Why Did The Dead Queen Target Kamala In 'Marvel Zombies'?

Marvel Zombies, a spin-off of the season one What If..? episode 'What If.. Zombies?!', has proven a hit with viewers. After the series cliffhanger ending, fans are eagerly awaiting news of a season two renewal in the hope that some of the series lingering questions will be answered.

One of the biggest of these questions is why the zombie-fied Wanda Maximoff, also known by the alternate names of Dead Queen, Red Queen, and Queen of the Dead, is so interested in Kamala Khan.

Let's recap, and look at a few theories.

Drawing the Red Queen's Attention

When Marvel Zombies opens, five years after the outbreak of the Quantum Zombie Virus (replicating the five year time jump between Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame) Kamala Khan, Riri Williams, and Kate Bishop survive as a trio in the ruins of New York City, aided by a salvaged Iron Man suit and F.R.I.D.A.Y, now programmed to serve Riri.

After investigatinng a crashed ship and discovering a device apparently containing a message to the Nova Corps, the three young women set out to deliver it somewhere where some good could come from it. Unfortunately, Kate and Riri both appear to be lost when the group stumble into a battle between Zombie Captain Marvel and Ikaris. Rescued by Blade Knight, Kamala continues the journey, gaining new allies along the way.

Around this time, Kamala begins experiencing unsettling dreams/visions of the Queen of the Dead, and Blade Knight informs her that she has captured Wanda's attention. When the pair eventually meet in person, the Dead Queen tries to convince a skeptical Kamala that she needs her help to save the world. Instead, by series end, Wanda appears to have trapped Kamala in the illusion of a restored world, while in truth, the outbreak rages on.

So, why does Wanda target Kamala?

Kamala is a symbol of hope

In Marvel Zombies, Kamala often represents the goodness left in the world, and hope that things will get better. Even after the Nova Corps message turns out not to be the saving grace the survivors had hoped for, it only takes a brief pep-talk from Shang-Chi to get her back up on the zombie-fighting horse.

The character, and her superhero alter-ego Ms. Marvel, occupy a similar space in the Marvel Comics world. Ms. Marvel is recognised as a leader among her peers, while many more seasoned superhumans already view her as THE hero of her generation, and already one of the best among them overall. She also manages to hold friendships within various factions that otherwise struggle to get along.

When Ms. Marvel temporarily dies, the superhero community is plunged into mourning. Even the infamous Norman Osborn, for whom Ms. Marvel, in her civilian identity of Kamala Khan, was 'intterning' at Oscorp as a way of keeping him under surveillance, grieves her loss.

The Queen of the Dead, still in possession of the mind-reading and manipulation powers she utilised as the living Wanda Maximoff, could see Kamala's potential as a uniter. In such a situation, breaking Kamala's mind and trapping her in a false world could be a greater blow to the other survivors than killing her and creating a martyr.

Kamala is a mutant, and therefore a threat

Kamala Khan has been revealed as the Marvel Cinematic Universe's first known mutant. In the final episode of Ms. Marvel, Kamala's friend Bruno reveals his research has found that Kamala's hardlight powers do not come from her bangle, but rather from a genetic mutation that activated the first time she wore it. This explains why she is able to still use her powers after briefly losing the bangle in The Marvels.

Obviously, none of this comes up in Marvel Zombies, as the outbreak pushed researching her new powers to the bottom of Kamala's priority list. But that may not have stopped the Dead Queen from doing her own research. While the majority of MCU organic life is vulnerable, some fans are wondering whether Kamala's mutation places a question mark over her ability to be infected. If so, Wanda may have chosen to take her off the chessboard in another way.

Hopefully a second season will bring answers soon.