"Uncanny X-Men's" Bunn Addresses Psylocke's Racial Identity

[judaspaladin]

Of all the questions that people could be asking about this series this what they're focusing on? Kinda sad imo

[Saturius]

Also, how much of the original swap idea was Jim Lee's and how much was CC's?

I don't think that's ever been said. Although Chris did say that Psylocke being asian was only supposed to be temporary(till the end of the 3 issue arc or howerver long it was) but it was decided to make it permanent when the higher ups saw Lee's pencils of her.

[Sardorim]

I was glad he spoke to me and gave me some answers. I do hope they get this thing done one day. Popularity aside. She needs to get things adjusted, and we need REAL asian women characters, NOT appropriated ones.

I agree, Psylocke remaining as a stand in for an Asian characters actually hurts real Asian representation.

[Sardorim]

Of all the questions that people could be asking about this series this what they're focusing on? Kinda sad imo

How is it sad to address this? She's a white girl in an Asian body while the real Asian characters are sidelined as Psylocke keeps showing off that Asian body tgat isn't even hers.

Heck, Movie Goers actually think Psylocke us asian, she isn't, and has always been Asian, she never was.

[xgeek]

I suppose they could use the whole Secret Wars thing to make it so the surviving Psylocke is one who was always Asian? But that would be too easy....

[Tazirai]

Chris explained it clearly. The Siege Perilous granted her a new life in a "Japanese woman body" her own body.
Nicieza and the same editor who approved 256 complicated that.
Now it's even more convoluted everytime they bring this back.

It should be: She's a Brit in a Japanese body. Deal with it. On with the show.

Yeah we can deal with it. FIX her body situation.
She didn't emerge as asian. She emerged washed up on shore in her WHITE body.
She was altered later. So her new life started with her old body.
Nicienza even admits he screwed Psylocke up. We've had talks like that in the past.

It's only convoluted, because they won't fix it, and give us an actual asian woman psychic ninja trope.

Of all the questions that people could be asking about this series this what they're focusing on? Kinda sad imo

Because it's yellow face appropriation. With no cultural context at all. If Psylocke and Brian had lived as whites in Japan or China all of their lives, it'd be different since culturally they'd have tons in common with the people.
There's nothing of Kwannon in Psylocke's mind at all. So her running around in Yellow face is a bit offensive.

How is it sad to address this? She's a white girl in an Asian body while the real Asian characters are sidelined as Psylocke keeps showing off that Asian body tgat isn't even hers.

Heck, Movie Goers actually think Psylocke us asian, she isn't, and has always been Asian, she never was.

Correction a bit. Most film goers wont recognize Munn as Asian. I'e followed Munn for years, and didn't know she was asian mixed. I speak Japanese fluently, among other languages. I just thought she spoke it as well as I did.

I suppose they could use the whole Secret Wars thing to make it so the surviving Psylocke is one who was always Asian? But that would be too easy....

It would also be wrong unless they get rid of her relation to captain Britain, and totally retcon her history, which would be a shame. She had a rich history before Ninjafication, why lose that, to make it even worse?

[dragonmp93]

Yeah we can deal with it. FIX her body situation.
She didn't emerge as asian. She emerged washed up on shore in her WHITE body.
She was altered later. So her new life started with her old body.
Nicienza even admits he screwed Psylocke up. We've had talks like that in the past.

It's only convoluted, because they won't fix it, and give us an actual asian woman psychic ninja trope.



Because it's yellow face appropriation. With no cultural context at all. If Psylocke and Brian had lived as whites in Japan or China all of their lives, it'd be different since culturally they'd have tons in common with the people.
There's nothing of Kwannon in Psylocke's mind at all. So her running around in Yellow face is a bit offensive.



Correction a bit. Most film goers wont recognize Munn as Asian. I'e followed Munn for years, and didn't know she was asian mixed. I speak Japanese fluently, among other languages. I just thought she spoke it as well as I did.




It would also be wrong unless they get rid of her relation to captain Britain, and totally retcon her history, which would be a shame. She had a rich history before Ninjafication, why lose that, to make it even worse?

