Many Superman writers and artists over the years have tried to remain true to these social justice roots. Superman was conceived as a Champion of the Oppressed that millions affected by the Great Depression were crying out for.
Superman first appeared in Action Comics, June 1938, and he was the hero the Great Depression needed. In his first issue, he rescues a prisoner from a lynch mob (condemning capital punishment), takes on a wife beater (condemning domestic violence) and takes down a corrupt senator (speaking out against political corruption). Superman is often assumed to be an unambiguously benign character, particularly in contrast with the more psychologically complex Batman.īut Superman began his career as a crusader for social justice. Superman is the most high-profile and visible superhero to express their sexuality in this way. I call these characters “top-tier” because they are known to audiences not only from their comic appearances, but also film, television and cartoon adaptations. Only in recent years have “top-tier” characters like the X-Men’s Iceman, supervillain Loki, Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy, the Kate Kane Batwoman and, in August of this year, the Tim Drake Robin have also come out. How a Canadian superhero brought queer representation to Marvel Comics
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When the code was relaxed in the 1990s, characters who came out as queer were invariably third-tier superheroes (like Alpha Flight’s Northstar, caricatures (like the insultingly effeminate Extraño) or characters in “mature-age” titles (like John Constantine or the Doom Patrol’s non-binary Rebis). This left secondary characters, like X-Men villains Mystique and Destiny, to be heavily coded as queer – even if their sexual preferences could never actually be stated. His lobbying resulted in the creation of the Comics Code Authority, a censorship body that forbade any mention of homosexuality from 1954 until 1989. His book, Seduction of the Innocent, argued Batman and Robin’s relationship was inherently sexual, which therefore made comics inappropriate for children.Ĭomic books faced increased censorship after 1954, over concerns on what was appropriate for children. German-American psychiatrist Fredric Wertham believed comics were a corrupting influence. This may not be surprising: they are a genre composed of essentially-nude-figures-in-action, with same-sex sidekicks and sapphic suggestiveness. Queer representation has always been read into superhero comics. Issue #5 of Superman: Son of Kal-El (authored by Melbourne-based writer Tom Taylor) will be out this November, and will feature Jon sharing a kiss with friend and online journalist Jay Nakamura.Īpart from proving Superman has always had a thing for reporters, Jon expressing his sexuality is a watershed moment in the venerable franchise. But rather his son, Jonathan Kent, named after Clark’s adoptive father and current bearer of the Superman moniker. The character Tim Drake, who has been one of many Robins serving alongside Batman, has been seen accepting a date from another male character, according to multiple reports.Not the movie-starring, Lois Lane-loving, Klan-fighting, Muhammad Ali-boxing, returned-from-the-dead, mild-mannered man of steel Clark Kent (aka Kal-El, last son of Krypton). Superman isn’t the only LGBTQ superhero for DC Comics. Today, more people can see themselves in the most powerful superhero in comics," he added.ĭC confirmed that “following a scene where Superman mentally and physically burns out from trying to save everyone that he can, Jay is there to care for the Man of Steel.” The story will be published next month. Today, that symbol represents something more. “Superman's symbol has always stood for hope, for truth and for justice. share this idea,” writer Tom Taylor said in the statement on Monday. "I've always said everyone needs heroes and everyone deserves to see themselves in their heroes, and I’m very grateful DC and Warner Bros.
Jon Kent is the son of Clark Kent and Lois Lane, and he has picked up the Superman mantle in a new iteration of the longtime character.
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Watch Video: 'Not a gimmick': Superman comes out as bisexualĭC Comics, the home of Batman, Wonder Woman and other beloved superheroes, announced on Monday that one of its heroes is taking “a bold new direction” and coming out as bisexual.ĭC Comics confirmed in a statement on Monday that Jon Kent, the “Superman of Earth,” will “become romantically involved” with reporter Jay Nakamura in an upcoming issue of the series “Superman: Son of Kal-El.”īut this Superman isn’t the Clark Kent character you may already know.