Last Updated on March 18, 2020
Marvel has revealed its 2020 new warriors, pandering to social justice, by naming two of them “Snowflake” and “Safespace” to the amusement of the wider internet.
These two characters captured social media attention and became subject of ample derision.
According to Comicsbeat:
SNOWFLAKE AND SAFESPACE: As psychic twins, Snowflake, a cryokinetic, can materialize snowflake-shaped shuriken projectiles for throwing. Safespace can materialize pink forcefields, but he can’t inhabit them himself, the reflex only works if he’s protecting others. They’re hyper aware of modern culture and optics, and they see their Super Heroics as “a post-ironic meditation on using violence to combat bullying.”
“[Snowflake and Safespace] are very similar to Screentime; it’s this idea that these are terms that get thrown around on the internet that they don’t see as derogatory. [They] take those words and kind of wear them as badges of honor…Snowflake is the person who has the more offensive power, and Safespace is the person who has the more defensive power. The idea is that they would mirror each other and complement each other.”
Another ‘woke’ inclusion was a superhero by the name “Trailblazer” who is an overweight minority teenage girl whose special powers are drawn from a “magic backpack” which ” is actually a pocket dimension with seemingly infinite space, from which she can pull out useful or random objects—it’s not always under her control,” according to Comicsbeat.
The character, herself, actually claims that her power comes from God–but “not the god you’re thinking of.”
The internet responded as predicted. One social media user tweeted out screenshots of the Comicsbeat article with the caption: “Marvel in 2020, still wondering why nobody buys comics anymore. Ok dawg.”
Marvel in 2020, still wondering why nobody buys comics anymore. Ok dawg. pic.twitter.com/obTfoy2DPE
— Bagel Smash (@BagelBay) March 18, 2020
Another prominent Twitter account tweeted about the fact that Marvel’s first non-binary character was unceremoniously christened such an unfortunate name, saying: “The first non-binary superhero in Marvel and they named them SNOWFLAKE.
“No, this is not fake.”
https://twitter.com/LilithLovett/status/1240080036306141184
On YouTube, the introduction of these new characters wasn’t quite well-received, presently garnering a near 7:1 downvote-to-upvote ratio.
Dan Kibblesmith, the writer of New Warriors Number 1, explains that “Snowflake” and “Safespace” are used derogatorily on the internet; here, however, he says that they’re used as a “badge of honor.”
He also reveals that “Snowflake” is non-binary and their twin, “Safespace,” is a jock.
The move comes after several animated brands make inclusions for LGBT characters and increasingly brazen progressive narratives wedged into their story lines.
However, the inclusion of these themes has not revived a dip in fortune.
Disney’s Onwards posted the worst opening weekend, adjusted for inflation, in Disney Pixar’s studio history after including an explicitly LGBT couple–which was scrubbed from Russian audiences.
Marvel’s ‘First Trans Superhero’ was a 12-year-old boy whose gender transition into becoming a girl was part-funded by his Lutheran pastor father’s church insurance.
