Whenever any literary work of fiction becomes adapted to live action, it’s only understandable that fans of the source material accept or reject the actors tasked with playing beloved characters. These days, it’s not uncommon for talents of differing ethnicities to get hired for these gigs, thereby inciting controversies of their own.
When it comes to The Flash, Iris West has historically been written and illustrated as being Caucasian, though Candice Patton was enlisted when it came time to assemble the currently running TV series. In my view, she’s done a fine job and her onscreen father, Jesse L. Martin’s Joe West, has gone on to become one of the best TV dads in recent memory.
Unfortunately, some people are unable to accept a black actress six seasons in, and are still targeting Ms. Patton with racist comments. Coming to her defense is that of co-star Grant Gustin, who said the following in a video posted on social media:
“Our Iris is an African American actress. She is black. She is beautiful and she is our Iris. She is Barry’s endgame…I have her back and always will have her back.”
Well, he’s right about them being the “endgame,” as the kids would say these days. In fact, one could say that Iris is the Lois Lane to Barry Allen’s Clark Kent. Yes, their pairing goes back a long way in the comics.
When it comes to not liking Patton as Iris, hey, nobody is forcing you to tune in. And as I’ve said in the past, if superheroes don’t reflect your own racist and sexist views, then I’m not sure you’re getting the point of these characters. There’s a fine line between going full SJW and basic human decency.
In any case, The Flash returns with new episodes on Tuesday, October 8th on The CW.
