Warner Bros. has updated a recently-released video game to disallow the Scooby-Doo character Velma to call the police on her opponents.
Velma appears in the online game MultiVersus along with other DC Comics characters in which she collects evidence against her opponent, holds up a wanted poster, and calls the cops. The game portrayed her accurately.
Yet the list of possible opponents for her to face includes LeBron James, who the game features to promote “Space Jam 2,” a movie no one recommends you stream.
And that’s where the problem lies. According to NBC News, Warner Bros. received complaints that Velma, as a white woman, could call the police on LeBron in battle.
“Her character’s ability to call police on black characters such as basketball star LeBron James, who appeared in the movie “Space Jam: A New Legacy,” didn’t sit right with everyone.
Specifically, critics called the portrayal — yep, you guessed it — racist, and accused Velma of being a “Karen.”
What does NBC do about Karens and cartoon characters accused of white privilege? It strips them of their identity them.
With the update, Velma now calls the Mystery Inc. gang on her opponents instead of the police.
You might wonder how it could be racist for Velma to call the police on her enemies when they are of all different colors. Before the update, the game allowed Velma to call the cops on all available DC characters, including Batman, Bugs Bunny, and the great Tasmanian Devil. For the record, Bugs Bunny is a gray rabbit.
But if you were to wonder about such a thing, then you would be thinking rationally. And rational thinking does not apply to outrage-seekers. They consider it inconvenient.
