Marvel Comics makes the worst ’90s Spider-Man censorship canon

Miles Morales is fighting vampires in the latest Spider-Man issue, but they’ve got a unique change that ties them to a notable change made to Morbius in the ‘90s cartoon.

It’s hard to deny the popularity of the ‘90s Spider-Man cartoon. Spinning out of the success of shows like X-Men and Batman: The Animated Series, the show would gain notoriety following its cliffhanger ending. 

During its run, though, it had a different kind of notoriety. The show was infamous for its reuse of existing footage and some truly spectacular censorship. 

Spider-Man wasn’t allowed to punch anyone, and they couldn’t even call the Sinister Six “sinister” because it was too scary, leading to the Insidious Six. But one of the most infamous censored elements was Morbius, the Living Vampire, whose tweaked power set just made its way to Marvel Comics canon. 

Spider-Man makes the censored Morbius vampire suckers canon

In Miles Morales: Spider-Man #11 preview pages shared by Marvel Comics, Miles Morales finds himself teamed up with Blade and his daughter, Bloodline. Blade shows up because vampires who feed on energy are living in Miles’ apartment complex. 

However, Miles is shocked to discover the vampires don’t drink with fangs. Instead, they use suckers to drain energy from their victims, something which hearkens back to a Morbius change in Spider-Man: The Animated Series. 

Part of the strict censorship enforced for Spider-Man: The Animated Series dictated that Morbius could not drink blood, nor could he bite anyone. As a result, Morbius became reliant on absorbing plasma from his victims, which he absorbed through suckers on the palm of his hand.

The change has become a notorious memory of the show and is something that is often referenced as a joke from the old cartoon. It’s nonetheless a fun nod for fans to see such an infamous idea from the old cartoon brought into modern comics.

Miles Morales: Spider-Man #11 also sees Miles get a sick new vampire hunting costume, which the preview reveals has some pretty neat gimmicks, like enchanted, holy-water-infused webbing. The issue hits stands on October 18. 

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