The following contains spoilers for Ms. Marvel Season 1, Episode 2, "Crushed," now streaming on Disney+.
In the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Chris Pratt's Peter Quill (aka Star-Lord) has usually been a straight-shooter. He often relies on his mouth and quad-blasters -- a straightforward approach, which admittedly, both Doctor Strange and Iron Man didn't see viable. It's why they retooled their plan in Avengers: Infinity War to fight Thanos on Titan. Interestingly, Quill gave into team-work like a true leader would. In the process, Star-Lord revealed his most underrated war tactic, proving he can play well with others. Coincidentally, while his move wasn't that successful, Ms. Marvel remixed it as Kamala Khan made her heroic debut in public.
This was the idea of the energy platforms which Star-Lord used when the Mad Titan arrived. As the Avengers distracted Thanos in the fight, Strange seeded out mystical spells that acted as pedestals for Star-Lord to leap on. These were more discreet than him using his jets to fly in, and as a result, he was able to run up, sneak behind the villain, leap off and plant a bomb on him.
It detonated, giving them the edge and a window of opportunity where they continued rallying, webbing the tyrant up. It showed Quill knew stealth, and when to shut up. Sadly, Quill's rage over hearing he killed Gamora saw him batter Thanos and break their hold, which allowed Thanos to get the Time Stone and leave. It wasted a smart strategy and left fans wondering why Quill just didn't go for the headshot once he had the chance.
That said, Kamala used the platforms to near-perfection, as seen with her training montage. Sure, she could generate crystaline, expansive fists as extensions of herself, but these platforms could help her ascend or move around in battle -- something necessary, as she can't fly. Kamala finally got the chance to use them when a young kid fell from the masjid during her community's Eid celebrations.
As he hung on for dear life, Kamala grew confident enough to make stable platforms, running on them like Star-Lord did. Thankfully, she got the boy, making platforms for him to get back to the adjacent building. Granted, this wasn't as intense as Quill in a high-octane fight, but the sentiment was there, especially as the public saw her being a willing hero, as opposed to when she saved Zoe reactively at AvengersCon.
Unfortunately, her powers started to dip after getting spooked by a mysterious holographic woman linked to her bangle. It caused the platforms to break, which led to the boy falling to the ground. Thankfully, she was able to generate some to cushion his fall and save his life. It left Kamala worried about how proficient she really was, but luckily, she had a happier ending than a hapless Quill in outer space. This ultimately reminded Kamala how much she had to learn still, while throwing back to the brief moments Star-Lord was co-operative and mature.
New episodes of Ms. Marvel debut Wednesday on Disney+.