Marvel introduces S'porean teen mutant Jitter in new X-Men comic book on National Day

Have you ever envisioned yourself as a superhero?

Marvel unveiled a new Singaporean mutant called Jitter, whose real name is Sofia Yong, on National Day (Aug. 9).

The teen was introduced alongside three other characters known collectively as "the Outliers", and she will first appear in a new iteration of "The Uncanny X-Men" series released in August 2024.

The "Uncanny X-Men" series was first released back in 1981.

Her powers include "hyper-focus", or the ability to pick up any talent or skill she sets her mind to for up to a minute before she "crashes".

"Sofia can do anything she sets her mind to – accessing talents and skills most people train their lives to develop," her character profile reads.

"Constantly on the move, she keeps a stopwatch on her at all times so she never has to slow down – not even to sleep!"

The series is written by Gail Simone and drawn by David Marquez.

In an interview with pop culture site Popverse, Simone elaborated on Jitter's skillset.

She said that although Jitter has difficulty concentrating and prioritising things, she can take a set of skills "like being the top martial artist in the world, or the best lockpicker that there ever was" for one minute.

She uses her stopwatch as a timer, and can execute the skill for up to a minute before it is lost.

Simone also said that Jitter "has a bit of a stutter" and is "very cool".

"And these new Outliers, we've designed them to represent invisible disabilities in that when you look at them, you cannot tell that they're mutants," Simone added.

Reddit responses

A few Singaporeans took to Reddit to crack a few good-natured jokes after the announcement was made.

Many found her powers very apt for a Singaporean superhero.

One compared her ability to pick up skills quickly to government platform SkillsFuture.

Another claimed that she's unable slow down lest she be accused of chao keng, or malingering.

Top photo via Marvel