LGBT+ Marvel Characters Discussion

[Journey]

Who gay, young, & single on Krakoa? Is it Anole maybe? He the only 1 I can think of dude having a connection with.... If he's old old maybe Bobby because he was retconned into coming out earlier when little Bobby went back in time? IDFK.

[Krakoa]

Who gay, young, & single on Krakoa? Is it Anole maybe? He the only 1 I can think of dude having a connection with.... If he's old old maybe Bobby because he was retconned into coming out earlier when little Bobby went back in time? IDFK.

I think it might be about Daken, since we knew Orlando was writing a Daken story and Daken fits the bill as someone who has been around a long time and could have known Somnus long ago.

Graymalkin is another option, I know Orlando has shown interest in the character before.

[Anduinel]

It does say they'll be investigating and this is still Williams writing them. This could be the next step in her plan with a rebrand to get others on board.

I do hope you're right, because I love this book. But also because it's kind of important to have a book that's about the snafus and rules-lawyering of the Resurrection Protocols when resurrection is one of the big hubs of Krakoa-era worldbuilding.

[Fokken]

More info on Somnus! He's a mutant who had a connection with an X-Man long ago and has been resurrected on Krakoa. https://www.marvel.com/articles/comi...nkId=118380065

Intriguing!!! Oh I'm so excited! I am a complete dumby and completely forgot about the Resurrection Protocols!! I thought, "Its a shame this guy apparently died long ago and we just get a glimpse of who he was" and then BLAMMO!!!! KRAKOA BABY!!!! I wonder who knew him? He's a mutant tied to dreams? Could it be Xavier? He had a "dream". Could it be Destiny?? or by extension, Mystique?? Could it be Christian Frost?
And more importantly, AFTER this debut issue, WHERE will Carl wind up within the greater X-franchise???? Oh I can't wait!

[J. D. Guy]

I really love his dashing, regal, princely feel. Definitely captures the ethereal intent/aesthetic of the character.

[J. D. Guy]

The more I think about it and look back at the design, the more I really love Somnun's/Carl's appearance. I like that we get to see Somnus without his face mask/markings, jacket and cape to get a really good sense of the shirt Carl is wearing, the matador-esque style he's evoking, and just his appearance and build in general. It really helps to sell how solid his design really is.

[rhaenylis]

From what I've heard, Ricstar fans are going to love X-Factor #9

[NexusTenebrare]

From what I've heard, Ricstar fans are going to love X-Factor #9

That's a shame. I was shipping Rictor with daddy A.
Still... Maybe he'll dump Shatterstar when A eventually comes back.

[maxhilary]

Can I ask you all a question...? So both here and on twitter, I've seen a lot of vocal support for X-factor. Particularly from LGBT fans. And on paper I can see why, there are multiple LGBT characters in the cast, and I was very excited about it for the same reasons when it was revealed. But now, 9 issues in... I'm just confused tbh. Neither David nor Northstar do a whole lot in the book (neither does Rachel) beyond good effective use of their powers. Lorna, Daken and by extension Aurora get most of the focus, and for Daken and Aurora it's almost completely in the context of their romance. I was hoping for Kyle and Northstar to get some good stories to further showcase and develop both of them since they've been in limbo for so long, but they've only really gotten a couple of domestic moments here and there. NS is supposed to be the leader yet Lorna seems to have most of that momentum. David had a great moment with Tommy when he visited but that happened late in issue 7, and the mystery of his death is genuinely fascinating yet that's also been teased later in the run. I thought maybe Rachel could also be revealed as bi or a lesbian since the writer has mentioned her interpretation of her before, but nothing of note has happened there either beyond one suggestive line.

So I find myself feeling like I'm missing something. Imo the book is a mixed bag, but there are some things like all the Academy X student stuff and the callbacks to PAD X-factor that I really enjoy; I'm glad the Siryn situation was finally followed up on. The queer content is really lacking though, imo. Like, simply having that many queer cast members is great but it loses its appeal for me if they don't actually get developed, and the only one who is, is Daken. Him dating a woman as a bisexual man is completely valid of course! But it's not queer content either. I was hoping those of you who enjoy the book for its queer content specifically could shed some light on what aspects draw you to it, because this is the first time I'm just not seeing it in a book with some actual LGBT characters, and the things I enjoy about the book aren't related to the LGBT characters in it.

