I’m sure you’re well aware of the rise in highly intelligent black characters in media. It almost feels as if that every fictional black person, whether it’s a marvel movie or a low-budget science fiction movie is portrayed as the brains of the group. These characters can be either male or female, but for the aim of this discussion, we’re going to focus on strictly male variants of this type of character.
Something that you’ll notice with these characters is that they tend to be the only type of black representation in each of their respective media. An older example that isn’t as egregious but still notable is wade from Kim possible. From my recollection, he is the only explicit black character that’s in the main cast. He is basically Q James Bond. He’s the tech guru that hacks into the main frame on behalf of the main character. Another way more recent example of this is Mr. terrific from the new Superman movie. Again, he is the exact same type of character as Wade and is pretty much the only black representation in his own movie. The main issue with this is that it subconsciously tries to make you believe that these characters are representative of the average black person you might interact with in real life. We all know that’s bullshit. The average black person in real life doesn’t know how to use PowerPoint much less be proficient with computers. So that right there causes a major disconnect from that piece of media. Another thing is that they are too afraid to have their character show flaws. A perfect example of this is Miles Morales in both the comics and the movies. Well I would definitely say the movies are way better when portraying his character, both of these forms of media display the same major issues with him. He’s too perfect. Now this is Moore of intentional marketing thing because for main characters like Miles they don’t want him to be too edgy because they want him to have a wide appeal, but it’s still an issue none of the less. Also, Peter Parker is a very floored character in his super beloved, so you can’t even really use that as an argument. The thing of Miles is that he’s not super ghetto so actual black kids from New York City can only relate to him on the most surface level. He likes sneakers and listens to hip-hop and does graffiti. That’s it. I know you wouldn’t really want him to be smoking, blunt and beating women if you’re marvel, but he’s super sanitized after that. He’s a mega tech genius, and is even smarter than Peter and has better powers even. It’s just not engaging because they’ve rounded out all the edges of his character. Also, another thing I’ve noticed is that these characters is that they don’t get bullied by other Black people in their community. With Miles he’s not the only black person in his story but the rest of his community wouldn’t treat him like they would actually treat a black nerd in real life. They would be beating his ass like no tomorrow. In a story sense this would be an upgrade since it gives the character adversity to overcome and can be used to critique a community that doesn’t get enough pushback. This is why a character like Uriel worked because he was so different and hated by his peers in his show. That makes for more engaging storylines and causes the character to be endearing.
Something that you’ll notice with these characters is that they tend to be the only type of black representation in each of their respective media. An older example that isn’t as egregious but still notable is wade from Kim possible. From my recollection, he is the only explicit black character that’s in the main cast. He is basically Q James Bond. He’s the tech guru that hacks into the main frame on behalf of the main character. Another way more recent example of this is Mr. terrific from the new Superman movie. Again, he is the exact same type of character as Wade and is pretty much the only black representation in his own movie. The main issue with this is that it subconsciously tries to make you believe that these characters are representative of the average black person you might interact with in real life. We all know that’s bullshit. The average black person in real life doesn’t know how to use PowerPoint much less be proficient with computers. So that right there causes a major disconnect from that piece of media. Another thing is that they are too afraid to have their character show flaws. A perfect example of this is Miles Morales in both the comics and the movies. Well I would definitely say the movies are way better when portraying his character, both of these forms of media display the same major issues with him. He’s too perfect. Now this is Moore of intentional marketing thing because for main characters like Miles they don’t want him to be too edgy because they want him to have a wide appeal, but it’s still an issue none of the less. Also, Peter Parker is a very floored character in his super beloved, so you can’t even really use that as an argument. The thing of Miles is that he’s not super ghetto so actual black kids from New York City can only relate to him on the most surface level. He likes sneakers and listens to hip-hop and does graffiti. That’s it. I know you wouldn’t really want him to be smoking, blunt and beating women if you’re marvel, but he’s super sanitized after that. He’s a mega tech genius, and is even smarter than Peter and has better powers even. It’s just not engaging because they’ve rounded out all the edges of his character. Also, another thing I’ve noticed is that these characters is that they don’t get bullied by other Black people in their community. With Miles he’s not the only black person in his story but the rest of his community wouldn’t treat him like they would actually treat a black nerd in real life. They would be beating his ass like no tomorrow. In a story sense this would be an upgrade since it gives the character adversity to overcome and can be used to critique a community that doesn’t get enough pushback. This is why a character like Uriel worked because he was so different and hated by his peers in his show. That makes for more engaging storylines and causes the character to be endearing.
