LOOOOOOL! Bow-legged Lou probably kicked Bishop out of the group for trying to get his mack on with Lisa Lisa.
And yes, Bishop was definitely rocking a Jheri curl. Looking like Sho'Nuff from The Last Dragon and "Achy Breaky Heart" era Billy Ray Cyrus had a lovechild. In fact, that probably should have been his name: Billy Ray Bishop.
Maybe David Bond is Filippino and Bishop could have been a BLack and pino mix.. We have many out there who are just seen as Black .. example Sharon Leal, Charles Davis( the originals).
eh id say its their background is pretty damn important in terms of relatability most characters behavior comes into play after you've read a lil bit about them and have an idea of them in your head. Like Gaia from gen X nooot too many people clamoring for her return super powerful Nexus of all realities or w.e. she was ain't too relatable
I just remembered a young Black character called Mukus. He appeared in the X-Men Black - Mojo issue, and is a student at the Jean Grey School with spitting powers.
I think it's his only appearance, and despite a silly power-set and comedic introduction, he's a blank slate and could be used by a good writer.
Yeah, they may be white dudes, but I don't particularly 'relate' to Superman (alien with godlike powers), Thor (an actual god, thousands of years old), Batman (was a billionaire as a teenager), Iron Man (also inherited billions as a teenager, see also Danny Rand, Warren Worthington, etc., etc.), Aquaman (Atlantean royalty), or many other characters. And I love the heck out of characters like Nightcrawler and Monica Rambeau, who are not even close to 'relatable' to me.
Not everyone needs to be Spider-Man, and be an everyman. Some can be Wakandan kings, which literally nobody can relate to, and still be awesome.
Do Bishop and Gambit even cook for the X-Men anymore? Another reason for Jesse to return to the fold. He's got the chops.
There are aspirational characters and there are relatable characters(and the best are a bit of both). Superman may be a uberpowerful alien, but he is also a handsome white-looking farm boy from middle America and a journalist who speaks English. No, you're not as rich, smart, badass, or as hot as Batman, but you wish you could be. Same for WW. That's what makes for a high-access superhero. Aspirational aspects, and relatable aspects. This is why Spider-Man is such a perennial hit. Sure, he can zip around the city and lift cars and such, but he also is the boy next door who's not sure he can pay his rent on time(at least classically), worrying about his family and girlfriend and so forth.
With Bishop as a mutant police from a dystopian future, he doesn't really have those same relatable qualities that ground our otherwise fantastic/unattainable heroes. Certainly it is not impossible to write or create something out of left field that lots of people still like, but the best fiction is grounded in reality. And in terms of a relatable African American X-Man, Bishop: is not even really African American(at least now), being actually an Australian Aboriginal, doesn't have a relatable backstory, and his police background is actually triggering in some regards(especially when he's focused as a mutant cop hunting mutants), so in this understanding, he is a poor example of an ideal. Which is why I suggested they bring back Synch, refocus on some of the other existing POC males, and perhaps make a brand new male with these ideas in mind.
Let the flames destroy all but that which is pure and true!
I don't think there's anything wrong with using Bishop's background and persona in story. It's gotten him more story pre-Messiah Complex, IMO, since he was first reconceived. You can slot him into any kind of mystery/noir story. So long as you make it clear - and perhaps actively work into story - the difference between the world he policed and the world he lives in now as a man of color, I don't see an issue.
Reading List (Super behind but reading them nonetheless):
DC: Currently figuring that out
Marvel: Read above
Image: Killadelphia, Nightmare Blog
Other: The Antagonist, Something is Killing the Children, Avatar: TLAB
Manga: My Hero Academia, MHA: Vigilanties, Soul Eater: the Perfect Edition, Berserk, Hunter X Hunter, Witch Hat Atelier, Kaiju No. 8