Needs some change

Like I said before, change’s not necessarily always good nor bad especially in storytelling directions where I think it’s affected by multiple factors and the like. I suspect should certain characters need to change, it’s either to better represent concepts as well as to take advantage of something potentially good (Tigra being the poster girl for body positivity if because she’s hairy and got paw-like hands and feet), to update themes for this generation (Caitlin being a werewolf in the post-Leaving Neverland years) or to consider a logical alternative.

It could be Tigra being the poster girl for body positivity and that’s one thing if because it’s needed and that she can get away with being this hairy. It’s another if characters like Kitty Pryde need to be de-Mary Sued. I guess if there’s ever a perfectly sensible way to de-Mary Sue her, it’s one thing to depict her as a completely normal girl on X-Men Evolution. It’s another to consider the logical possibility of her being a murderous assassin if Age of Apocalypse’s any indication.

After all, Kitty’s got no issue beating up and even killing people especially when angered. She should’ve become the character Psylocke ended up as given her ninja training (and that would actually make much more sense really). The only problem is if they were to make her replace Psylocke and X23 (Kitty at some point had retractile claws and very much so in AoA), writers fear making her look bad. Never mind it’s ironically the least Mary Sue she’s ever been. And parsimoniously the more realistic route too.

Realistic in the sense of taking her tendency and trajectory into consideration. No wonder why Psylocke’s ninja makeover got eventually undone, she wasn’t meant to become this character whereas Kitty could easily become it. Wouldn’t matter if she’s a reader surrogate though that would mean giving her an actual goal and taking her where she’d logically become, which is awfully similar to what became of Psylocke and eventually X23.

(Since cats have retractile claws, it makes a lot more sense for Kitty to have Wolverine like claws too.)

Not to mention she’d end up as a more realistic version of Felicia Hardy (who’s often considered to be Marvel’s answer to Catwoman). Again in the sense of being actually feline right down to the retractile claws and tendency to go through narrow spaces, like actual cats. (To be fair, Extinctioners is a furry superhero comic with a character closely resembling her in some regards.)

So you’re dealing with situations where such characters would realistically become those, whether if it’s Tigra being the poster girl for body positivity as she’s unabashedly hairy with pawlike hands and feet or Kitty Pryde becoming a ruthless assassin. It doesn’t really betray what’s been portrayed whether in comics, the original intent or elsewhere to an extent. Though it’s also a matter of willingly doing the alternative.

Especially if it’s something needed to ease problems be it letting Tigra be hairy and have actual paws or making Kitty less of a Mary Sue.

Logical alternatives and possibilities

I pointed out before on why superhero writers (at least to my knowledge as those outside of cape stories possibly also do the same things too) don’t bother taking some characters to a logical conclusion if because it makes them look bad or wimpy. I mean there’s a lot more merit and sense to Kitty Pryde being an assassin hitwoman or Barry Allen being an escape artist. But that’s something most writers don’t consider.

In order for Barry Allen to be an escape artist, his speed powers need to be much more limited. That’s right, he won’t be doing much of the speed feats fans and writers come to expect him to do. Much of it’s restricted to just running and doing things real quickly (and even the speed’s just within what vehicles do) and the occasional punch.

As for Kitty Pryde, she’s got no issues beating up and killing people when angry but in order to make her an assassin for real in canon (the 616 universe) she’d effectively make Psylocke and X23 redundant. She’d pretty much take on traits of both of them and the character who’d take on the Kitty Pryde role would Cypher.

Age of Apocalypse does show it’s that possible for Kitty Pryde to be a murderous assassin but it’s something seldom done (though it could become canon once she goes half-leopard). But then again it might make her look bad even if it’s needed to keep her from being a Mary Sue really.

I guess in here writers would have to be much more detached and even a little wary of them to keep them from being too Mary Sue for their own good.

The other way to de-Mary Sue them

I still think if Kitty Pryde’s AOA counterpart’s any indication, there’s a way to keep characters from being Mary Sue and that’s to consider the logical alternative and possibility. Something like Barry Allen being the Justice League’s go for escape artist if because he can outrun his enemies just to survive. Or Kitty Pryde becoming the X-Men’s go for hitwoman and assassin.

