Marvel to Edit Latest Comic Amid Backlash Over Anti-Semitic Art

Marvel Comics will be editing its latest edition of "Immortal Hulk" following criticism for apparent anti-Semitic art. The comic book giant issued a notice to retailers announcing that it would be reprinting "Immortal Hulk" #43, which went on sale this week, and will be accepting requests to exchange the comic book for the corrected version, according to GamesRadar.
 

The controversial scene depicts one of its characters haggling another in a jewelry shop. In the background window is the name of the shop (Cronenberg's Jewelry) with the Star of David underneath. However, the "l" and the y" of the word "Jewelry" are blocked out by the two characters so that it instead reads "Jewery."
 

At issue is that the scene appears to invoke anti-Semitic stereotypes by including a haggling conversation taking place in a jewelry store with the words "Jewery" appearing on the window above the Star of David. "Immortal Hulk" Artist Joe Bennett, who penciled the scene, apologized for the artwork. 

"I’ve been including references to famous horror directors to pay respects to the genre throughout the series, and in Immortal Hulk #43, I included a nod to David Cronenberg," he wrote in a statement to Facebook.

"The misspellings on the window were an honest but terrible mistake — since I was writing backwards, I accidentally spelled both of those words wrong. I have no excuse for how I depicted the Star of David. I failed to understand this troubling and offensive stereotype, and after listening to you all, I now understand my mistake." 

Bennett added that his error was "wrong, offensive and hurtful" in a number of ways.

"This is a mistake I must own, and I am sorry to everyone who I hurt by this," he added. "I am working with Marvel to correct this, and I am using this lesson to reflect on how I approach my stories and my work."

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