Marvel Called Out Over Racist Stereotypes In New Thor Story

In recent years, Marvel has taken important steps when it comes to promoting inclusivity. Both Black Panther and Shang-Chi and The Legend of The Ten Rings broke Hollywood norms, promoting diverse casts. Likewise, Eternals and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness expanded the studio’s LGBTQ+ representation. That’s not to say that Marvel always gets things right.

What If…? is undeniably one of Marvel’s most creative projects in recent years. We may be used to seeing The Watcher grace our TV screens but as with all Marvel properties, What If…? began life as a comic book back in 1977. The series is still being published today, exploring the endless possibilities of the Marvel universe but a new Thor issue has come under fire for promoting racist stereotypes.

Thor returns in Thor: Love and Thunder next month. Check out the film’s trailer ahead of its July release below.

A brand new comic by writer Yehudi Mercado imagines what life would look like if Miles Morales took on the mantle of Thor instead of Spider-Man. The Thor variant comic quickly gained traction online after fans deemed it to be extremely harmful to Black and Afro-Lantinx communities as the comic utilises a number of harmful stereotypes.

As reported by Screen Rant, the comic opens with Miles rapping to set the scene. In Asgard, we see shoes hanging on power lines, and Miles’ version of Mjolnir is covered in graffiti. Adding to that, Miles declares “It’s hammer time” in the style of MC Hammer every time he uses Mjolnir, and he refers to his realm as “his hood”. At one stage in the comic, Miles also uses the exclamation, “By Odin’s fade”. In response, fans took to social media to make their voices heard.

Following the comic’s publication, writer Mercado has offered an apology noting that he’s “hearing and learning from my Black and Puerto Rican comics peers,” and that he plans to donate his paycheck from Marvel to the Brooklyn Book Bodega. Mercado said, “While I’ve lived a different experience through my own Jewish and Mexican background, I still know inauthenticity hurts, and I’m sorry that I failed on that front.” Read the full statement below.

Marvel is clearly trying to portray a more authentic experience in its films, and it’s a shame that that care and respect doesn’t carry over to the comic book world. Mercado may have written the comic, but I’m sure there were plenty of other eyes cast over this prior to publication.