Or Tim Drake being a petulant Goth metalhead. I think with Kitty Pryde becoming a Mary Sue, it’s got to do with writers being too timid to consider the logical possibility even if it’s doable if the Age of Apocalypse storyline’s any indication. (I actually think Kitty Pryde should be the character Psylocke ended up as given the latter’s not meant to be like this.)

Same with Barry Allen being the go-for escape artist, it’s a logical possibility that not too many writers consider if because they fear it makes Barry look less cool. Even if it makes sense that if you really want to escape a bad ordeal, you might want to be fast enough to avoid it. Though that would mean significantly limiting Barry’s powers a lot.

No phasing, speed feats, time travel and the like. Just running (at a much slower pace), bad punching and maybe doing a few things quickly but that’s it. But I still think why writers won’t commit to it’s because they think it makes Barry look lame. Comes to think of it, that’s probably why writers don’t commit to making Kitty the resident assassin.

Even if it makes the most sense given she’s very willing to kill or beat up people when pissed and has ninja training, she’s rarely ever a real assassin because it makes her look bad. (I still think rather ironically Kitty Pryde would do the things Psylocke and X23 ended up doing and possibly much better than them.)

Even though it’s the very thing needed to keep her from becoming too much of a Mary Sue. I guess part of the reason why writers don’t commit to logical possibilities and alternatives if because they don’t want to make them look bad. Kitty Pryde could easily be an assassin and Barry Allen an escape artist.

But that makes them less cool to fans even if it makes much more sense and one that doesn’t violate either science or narrative logic much. Something that actually makes the most sense in here.

Divine Pryde

I actually think it’s amusing to think that out of all the heroic X-Women out there, it’s Kitty Pryde who’s practically the most diva like in behaviour. Not that there’s anything wrong with it but I think considering her to be more in-line with a diva than with girls next door proper kind of makes you wonder if her fans are either willingly excusing her behaviour…or perhaps their idea of a girl next door’s a fiery technologically inclined woman.

(If X-Men Evolution’s any indication, if she were a much more normal woman she’d be boring.)

I could be nit-picking but I do remember more than one incident of her repeatedly losing her temper to the point of lashing out violently. And demanding to a fault. I guess in Kitty’s case, it’s not always so much about being overly saccharine (though this gets lost on some) but rather more to do with being incredibly sullen and pissed. It’s a malaise almost impossible to find in Betty Cooper.

If because she’s practically the (near) perfect girl next door in comics in the sense of being an idealised everywoman whilst Kitty’s practically a jaded fan surrogate. Not that Betty’s any less suspicious as she’s shown to be mentally ill in Riverdale. But I think with Kitty, the given characterisation she got is kind of diva-ish.

Easily annoyed when things don’t go well, willingly taking her wrath out on others, demanding what she wants (not that it’s a bad thing) and according to some readers, overly preachy. You know like any pop diva. I suspect her relatability arguably doesn’t just lie with being a fan surrogate but one who’s very contemptuous and pissed off with everybody else.

She even barely bothers to understand people’s intentions, even later on in the stories (as far as I remember) and I think her perpetual malaise with people resonates well with X-Men fans and naturally her enemy’s the very blonde, very posh (and light-clad) Emma Frost. (There’s a recurring gag in American productions where the popular girls are often blonde*.)

I suspect in Kitty Pryde’s case, she’s as if Ally Sheedy’s the girl next door or like in one of Plebcomics’s cartoons on appealing to Internet users a lot. If that’s the case, that might be telling.

*Though not unique to American productions, in Japanese animated productions blondes aren’t necessarily always popular girls (or if male, Chads) as they could be suspicious in other ways (delinquent, bullied victim, loser, outsider, otherworldly, exotic, foreign).

Minds of their own

It’s not that characters like Barry Allen lack character development in general but rather they lack character development beyond being reader surrogates. If they did outgrow that, that’ll not only involve taking on more flaws and traits but also stick to logical conclusions and possibilities considering what they can do and who they can be. Something like Kitty Pryde, especially with her training, powers and temper being an assassin in Age of Apocalypse.

It’s the most logical and realistic route she’s ever been to but one that’s not done often if because considering the logical possibility’s more frightening than sticking to what doesn’t really work. For another matter, Tim Drake being Black Canary’s grandnephew or nephew. That’s already been contemplated in some fanworks even if they’re not necessarily related. But in canon that would involve serious changes in characterisation and one that turns fan assumptions on its head.