[NexusTenebrare]

I thought it was an okay book, but nothing too special. I can appreciate that it featured a lot of LGBT characters, but frankly not any that I really care about.
My favorite on the roster was Polaris and she's going to a higher profile book, so I'm not too bothered about the cancellation. Still a shame for fans of the book though.

[Anduinel]

I'm a bit puzzled as to why you're saying the queer characters aren't getting any development in X-Factor. We're seeing Northstar step up to his responsibility as team leader (he hasn't really been looking to Lorna for guidance much since issue #4), trying to be less bull-headed in his relationship with Aurora, and his building suspicions about the intentions of the Krakoan leadership toward the younger generation; Daken being willing to sacrifice himself - and his memories of being accepted and valued - for his team; and there's one more issue, so there's still time for Prodigy's arc to get some kind of resolution. And today's issue got Shatterstar back on Krakoa and definitely planted a seed for something between him and Rictor (hopefully something that'll help head off more random, off-panel break-ups if it is what I think it is).

As for the powers, that is honestly part of the appeal for me in general. Sometimes it's just nice to see a writer (and, in this case, artist as well) putting actual thought into how a character's powers can be utilized to good effect, especially if those powers are usually flattened down or Flanderized.

There is a lot going on in the book, but I don't feel like the queer cast has been sidelined, it's just been that the panel time's been spread out among a fairly large cast.

I'd also hoped there would be a confirmation that Rachel was bi or lesbian, but in the end, that's not a call the writer (and sometimes not even the book's editor) actually gets to make. And I suspect the mini-arc Williams talked about for Kyle met the same fate as the other 20 issues she said she had plotted for this book - planned, but cut short. Apparently, the team got the news of the book's cancelation while they were working on the script for this week's issue, so they had about an issue and a half to wrap everything up and set up the mystery for the Trial of Magneto LS.

[walk]

I'd imagine it was specifically because this book featured several queer characters but never felt the need to make a point of it, it didn't shy away from things like Northstar and Kyle being affectionate or two men kissing but didn't define any them solely by their queerness either instead treating it all in a very casual manner and just another natural part of these characters lives.

Instead the focus was on Northstar adapting to this new role of leadership and all that comes with it, David's about uncovering the mystery of his death and embarking on a discovering a new ground of Krakoan science and Daken coming to terms with himself and seeking both acceptance and forgiveness for his past sins both from others and within himself.

And really isn't that what all LGBTQ people hope for a reality when being queer isn't even a thing and we can all simply just be

[Dermie]

The Week In Gay:

Black Cat #6

Giant-Size Amazing Spider-Man: King's Ransom - Black Cat appears

Guardians Of The Galaxy #14 - Moondragon gets a key moment in this issue, and Hulkling gets some body-swapping schenanigans going on with Dr. Doom.

Silk #3 of 5 - Silk's friend Lola makes an appearance

X-Corp #1 - Jumbo Carnation appears. The cast also includes Jamie Madrox who is sort-of bisexual, due to his gay dupe(s), but we'll have to wait and see if that gets touched on at all in this series. Given Tini Howard's track record of LGBT inclusion in her work though, I'd say there's a good chance.

X-Factor #9 - In additional to this book's usual mix of gay and bi characters, there are also guest appearances and cameos by several others including Shatterstar, Rictor, Karma and Anole.

That's all I know of for this week -- but by all means, if I missed anything, please chime in! I don't know if there was any LGBT content in either the HEROES REBORN: SHUTTERBUG or HEROES REBORN: HYPERION AND THE IMPERIAL GUARD one-shots.

Heroes Reborn: Hyperion and the Imperial Squad had two supporting LGBT characters; Flashfire and Neutron.

Thank you!

[maxhilary]

I'm a bit puzzled as to why you're saying the queer characters aren't getting any development in X-Factor. We're seeing Northstar step up to his responsibility as team leader (he hasn't really been looking to Lorna for guidance much since issue #4), trying to be less bull-headed in his relationship with Aurora, and his building suspicions about the intentions of the Krakoan leadership toward the younger generation; Daken being willing to sacrifice himself - and his memories of being accepted and valued - for his team; and there's one more issue, so there's still time for Prodigy's arc to get some kind of resolution. And today's issue got Shatterstar back on Krakoa and definitely planted a seed for something between him and Rictor (hopefully something that'll help head off more random, off-panel break-ups if it is what I think it is).

