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Shatterstar

from Confusing Times by Tyler Shipley

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My favourite X-Men character was from the team X-Force
they were rebels who took a more militant line than Charles Xavier
the character I chose was an alien named Shatterstar
who felt no human emotions but was dynamite with his two long swords

His original creator didn’t give his character a lot of depth
but later writers explored the question of his being emotionless
and whether it was a defense mechanism installed by an evil master
or one he developed on his own to cope with some disaster

Until tonight I always thought I just liked the guy for his swords
and his cool robotic eye and his literal interpretations of others words
but it hit me like a train tonight that I was drawn to the idea
of moving though the world without ever having a feeling

No pain, no sadness, no worry, no hurt
I had been such a happy kid but by my teenage years it was hard
and sure enough as I got older every time I was reeling
I desperately tried to make myself immune to any kind of feeling

It’s a cool trick and I’m sure many of you know it too
you can just disconnect and feel grey instead of feeling blue
but it’s also backfired on me in several respects
and cost me love and friendship and the fullness of human expression

But strangely enough in our society these traits are romanticized
so many forces pushing us every day to detach our lives
and be remote and aloof and unbothered and unaffected
by the people around us and the emotions we feel when to them we are connected

Anyway an interesting thing happened long after I had stopped reading
a new set of writers took over Shatterstar's character and gave him feelings
and made him gay and gave him love and let him develop as a person
he became an important figure for MCU LGBTQ representation

And while I’m not big on empty liberal gestures of inclusivity
I think it’s really cool that Shatterstar became so interesting
and it turned out his original creator was a total piece of shit
who was angry about the changes made to his brilliant creation

“He’s not gay” Rob Liefeld protests, “he’s just a really cool fighter with swords”
the thing is, Rob, you created this guy when you were literally 24
and at that age maybe it’s enough to just have a guy be great at fighting
but we’re adults now and there ought to be something exciting

About people taking your creation and building it into something new
but you’re upset because they made your macho swordsman gay, aren’t you
the world passed you by, reactionary shit no longer flies
and people want to read stories about a wide range of people with a wide range of lives

When you were 24, I was 9, and I think it kinda says something
that three decades later I like these changes but you find them upsetting
your character appealed to young boys who couldn’t manage their emotions
and now he is a symbol of the possibility of those young boys growing

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from Confusing Times, released February 3, 2024

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Tyler Shipley Toronto, Ontario

Tyler Shipley was the founding member of the Consumer Goods (theconsumergoods.bandcamp.com) and now performs as a solo artist.

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