LGBTQ Roll Call

[neo_prodigy]

With June being LGBTQ Pride, I couldn't think of a better time to do a Roll Call celebrating exceptional LGBTQ characters in comics.


While there have been a number of LGBTQ characters, most of them at best have been relegated to minor characters and at worst deplorable homophobic queer minstrel shows.
And don't get it conflated.

Visibility is not progress.

If it were then the Rawhide Kid and Northstar would be progressive trailblazing characters.

 So no, this isn't just my list of queer comic characters.

This is a salute to the elite characters who have provided me with a more than a few OH HELL YEAH! moments.
A list of characters and made me proud to be a comic book geek and an LGBTQ.

Also, if you haven't already, feel free to check out my recent post on No_Scans discussing Queer Tropes to better understand where I'm coming from on this.


That being said: ROLL CALL!!!!!!!

 

Batwoman










Jack Harkness










Ianto Jones










The Question (Renee Montoya)











Ozymandias




Black Cat



Daken



Destiny



Mystique




Rictor & Shatterstar 

 


 

 



And by the by: The Greeks/Romans/Spartans were like TOTALLY GAY!!!!! (nsfw)


Victoria Hand





Richie Foley/Gear









Dani Baptiste





Tim Gunn

He's awesome and must therefore be included.



Catwoman (Holly Robinson)



Lafayette Reynolds



Scandal Savage



Hulkling



Karolina Dean



Wiccan



HE"S GAY HONEY!!!! Stop trying to recruit. Straight people: Always trying to push their heterosexual agenda on us God-fearing gays. ;D




Xavin







Achilles







DAYUM is my boyfriend sexy!!!!

Go ahead. It's okay to look.

THAT"S CLOSE ENOUGH.

I'm gonna need you to back away from my man, right the hell now.

Satsu













(Ultimate) Colossus









Not sure if the live-action movie version featured 616 Colossus or Ultimate Colossus.

It really doesn't matter because you're a fool if you think I"m about to pass up a chance to partake in some Grade-A beefcake like one Daniel Cudmore.








Willow Rosenberg

















Tara MaClay













John Constantine







Xena






The Midnighter



Apollo & The Midnighter







Now, I'm willing to bet there are some gems out there that myself and others may not be aware of and/or should (re)consider checking out.

So if you have any recommendations of awesome exceptional prominent LGBTQ characters in comics then by all means, sharing is caring. Please post them away in the comments.

 

Comments

[turtlefu]

1 - Does anybody else notice that DC has a really good track record for portraying capable, non-sexualized, fully developed female characters who just happen to be lesbians? Their sexuality is significant enough to be a part of their character, but it does not completely define them as characters. Yes, Kate Kane is the GAY Batwoman, but also the red-headed, ass-kicking, capable, independent Batwoman. (Holly Robinson, Question, Batwoman, Scandal Savage)
2 - How in the world can you not put Northstar on this list while also putting in offensive stereotypes Ianto Jones and Jack Harkness. They are not fully developed characters, they are characters with their sole personality trait being GAY. Northstar had a personality, and as a reader of Alpha Flight, I noticed that he was portrayed (early on, in Bryne's run) with a lot of depth, but the ongoing character assassination did ruin him by other writers. Read this quote by Bryne: here
3 - Tokenism. Brian K. Vaughan has a tendency to put in at least one character who is gay in almost every one of his works. To increase diversity. To me, it seems like tokenism, but BKV is a good enough writer to make fully developed characters. Likewise, Allan Heinberg is openly gay, which makes me think he might've written in Hulkling and Wiccan as gay "to increase diversity", but he too is also a really good writer that created some good stories. Both avoided the potential disaster for creating gay characters just for diversity. Also, Xavin may be one of the only transgendered characters in comics, so there's that.
4 - Some of these are dubious or inconsequential. Black Cat, John Constantine, Gear, Ozymandias and Xena are either gay in creators minds but not canon, gay, but never, ever mentioned, or gay because the fans made it so. They are not a proper representation of a gay character because it's not even part of their character.
5 - Daken has never really been portrayed with a sexuality, hasn't he? He did kiss a man, but only to manipulate him and another woman. He doesn't seem to express and sexual or romantic feelings, just manipulations.
6 - Victoria Hand is AWESOME. She's gay, in a way that she (was) in a stable relationship with a woman, but she is fully capable as a character in her own right.
Basically, to me, a gay character needs to be identifiably gay, but not so much that it consumes that. Gay characters need to be shown as PEOPLE first. I have high hope, because we already have several extremely positive, gay characters.
But I still dislike Torchwood. People only like Cap. Jack because he's campy.

[neo_prodigy]

1. I think it depends on which writer is on which book. Both DC & Marvel have done some awesome things in regards to LGBTQ characters. Both have royally failed something fierce.

2. Myself and others have already explained the reason why that walking queer minstrel show isn't included, and why Jack and Ianto should be. Don't agree that's your business but ultimately it's my list and I get to put who I want on my list. And avatars of straight privilege don't get recognized on my list.

3. If gay characters are being included for diversity but are being done right and great stories are being told, that's not a bad thing. And in the cases of Wiccan, Hulkling, Karolina and Xavin, they handled them with the same care as they did the cis-gendered heterosexual characters.

4. I think the evidence is there but we can agree to disagree. But this whole they have to be identifiably gay bullshit just reeks of straight privilege. Seeing as we live in a world where you still get kicked out of the United States army for being an LGBTQ or risk having kids cartoon be canceled for having a visibly gay character, invisibility is part of the LGBTQ experience.

5. You might wanna read the comments a do a bit more research on Daken.

6. I agree with you on Victoria Hand. Definitely co-signed.

"Cap. Jack because he's campy."

Not true. I personally like him because he's a dark and complex character despite the dashing charm. I like him because he's a badass that does what needs to be done.

If Torchwood is not your thing, so be it, but please don't summarize for the rest of us why we like our fandom.

[turtlefu]

I'm sorry if I offended you,
You have absolutely every right to post who you want.
I was really just commenting and talking about who I would want I the list, and maybe how our viewpoints differ.
But it is nice how we agree on most of them. Some gay characters really are written excellently, and I applaud those creators for their work.