Where did Morbius in the Spider-Man universe come from

When it comes to mutants in superheroes, there are plenty of characters that are good enough to be a model.

However, the ability to build a unique image and personal charm depends on the preferences of the author and the plot of the story.

DC has a bat master who roams Gotham, but few people know that there is such a bat in the world of Marvel’s Spider-Man.

Moreover, compared to DC, the origin of the bat and the origin of the incarnation are a little more convincing: how can a hood be a veritable bat just by relying on technology? Of course, it is the truth that comes only by sucking blood.

It happened that I saw the new trailer of “Mobius” the day before yesterday, so I wanted to talk about the origin of this “real Batman” in the core of the machine.

The product of the lifting of the ban in the comics publishing industry: vampires appear

Before talking about the origin of Morbius, we must talk about a more unpopular thing, which is the Comics Code Authority.

CCA is an agency under the Comics Publishers Association of America, and is a means for the comics publishing industry to self-regulate the content of publications.

Strictly speaking, CCA does not have the serious status of the industry, and its control does not have any legal significance, but as a traditional industry and public order and good customs, its endorsement has guiding significance for the content of comics in a large sense.

If you insist on understanding, it is probably equivalent to the “Hays Code” in the comics industry, and the rules of the industry are included.

In February 1971, in order to stimulate the development and innovation of the comics market, CCA updated its regulations, and supernatural elements such as vampires, zombies, and werewolves in Western culture can officially debut in comics.

So the creators of various companies quickly seized this hot opportunity and quickly compiled those coveted themes into their own comic stories.

In this way, “Dr. Michael Morbius” came on stage.

In October 1971, Morbius first appeared as the villain of the Spider-Man series in the 101st issue of “The Amazing Spider-Man” of the season, and has since become Spider-Man’s old opponent.

At first, Mr. Stan Lee wanted to write the character himself, but due to a series of commercial cooperation, movie script writing, etc. at that time, but the work was heavy, he handed this task to his good assistant Roy Thomas (who had once Created a series of Marvel characters such as “Captain Marvel”).

Due to the urgency of time at the time, they didn’t even fully discuss the background of the story and “where does this character come from and what does it do”.

According to the recollection of the creative team later, the only consensus is that “he is very powerful, he has abilities comparable to Spider-Man, but about the rest of this story, we don’t count”.

Fortunately, because there was no shackles, Roy’s creation was unexpectedly smooth.

Working with cartoonist Gil Kane, he drew inspiration from the pop culture of the 1950s, and ultimately made the “Dr. Night” image more than just a symbolic villain.

When the final image was born, even readers who didn’t know the story quickly realized that Morbius was a villain who was “intelligent and executed, and who could speak and fight.”

The name Morbius comes from an old 1956 movie “Forbidden Planet‎”.

Marginal people living in pain and struggling to survive

In fact, if you look at the story of Morbius, people may have the illusion that this is also the person who is the main character template!

His true identity is Michael Morbius, a world-class biochemist. He was originally a pure human being. His heroic abilities were not acquired by accident like Spider-Man, but he used all means to cure his rare blood disease.

In order to save his own life, Morbius finally went into a rage, from the body to the mind to alienation, blood red eyes, sharp fangs and the infinite desire for human blood, making him more cruel and fierce, in order to curb his own pain by any means. .

In the process of creating the cartoon image, what Gil Kane tried to express was the contradiction of Morbius himself: he was not bad by nature, he went astray in order to save himself; but at the same time, he acted completely different from the heroic method, In the face of threats, he acts decisively and acts ruthlessly, which refreshes readers.

Unlike vampires in the traditional sense, Morbius is a true “shadow of the night”, and he feels most of what humans can experience; while trying to keep human emotions in himself, he must challenge the stability of society And in peace, go do everything you can to get what you want.

Although Spider-Man’s confrontation with Morbius is inevitable in the story, readers will not think that he is just a simple harlequin – in subsequent reader surveys, it is generally believed that this old brother, who also uses red and blue colors, has a unique Charm.

How did the images in superhero comics gain the recognition of readers in the era?

This is actually closely related to their own characteristics – the traditional superhero image is from the 1920s, the First World War, the Great Depression and then the Second World War, etc., ordinary people are faced with this When he felt both pain and powerlessness in the dilemma of the century, the image of a hero who was omnipotent and omnipotent became the embodiment of the public’s release of pain and confusion.

But when everything returned to peace after the war, life and death was no longer a common understanding during the war, but instead was the conflict and pain that came from “civilization” and “hypocrisy” in modern society. To address these new spiritual demands, the concept of “anti-hero” or “dark hero” came into being.

American scholar Joseph Campbell dismantled a set of “Hero’s Road” trajectories through in-depth study and analysis of popular culture.

All heroes and villains who can break away from the realm of miscellaneous fish and finally leave an impression in the minds of readers, including villains, must eventually walk through this road that looks full of classical drama.

The “dark heroes” we have seen, whether it’s the “Joker” who has become popular this year, or the “Mobius” who is about to hit the big screen, are not “pure villains” in the traditional sense.

Their trajectories are very similar to those of heroes full of positive radiance, running along the road of “becoming a god” – but they are different from real superheroes in that they succumb to their inner palpitations in order to satisfy their desire for life. However, he failed to generate inner reflection and comprehension like a hero, walked out of the “comfort zone” of his soul, and finally became an existence beyond himself.

In a sense, Morbius is not like the antagonistic character who is defined as a “villain”, but more like a tragic character who is powerless.

Active for nearly 50 years, finally on the big screen

Morbius has remained active in Spider-Man’s world since his appearance in the comics: he is probably the earliest villain in the Spider-Man series to have a personal story, and in 1992 he also performed his own full story “Mobius the Living Vampire” “.

As an important part of Marvel’s supernatural comic “Rise of the Midnight Sons”, he added hypnosis and psionic flight skills to this story.

From the 90s until today, Morbius has remained active as the dark side of Spider-Man stories, and can be seen in many stories, movies and even games.

From SFC’s “Spider-Man and Venom: Maximum Carnage” to “Spider-Man 3” in the PS2 era, to “Spider-Man” on PS4 – although most of his appearances are in the form of Easter eggs, his “ubiquitous” “Always reminds players that the world still has a place for this blood-sucking veteran.

Now, Morbius will finally appear on Marvel’s big screen as the protagonist: the dark hero played by Oscar winner Jared Leto has different characteristics from the previous Marvel image.

In the trailer, we can see not only the desperate temperament of the tragic characters, but also the crazy appeal in desperate situations.

According to the current public information, “Mobius” is directed by director Daniel Espinosa, starring Jared Leto, Adria Arjona, Matt Smith, Jared Harris, Tyrese Gibson, etc. As the only blockbuster superhero movie in the global summer vacation, the film is scheduled for July 31 Released in North America today.

In addition, Spider-Man’s graffiti and Michael Keaton appeared in the trailer, and the Spider-Man universe looks to be more and more full.

There are still several months before the release of the feature film in the summer. For fans who are unfamiliar with Morbius, the dark hero, and want to know more, you can take advantage of this time to make up for Morbius’s comics and drama novels.

Related Post: It’s the ultimate crappy movie! Marvel’s “Morbius” Rotten Tomatoes is 20% fresh and has a very poor reputation!.