As for the powers, that is honestly part of the appeal for me in general. Sometimes it's just nice to see a writer (and, in this case, artist as well) putting actual thought into how a character's powers can be utilized to good effect, especially if those powers are usually flattened down or Flanderized.

There is a lot going on in the book, but I don't feel like the queer cast has been sidelined, it's just been that the panel time's been spread out among a fairly large cast.

I'd also hoped there would be a confirmation that Rachel was bi or lesbian, but in the end, that's not a call the writer (and sometimes not even the book's editor) actually gets to make. And I suspect the mini-arc Williams talked about for Kyle met the same fate as the other 20 issues she said she had plotted for this book - planned, but cut short. Apparently, the team got the news of the book's cancelation while they were working on the script for this week's issue, so they had about an issue and a half to wrap everything up and set up the mystery for the Trial of Magneto LS.

We're equally puzzled then I think haha! So when I mention Lorna I don't mean that JP always defers to her in the leadership role, more that she seems to embody that role more or comes off as the star of the book. She outshines him in the book is what I mean. You bring up how JP is concerned about how the young mutants might be mistreated by the higher ups, and that's true, but those developments happened in data pages, which to me is a bit of a copout (but by no means is that limited to this book, I feel that a lot of the books abuse the data pages currently, a separate discussion altogether). Overall I feel that JP gets less panel time/story than Aurora even. She's the one who shed light on his anxiety about losing people he cares about, while he wasn't present. And I also feel that JP comes off a bit toooo grouchy. It's definitely a part of his personality, but imo it's been over-emphasized a bit, like the one word reply he sent to Xavier. I agree about how well the mutant powers are used though, it's genuinely done well and Rachel in particular really needed to be shown as being powerful and competent after the Gold disaster.

Overall I feel that a large portion of the limited panel time has been devoted to the Daken and Aurora romance, and unfortunately I don't have anything positive to say about it. Aurora feels like a self-insert for the writer. There's no light shed on what even drew them to each other from the very start, or why Aurora of all people is important enough to Daken that he wants to change his less than heroic ways just for her. And Daken's redemption happens very quickly and rapidly without enough work put in, imo. The man was a violent and sadistic killer who loved manipulating people, and now all of a sudden he's sensitive and artistic and cares about what this one person thinks of him. It's all completely plausible and ultimately the more heroic direction I wanted for him, but I don't feel it was developed enough to get to this current point. Leah Williams mentioned at launch that her mission was to make Daken likable to people, and it shows; her otherwise solid writing is missing when it comes to the fast track of Daken's arc and the romance. A lot of the book is devoted to it, and that time could have been spent for the other characters, like maybe exploring life on Krakoa for Kyle as a human, more of Tommy visiting David, or even the trans story that Leah had mentioned she would include. I realize that she had many plans that were cut short, but the book ending at 2 trades should have been considered a very real possibility and the stories written accordingly. The cast has no A-listers and got added late into the line, so it was always going to have an uphill battle that way. It's great to have long-term plans, frankly more writers should have them. But one also has to be realistic and prioritize the content that way. In that regard, I feel the priority here was definitely Daken/Aurora.

And really isn't that what all LGBTQ people hope for a reality when being queer isn't even a thing and we can all simply just be

I've been thinking about this topic myself and come to the conclusion that for me personally, I need more than the queer characters simply "being". Speaking just for myself, seeing the queer characters expressing their queerness whether it be in regards to identity or romance/attraction is an important aspect of the representation. So perhaps that's really where the disconnect is for me. I suppose a lot of other queer fans seek representation where the focus isn't on the queerness of the characters, which is the case here. I do really appreciate that the cast is so diverse, and it's why I was initially so interested. That's not enough for me though. And on a side note, JP and Kyle's relationship here comes off desexualized to me, which is something that seems to happen to married gay couples in fiction unfortunately.

[mrdavidguy]

Heroes Reborn: Hyperion and the Imperial Squad had two supporting LGBT characters; Flashfire and Neutron.