KUALA LUMPUR, June 21 — A Marvel comic has been blasted by comic fans on social media for portraying racist African American stereotypes.
The new issue of What if... reimagines what would happen if Brookyln’s Miles Morales became Thor instead of Spiderman.
The story reinterprets the mythical realm of Asgard into the streets of Brooklyn, combining Norse architecture with Black graffiti art.
The comic written by Mexican-Jew illustrator Yehudi Mercado, was criticised for using rap references and ‘hood’ stereotypes.
Nah bro. That new WHAT IF Miles Morales as Thor is lowkey-- no HIGHKEY RACIST AS HELL. Gross as stereotypes.'Asgard is the hood''By Odin's Fade''Graffiti thor hammer' https://t.co/JvJfuCtjQG
— G (@agravesmistake) June 18, 2022
Fans were disappointed in Marvel’s choice of not choosing a black writer for a suitable interpretation of an iconic character.
Fun Fact. This is the only issue in the What If? Miles Morales series not written by a Black Author. It’s also the only one that leans on racist tropes. I bet there’s a connection https://t.co/1IwC5Wl6pL
Advertisement— Bela Lugosi's meds (@GarbageGangHQ) June 17, 2022
Marvel has had some successes with Miles Morales, but they should've done better.How they allowed the writer, Yehudi Mercado, to turn in this script is telling of a bigger issue.Not enough informed people involved in the process. This script shouldn't have been approved. https://t.co/c4XjDjx1Be
— Tigersen of the ̶ ̶T̶ι̶т̶α̶ɴ̶ι̶υ̶м̶ Tribe (@TitaniumTea) June 20, 2022
There are reasons why black people keep asking for black characters to be written by black writers and drawn by black artists.That Miles Morales as Thor comic is legit one of those reasons.
— ShonuffKay (@ShoNuffKay37) June 17, 2022
Mercado was the only non-black writer in charge of the What If... stories.
Miles Morales fans were not happy to see the poor interpretation of a young black man in a black neighbourhood.
Created in 2011 by Brian Michael Bendis, the character has become popular for his authentic portrayal of African American and Latino mixed culture.
The character gained a larger following upon appearing in the 2018 animated film Spiderman into the Spiderverse and the video game Marvel’s Spiderman: Miles Morales.
