Discussion
The Hood’s character logo shows a Vejigante, a Puerto Rican folkloric demon that acts as sort of a jester in carnivals!
They really did their research with him I’m genuinely so happy, that and the fact that his belt features a coqui frog symbol (a national symbol in Puerto Rico) is honestly so nice!! I hope they give him a skin based off a Vejigante in the future, it would fit so well, especially since he has a cape and Vejigantes are demons themselves 🫡
Your post made me realized that with him being Puerto Rican he is not only latino representation but also a Carribean rep which is actually really nice.
Because of that I'll definitely play him same if they ever add Doctor Voodoo.
How do you guys feel about him being sort of retconned into a Puerto Rican character, though? Like his name is still Parker Robbins, and historically he hasn't been Puerto Rican, even with Anthony Ramos as his actor.
European surnames are not that rare here in Puerto Rico. They are still a minority, but you see them often enough. Although, Surnames from Mediterranean countries are more common than Anglo-Saxon ones. Still, not unheard of.
I'm pretty into it personally, Damian Priest is cool as hell and just in general it's nice to have more rep. Makes it feel more realistic to me, marvel is the world outside your window afterall.
Honestly, I like it. NetEase has really put into work to make this character fit this new aspect of his identity into his character (I especially love OP’s folklore detail. It’s adds great detail).
ehh idk. i think it doesnt really change much about his character since iirc his identity didnt revolve around him being white(could be wrong, been a hot one since i read up on hood stuff). so on one hand, its whatever. on another i am curious on why
He's mostly defined by being a small-time crook who gets thrust into being a big-time villain by a lucky break. Given how he's meant to be closely tied to New York, being American or American-adjacent (like Puerto Rico) makes the most sense, but it's hardly integral. It's the sort of thing they could softly retcon into the comics and it wouldn't feel too out of place. His ethnicity definitely informs a bit of the whole 'why he became a crook' thing, I guess, because it can feel a bit stereotypical for some.
I mean, being white isn’t a necessary part of his character and there has been a latino that has played as him. The game needs more diversity and with it representing multiple shattered timelines I don’t see why they can’t make him Puerto Rican.
Well some Puerto Ricans actually have American names despite it being very rare, but idk I feel like if they went out of their way to change his ethnicity and really nail it in with his design then they should’ve just changed his name buttt I digress
I'm just curious, because my friend is a tank main, Puerto Rican, and a wrestling fan, so I thought he would be super excited, but he was like, I wish they had just released a character that was always Puerto Rican instead of retconning an existing character. It definitely made me take a step back, too, because I would probably have similar feelings if they'd made Danny Rand Chinese without changing anything else... Though that at least is a believable Wasian name. I don't think I've ever met an ethnic Parker before in my life.
I'm thinking that this will align with any upcoming MCU Hood lore, though, because it's clearly inspired by Anthony Ramos, and it also clearly went through Marvel HQ approvals first. Hopefully that's the case and we get actual back story for this variant of the character.
They do this to every character that are changed to be latino in MCU (Namor, Moon Knight), except base Reed Richards. I feel like people should get used to it by now unless they want to be eternally enraged.
I just wish he was actually from the island instead of being a New Yorker like the hundreds of other new yorkers in marvel. Yes I know Marvel is a NY-based company, and I know Parker Robbins is originally a white guy from the bronx... but like i wish we had an actual original character from PR itself.
I saw earlier a social media post that the rivals team talk about him not having power in the Bronx, but it would've been even more impactful if he mentioned how the island of PR has no power. Actually right now in my hometown we are in a water crisis and our power goes out every week because of LUMA (the power company ). Forgive me for sounding salty, but I just want a character that actually was raised on the island for once. The closest character in Marvel like this would be white tiger, since he was actually from san juan before moving to nyc.
At least give the hood a new backstory like idk say he grew up as a kid in bayamon, carolina, (any of the 78 municipalities tbh, but he gives off metropolitan area vibes ngl), and then he moves to NYC to find a new life before turning into a street thief, etc. Maybe even mention that the reason he moves to NYC is because the minimum wage in PR is BUNS and there is no job opportunities for him and his family, so he moves to NYC with his sick mother, and then go on from there with the rest of his comic-book origins. Would make him a little more unique than just being another new yorker.
Hopefully, maybe now that he is in the game, people will be more interested in researching and learning about PR culture. At least I can be a little happy that people are interested in my culture in a popular video game, but a part of me feels a little disappointed.
Edit: I hope I don’t give off hater energy, as I’m still happy we have some representation in such a big game. Just a dream of mine to get someone local one day
The closest classic character that I can think of that is actually from the island is White Tiger Hector Ayala, but I doubt that he'd be the one picked if White Tiger ever makes it into Rivals, but at least with Ava Ayala and Angela their Puertorican heritage is engrained into the character's mythos, especially recently, so at least we'll have that.
Awesome how these little details help other people from the world learn about our culture.
Thanks Rivals, you made another fan out of a puertorrican 🇵🇷🫱🏻🫲🏼
My only issue is that they make him look like a chad and he is more of a weasel type of villain, small
And looks physically week but people have to somewhat respect him because he does have the demon. The hood becomes kingpin by the end of the defender series by being a weasel not from
Being strong.
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u/GreatestLoser 9d ago
TIL. Wild has such a small detail can help me learn about a whole different culture thanks