There's absolutely no reason to change Magneto's backstory. None whatsoever.
He was given his back story in 1981, basically as soon as it even became "a thing" to give villains backstories beyond typical "money, jealousy, power" that villains had early on. Before that he was generic "anti-xavier", just like ever other villain of every other comic book hero.
I mean, is there even a reference to his early life in the 70s that was retconned by making him a holocaust survivor? Was he even a noteworthy villain before this addition? This event defined him.
He can be old man but in every era comics general reboot or soft reboot. Marvel has been soft rebooting so slowly Magneto has been moving away from his origin date making sense with setting slowly changing to be the present. But it is sci-fiction and they are people around extended lives so you fix it that way. But some people would prefer if Magneto could time slide in fiction along with other characters so moving him away from the Holocaust removes that set point that he has to hit. Xavier has the same issue as Magneto but Xavier isn't tied to any event so it is just as a matter of moving him to fit the time.
So clearly the Holocaust didn't happen recently Marvel in the present day can try to tie Magneto to another event like that to keep the spirit of the story. That is where the discussion comes from, in the comic world they will probably extended lifespan. In the movie world, he probably doesn't get the tie to the Holocaust but still Jewish imo. This topic about changing came from a screenwriter from Xmen first class I believe mentioning it and Giancarlo Esposito as an option and occasional people on forums have mentioned that same change.
Weirdly people keep saying there is no reason when there is a clear a big reason to change his background. There is reasons to change Apoclayse or Selene as well. Freaking Thor 1 has space aliens not "Gods" stuff change on the screen for many reason. Whether you agree with the solution you set the X-men in 2000s there is a reason to change Magneto backstory.
Last edited by Killerbee911; 08-08-2019 at 08:25 PM.
I'm yet to see anyone providing a good reason to change it.
I'm yet to see anyone providing a good reason the MCU needs to keep it.
Snark aside, I don't care either way, fans find all sorts of things 'essential' to a character, mostly that just means they like it for their own reasons. The list of characters who have had stuff changed that at one point would have been essential is too long to bother with.
Not that I know what the current status is, but the Vietnam War became an essential part of Punisher's character, at some point that will change (again, maybe it has). Personally, I feel that war is a crucial part of Forge as well, but again that is going to change, and the character will be as usable then as he is now as he was in the past.
Few things here:
1. I never said no reason, some did, but I explicitly said they could.
2. You're arguing, essentially, that its a big deal/big reason that timelines aren't lined up while simultaneously admitting Marvel itself has not been hard aligning with real dates. So Marvel doesn't seem to think its an issue ... but its a big reason.
3. If we do move the timescale forward, I do NOT think its a good idea to revert him back to a simple "professor x opposite". That simplifies and strips the character of way more than you gain by making him young.
4. I've yet to read a real reason to why he needs to be young. At all. Who cares?
5. If we do tie him to a more modern event ... what event meets the bar of holocaust? Argentina Dirty War? North Korea got something I'm not aware of? I mean, Nazi Holocaust is a rather ... noteworthy event.
So what you don't get it. Mutant will only have existed for a couple of years. Maybe the snap activated the X-gene in people. The story of the X-men is starting now.
Not a big deal until you have to do a movie and movie has to exist in a set time period. Hence why Iron Man origin is in the middle east. I am talking movies more than comics can do wacky stuff movies tend to be more grounded. Magneto can be "old young" forever in the comics and they can pretend that Cyclops and Peter Parker don't age for the last 20 years. In the movies you have to make a choice. In the comics eventually, they have to make a choice as well but if the movies start in present they might have another option to go with Magneto
Last edited by Killerbee911; 08-08-2019 at 08:55 PM.
Last edited by Magneto; 08-08-2019 at 08:52 PM.
Popularity is not a character element worth discussing here.