At the Kapow Comic Convention in London this weekend, a panel attendee asked DC Comics co-publisher Dan DiDio about the company’s statement that it wouldn’t be changing the sexual orientation of any of its characters in the wake of its reboot last year.
In recent years, DC has revamped characters by changing their age, gender, race and other characteristics.
Previously, Didio claimed DC would introduce more new LGBT character rather than rewrite existing ones as gay. At Kapow, though, he reversed his position and revealed a DC character who was previously straight and now will be “one of our most prominent gay characters.”
Bob Wayne explained that, like President Obama, the co-publisher’s policy on this “has evolved.”
How about we take this to the next level?
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Source: Bleeding Cool
Superman
Sorry Lois.
Nugoyxi
Please be Wonder Woman
dee-dee
Tim Drake?
Polyboy
I’d say Tim Drake. He’s in the Bat Family, and despite his flirtation with Stephanie Brown, he hasn’t been the woman magnet the other bat boys are.
UsualPlayers
I think Wonder Woman would be a poor choice.
My hope is that its someone interesting.
I know Batwoman was fantastic as a Lesbian.
1equalityUSA
Please, let it be Spiderman.
Cole Marentette
Unfortunately, I think you’re all off base in assuming it’ll be a superhero. DC is doing this for mainstream buzz, so they want a character that people will recognize the name of. At the same time, they’re not going to bring one of their big heroes out of the closet because fanboys will rage and burn the world to a cinder. Who is it going to be? Jimmy Olsen. I’d LOVE it to be someone bigger, but Jimmy is recognizable to the average person AND he’s both integral and forgettable to Superman comics. Also, Grant Morrison, the current writer of Action Comics, is the one that leaked this first. It just seems to all fit too perfectly.
MJ
@Cole Marentette: yeah. It will more than likely be jimmy or another civilian character.
what?
@1equalityUSA: spider-man is marvel. and ultimate spider-man is already black.
Nugoyxi
@UsualPlayers
Well, Wonder Woman is the most prominent female superhero there is, and we need a lesbian icon today. She’s also way more attractive than Batwoman or Batgirl. I also think WW is very interesting. It’s all a matter of opinion.
Jono
http://geeksout.org/blogs/jono/dc-out-classic-character
Needs to be a superhero!
Breadquanda
Teen Titans already has a gay superhero, so I doubt it’ll be Tim Drake.
That’s the only comic he’s prominently featured in since the relaunch.
nahooper
Pretty sure it will be Aquaman!
Macmantoo
@nahooper: Well he is into water sports.
Macmantoo
@John Doe: Obviously you’re not very smart. Being gay isn’t a choice or a preference. Do you really think someone would chose to be hated and treated like crap? And no we won’t go back into the closets so you can keep your precious kid from knowing about the world.
Karl
We know Batwoman is a lesbian, thats a fact in the comics and for several years now its been hinted by DC that Wonder Woman is bi-sexual, tho they outright refuse to confirm this publicly. There are several members of the Legion of super-Heroes who are openly gay and lesbian and they are the most popular characters around in that book.
I wouldnt put it past DC to make the new Robin gay, just ot cause a stir, and then not take the story any further.
Belize
@1equalityUSA: Jesus, honey. DC… NOT MARVEL. Normally I would clap for the things you say but this is one big face palm.
Belize
@what?: So, apparently, in your world, black people can’t be gay. Wow. Does that mean Uganda is gunning to kill shit-load of posers? Good to know they aren’t after the real thing.
Belize
It’ll probably be Wonder Woman. She’s the only one who’d be a sensible choice given that she has rarely ever shown any interest in men with lines like “they can’t possibly be that essential to your life.” I know she said that in the Justice League cartoon but still…
Dick Grayson
It’s me.
Sea of Blue
@Dick Grayson: Perfect!
w.e.
I thought Batman had already been outed. Anyway, if not Bruce Wayne, then possibly Green Arrow aka Oliver Queen.
Storm
My favorite bet would be for Supergirl. Moreso than almost any of the other DC characters, her origin and personality were almost entirely recreated in the DC 52 reboot. She’s much more of an alien now than her cousin, Superman, and largely unconcerned with the customs and social values of Earth. Very much a newcomer to this planet, she has no previous lovelife to try to explain away.