It’s one thing to say the character’s great despite its presentation, it’s another however to present somebody like Dinah being so overprotective of and strict to Tim and becoming his mother figure (as I think she’d make both Lady Shiva and Dana Winters redundant) despite what she’s wearing. She’s not that she hasn’t been a mother figure but having her be Tim’s mother figure for good involves having to reconcile this with her fashion sense.

That would mean she’d actually become a truly well-rounded character based on that she’s the best mother figure Tim’s ever got. Despite the possibility that she’d scream at him a lot (if she ever has powers in this case) and Tim becoming a more foolish Jason Todd, which is ironically the very character he’s not supposed to be. (It happened anyways on Bruce Timm’s cartoons.)

Even if they did meet, the idea of Black Canary being Tim’s overprotective aunt/grand-aunt seems unthinkable when you think about it. Another logical possibility that seems unthinkable, however despite how blatant it is, is Barry Allen being of Italian descent. It doesn’t make sense at first because he doesn’t look Italian. Ditto that Italian nationals like Patty Pravo, Nitro Wilson and Jake La Furia are either blond or at least light brown-haired.

Heck Dante Alighieri’s speculated to be a blond himself as are his descendants (the late Brunoro di Serego Alighieri and the still living Massimilia di Serego Alighieri). It’s not at all impossible really though blond hair seems more common in the Alps. Barry Allen’s also of Irish descent on his father’s side which should explain the surname (there are Irish Allens) and naturally blond Irish exist as well.

But the real problem’s that it’s too close to comfort considering that the people who work on his stories are either Italian or of Italian descent (Carmine Infantino and Greg Berlanti who’s part Irish). Even making him a Dante Alighieri proxy has the same effect in terms of what they’re wearing and that Dante had a brother named Francesco.

It doesn’t still well with expectations even if it’s blatant in some manner (Barry has the classic Italian trait of tardiness). If because that’s realising it’s entirely possible and when he takes on a mind of his own.

No change, just good stories

That’s understandable but I get the feeling change’s necessary. Not because I want a character to come out of the closet but because there are other ways to either avert the process of turning into a Mary Sue or to undo it however by opting for the logical, if damning possibility/conclusion. Something like Kitty Pryde being everything that Psylocke ironically turned into as the latter wasn’t supposed to be a ninja (whereas the former’s trained as such, however also forcibly).

That’s even done in Age of Apocalypse but since that’s temporary and apocryphal, I suspect when you think hard about it the logical possibility’s scarier than one wishes for. Kitty Pryde as a bloodthirsty assassin’s scary even if it makes the most sense and the least Mary Sue she’s been. (It’s also the most logical character development she ever got, however it got undone.) The same can be said of let’s say turning Black Canary into Tim’s grandaunt which necessitates a personality change for both.

But in the sense of the former becoming very over-protective and sometimes harsh on him whilst he becomes more feckless and reckless. (That’s goes to show you how different she is from Dana and not to mention potentially more important.) Both of them have the surname Drake, which whilst not always the case for some, having her be his relative in action would require phasing both Lady Shiva and Dana out for her.

(And Dinah being the biggest shrew Tim’s ever dealt with.)

Or heck, Barry Allen being of Italian descent if because he does wallow in Italian and/or Catholic cliches like tardiness and turning to forensic science out of regret over not saving somebody. Even the people working on his adventures (from what I recall, Greg Berlanti and Carmine Infantino) are of Italian descent.

Frank Miller, for all his flaws, had the good sense to do something about Daredevil. Barry would easily be the DC answer to him, just look at him. He could at the very least be of partial Italian descent though that would involve giving more depth to the late Nora in the sense who she was and where she came from. Actually that gives Barry much more depth than he ever had.

The only problem’s that he doesn’t look Italian to some never mind that characters like Nitro Wilson, Jake La Furia and Patty Pravo exist (naturally blond Italians exist). It’s that possible.

Goes to show you

I actually suspected that Kitty Pryde would’ve made a better Psylocke than Psylocke ever was and will ever be in hindsight. She even had the training for it. What Psylocke got, in order to get those skills, was to get bodyswapped with somebody else and this eventually had to be undone. It’s as if Psylocke wasn’t meant to be this character, whilst Kitty could evidently become one (she’s even an assassin in Age of Apocalypse, ironically the most realistic portrayal she ever got).

