
* ArchEnemy: The original Mar-Vell is often considered this to Thanos, and his cancerverse version retains this animosity.
** Before Thanos, the archenemy role was occupied by Colonel Yon-Rogg.
* BackFromTheDead: Mar-Vell. [[spoiler:But not really.]]
* BewareTheSuperman: A darkly comical version of this story played out in Genis-Vell's second run, partly driven by his deciding to become a NietzscheWannabe.
* CaptainSuperhero: A superhero named Captain Mar-Vell. He actually did hold a Kree military rank equivalent to captain before being exiled to Earth.
* CerebusSyndrome: The second half of Peter David's run. See DarkerAndEdgier below.
* DarkerAndEdgier: About halfway through Genis's run under the name, his title was retooled from a comical series about the relatively earnest Genis to a dark series in which Genis became a RealityWarper with a god complex.
* DeadPersonImpersonation: For a time, Mar-Vell posed as a deceased scientist named Walter Lawson.
** [[spoiler: And a NotQuiteDead Walter Lawson returned the favor in the 2019 series Marvel Team-Up.]]
* DeathIsCheap: Notably averted, as Mar-Vell is pretty much the only major Marvel superhero who died and has never been resurrected. This is because everyone seems to agree it would be distasteful to reverse a memorable, touching, and realistically (for superhero comics) depicted cancer death.
* DeadlyGas: Nitro's debut was him try to steal some for the Kree, only to be stopped by Mar-Vell -- but the canister sprung a leak in the battle and while Mar-Vell did reseal it, the gas was also carcinogenic and resulted in the cancer that would kill Mar-Vell.
* DisappearedDad: Captain Marvel never met any of his children: [[ComicBook/YoungAvengers Hulkling]] was kept by the Skrulls, and Genis and Phyla were created using his DNA after his death.
* DistaffCounterpart: The more popular Ms. Marvel.
* DownerEnding: Genis-Vell ends his adventure by [[spoiler:experiencing an [[WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity extreme bout of madness]] twice, [[HerowithBadPublicity has the whole galaxy hate and fear him,]] suffers torture at the hands of his family [[GetAHoldOfYourselfMan to pacify him]] by [[NoHoldsBarredBeatdown beating him]] and [[IWillTearYourArmsOff nearly tearing his limbs off]], [[TimeTravel goes to see a future]] that only [[BadFuture becomes more and more dystopian,]] watches his own [[KidFromTheFuture future son]] [[AntagonisticOffspring get corrupted by The Magus]] who goes on to slaughter 5 star systems and threatened the whole galaxy to free his master, [[OffingTheOffspring forced himself to erase his son in the timeline by promising to smother his son in the crib,]] watches Rick and Marlo leave him behind and later [[CruelAndUnusualDeath dies himself via interdimensional dismemberment]] due to meddling from Helmut Zemo that causes him to become a threat to the universe with [[ShootTheShaggyDog few mourning his passing or remembering him at all.]] The only bright spot is Eulogy being proven wrong that Genis’ fans didn’t want or need him anymore when the phone rings for Genis after he had left, implying there’s people who still want Genis even after his adventure is over.]]
* EndOfSeriesAwareness: During Creator/PeterDavid's run, Rick Jones developed "comics awareness", knowing he's in a comic book and that it was about to be cancelled. The final issue of the series was entirely about the fact that it was the final issue of the series.
* EldritchAbomination: Eon from Jim Starlin's run is a rare benevolent example.
* EvilCounterpart: A post-mortem one. In the [[MirrorUniverse Cancerverse]] Mar-Vell made a pact with a pantheon of {{Eldritch Abomination}}s on his deathbed. Not only did he live, he obliterated death in that universe and turned the Avengers into Lovecraftian horrors under his command.
* ExactWords: In a case of a cover doing this, the cover to issue 34 of Mar-Vell's introduced Nitro and boasted he'd be "the man who killed Captain Marvel." It just didn't say ''when'', as while Mar-Vell was still alive at the end of the issue, the events of it, more specifically, the exposure to the DeadlyGas Nitro was trying to steal, would indeed be the cause of the cancer that claimed Mar-Vell.
* FantasticRacism: Most Kree are blue-skinned, but some like Mar-Vell have pink skin (i.e., like that of northern Europeans) and are treated as inferior by the blue-skinned Kree. The extent to which this applies to Mar-Vell (and his status as a hero or a traitor to the Kree) depends on the writer.
* FourthWallObserver: Rick Jones, long-time superhero sidekick, has developed 'comics awareness' as detailed in Captain Marvel #60.
* AGodAmI: Genis-Vell during his crazy period where he restarted the universe.
* TheGoodCaptain: Mar has always been unusually altruistic for a Kree military officer.
