Ms. Marvel #3

Mar 1977 · Marvel · 0.30 USD

📊 ~43,031 copies sold its debut month

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“The Lady's Not for Killing!”

★ 1st appearance — Salia Petrie

About this Issue

Ms. Marvel #3 is the issue where Carol Danvers finally learns that she and Ms. Marvel are the same person — the crash-landing conclusion of her battle with the AIM-deployed Doomsday Man shatters the mental block that had kept her dual identity hidden from herself, making it a genuine turning point in her psychological journey rather than just another action chapter. The issue also marks the first time Chris Claremont took over the scripting reins on the title, beginning the long creative association with Carol Danvers that would shape everything from her personality to her eventual place in X-Men lore. Two recurring supporting characters, NASA astronaut Salia Petrie and Major David Adamson, make their debut here, deepening the aerospace context that grounded Carol's civilian world throughout the Bronze Age series. Taken together, those three story beats — identity revelation, new creative voice, new cast members — give this early issue an outsized narrative weight relative to its low issue number.

In "The Lady's Not for Killing!", Ms. Marvel is sent to Cape Canaveral to report on a groundbreaking female astronaut's launch—only to find herself in a fight against the robotic Doomsday Man, dispatched by AIM to sabotage the mission. Written by Chris Claremont and Gerry Conway, with dynamic art by John Buscema and inks by Joe Sinnott, this 1977 issue marks a pivotal moment as Ms. Marvel begins to reclaim her lost memories of being Carol Danvers. The cover, by Al Milgrom and Joe Sinnott, captures the high-stakes tension of the mission.

writer Chris Claremont · writer Gerry Conway · artist John Buscema · inker Joe Sinnott · colorist Don Warfield · letterer Gaspar Saladino · letterer John Costanza · cover Al Milgrom, Joe Sinnott

ComicBooks.com Value

Our Model is In Beta

Raw (Fine) $2

CGC 9.8 · 15 in census $207*

CGC 9.6 · 49 in census $56*

CGC 9.4 · 55 in census $35

CGC 9.2 · 39 in census $25*

CGC 9.0 · 22 in census $20*

CGC 8.5 · 16 in census $20*

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CGC 8.0 · 10 in census $20*

CGC 7.5 · 3 in census $20*

CGC 7.0 · 4 in census $20*

CGC 6.5 · 7 in census $20*

CGC 6.0 · 2 in census $20*

CGC 5.5 · 3 in census $20*

CGC 5.0 · 2 in census $20*

CGC 4.5 none in existence

CGC 4.0 · 1 in census $20*

CGC 3.5 · 1 in census $20*

CGC 3.0 · 1 in census $20*

CGC 2.5 · 1 in census $20*

* estimate — limited direct-sales data at this grade

Our model’s value — refined as new sales data arrives · CGC census counts shown where available

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History

The series launched in January 1977 with Gerry Conway plotting and scripting the first two issues alongside artist John Buscema, but Conway's famously crowded schedule at the time — he was simultaneously writing multiple titles for both Marvel and DC — meant that he handed off scripting duties by issue three, retaining only the plot credit while Chris Claremont took over the dialogue and scene-level writing. Archie Goodwin served as editor across the early run. The cover was penciled by Al Milgrom with inks by Joe Sinnott, while John Buscema continued on interior pencils for this issue, providing visual continuity with the opening chapters even as the scripting voice changed.

Trivia · 8 facts

Published March 1977 by Marvel Comics; cover title story is 'The Lady's Not for Killing!'
First appearance of Salia Petrie, a NASA astronaut who becomes a recurring supporting character throughout the Bronze Age Ms. Marvel run.
First appearance of Major David Adamson, a U.S. Air Force pilot stationed at Kennedy Space Center who debuts alongside Petrie.
Carol Danvers regains her memories and becomes consciously aware that she and Ms. Marvel are the same person — a pivotal resolution to the amnesiac dual-identity premise established in issue #1.
Chris Claremont takes over as scripter from this issue onward (from Gerry Conway's plot), beginning the extended Claremont run that would define the character's Bronze Age voice.
The Doomsday Man — a Stan Lee/John Buscema creation originally introduced in Silver Surfer #13 (February 1970) — returns here as an AIM weapon, launching a two-part story concluded in issue #4 that ends with the robot fusing with villain Kerwin Korman (the Destructor).
Destructor (Kerwin Korman), who first appeared in Ms. Marvel #1–2, appears again; his confrontation with the Doomsday Man in this arc eventually merges the two characters through Kree Psyche-Magnitron energy, a fusion that would resurface in Avengers Vol. 3 #15–17 and Ms. Marvel Vol. 2 #11–12.
Interior pencils by John Buscema, inks by Joe Sinnott, colors by Don Warfield, letters by John Costanza; edited by Archie Goodwin; cover pencils by Al Milgrom, inks by Joe Sinnott.