Who Was The First Gay Superhero? — The Rough Road To Marvel’s Northstar – The Deep Geek

Contents:

• LOOKG BACK AT THE MISTREATMENT OF MARVEL’S FIRST GAY COMIC SUPERHERO
• MARVEL COMICS HOSTS FIRST GAY WEDDG ‘ASTONISHG X-MEN’
• NORTHSTAR: MARVEL’S FIRST OPENLY GAY HERO
• NORTHSTAR, MARVEL’S FIRST GAY SUPERHERO
• GAY HERO: NORTHSTAR COM OUT OF CLOSET -- COMIC-BOOK FIGURE REVEALS HOMOSEXUALY
• WHO WAS THE FIRST GAY SUPERHERO? — THE ROUGH ROAD TO MARVEL’S NORTHSTAR
• MARVEL'S FIRST MAJOR GAY CHARACTER DERV A STAND-ALONE COMIC
• 15 OPENLY GAY MARVEL CHARACTERS THAT MIGHT BE COMG TO THE MCU

LOOKG BACK AT THE MISTREATMENT OF MARVEL’S FIRST GAY COMIC SUPERHERO

A gay superhero parody of BYU's Brigham Young statue (2017) (image by Pastelopapa via Wikimedia). Bis men g and out of his home, or lgerg shirtls the background of panels, Northstar was d through the unique perspective of how straight men typilly view gay men.

Northstar’s publitn history shows a cross sectn of 40 years of the Uned Stat’s mastream view of the gay muny.

MARVEL COMICS HOSTS FIRST GAY WEDDG ‘ASTONISHG X-MEN’

In the 1980s he was portrayed as dismissive of women to the pot of misogyny, while the ghts, gay men were so often portrayed fictn as the gay bt iend that Northstar was portrayed almost solely the pany of women. His backstory evolved as homosexuals emerged om enomic dispary: Where once he was an unattend mor, he beme a wealthy, privileged man as the natnal narrative surroundg queer youth gradually expand. Perhaps seemed that to keep the first out gay man was a potls exercise, pecially one so mired outdated stereotyp.

We’ve put together this list to troduce some of the most fluential gay superhero, rangg om groundbreakg figur like Marvel’s Northstar to characters like Harley Qun who only me out the past few 12 most inic gay superhero1) Wonr WomanDiana of Themyscira has a long and storied history as a queer in. (CC-BY-SA)2) MidnighterPossibly the bt-known gay superhero ic book circl, Midnighter was created as a parody of Batman, startg off the adult-rated Wildstorm ic Stormwatch.

As one of the origal X-Men, he was portrayed as straight for s beg outed as gay 2015.

NORTHSTAR: MARVEL’S FIRST OPENLY GAY HERO

Thanks to the X-Men ics’ love of time travel hijks, there are actually two versns of this character at the moment: A teenage Iceman who realized he was gay after Jean Grey read his md, and an adult versn who stayed the closet and dated women for years, but me out after beg nonted by his younger self. The recent Iceman solo seri foced on his life after this revelatn, earng a mixed rponse bee while ’s great to see a gay character gettg their own ic, his emotnal arc is a rather old-fashned g-out story. She first appeared as Batman’s love tert the 1950s, shortly after the publitn of Sctn of the Innocent, a book that acced Batman of homosexual propaganda.

In recent years she was rewrten to be gay herself, a ntroversial cisn that led to some problems of s her ic’s creators wanted her to marry her girliend, DC nixed the cisn by sayg hero “shouldn’t have happy personal liv, ” a dub statement that sounds pretty ridiculo the ntext of, say, Superman. Back 1992, Marvel Comics ma headl by revealg that Northstar, a Canadian superhero associated wh Alpha Flight and the X-Men, was gay.

“When gay marriage beme legal New York State, raised obv qutns sce most of our hero ri New York State. Northstar is the first openly gay character ics and he’s been a longterm relatnship wh his partner Kyle so the big qutn was – how would this change his relatnship?, ” says Marvel Comics edor--chief Axel Alonso.

