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This may be a memento mori for Marvel fans.
In honor of what would have been the late Stan Lee’s 99th birthday on Dec. 28, his digital estate is promoting likenesses of both the late comic books legend and Marvel’s first superhero of Indian descent, Chakra The Invincible, in NFT (non-fungible token) form.
But Lee’s fandom is less than fanatical about it.
“From championing diversity to embracing new tech, Stan was 1 step ahead of the curve,” read a post Tuesday to the official Twitter account for Lee, who died in 2018. “To honor his innovative spirit, Stan’s 1st Indian hero, Chakra The Invincible, debuts in his own NFT (digital art) collection from 7:30pm PT 12/27-12pm PT 12/29!”
The tweet was quoted nearly 24,000 times with 12,700 likes in support, indicating that fans have a lot to say about the news — though many aren’t happy about it.
A fan summed up the overall response in one tweet with 80,000 likes: “Can’t believe Stan Lee came back from the dead just to promote an NFT.”
A top-rated response from Dictionary.com eclipsed that tweet in popularity with more than 166,000 likes by adding, without context but with obvious intent: “The verb ‘defile’ was first recorded in 1275–1325, and comes from the Old French word ‘defouler,’ meaning ‘to trample on, violate.’ ”
Lee’s followers lamented that his legacy was being further cashed in, with one saying they could “hear … Mr Lee spinning in his grave.” Others called the move “repulsive,” “tone-deaf” and shameless, among several other choice words.
Another suggested they might cross the gates of hell just to find out who to confront about the matter. Against the backdrop of a hellacious fire-scape, they captioned: “Where is the motherf- -ker that runs Stan Lee’s Twitter account?”
Lee was the creator behind some of today’s biggest superhero characters and flicks, including “Spider-Man: No Way Home” and “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings.” Though only three short years ago, his passing came long before anyone could have predicted that the NFT — a one-of-a-kind, non-transferable digital art file — would become the internet fandom currency du jour.
Chakra The Invisible, created by Lee and illustrators Sharad Devarajan and Gotham Chopra, chronicles Raju Rai, a young Indian boy from Mumbai. The lad’s mentor, scientist Dr. Singh, forges a technologically advanced bodysuit with the power to weaponize all the Chakra points in Rai’s body. An animated movie first premiered in English and Hindu on the Cartoon Network in 2013.
The upcoming NFT drop will launch in a collaboration between Lee’s POW! Entertainment and NFT studio Orange Comet. A statement on the Chakraverse.io website explains their scheme:
“The Chakraverse Collection No. 1 will consist of an extremely limited collection of 6,880 unique generative art pieces based on characters from the graphic novel … These NFTs will be placed in a ‘Loot Box’, wherein every buyer of the box gets a random Chakra character art piece from the NFT collection.”
Chakra The Invincible creator Devarajan told Vice’s Motherboard in a statement: “Our mission with Chakra was to create an Indian character that would transcend countries and cultures, bringing together ideas from east and west by speaking in the primal language of human imagination.”