Tag: Pride Month

Continued After the Next Page #20: Representation Matters Even in the 30th Century

Continued After the Next Page #20: Representation Matters Even in the 30th Century

As Pride Month 2022 comes to a close, I want to highlight what I feel is an often overlooked relationship in comic books. In the last couple of decades, gender and sexual identity in mainstream comic books have made great strides in diversity. I always have fond memories of the first same-sex relationship involving two superheroes that I saw in DC Comics.

The “Five Years Later” run of the Legion of Super-Heroes that started with Legion of Super-Heroes Volume 4 #1 (1989) has often been the subject of derision from fans as it represented a significant break in the history of the team. I am not sure how well received the book was at the time of publication, but it took almost thirty years for it to ever be collected. However, as a long time LSH fan, I find it to be one of the most daring, unique, and compelling version of one of my favorite super hero teams.

The initial run of this volume of the Legion was plotted and penciled by Keith Giffen with scripts by Tom and Mary Bierbaum. Within the pages of this run, particularly at the beginning, the reader is exposed to a slightly older group of familiar characters coming to grips with the reality of the political world that they live in and searching for the thing that is missing in their lives. For many, that thing is the Legion and their friends.

Lightning Lass – art by Steve Lightle

In the five years since the end of the Magic Wars, the characters of Salu Digby (Shrinking Violet or just “Vi”) and Ayla Ranzz (Lightning Lass) have suffered trauma but come through it with a love for each other that will forever remain truly special in my heart. I could go through all the details of what happened to them and how their relationship was portrayed in each individual issue of this series, but that has been done, and done well, by others [see below]. I want to focus on why this relationship means so much to me.

Shrinking Violet – art by Keith Giffen

I have wanted to write this article for some time. However, I have struggled with it as I am not confident that mine is the voice that needs to be heard. For full disclosure, I am a cis, hetero, white male. I believe that love is love and celebrate diversity in every medium and support inclusive representation in pop-culture and society as a whole. It is with that perspective that I approach this article. Representation is important. Continue reading “Continued After the Next Page #20: Representation Matters Even in the 30th Century”

Comic Book Publishers are Celebrating Pride Month

Comic Book Publishers are Celebrating Pride Month

As most people know June is Pride Month. It is a time to celebrate diversity and support all people who identify as part of the LGBTQIA+ community. For the past couple of years, there has been a conscious effort by publishers to spotlight stories related to those who are part of the community. DC and Marvel are at it again, and it is nice to put those words together with a positive connotation.

DC Comics has a special anthology that is out this week called DC Pride #1, and it has an excellent line up of stories celebrating the identity diversity within it’s fictional universe. There are also some other books that are branded with it’s special Pride Logo. Those books are centered around characters who identify as LGBTQIA+.   There are several other initiatives that DC Comics is engaging in this month that include partnerships with LGBTQIA+ organizations such as The Trevor Project, Family Equality, Human Rights Campaign, Athlete Ally, Mermaids, and Inside Out, as well as themed merchandise and inclusive comics in their digital storefronts. They have detailed all their Pride Month activities on their website and have developed a Pride Hub for readers and viewers to more easily navigate the content they are searching for.

Marvel Comics also has a special Pride Month Anthology called Marvel Voices: Pride #1. It is an 84-page comic that will be released on June 22, 2022. It is a collection of stories focusing on characters that are part of the LGBTQIA+ community created by many creators who also identify that way. There are some amazing stories that we are interested in reading in this book. Continue reading “Comic Book Publishers are Celebrating Pride Month”

DC Comics Announces a 80-Page Comic Anthology for Pride Month in June

DC Comics Announces a 80-Page Comic Anthology for Pride Month in June

DC Comics has announced that it will be publishing an anthology of comic stories focusing on LGBTQIA+ characters in time for Pride Month this June. The anthology titled DC Pride #1 will be 80 pages and be released on June 8, 2021.

Characters spotlighted in the book will include: Batwoman, Alan Scott, Midnighter and Apollo, Poison Ivy, and more. Writers on the stories include James Tynion IV, Steve Orlando, Danny Lore, Vita Ayala, and Sina Grace, and fan favorite artists on the project include: Amy Reeder, Stephen Byrne, Klaus Janson, Kris Anka, Nick Robles, and more.

The full list of stories and creative teams are:

  • Batwoman (Kate Kane) by James Tynion IV & Trung Le Nguyen
  • Poison Ivy & Harley Quinn by Mariko Tamaki & Amy Reeder
  • Midnighter by Steve Orlando & Stephen Byrne
  • Flash of Earth-11 (Jess Chambers) by Danny Lore & Lisa Sterle
  • Green Lantern (Alan Scott) & Obsidian by Sam Johns & Klaus Janson
  • Aqualad (Jackson Hyde) by Andrew Wheeler & Luciano Vecchio
  • Dreamer by Nicole Maines & Rachel Stott
  • Renee Montoya by Vita Ayala and Skylar Patridge
  • Pied Piper by Sina Grace, Ro Stein & Ted Brandt

There will also be Pride variant covers throughout the month of June on major titles featuring fantastic artists.

This DC Pride book follows up the May DC releases of Milestone Returns: Infinite Edition #0 and DC Festival of Heroes: The Asian Superhero Celebration #1. The commitment to celebrating inclusion and diversity is running strong at DC these days.

 

Source: https://www.dccomics.com/blog/2021/03/11/dc-announces-dc-pride-anthology-comic-to-arrive-june-8-and-more