What was supposed to be one step forward for gender representation turned into one big backlash for Marvel.
After announcing that their first non-binary characters would be named Snowflake and Safespace, Marvel fans and critics alike took to the internet to express their disapproval.
In a press release announcing the new characters, the writers went some way to explaining the name choices and the powers the characters have.
It read: “Snowflake, a cryokinetic, can materialize snowflake-shaped shuriken projectiles for throwing.”
“Safespace can materialize pink forcefields, but he can’t inhabit them himself, the reflex only works if he’s protecting others. They’re hyper-aware of modern culture and optics, and they see their Super Heroics as ‘a post-ironic meditation on using violence to combat bullying.’ They’re probably streaming this.”
Writer Daniel Kibblesmith goes on to explain that the names are a way of the characters reclaiming the terms, adding:
“Snowflake and Safespace are the twins, it’s this idea that these are terms that get thrown around on the internet that they don’t see as derogatory. [They] take those words and kind of wear them as badges of honour.”
Daniel added, “Snowflake is non-binary and goes by they/them and has the power to generate individual crystalized snowflake-shaped shurikens. The connotations of the word ‘snowflake’ in our culture right now are something fragile, and this is a character who is turning it into something sharp.”
However, many fans felt the names were underhand, mocking and somewhat insensitive choices, spoiling what would have been a progressive moment of inclusion for the non-binary community.
Instead, the move is now subject to controversy and some members of the non-binary community feel disconnected from how they are being represented.