* GracefulLoser: When he realises that there's no swaying [[spoiler:Entropy]] from recreating the universe and thus subjecting him to the burden of cosmic awareness once again, Genis willingly helps the entity get started by [[spoiler:shooting him in the head.]]
* TheHedonist: Genis spent his life gambling and drinking booze before meeting Silver Surfer, who convinced him to continue his father's heroic legacy.
* TheHeroDies: Mar-Vell's life ends in the self-titled ''The Death of Captain Marvel'' one-shot.
* HeroKiller: Nitro's debut also is also the incident that'd cause Mar-Vell's death.
* HoistByHisOwnPetard: Mar-Vell's nega bands, which granted him many of his powers, also included a healing factor that kept the cancer that would eventually kill him in check. Unfortunately, the cancer eventually mutated to the point where the nega bands could no longer stop it, and made Mar-Vell reliant on them to the point he would die in a matter of hours without them. Worse, the mutated cancer was now linked to the nega bands, meaning that a cure would not only have to overcome the cancer itself but the bands as well. Unfortunately that led to Mar-Vell's death.
* HyperAwareness: His Cosmic Awareness.
* IHaveManyNames: Multiple:
** Common trait among those that take 'Marvel' in their title, outside of the original Mar-Vell himself, is that they will eventually have to change their alias at some point.
** Monica Rambeau's been hit with this so many times it's a running gag. She lost the Captain Marvel moniker to Genis-Vell, and took the name Photon. Then Genis-Vell changed ''his'' name to Photon, having forgotten that Monica was using it; so she changed her name to Pulsar. In at least one storyline she just went by Monica, but has since adopted the name Spectrum.
* KilledOffForReal: One of the comic book examples that actually ''stays'', unlike [[ComicBook/CaptainAmerica the other Cap]].
* LifeWillKillYou: While the cause was mildly fantastic, his death from cancer was played realistically and affectingly, which may be related to his never having been resurrected.
* LoveHurts: Mar-Vell lost his first love Una due to his own recklessness, and while he and Carol Danvers had a mutual attraction they were never really able to hash things out between them. He eventually found a new love in the Titan Elysium, to the point he semi-retired to the moon of Titan to be with her and they discussed having children. The cancer would put an end to those plans.
* MidSeasonUpgrade: Mar-Vell receiving the Cosmic Awareness from Eon during the battle against Thanos. Before that, he received his more well-known blue and red uniform (previously having worn his Kree military uniform) from the Kree Supreme Intelligence as a reward for his help in thwarting a coup.
* MisplacedRetribution: Phyla-Vell wants to kill Comicbook/{{Gamora}} for destroying the universe, even though the nature of Marvel's "[[TheMultiverse mutliverse]]" means that was a different universe with a different Gamora... not that 616 Gamora is totally innocent but she was never ''that'' bad.
* MyGreatestFailure: Mar-Vell never really forgave himself for Una's death, even when he found new loves. Part of this is because during the battle that eventually claimed her life she was badly wounded in the crossfire between the Kree under Colonel Yon-Rogg and a force of alien enemies Yon-Rogg lured in to kill Mar-Vell for him. An enraged Mar-Vell directly attacked Yon-Rogg before coming to his senses and desperately taking Una off the field, to the point he stole a rocket from the Earthlings who'd come to see him as a hero. Alas, she succumbed to her wounds en route to their orbiting spaceship where the advanced healing tech could've saved her. Mar-Vell would often wonder if he could've saved her if he hadn't been so blinded by rage.
* NaiveNewcomer: Noh-Varr both to the Dark Avengers (he didn't even know he was in a team full of villains until Moonstone let it slip) and to the true Avengers.
* NeverLiveItDown[=/=]OnceDoneNeverForgotten: Mar-Vell is best known as "that guy who died from cancer", both in-universe and out. As a career soldier, he ([[spoiler:actually Khn'nr]]) wasn't happy to find out he died on a sickbed instead of in battle.
* ObfuscatingInsanity: [[spoiler:After rebooting the universe he destroyed with the help of Entropy, Genis was cured of his insanity after being subsumed by the lucid new version of him.]] Still haunted the spectre of his past failures, he chose to maintain a demented persona to ward off anyone expecting to much from him.
* PietaPlagiarism: The cover of The Death of Captain Marvel graphic novel, featuring the GrimReaper holding the captain's body. Of all the examples of this trope it's the closest to a true imitation of the Michelangelo work, explicitly borrowing the pose of a sitting Mary with her son's body in her arms.
