Black Superman? The Potential Of Blue Marvel
I have also written about how I would love to see he and Black Panther get a series together (Yeah). But I defied writing exclusively about Blue Marvel because I resist the urge to fanboy any one character except Megatron. I also have a deep desire to write Blue Marvel comics eventually, and I am working on my own stories to make that happen one day. Yet, a few days ago, Brandon Bush wrote an excellent article about good ole’ Adam Brashear, and that inspired me to go ahead and get on that train in the hopes of generating some more energy and passion for the character. So here goes…
Adam knocks out the Ultimate Hulk with one punch. Adam has had brief run ins with Marvel’s most powerful heroes. Hyperion, various Hulks, and even Sentry.
Why does Blue Marvel matter to me?
As a kid, I loved Superman; he was my favorite character. For my 3rd birthday, I had a Super Friends cake with little figures on top. Guess which one I couldn’t stop playing with? You guessed it; couldn’t put it down until it got stuck somewhere in the gear shift flap, and I couldn’t get him out. I was pretty bummed about that too. But as I got older (around 7ish) and became a little bit more aware of my reality, I started to want a character that looked like me. It became more apparent that most heroes weren’t a reflection of me. Cyborg existed, but I wasn’t a fan. He was just as much robot as he was a man, and I had Transformers for my machines. I wanted someone that looked like me who was strong enough to crush mountains and leap tall buildings in a single bound, but there was no one like that.
As the years went on, comics continued to diversify, giving us characters like War Machine, John Stewart, and Spawn. These heroes, in addition to already existing characters like Luke Cage and Black Panther. But still, they weren’t Superman level characters, and I say this as a massive pre-movie Black Panther fan. In the Death of Superman, there was Bloodwynd, and I was so excited. Who is this guy that’s holding his own against Doomsday? But soon I discovered that it was nothing really to be excited about. You can see why here. There was Icon, but I didn’t hear of him until I was fully grown, and those comics were no longer in print.
Adam rocks Maestro, an evil alternate version of the Hulk.
Enter Blue Marvel
Fast forward to 2009, and after an extended break, I made a full return to superhero comics. Eventually, I stumbled upon Blue Marvel's book. I instantly fall in love with this ultra-powerful character that Kevin Grevioux had created. This is the hero I'd wanted since I was a kid. Finally, a Superman level character kicking ass and taking names. But there was also the backdrop of racial discrimination under the shadow of Jim Crow. While it doesn't get extremely deep with its social commentary, it still drives home an important message while leaving room for plenty of unexplored territory. In his origin, Blue Marvel was a masked hero in the 1960s. But during an intense battle with his former friend turned nemesis Anti-Man, his mask is torn, and the white onlookers see that there's a black man underneath. GASP!! Afterward, he's asked to step down by JFK to avoid stoking racial fears in a tumultuous time in America's history. He worked behind the scenes after faking his death. He ages slower because of his powers, and he lived a "quiet" life as a university professor. More about his origin can be found here.
Some people love street-level heroes, Batman, Black Panther, Daredevil, and Spiderman, and so on. But my heart always had a place for the big heavy hitters, and finally, here was one that looked like me, who experienced racism, and whom I related to directly. As someone whose parents and uncles were raised in the Jim Crow south, who attended a predominantly white high school, and as a soldier, I couldn't help but relate to the character.
Adam, coming of age in the height of the civil rights struggle, had to show restraint when facing racism.
BUT WE ALREADY HAVE BLACK PANTHER
While Black Panther already has his legacy etched on the culture and will serve as an inspiration for generations of black kids to come, Blue Marvel has the potential to be a close second in importance. While Black Panther is an African character with a worldwide appeal, his experience isn’t uniquely African American. Adam Brashear IS African American, and again, grew up in the height of legal racial discrimination. He was also a veteran of the Korean war. His perspective isn’t one of royalty or protecting his subjects, and he’s someone who has served his country and still had to come home to being treated unfairly. He is someone who has repeatedly made sacrifices and had to show massive amounts of restraint, knowing that at any time, he could exact his retribution…but he doesn’t. Adam has had African AMERICAN struggles that T’Challa can’t fully understand.
This sounds familiar doesn’t it? This CLASSIC narrative is being used today. Adam, did have to face resentment from his own people for not delivering them from discrimination.
Another aspect of Blue Marvel’s existence is who created him. Panther was created by legends Jack Kirby and Stan Lee (RIP), and while we should all be grateful for the vision Stan had in 1966, Adam is a black character that was created by a black writer and actor Kevin Grevioux. There aren’t many original black characters that also have black creators. Blue Marvel's existence serves diversity on multiple levels.
Adam took on the evil King Hyperion, who had killed many alternate versions of Marvel’s best heroes.
Perhaps the most important fact is that Blue Marvel is a unique character. He’s not a clone, a fill-in, a copy, or someone who’s just adopting a mantle. He is his own hero with his own rich history that’s yet to be fully explored. Part of the problem with Marvel’s diversity efforts was that many of the characters replaced more well-known Heroes. Miles Morales is a great character in his own right, but he’s still a Spiderman. Jane Thor was great, but she’s still filling in. The same can be said for DC as well, as many of their characters of color aren’t wholly unique either. Val-Zod, current Wally West, and Batwing are a few examples. They get props for Static, Black Lightening, …and even Cyborg. Sure, he’s inspired by Superman, but he’s not Superman. He’s not an alien, he’s not without his mistakes, he’s not someone who has always been powerful, he is someone who had to learn to deal with it and knew he could change the fate of his people for better or for worse. He is also not above killing. He is philosophically opposed to violence as a solution, but he’s also been a soldier and knows that there are no other options.
Again, Blue Marvel is a unique character and has the potential to resonate beyond his blackness. He is just a good character. But we can’t ignore that he is a character that represents multiple generations and aspects of the black experience all at once. Imagine exploring the depths of Adam’s history in print. Who could he have met? What historical figures might he have kicked it with? What would it mean if his position on nonviolence was influenced by MLK? There’s so much depth and potential here to explore. It’s almost a shame it hasn’t happened yet.
Blue Marvel could be another character who has a significant impact on Black superhero culture. He just needs the space to make it happen. Marvel, just let me know, and I’ll gladly do it, but I’ll settle for him getting his own solo, his own Marvel Legends figure, for now, maybe his own merchandise, and perhaps showing up in an animated series.
I don’t expect Blue Marvel to end up in the MCU. Although, the MCU’s introduction of Monica Rambeau, who is currently in a relationship with Adam, could provide a great opportunity for him to pop up on screen. But I doubt that will happen.
To read more Blue Marvel, he is currently appearing in Marvel’s (outstanding) Doctor Doom series. It’s not going great for him, and personally, I don’t want to see him pop up as a jobber, but I’m hoping it turns around for him, and we see more of him.
Edit: I am aware that Blue Marvel isn’t Superman and that he’s his own character. I was attempting to draw a bit of a parallel of importance. Blue Marvel could be a culturally important character and Superman was the inspiration for the character. That was not to disrespect Blue Marvel, but to elevate him. As such, I have adjusted the name of the article.
