Wolverine’s dear friend Morph’s introduction in the X-men animated series revival as a nonbinary character has received sharp criticism for being too ‘woke’.
Comic books have been shrouded in their action-packed approach to things for so long that their overarching subtle political messages have lost centre-stage attention. Now, a simple acceptance of gender politics in Beau DeMayo’s highly anticipated creation and revival of the superhero saga with the upcoming X-Men ’97 series billed under the Marvel Animation banner has been subjected to vehement criticism for overtly charting that route.
X-Men ’97 poster.(X)
Just a day ago, the X-Men ‘97 trailer was released and revealed the first good look at the return of the X-Men: The Animated Series that ran from 1992 to 1997. Along with the sneak peek driving intrigue back to the mutants of the Marvel world, the creatives also shared exclusive introductions of the returning characters with Empire Magazine, one of which didn’t sit well with the fans of the superhero universe.
Shapeshifter Morph, also recognized as one of Wolverine‘s best buds on the squad, will be presented as nonbinary. The intro also suggests that he “has an interesting buddy relationship with Wolverine”, which has heated a not-so-positive conversation among fans. While being woke was originally associated with being actively informed, educated and conscious about societal injustices, racial prejudice and discrimination, the term has come to be synonymously evoked as a slur in present-day scenarios. What was once accepted as a marker of empathy and social awareness has now been dismissed and mocked for its extreme ‘left-leaning bias’.
In 2017, Stan Lee even issued a message for Marvel fans about how this alternate fictional universe “has always been and always will be a reflection of the world right outside of our window… the stories of heroism… have room for everyone, regardless of their race, gender, religion or colour of their skin. The only things we don’t have room for are hatred, intolerance and bigotry.”
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The whole point of X-Men’s proudly proclaimed motto, “Mutant and Proud”, bears that message of acceptance. In 2000, Lee spoke to the Guardian and even expressed his love of the idea that the X-Men movie “was a good metaphor for … the Civil Rights Movement”.
X-Men characters, in general, have been proud bearers of this socio-political allegory’s continuation. Marvel Comics creator Fabian Nicieza even confirmed the ‘Marvel Jesus’ persona of the much-loved Deadpool as pansexual in a 2015 tweet: “he is NO sex and ALL sexes”.
Wolverine’s dear friend Morph’s introduction in the X-men animated series revival as a nonbinary character has received sharp criticism for being too ‘woke’. Read More