NORTHSTAR, MARVEL’S FIRST GAY SUPERHERO

“Here are two people, tryg to live their liv – mutant and gay, black and gay – empowered their own ways, but also ge-dwellers, ” says Liu.

The tensns will rm Liu’s Astonishg X-Men stori gog forward, but Alonso says the uple will also have to nont homophobia om Northstar’s teammat.

GAY HERO: NORTHSTAR COM OUT OF CLOSET -- COMIC-BOOK FIGURE REVEALS HOMOSEXUALY

That issue is Alpha Flight #106, the first time a mastream ic hero “me out” as gay! In the 80s, a number of creators wanted to tackle the emergg reali of “Homosexual Liberatn”. Shooter purportedly had a policy agast the portrayal of openly gay characters.

This prevented Alpha Flight -creator John Byrne om revealg that team member Northstar was gay when the seri lnched 1983.

WHO WAS THE FIRST GAY SUPERHERO? — THE ROUGH ROAD TO MARVEL’S NORTHSTAR

It was still seen by many as a dive judgement on gays and dg disease add a massive extra stigma to beg a man attracted to men – wasn’t jt “unnatural” anymore, ma you a morn leper. While he’s sympathetic to Major Mapleleaf’s grief, Northstar do not take kdly to beg lectured on the plight of gay men.

It was a story urgg acceptance and passn for gay people general and AIDS victims particular published not long after the Whe Hoe’s official stance on AIDS was “’s kda funny, actually“.

Wrer-artist John Byrne first hted at Northstar’s sexualy Alpha Flight # 7(2/84), which Jean-Pl is rned wh an old, prumably gay iend named Raymon. The advisabily of Marvel’s only possibly gay character dyg of AIDS was viewed as a bridge too far for all sorts of reasons.

MARVEL'S FIRST MAJOR GAY CHARACTER DERV A STAND-ALONE COMIC

Beg outed as half-elf was apparently still preferable to beg nfirmed as totally gay. Dpe all of the hts, Northstar is not explicly said to be gay and out as a gay man a prs release until Alpha Flight #106 (3/92). Though this is an entire mi-seri voted to the supposedly openly gay hero, no direct reference is ma of his homosexualy.

) Portrayed more openly gay than ever before, Northstar tras barbs wh a homophobic, largely vulnerable young mutant named Plie Provenzano. The year 2005 marked a particular low pot for Marvel’s premiere gay superhero. Reviewg Northstar’s history as a character provis a mi-semar on the treatment of LGBT characters ic Byrne’s troductn of Jean-Pl Alpha Flight as a gay character all but actual name was both groundbreakg and necsarily ut.

In celebratn of Pri Month, let’s take a look at the key issu featurg Northstar, the first gay superhero.

15 OPENLY GAY MARVEL CHARACTERS THAT MIGHT BE COMG TO THE MCU

While much of this is crgeworthy when read today, the 1980s was cuttg edge to have a character that most rears unrstood to be gay, even if was never overtly stated. In a ic that was big news 1992, Northstar, after many years, let the world know that he was gay the pag of Alpha Flight #106.

Bis beg the first gay superhero, Northstar also was one of the celebrants the first same-sex weddg to be shown superhero ics.

Northstar, never a hugely popular character, do have a unique spot ic book history as the first gay superhero. While many of the early tal of his homosexualy read as very dated ics today, someone had to take the first step, even if they appear as stumbl now. Northstar's revelatn that he is a homosexual is picted the latt issue of Marvel's "Alpha Flight" seri.

Northstar rponds: "Do not prume to lecture me on the hardships homosexuals mt bear.

For while I am not cled to discs my sexualy wh people for whom is none of their bs - I am gay! Northstar, who has been the seri sce 1982, isn't the first mastream ic-book superhero to be intified as gay. Last sprg, the Pied Piper, a character DC Comics' "Flash" seri, announced he was homosexual.

"Out of 50 or 60 letters we got after the Pied Piper said he was gay, only three were negative, " Thomas said. Northstar then publicly announced his homosexualy, hopg that his celebry stat would crease tert HIV preventn. Northstar then led the army on a killg spree, murrg anti-mutant and anti-gay supporters until he was nonted by Wolvere.