Fans of Spider-Man Miles Morales are livid over his depiction in What If…? Miles Morales issue #4 by Yehudi Mercado and Paco Medina. It’s an alternate universe series that allows fans to see their favorite characters with different stories, and while this is often an entertaining concept, many were displeased at how Miles was written.
Recommended VideosMiles is Afro-Latino, half Black and half Puerto Rican, and his ethnicity has been an important part of his character among his many admirable traits. In the new comic book, wherein Miles wields Mjölnir which gives him the power of Thor, the setting of Asgard looks stereotypical of “the hood” with graffiti and shoes hanging on telephone lines. Miles speaks in forced AAVE complete with stereotypical catchphrases that have disappointed many people.
Here’s what fans had to say about the portrayal of Miles Morales.
''Asgard is his hood''
Miles Morales and Thor fans rn: pic.twitter.com/003PyjAH3W
— Matt Murdock (@ZeroYear97) June 17, 2022The introductory caption box for the issue reads, “Of all the five realms, Asgard is his hood,” which prompts a fan to use a meme of Samuel L. Jackson’s Nick Fury to call out the BS.
The writers of Miles Morales as Thor pic.twitter.com/CnNRoGZ3jR
— Ben 🏳️🌈🩸🎬 (@The_GM_is_God) June 19, 2022A fan uses a scene from FX’s It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, where Dee (Kaitlyn Olsen) does a terrible and stereotypical impression that causes the rest of the group to groan in disapproval.
An argument has been made that comic book teams should have more representation to prevent harmful depictions of characters from getting published.
I know everyone is talking about "Asgard is his hood" and "By Odin's Fade" in the Miles Morales Thor comic but let's not ignore that the writer has him say All Eyes on Me because it's also the name of a rap album pic.twitter.com/3fvA0Z9jfY
— Octo Chaotix+ 👹 (@OctoY1) June 17, 2022One of the phrases Miles randomly throws out is the name of a Tupac Shakur album.
The Miles as Thor comic is like, full-on 1970s blaxploitation, but the What-If story that I was least interested in, is actually the most well-written of the four by leaps and bounds.
What If… Miles Morales Became The Hulk? pic.twitter.com/DusVteR22a
— ⨂ Kammissions Open (1/5) ⨂ (@vyrkolach) June 19, 2022A fan points out Marvel’s history with blaxploitation comics from the 1970s and cites that the What If…? Story where Miles becomes The Hulk, is superior.
The article for Miles Morales What If#4 where he was Thor really is not getting the point about why it was bad.
The book is just "black stereotype", all from the 90s and early 2000s at latest.
Odin with Timbs, Jotunns with fades and chains, constant hip-hop references, like… pic.twitter.com/6vetSHBvro
— Poe's Law, Esq: Poe's Lawyer (@dyingscribe) June 20, 2022It’s pointed out that many of these stereotypical references are also very dated.
Another fan noticed the inauthenticity of the story and how pandering it is to Black people.
My issue with that Miles Morales-Thor What If story is that it really needed a Black writer. Creating a new Asgard/mythology for a Thor/Miles is a really cool concept that could really honor all aspects of Miles' afro-latino culture but it stumbles and feels… awkward sometimes. pic.twitter.com/mWs5fYtSnu
— Evan Von Doom 💀 (@EvanReadsComics) June 18, 2022This is seen as a missed opportunity to blend Miles’ Afro-Latino culture and Norse mythology, but this falls short.
It frustrates many that these stereotypical depictions still get published to this very day. There’s an entire editing team meant to prevent these problematic issues from arising, and it highlights the lack of tools necessary to even identify them. Here’s hoping that in the future, something like this can be prevented.
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