Marvel Comics’ X-Men editor Tom Brevoort, who is gearing up to relaunch the team this summer with X-Men: From the Ashes, doubled down on claiming the “message is the concept” while also describing critics of wokeness as “cretins.”
X-Men #4 (1964), Marvel Comics
As reported by Fandom Pulse, in December Brevoort responded to criticism of the relaunch by accusing critics of engaging in homophobia or bigotry.
Brevoort wrote on X, “Well, this X-Men graphic sure brought people out in force. One reminder that I thought wouldn’t be necessary: express whatever opinion you like, but if you show up with homophobia or bigotry or hate speak of any sort, it’ll be an instant block.”
Tom Brevoort on X
Brevoort would then claim “the message is the premise” in response to Gravin Knight writing, “How about you tell a good story and stop shoving the message down our throats.”
Tom Brevoort on X
Brevoort has doubled down on this assertion in his latest newsletter, where he responded to a question about the upcoming X-Men ’97 animated show featuring wokeness and whether wokeness should play a role in the X-Men.
First, the X-Men editor responded by describing those criticizing wokeness as “cretins.” He wrote, “First off, I think the ill-defined accusation of being “woke” is nonsense, and I tend to turn off and tune out whenever it comes up in almost any context. The people who are using it, and who brandish it like a sword to attack whatever they don’t like, tend to be mostly, well, cretins.”
Brevoort continued, “They aren’t making a good faith argument, they’ve just come up with an all-purpose term, an infinitely adaptable scarlet letter that they can hang on anything they don’t like for any reason.”
Tom Brevoort via Marvel Entertainment YouTube
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Next, Brevoort doubled down on the “message is the premise” when it comes to X-Men.
He wrote, “That all laid out, I’ll tell you what I said previously on social media when a version of this question came up: for X-MEN, the message is the concept. This is a book about oppressed outsiders, each a minority of one for all that they share the X-gene and a commonality of purpose, who are hated and feared because they are different and who have to constantly struggle to find acceptance within a society that does not understand them and wishes that they would just go away.”
Brevoort then claimed, “Every X-MEN comic book published since 1963 would is about these themes to one degree or another. Without them, it wouldn’t be X-MEN. So while our primary objective is always going to be to entertain and to thrill, this is always going to be a prevalent stratum in every X-MEN story.”
House of X #1 (2019), Marvel Comics
This is objectively false as anyone who has read X-Men #1 that was published in 1963 knows. The X-Men depicted in the very first issue are not oppressed outsiders, and they are definitely not hated or feared because they are different. And they do not constantly struggle to find acceptance within society.
The book opens up introducing the X-Men led by Professor Charles Xavier and including Cyclops, Iceman, Angel, and Beast. It depicts the various abilities they have through a training scene.
X-Men #1 (1963), Marvel Comics
After Professor X ends the training session, he introduced the team to Jean Grey and all of them attempt to impress her while she shows off her psychic abilities.
X-Men #1 (1963), Marvel Comics
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After Jean has shown off her power, the book makes a hard transition to Magneto as he plots to destroy the human race and launches an attack on a United States military base at Cape Citadel.
X-Men #1 (1963), Marvel Comics
Following the attack, Professor X rounds up the X-Men and deploys them to counter Magneto’s attack. When they arrive at the base, Cyclops has a discussion with one of the military commanders who is not afraid of the X-Men at all. In fact, he’s baffled at who they are. But nevertheless, he allows Cyclops and the X-Men to launch their attack on Magneto.
X-Men #1 (1963), Marvel Comics
After the X-Men are able to force Magneto to retreat within 15 minutes, the general declared, “You call yourselves the X-Men! I will not ask you to reveal your true identities, but I promise you that before this day is over, the name X-Men will be the most honored in my command.”
X-Men #1 (1963), Marvel Comics
Clearly, in the first issue of X-Men, the team was not oppressed outsiders. They also were not hated or feared because they were different. No one even knew who they were!
And they did not constantly struggle to find acceptance within society. In fact, as the general notes they freed the base and were immediately honored.
X-Men #1 (1963), Marvel Comics
As Jon Del Arroz points out at Fandom Pulse, Brevoort’s definition of the X-Men is a clear indication of what readers can expect in the new relaunch. The group will be depicted as oppressed outsiders. They will be feared and hated because they are different. They will also constantly struggle to find acceptance within society.
It also seems obvious that all of this will be used as an allegory for wokeness and another attempt at The Walt Disney Company to indoctrinate its readers and viewers into their diabolical agenda.
X-Men #157 (1982), Marvel Comics
What do you make of Brevoort’s comments?
NEXT: Stan Lee Debunks Widespread Myth That X-Men Were Always Woke
Tom Brevoort is a real life Mister Sinister.