And the "prominent DC character" to come out of the closet is...

[sherkahn]

BleedingCool.com has the update, as the iconic character's name has been revealed at the Phoenix Comicon.

*take it with a grain of salt, as the author of the article says that he could be wrong*

Mods, I am keeping the characters name out of the tags so as not to spoil anything.

*not my scan



It's Alan Scott, the *other* Green Lantern.

"A few days ago, I ran semi-sourced stories indicating that the character who DC Comics announced as being reintroduced to the New 52 DC Universe as a gay man, was Alan Scott, the original Green Lantern, who appeared in Earth 2 #1 briefly,

Well, at Phoenix Comic Con, I had a much stronger source confirm to me that, yes, it is indeed Alan Scott. On that basis I feel confident in calling it. Keep your Earth 2 #1 in good nick, and start queuing up for Earth 2 #2… right about now.

Of course the original Alan Scott, created by Marty Nodell in 1940, got his Green Lantern powers mystically from a green flame. But the first person to make a “flaming” joke is out of here, okay?

UPDATE: Yeah, yeah, and his character’s weakness to “wood”. Seriously, people.

Anyway, as ever, I could be wrong…"

thanks to superfangirl for the scan to the original post where we first meet Alan Scott.

Comments

[kenn_el]

I think you could add Barbara Gordon to that list. The general public seems aware of the Batgirl secret identity. But I agree with you, which is why I assumed the character to be outed would be Dick Grayson, especially as he's yet to be re-introduced on Earth 2.

[icon_uk]

Whilst Dick being gay would certainly not be an intrinsic problem for me (as you might imagine), I could well imagine them steering clear of making any former Robin gay, given the countless tired "jokes" about Batman and Robin's relationship and Robin's costume.

[kenn_el]

Worse than a weakness for wood? But, seriously, Helena was clearly Bruce's Robin on Earth 2. I could see Dick being either a Nightwing or Talon who went through a different history than his Earth 1 counterpart, OR, having once been Robin, taking over the Batman role with Bruce and Helena seemingly deceased, in which case, having a gay Batman would be more attention-getting than that he was once a Robin.

[icon_uk]

Worse than a weakness for wood?

Given a guy called Dick who had bare legs and wore pixie boots until he was 19, and used to slide down a Batpole? I think so....

Dick in particular has been the focus of gay jokes in dubious taste (to say the least, and let's not get into the paedophilia Batman/Robin "jokes") for as long as I've been reading comics, him actually coming out as gay would seem to be inviting several years of snickering, alas.

For some reason I'm having a little trouble clearly articulating, Dick coming out as bi as an adult Nightwing would be preferable than retconning him as gay. But then, if we're not careful about the sexualisation of characters, we're heading into Devin Grayson territory, and I prefer my Batman/Robin interactions to be father/child at their core, not clueless adult/wannabe lover.

[kenn_el]

Hmmmm. I think I see your point. Though you and I have had this conversation before, and we disagree about bare legs on a guy being somehow an indication of anything other than freedom of movement.
Dick's more of an 'iconic' figure than Alan, but 'Nightwing' is probably less well-known than 'Green Lantern', so it's an equivalent outing. Plus, everyone gets a Lantern! Orange, Blue, Black, Green, Latino, Ginger, or Gay! Someday there might even be a female Earther!

[icon_uk]

kenn_el sweetie, if we had a discussion about Dick's legs which in any way left you thinking I disapproved of them being bare, then I'm either stunned or deeply apologetic, because believe me, I love me the Grayson gams, as well turned a calf as the world has ever seen! :)

I have no problem with the bare legs, slightly impractical though they may be for a career of urban roofrunning, but a combo of bare legs and briefs may be perceived by others as being slightly more of a.... statement.

Aside from the movie of Green Lantern boosting Hal, the concept of Green Lantern has a comparatively low media profile (especially for Alan), Nightwing has been in EVERT animated series which has featured Batman or Robin for the past 20 years (albeit briefly in the case of "The Batman" and "Teen Titans"), as well as being in Arkham City. I'm not sure who I'd say was better known... Dick over Alan certainly, but Dick over Hal... possibly, possibly not.

Oh, and roll on Milagro Reyes, Green Lantern of Space Sector Whichever One She Wants Because She's Just That Badass!