Like masked inhuman girl in Uncanny Avengers ?.

[Hariel0079]

Under CC, Betsy died in XXM and came back in a full Asian body in uxm CC last run. I can accept that but drop the Asian troupes. She's British.

[shgs]

I liked pre-body-swap Psylocke. I like post-body-swap Psylocke. She's an interesting character with lots of potential. I think you could make a strong argument that Claremont's initial body swap was deeply problematic from a racial standpoint. In fact, much of Claremont's work from the 1980's and 1990's could be critiqued for its sexism and exoticism (conversely, he was also responsible for some of the best female and non-white characters in comics at that time). But for the past decade-plus, the race of Betsy's current body has been a nonissue. Except to the internet, of course, because Everything Is Awful All of the Time.

This, exactly. I haven't read the original body morphing/swapping stories but it would not at all surprise me to find they are rooted in the well-meaning but troubling orientalism that characterises most of Claremont's work. That doesn't mean every story to come after featuring Psylocke is racially problematic. It was years after I first came across (Asian) Psylocke before I found out about the whole body-swapping debacle, and I just assumed she was British-born Asian, which indicates how much of a non-issue this is. If the writers simply never brought it up, people would never realise she wasn't just 'normal' Asian representation. Sure some writers/artists have leaned too heavily on the Asian stereotypes but that would equally be an issue if she was a character who had always been Asian - a pernicious stereotype is a pernicious stereotype, end of. If anything, though, it makes more sense for the girl who has been thrust into a part-Asian identity in her adulthood to be more cliched in that part of her life, in the same way that western enthusiasts of Asian culture love things that no doubt seem very stereotypical to native Asians.

I was glad he spoke to me and gave me some answers. I do hope they get this thing done one day. Popularity aside. She needs to get things adjusted, and we need REAL asian women characters, NOT appropriated ones.

It's ridiculous to call Betsy appropriation. Cultural appropriation is taking an aspect of a foreign culture and repackaging it for your own culture whilst negating the actual experiences of that culture; Betsy can't be 'appropriation' because she is actually living the experience of being a minority. Because that is the entire point of racism: it obsesses over superficial differences (skin colour, facial features, language and accent) whilst ignoring the human underneath. You can use Betsy to explore the absurdity and idiocy of racism by having her encounter racial prejudice from white people. Even though she has literally spent most of her life as a white woman, she still becomes a second class citizen just because her external features change a little. There's a lot of potential there, should the writers choose to explore it.

Incidentally, I know non-white British people, brought up here in the UK, who are indistinguishable from white British people in terms of personality, accents, the way they dress and so on. They are just as culturally removed from their ethnic origins as Betsy is. Does that mean they are not 'REAL' Asians (or whatever ethnicity)? I'm sure they'd disagree.

[WallStreeter]

Psylocke is one of (if not THE) most racist characters in comics.

If readers really like the idea of an Asian X-Man, then why not give them one instead of 'white girl wrapped in Asian body yet acting in every way like a walking stereotype of 'Asian-hot-girl'?

I do agree her transformation was ridiculous. But it's been done and over with. Besides in an universe full of shapeshifters and powerful psychic and magicians who can survive the death of their original bodies one could change one's race if one wanted too.

Loki, Sinister, and certain other villains sometimes become women so if they can change gender Psylocke can change her race. LOL

[WallStreeter]

I was literally coming here to post exactly this. Please give me examples from this century in which Psylocke has been written as "just a ninja." Since she's come back from her death in the original X-Treme X-Men book, I actually think the character has barely referenced her racial identity, or been featured in stories that rely upon it. Her runs in X-Force focused on her extremely complicated emotional situation. I don't know what that has to do with her race.

I liked pre-body-swap Psylocke. I like post-body-swap Psylocke. She's an interesting character with lots of potential. I think you could make a strong argument that Claremont's initial body swap was deeply problematic from a racial standpoint. In fact, much of Claremont's work from the 1980's and 1990's could be critiqued for its sexism and exoticism (conversely, he was also responsible for some of the best female and non-white characters in comics at that time). But for the past decade-plus, the race of Betsy's current body has been a nonissue. Except to the internet, of course, because Everything Is Awful All of the Time.

