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X-Men and the Mutant Metaphor X-Men and the Mutant Metaphor Race and Gender in the Comic Books Joseph J. Darowski Rowman & Littlefield Lanham • Boulder • New York • Toronto • Plymouth, UK Published by Rowman & Littlefield 4501 Forbes Boulevard, Suite 200, Lanham, Maryland 20706 www.rowman.com 10 Thornbury Road, Plymouth PL6 7PP, United Kingdom Copyright © 2014 by Rowman & Littlefield All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote passages in a review. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Information Available Library of Congress Cataloging-inPublication Data Darowski, Joseph J., author. X-Men and the Mutant Metaphor : Race and Gender in the Comic Books / Joseph J. Darowski. pages cm Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-1-4422-3207-5 (cloth : alk. paper) — ISBN 978-1-4422-3208-2 (ebook) 1. X-men (Comic strip). 2. X-Men (Fictitious characters). 3. Race in literature. 4. Gender identity in literature. 5. Comic books, strips, etc.—United States. I. Title. PN6728.X2D37 2014 741.5'973—dc23 2013044977 ™ The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information Sciences—Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992. Printed in the United States of America Dedicated to Gary Hoppenstand Thanks for the great guidance and intriguing discussions. CONTENTS Contents Acknowledgments Introduction Chapter 1: Understanding the X-Men Chapter 2: Intriguing Concept, Uneven Execution Chapter 3: Relaunching and Reimagining Chapter 4: Adding Depth and Exploring Prejudice Chapter 5: Broadening the Mutant Metaphor Chapter 6: Reestablishing the Metaphor Chapter 7: By the Numbers Conclusion Appendix A: X-Men Citations Appendix B: Other Cited Comic Books Works Cited About the Author ACKNOWLEDGMENTS First, I’d like to thank the dissertation committee who guided the earliest stages of this project. Drs. Gary Hoppenstand, Sheila Contreras, James Seaton, and Maria Bruno all helped improve my work and focus my thoughts. My interest in researching superhero comic books was first helped along by my master’s thesis committee at Brigham Young University, so a similar thank-you is in order for Drs. Steve Walker, Frank Fox, and Phillip Snyder. Several comic book writers were kind enough to respond to e-mails or interview requests while I was working on this research. Thank you to Chris Claremont, Roy Thomas, Mike Carey, Kurt Busiek, Fabien Nicieza, and Scott Lobdell. Also Ron Richards of iFanboy.com and Brian Cronin from comicbookresources .com were kind enough to respond to inquiries. The final chapter of this book would not have been possible without the help of my wife, Emily, and the statistics training she received while obtaining her PhD in psychology. Others who provided help with reading and feedback include Ben Phillips, Andrew Darowski, John Darowski, and Kay Darowski. I’d also like to thank Jack Kirby, Stan Lee, and all the subsequent creators who worked on the primary material examined in this study. INTRODUCTION I believe it is safe to say that every grad student at some point gets asked a question along the lines of “Why are you studying that?” or “What are you going to do with that?” If you’re researching human memory, Greek philosophy, international politics, or Irish literature, odds are you’re going to spend a fair amount of time explaining what it is you study and why it’s worthwhile. Not surprisingly, this is also true if you’re researching comic book superheroes. Since entering graduate school and focusing my research on X-Men comic books, first at Brigham Young University and then at Michigan State University, I’ve been asked these questions with some frequency. I believe people who are asking some form of “Why are you studying that?” are actually asking one of four questions. There is the broadest version of the question, inquiring about the validity of working in a field that is not a hard science and does not appear to have a direct exit from grad school into the private sector. They mean “Why study the humanities?” Some individuals who see the value of studying the canon of literature or classic art might narrow their question to “Why study popular culture?” And then those who accept the importance of understanding our entertainment culture may ask “Why study comic books?” Finally, there are those who are asking the most pointed question: “Why study the X-Men?” Each of these questions is worth answering. It is undeniable that there is immense value in studying hard sciences. Technological innovations, medical advances, and other obvious benefits make hard sciences very important to our society. However, to insist that because hard sciences are beneficial the humanities are somehow frivolous is a false dichotomy. There is great value in understanding culture. There is a distinct advantage in mastering critical thinking. There is true societal importance in thinking deeply about complex issues of race, gender, sexuality, culture, or religion. Those are some of the benefits that can come from studying