* PunnyName: "Phyla-Vell" is a taxonomical pun off of "Genis-Vell" ("phylum" and "genus", respectively)
* RasputinianDeath: [[spoiler: Genis-Vell about a year after joining the Thunderbolts as resident {{Gamebreaker}}]]
* RatedMForManly: Genis-Vell more than qualifies. Musclebound and square-jawed with a crewcut, Genis is the only Captain Marvel thus far that has slept with women all across the galaxy. Helps that he's got a lot of swagger and charisma. This [[http://tinyimg.io/i/ww9n4L5.jpg image]] really sells that.
* RealityWarper: Genis-Vell
* ReedRichardsIsUseless: A variant: Rick Jones comes to Reed and the other superintelligent superheroes of the era and asks them to use their great minds to cure Mar-Vell's cancer. They come to the uncomfortable realization that they could have been doing that for everyone in the world ''the entire time''. However, when their efforts fail to bear fruit in time to save Mar-Vell, they '''just stop trying'''. Nevermind that '''other''' people might be helped in the future, nope, it was "save Mar" or nothing.
* ReTool: The original series underwent a few as it struggled to find its identity.
* SanityHasItsAdvantages: As a Kree, Genis had the ability to simply shutoff Moonstone's(Meteorite's) gravity stones even before he gained cosmic awareness, which should have let him identify the devices even sooner. But by the time they had any confrontations he was too detached from reality to settle on a simple solution.
* SpiderSense: Cosmic Awareness, once appointed Protector of the Universe, Mar-Vell seemed to control it well enough that whenever universal threats or changes occurred that related to him he could but perceive them. When Genis took the power on it drove him crazy because he couldn't fully control it and kept getting [[GoMadFromTheRevelation more information then he needed on possible outcomes]].
* {{Sucksessor}}: Those who have attempted to take on the Captain Marvel name after the original have all met with immense hardship with some even outright dying as they tried to live up to his daunting legacy while others simply suffer through the misfortune the title seems to bring.
* SuperheroesInSpace: Essentially anyone who has the Marvel title ends up in space.
* SwapTeleportation: For a time, Captain Mar-Vell was trapped in the Negative Zone, and could only leave when Rick Jones struck together a pair of "Nega-Bands" he wore on his wrists, causing the two to switch places.
* TimeTravelEscape: Mar-Vell [[spoiler:but not really.]]
* TokenEvilTeammate: Noh-Varr among his original crew who embodied the very best of the Kree's "zen facist" doctrine while he was a wrathful skeptic they were trying to turn around into being a hero like them. Him being their ship's sole survivor winds up being a major headache for just about everybody during his series.
* TheTopicOfCancer: Possibly ''the'' classic Creator/MarvelComics example: the death of Captain Mar-Vell.
* TotallyRadical: Genis characterisation in the nineties.
* TwoferTokenMinority:
** The second Captain Marvel, a black woman named Monica Rambeau. Done as a pretty earnest attempt to create a strong Twofer superhero.
** Phyla counts as on as well, being a lesbian.
* VillainProtagonist: Genis-Vell in the 2002 relaunch.
* WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity: The omniscience afforded by Cosmic Awareness has some serious downsides to those who possess it after Mar-Vell himself.
* WorthyOpponent: This is part of the reason Earth became a battlefield between various spacefaring empires. Mar-Vell was sent as part of a team to investigate Earth after the defeats of both a Skrull Sentry and Ronan the Accuser at the hands of the Fantastic Four. The Skrull Empire wondered why such a valiant and decorated war hero would be sent to such a backwards world and decided to investigate by sending in the Super-Skrull. After Mar-Vell defeated the Super-Skrull, the Skrull Empire decided that if the Kree Empire sent someone of Mar-Vell's stature to protect Earth, it must be valuable.
** Later on, the news of Captain Mar-Vell's impending death due to cancer was described as causing mixed feelings among the Skrulls, their happiness at his death being tempered with disappointment and sadness that so great a warrior would die in a sickbed instead of in battle (ideally with the Skrulls themselves). The Skrull Empire eventually sent one of their top generals to visit Mar-Vell and present him with the highest decoration of the Skrull Empire, praising him for his courage and skill before wishing him a swift death and great rewards in the afterlife.
*** {{ComicBook/Thanos}} considered Captain Mar-Vell to be this, to the point that he decided to welcome Mar-Vell into death's embrace personally. Later on during the Infinity War, he described Quasar (who had inherited Mar-Vell's role of protector of the universe) as a poor replacement to Mar-Vell. During one of his other brushes with ultimate power Thanos even briefly resurrected Mar-Vell to speak to him, and after the conversation when Mar-Vell asked to be allowed to return to his rest Thanos let him go.
* WritingAroundTrademarks: The reason why Marvel Comics makes sure to publish a comic with a character named Captain Marvel in it at least [[http://www.oafe.net/blog/2006/12/captain-marvel-addendum-part-1/ once every few years]].
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