And if not Supergirl, then my next bet would be on Guy Gardner/Green Lantern. A previous deeply closeted life would neatly explain his nearly constant anger, and he does appear to have something of an interest in his regular companion, the black John Stewart/Green Lantern. And again, he has no previous history of a lovelife to write around.
skzip888
Give the people what they really want: The Martian Manhumper.
UsualPlayers
Well the articles say not already reintroduced so that eliminates the choices mentioned so far.
Jack J.
My guess is Alan Scott, the GL of the “new 52” Earth-2. James Robinson writes that book, and he wrote the HELL out of gay Starman Mikaal Tomas and his lover back in the old Jack Knight STARMAN days.
Mangina
I’m sure DC wouldn’t try to turn their main icons gay. They’ll probably settle with secondary characters.
UsualPlayers
@Jack J.: I loved, loved, loved STARMAN. The gay storyline was perhaps to me one of the best ever written in a mainstream comic book. It felt natural and organic. It was so sad they killed off STARMAN’s boyfriend years later in a crappy run of Justice League.
UsualPlayers
I should point out that while STARMAN was one of the best written in terms of a gay couple in the story the best is probably Batwoman:Elegy for how to make a gay character relevant and interesting.
1equalityUSA
Belize #17 and What? #9 –I hang my head in shame. whoa. I have a spidey collection that has been kicking around for years in acid free sleeves too! Please forgive me. It’s been a while.
UsualPlayers
@Nugoyxi: True, its opinion, and mines is that she would be boring as a lesbian. The thing that made Batwoman so fascinating is that it opened up a whole new world for the reader with an existing character. Lesbianism considering Wonder Woman comes from a society of all women would be a bit boring and on the nose.
deshawn
Why not damien batmans son and new robin I mean that would be ineresting and he’s yet to have a girlfriend or even flirt for that matter.
John
@Dick Grayson: Lmfao
JohnPae
@Storm: I’m hoping for Supergirl as well. She also has recently a very butch looking not necessarily evil yet version of the Silver Banshee. Guy Gardner though I doubt they’ll do. He has had a previous love life with Ice, which they’re already showing signs of starting again in Justice League International, which is supposed to be the PC version of the Justice League so that only add more to my doubt. If they kept him just in the Green Lantern titles which is primarily in space and filled with aliens I could see it happening, but alas thats not the case.
JohnPae
@Storm: *Recently befriended
MJ
@deshawn: I think Damien’s too young to be worried about that but that does seem interesting though of a character to be.
I already have a feeling it’s NOT gonna be any members of the current JUSTICE LEAGUE roster so we might as well forget that. It would be someone who’s been established, obviously but not someone who’s really popular
Jono
Comments made by the DC Senior VP of publicity suggest that it’s going to be an “iconic male” character.
http://www.bleedingcool.com/2012/05/21/new-dc-gay-character-is-an-iconic-male/
LadyL
God, I hope it’s Catwoman. Especially if she moves and sounds like Michelle Pfeiffer.
Storm
The current Robin, Damien, is Bruce Wayne’s son, and it’s established that he’s only ten years old. I doubt the DC staff is willing to invite that much controversy. Plus, Damien is a little psychotic killer. I don’t think I’d root for him to be gay. On another site, the word is out that the new gay character will be one that has not yet been introduced into the new DC-52 continuity. If so, my next two bets fall on Adam Strange, once a major character who has not been seen for a while. Or, given the recent changes to “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” I wonder about Sergeant Rock. I think the only thing we can safely say is that it won’t be the Atomic Knights or Conga Bill. LOL.
Storm
@LadyL: Not likely that it will be Catwoman. We just saw her practically rape Batman on the floor of her apartment in the first issue of her new comic book. Sufficiently graphic to set up lots of howls.
Tony
@Jono: Yup, an “Iconic male,” is listed or I’d pick WW, too. Instead, I’m going with The Flash on this one.
Wally West
@Tony
Uncle Barry can’t be gay! Ah, great. I knew I should’ve let him hug me so much.