Sapien, Please!
One of the Avengers’ first members, mutant villain Magneto’s daughter the Scarlet Witch, has the power to access magic. Unlike sorcerers and wizards like Doctor Strange who had to spend years to hone their powers and learn how to use them, the Scarlet Witch’s mutant ability allowed her access to these cosmic forces with no training at all.
So when she lost her mind, she had all of the power, but none of the experience. After loosing her children, she destroyed the Avengers and remade the world in her image - a world where mutants are the superior race and humans (sapiens) are the hated minority. Magneto is the king of the world and rules his subjects as the head of the House of M.
This was the crossover event for Marvel in 2005, where every title was altered into this new reality. But the Avengers, Marvel’s famous team, while being present in the reality as a group of super powered sapien freedom fighters, did not get their own title.
So in 2007, Marvel decided to publish a 5 issue series to explore this alternate-reality group at the end of 2007, led by Luke Cage and including members such as Iron Fist, Shang-Chi, Tigra, and Hawkeye. The events take place in the New York human ghetto, Sapien Town and the FBI’s attempts to shut down Cage and his associates. As an act of good faith to the sapien community, human Frank Castle (nicknamed “The Punisher“) was added to the FBI’s task force to topple these “Avengers.”
While the series is well-written and one I highly recommend, there is some problematic issues that I see. The way that the Mutant/Sapien racial issues mirror White/Minority racial issues makes me wonder if we are supposed to be learning about these issues, or if the series is making light of them. For example, in issue #2 the leader of the task force admits that adding Punisher to the team is due to pressure to include a sapien - he was affirmative-actioned onto the team. In the first issue, Luke Cage exclaims “Sapien, Please.” While this series, as most X-men/mutant Marvel comics do, comments on race and hatred, the complex social issues of our world are boiled down and put into the cartoonish world of theirs.
I’m reminded of the Geico Caveman commercials. A non-white person might have legitimate grievances about racism against them but by interchanging “Black” or “Mexican” with “Caveman” racial issues are portrayed as comedic and insignificant.
While I know this can’t be the intent of the series, I’m forced to ask writer Christos N. Gage, “Sapien, really?”
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Images courtesy Marvel Comics
Matt Knicl: My name is Matt Knicl. I'm a U of I alumn and one of those unemployed English majors Garrison Keillor likes to make fun of. I've been reading comics since high school and one day I would like to write them. My goal is to expose readers to what is out there in the world of comics and using my English powers, show what is worth reading or not. I can be reached at buzz.comics@gmail.com.
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Matt Knicl
My name is Matt Knicl. I'm a U of I alumn and one of those unemployed English majors Garrison Keillor likes to make fun of. I've been reading comics since high school and one day I would like to write them. My goal is to expose readers to what is out there in the world of comics and using my English powers, show what is worth reading or not. I can be reached at buzz.comics@gmail.com.