PS: I'm fairly sure that Betsy's original body is long gone at this point. Revanche died from the Legacy Virus, and then I feel like Madelyne Pryor brought that body back during Fraction's Uncanny run. And I believe the o.g. Betsy body went *poof* after that as well. But I could be wrong.

The hand incinerated Psylocke's original body after Madelyne Pryor brought that body back (using it as an experiment for her own resurrection). But yes Psylocke has been Asian for 25 years or so there is no point in going back and no one cares at this point.

[WallStreeter]

It is indeed a complex discussion but for me I don't which body she's in. I love the issue where she joins the X-Men, her Outback days, her Claremont days as I also love her under Remender and Spurrier. For me what matters is that she's well written. I always though of her as mixed race anyway. That's why I love Munn in the role because she has the face I always pictured for Betsy. But I do love the fact that she's a ninja so I hope they keep that…otherwise she's just another telepath (power-wise).

That's partially why they changed her to begin with. I think writers had a hard time writing pure telepaths. They can control everyone's minds (in some way the most powerful of all) but if someone is able to resist psychic attacks the telepath is dead if they have no physical powers or skills.

Jean Grey is a powerful telekinetic so she never had to deal with this.

Psylocke on the other hand was blinded due to her lack of physical ability skills. So they decided to make her a ninja and eventually give her tk. Emma Frost in Gen X was scene physically working out and then she gained her diamond form (superstrong).

[xgeek]

It would also be wrong unless they get rid of her relation to captain Britain, and totally retcon her history, which would be a shame. She had a rich history before Ninjafication, why lose that, to make it even worse?

That's not at all what I meant...you just take a reality next door where Psylocke is half-Japanese, adopted Japanese, whatever. Keep everything else intact except Mandarin brainwashed her instead of body-swapped or something. Pretty simple in terms of "comic book logic" and universe re-aligning retcons.

I dunno if that would deal with all the past issues, but it would at least allow it to be clearly defined moving forward.

[WallStreeter]

Yeah we can deal with it. FIX her body situation.
She didn't emerge as asian. She emerged washed up on shore in her WHITE body.
She was altered later. So her new life started with her old body.
Nicienza even admits he screwed Psylocke up. We've had talks like that in the past.

It's only convoluted, because they won't fix it, and give us an actual asian woman psychic ninja trope.



Because it's yellow face appropriation. With no cultural context at all. If Psylocke and Brian had lived as whites in Japan or China all of their lives, it'd be different since culturally they'd have tons in common with the people.
There's nothing of Kwannon in Psylocke's mind at all. So her running around in Yellow face is a bit offensive.



Correction a bit. Most film goers wont recognize Munn as Asian. I'e followed Munn for years, and didn't know she was asian mixed. I speak Japanese fluently, among other languages. I just thought she spoke it as well as I did.




It would also be wrong unless they get rid of her relation to captain Britain, and totally retcon her history, which would be a shame. She had a rich history before Ninjafication, why lose that, to make it even worse?

Loki and other villains in Marvel turn themselves female. Mystique can be any race or gender she wants to be.

The original Betsy Braddock body is dead. Her mind inhabits the body of Kwannon. If this body died she could technically inhabit any body of any race.

It's not really offensive it's how her power works. Powerful telepaths and magicians can exists as psionic ghosts and they can take over new bodies, living or sometimes they can reanimate dead bodies.

the Shadow King is originally Arabic but he has existed in many hosts of different races and genders.

Psylocke's change of race should be easy to accept in a fantasy world. It's a reincarnation or rebirth of sorts.

[WallStreeter]

How is it sad to address this? She's a white girl in an Asian body while the real Asian characters are sidelined as Psylocke keeps showing off that Asian body tgat isn't even hers.

Heck, Movie Goers actually think Psylocke us asian, she isn't, and has always been Asian, she never was.

It is her body. She occupies it, and has for a long time. It's not her original body.

People who are determined to find offense or a racial angle will always do so. Someone could make a racial issue of why is there black ink on white paper?