Namorita brings an Atlantean presence into a team that already pulls its members from very different corners of Marvel. She belongs beside the mutants and the science-powered he…

Namorita brings an Atlantean presence into a team that already pulls its members from very different corners of Marvel. She belongs beside the mutants and the science-powered heroes without needing to share their origin. The New Warriors' identity is broad enough to make room for that difference. At this point, flight and physical strength are the obvious practical advantages she brings to the group. She is not limited to an underwater setting, and a confrontation on land does not leave her waiting for somebody else to handle the action. Her encounter with Warpath in New Warriors Annual #1 puts that strength directly against another powerful fighter. Neither of them should be reduced to the outcome of one exchange. The scene works as part of the confusion between the teams, not as a definitive chart of everyone else's limits. She is also with the group investigating the remains of Xavier's school. An obstacle that delays someone working at an entrance can be approached very differently by somebody with her strength. There are times when a team needs careful technical work and times when getting through the door is the immediate problem. In the final chapter, she joins the flying heroes who approach Proteus. Again, the ability to reach the threat is useful without becoming the answer to everything the threat represents. Physical access and a solution are not the same thing. Namorita helps make the roster feel larger than a set of variations on one background. Her place is not decorative, and it is not dependent on another Atlantean character appearing beside her. She is one of this team's own members, contributing directly to both its fighting and its movement through the investigation.