The following contains spoilers for Ms. Marvel Season 1, Episode 3, "Destined," now streaming on Disney+.

Ms. Marvel breaks new ground in many ways, but in the process, it also carries on a number of deeply embedded Marvel traditions. That includes never making it any easier on the hero in question than is necessary. Suffering is often part and parcel of the Marvel pantheon, which the Marvel Cinematic Universe has faithfully duplicated. Ms. Marvel has fully embraced that tradition, with a new permutation for its new superhero.

For the first three episodes of her series, Kamala Khan has rapidly run into some harsh realities about her newfound status as a superhero. That's compounded by the fact that she's a Pakistani American and belongs to a minority community. It brings a new set of challenges for her to overcome, of a sort that other Marvel heroes haven't.

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The hard-luck formula helped set Marvel apart from its rival DC during the formative period of the 1960s. The moral panic over comic books in the decade previous transformed stalwarts like Superman and Wonder Woman into parental figures and role models. They rarely had day-to-day problems, and their relationships often focused around dilemmas such as their secret identities. Marvel characters like Spider-Man and The Incredible Hulk ran full into the face of that. Their superpowers didn't necessarily solve their real-world problems, and just as often created a whole parcel of new ones.

Ms. Marvel is the heir apparent to that tradition, particularly Peter Parker's side of it. Spidey earned his popularity as comic-dom's perennial hard-luck case: the hero who saves the world but can't pay his rent. Kamala Khan has many of the same difficulties as Peter did, with the added challenge of belonging to a minority community. That's matched in part by her everyteen high school experience -- complete with bullies, peer pressure and overbearing adults -- as well as her sometimes-uncomfortable relationship with her parents. The emergence of her powers exacerbates all of that: giving her a secret to hide and a mystery to solve on top of her more mundane problems.

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In addition, she must deal with increased expectations as a representative of her community. She's the first Muslim superhero and first Brown female superhero in the MCU, at least in the public eye, and unquestionably the first MCU superhero of Pakistani descent. (The Scarlet Scarab is Egyptian, and her public status after the events of Moon Knight is still uncertain.) That forces her to adhere to a higher standard almost by default. She's looked upon as an example for her community, which means failures or near misses -- such as her imperfect rescue at the conclusion of Season 1, Episode 2, "Crushed" -- are apt to be judged far more harshly than a hero from another background. The disappointment at any perceived failure will hit her community harder because she's their only representative at the moment.

That comes on top of more overt prejudices that mirror their real-world counterparts all too well. The Department of Damage Control targets her in an emulation of systemic government harassment of minority communities, while the quiet shunning of Zoe Zimmer and the like brands her as an outsider seemingly for just existing. ("Crushed" also includes a dig at one of Khan's teachers, who hasn't gotten her name right in years.) Add to that the balancing act she constantly walks between her community and the larger culture, and the already-present complications of a superhero's life become exponentially more difficult.

It's a lot for a 16-year-old who just wants to hang out with the nice boy at the coffee shop once in a while. But it's also a key part of Ms. Marvel's appeal, both in the way that it reflects Kamala's heritage and experiences, and the way it connects her to the greater MCU. That includes getting the short end of the stick far more than she should. It's unfair, but it's also a rite of passage for Marvel heroes. Khan -- who dreamed all her life of joining their ranks -- faces an even steeper learning curve than most, which will inform the hero she ultimately becomes.

New episodes of Ms. Marvel stream every Wednesday on Disney+.