If that’s the case, that’s realising how badly written X-Men comics are. It’s one thing to give characters flaws, it’s another however to not go where one would logically go (Kitty Pryde would’ve the character Psylocke ironically became) and mess another’s potential. Psylocke certainly had combat training before and shown to be athletic but she wasn’t really much of a ninja and not really trained as such early on. The fact that she got bodyswapped (which got undone) suggests that they really screwed her up.

Kitty Pryde could’ve easily become the X-Men’s resident murderous hitwoman when you think about it. She evidently has a a serious temper (which landed her in therapy) and doesn’t shy away from beating up and even killing people. She readily lashes out and loses her cool. If Age of Apocalypse’s any indication, she could easily be an assassin but it’s something that’s not even done in canon if because the logical conclusion’s the ugliest for her.

(That’s what you get from going to the late Kiotr website.)

Even if turning her into a murderous assassin’s the very thing needed to keep her from becoming too much of a Mary Sue. Given the racebending got undone, however overdue, it makes you wonder just how convoluted Psylocke got and why it look so long to address the problem. Conversely speaking, turning Kitty Pryde into a murderous assassin’s the best thing to happen to her in the sense of keeping her from being too much of a Mary Sue.

Kind of bad in hindsight

Like I said about Kitty Pryde and Psylocke’s that Kitty would easily do the things Psylocke ended up doing and had the training and temperament for it whilst what Psylocke got’s really convoluted. It’s like if Age of Apocalypse’s any indication, if Kitty did become an assassin it’d be that easy. Psylocke, on the other hand, in order for her to have similar skills she ended up getting body-swapped with somebody else and this got undone recently.

That actually makes you wonder how badly written the X-Men stories are and why they don’t hold up well. Whilst all the other stories do have their own faults, X-Men comics are actually this ridiculously badly written. You’ve got Kitty who became a Mary Sue partly because most writers are too scared to go where she’d realistically become (which was attempted in AOA).

And Psylocke, whose trajectory’s really convoluted. That’s really, really bad writing when you think about it. It’s being addressed but that’s realising just how bad the X-Men stories can get.

Assassins’ Creed With Teeth

Like I said about Kitty Pryde being a vicious assassin’s that it does deconstruct the other problems with turning Psylocke into a Japanese ninja as the latter wasn’t supposed to be this character whereas the former, considering her temperament and training, would easily pull off that one. In fact it’s Kitty who should be the go-for X-Men assassin in canon as Age of Apocalypse gives an idea of how it can be done and why it’s useful in de-Mary Sueing her (in the sense of taking her to where she’d logically go).

The Ring stories had no problem with another phasing character who kills people out of anger. Heroes had no problem with a phasing character who’s a criminal (though it’s also unfortunate that he had to be black, which’s stereotypical and not enlightening at times). Even in Excalibur and other comics, Kitty Pryde often lost her temper to the point of lashing out in violence and killing people.

Thus turning Kitty into an assassin would be much easier and more seamless than what’s been done to Psylocke. No wonder why the racebending had to be undone because Psylocke wasn’t meant to be this character. Though that’s also realising how badly written X-Men is.

She’s Professor X’s hitwoman

It’s something that’s very much needed to de-Mary Sue her and one that’s already attempted in Age of Apocalypse, that’s by turning Kitty into a vicious assassin. Canonically speaking, she’s actually got the makings of one. Not that she’s evil but that for those who can’t stand her being a Mary Sue, there’s a way to undo this and that’s by taking to where she’d realistically go and turn into. But one that’s kind of ugly to boot.

There were also attempts to turn her into a panther god vessel or something and having her be a leopardess assassin works in a weirdly appropriate way. Stalking on unsuspecting prey and hidden in darkness. Like real leopards. Heck, rather than being a Manic Pixie Dream Girl, she’d easily be the X-Men’s resident hitwoman after Psylocke.

Sometimes better given her ability and training whilst Psylocke didn’t really start out as such. It’s not that Kitty lacks flaws but that writers are too scared to go for the more realistic route even if that’s been attempted in Age of Apocalypse.