the humanities. Even those who accept the value of studying the great canon of literature or the art that has been produced in cultures all over the world may question the validity of studying popular culture. But how many people watch television compared with how many read Shakespeare? How many people listen to pop songs on the radio compared with those settling down to read Robert Frost? Perhaps the ability to properly analyze the content of popular culture and the effects it has on consumers is something we need more people to master. This is not in any way suggesting that Shakespeare shouldn’t be studied (another false dichotomy); I enjoy Shakespeare immensely. Popular culture is an important part of American society. Entertainment is one of America’s largest exports; it is part of a shared communal culture that many lament is disappearing. Thinking critically about our entertainment culture should be encouraged, not maligned. But surely, some may say, we can study Alfred Hitchock and Fritz Lang without having to resort to studying comic books. Film can be art; comic books are part of the disposable detritus of youth culture. Just as with any medium of storytelling, there can be wonderful stories, thought-provoking narratives, and insightful commentary found in comic books. There can also be found completely forgettable, poorly made stories with little internal logic. It is silly to dismiss an entire mode of storytelling because of a social prejudice. Obviously more “reputable” graphic novels such as Art Spiegelman’s Maus or Alison Bechdel’s Fun Home or Marjane Satrapi’s Persepolis are worth reading, but superhero comics? With mutants? The superhero genre has been greatly popularized in American culture, influencing every aspect of popular culture from video games to cartoons to blockbusters. But they were popularized in comic books. The serial storytelling in comic books allows for a fascinating opportunity to study a single narrative that spans decades. Regularly produced comic books mean a constantly evolving product that reflects changes in the society that produces and consumes the stories for entertainment. The need for a superhero implies something is broken in the system. With Superman it’s that there are threats too large for the system to handle. With Batman it’s that there is too much crime for the system to handle. With the X-Men, it’s that there is prejudice and hatred in the world because people are different. How those themes are explored by characters in bright costumes with crazy powers is worth examining. And how those themes are presented in a superhero narrative can lead to insights about our very culture. Our entertainment, from comic books to television to movies, simultaneously reflects and influences our values, our prejudices, our sense of identity. I think understanding that process is important. I think it does matter. That’s why I study the X-Men. Chapter One UNDERSTANDING THE X-MEN It is important to establish parameters when undertaking a study of a subject with as much potential primary source material as the X-Men, or the project might never end. Because of the success of the X-Men franchise in comic books and other media, the breadth of potential material can be overwhelming. In light of the X-Men franchise’s humble beginnings as an unsuccessful comic book series, the vast amount of material produced featuring the X-Men in the last fifty years is surprising. The X-Men’s self-titled comic book series debuted in 1963 and limped along until 1970, at which point the series’ low sales resulted in Marvel ceasing publication of new adventures. Marvel reprinted the previously produced X-Men comics, but saw it as a losing investment to pay writers and artists to create original comic books featuring the team of mutant superheroes. In 1975, Marvel relaunched the series with mostly new characters and new creators behind the scenes. The result was much more successful than the original series. Soon, spin-off titles began. Then miniseries and one-shots. And then media adaptations. Since that 1975 relaunch of the X-Men comic books series, there have been six blockbuster film adaptations, three successful animated series (as well as one produced pilot that failed to be picked up for a full series), and five X-Men video games. X-Men characters have also been used regularly in successful cartoon series such as Spider-Man and his Amazing Friends and The Super Hero Squad. In comic books, there have been nearly a hundred spin-off titles that were launched in the hopes they would become long-running continuous series (though most lasted much closer to twelve issues than The Uncanny X-Men’s almost six hundred issues), as well as hundreds of miniseries and one-shot comic books. To examine all of the ancillary material that has been produced about the XMen falls outside of the scope of this text. In this book, the first five hundred issues of The Uncanny X-Men series will be examined, with few of the myriad titles and adaptations that exist in the wider X-Men universe of comics being