It seems to me that the famous production studio Marvel was long overdue for a proper female protagonist by the time the movie “Captain Marvel” came out this March. So many young girls have, over the years, obsessed over Spiderman, Thor, and Iron Man, wondering why strong female characters never seem to end up as the star of their own superhero movie. Finally, Marvel Studios seems to have caught on!

A year ago, when I watched the DC Comics movie “Wonder Woman,” I was deeply disappointed. Don’t get me wrong – I am an avid fan of Greek mythology, and I appreciated the plot of the box-breaking action movie. However, after re-watching the film several times, I began to see that Wonder Woman, whom the public was praising for her strong female leadership, was represented in a stereotypical way. The movie was, at heart, a romance and scene after scene showed not Wonder Woman’s cleverness, but her beauty. So yes, “Wonder Woman” was an achievement for feminists, but at the same time, why did it have to be a romance? Would a movie solely about Wonder Woman’s journey to find her super-self have been any less successful?

Thus, I went into the theatre to see “Captain Marvel” with wary thoughts. What I wasn’t expecting was a wonderful, action-filled movie that intertwined intergalactic battle, long lost friendship, and a tale of finding one’s identity. Needless to say, I loved it.

In “Captain Marvel,” main character Carol Danvers (who later becomes Captain Marvel and is played by Brie Larson), possesses super hands and a bad memory. Flashbacks show her younger self training for the Air Force, failing alongside men but eventually finding her inner strength and proving everybody wrong. One of my favorite scenes happens toward the end, when Carol (now Captain Marvel), faces her arch nemesis. The man throws down his weapons, suddenly wide awake, and gets in a fighting stance, urging her to prove to him that she is strong, that she is capable. “Prove yourself!” he yells recklessly. Captain Marvel raises her arm, says “I don’t need to prove anything to you,” and promptly blasts him across the desert. It really is true – she has nothing to prove to him, and this scene serves as a parallel to the common misconception that women and girls need to prove themselves worthy to men and boys.

The movie has an abundance of other great characters, from Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) to Captain Marvel’s closest friend (Lashana Lynch), and has been admired for its noteworthy plot, relatively awesome acting, and for its record breaking earnings. However, my favorite aspect was the girl power that seemed to run the set. If you are looking for a powerful movie that will tell the story of a girl who chased after her dreams and left her doubters behind in a fun, thrilling way, I strongly suggest you watch “Captain Marvel.”