Danvers resurfaces with superhuman abilities and becomes the hero Ms. Marvel in a self-titled series in January 1977, at first written by Gerry Conway and later by Chris Claremont. In the series, it is revealed that the energy exposure from the explosion of a device called the "Psyche-Magnetron" caused Danvers's genetic structure to meld with Captain Marvel's, effectively turning her into a human-Kree hybrid.[3] Ms. Marvel guest-starred in Defenders[4] and The Avengers.[5] The character then had a series of semi-regular appearances in The Avengers, with additional appearances with the Defenders,[6] Spider-Man,[7] the Thing,[8] and Iron Man.[9] In one of these stories, the mutant terrorist Mystique kills Michael Barnett, Ms. Marvel's lover.[10]
At the time of the publication of Ms. Marvel #1 in 1977, the title was self-consciously socially progressive for its time. This was reflected in the use of the word "Ms.", then associated with the feminist movement,[11] and in Danvers fighting for equal pay for equal work in her civilian identity.[12]