Erm... This May Be An X-Men Meta?
OK, so. I'm brainstorming right now for my X-Men: First Class AU, which is probably going to span a long period of time, and I got to thinking. I've often heard that Magneto and Professor X are supposed to be the mutant versions of Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr., respectively, right? That seems to be the idea I've come across most often, anyway.
I'm the first to say I don't know much about Malcolm X, but from the little I do know, Magneto does, to some extent, fit the image, in terms of the militant attitude toward mutant rights. He also has more than a dash of a Nazi-type mindset when it comes to the superiority thing, which is something I'm exploring in my fic, before it gets too deeply rooted in his mind.
It's Xavier that confuses me a little. In terms of the rhetoric, yeah, good match. But beyond that... Mind you, I am strictly a movie girl (and also X-Men Evolution, kind of), and of course we only see the major clashes there, but I don't really think the MLK -> Xavier matchup works. Because here's the thing. The nonviolent civil rights movement, from what I have read and seen, involved a LOT of civil disobedience, and refusing to stay quiet and let things happen anymore. Except for the X-Men involving themselves in stopping the Brotherhood - and does anyone even know about that, or do they think it's just two mutant terrorist groups duking it out in some kind of internal feud? - Xavier and his students seem to more or less just keep their heads down. Yes, there's the lecturing the President moment, but that seems to be it.
Now, I could be wrong. And, I'll admit, we do see Jean addressing the Senate in X1. But that's working purely within the system. And, though in the novelization of the original script, Jean reveals her powers in that scene, the finished movie cut that out. So she's essentially playing human there. And for all I know the students might start up protests, have underground newsletters (probably online), and various other means of speaking out peacefully. But we don't see any of that, and I am basing my thoughts on what we see.
It just confuses me how Xavier can be so sure his vision will prevail when he doesn't seem to be doing much for it. No one knows about the school's true function - or they're not supposed to at least - and no one seems to have much idea about the X-Men. So... Was he just planning to point at the school and say that mutants can live beside humans? That doesn't work either, since, well... The school is a sanctuary for mutants. Which is fine, they need that. But it doesn't really prove that mutants and humans can co-exist side-by-side. At least I don't think so.
I feel kind of bad for tearing down the heroes here, so let me make it clear that while Magneto is one of my favorite characters, villain or no, I do not agree with his viewpoint. But he's rather more proactive about his vision than Xavier is about his, really.
I feel like I'm going to get in trouble over this one.
I'm the first to say I don't know much about Malcolm X, but from the little I do know, Magneto does, to some extent, fit the image, in terms of the militant attitude toward mutant rights. He also has more than a dash of a Nazi-type mindset when it comes to the superiority thing, which is something I'm exploring in my fic, before it gets too deeply rooted in his mind.
It's Xavier that confuses me a little. In terms of the rhetoric, yeah, good match. But beyond that... Mind you, I am strictly a movie girl (and also X-Men Evolution, kind of), and of course we only see the major clashes there, but I don't really think the MLK -> Xavier matchup works. Because here's the thing. The nonviolent civil rights movement, from what I have read and seen, involved a LOT of civil disobedience, and refusing to stay quiet and let things happen anymore. Except for the X-Men involving themselves in stopping the Brotherhood - and does anyone even know about that, or do they think it's just two mutant terrorist groups duking it out in some kind of internal feud? - Xavier and his students seem to more or less just keep their heads down. Yes, there's the lecturing the President moment, but that seems to be it.
Now, I could be wrong. And, I'll admit, we do see Jean addressing the Senate in X1. But that's working purely within the system. And, though in the novelization of the original script, Jean reveals her powers in that scene, the finished movie cut that out. So she's essentially playing human there. And for all I know the students might start up protests, have underground newsletters (probably online), and various other means of speaking out peacefully. But we don't see any of that, and I am basing my thoughts on what we see.
It just confuses me how Xavier can be so sure his vision will prevail when he doesn't seem to be doing much for it. No one knows about the school's true function - or they're not supposed to at least - and no one seems to have much idea about the X-Men. So... Was he just planning to point at the school and say that mutants can live beside humans? That doesn't work either, since, well... The school is a sanctuary for mutants. Which is fine, they need that. But it doesn't really prove that mutants and humans can co-exist side-by-side. At least I don't think so.
I feel kind of bad for tearing down the heroes here, so let me make it clear that while Magneto is one of my favorite characters, villain or no, I do not agree with his viewpoint. But he's rather more proactive about his vision than Xavier is about his, really.
I feel like I'm going to get in trouble over this one.