Marvel Makes Queer Comic Geek History

Northstar and Kyle celebrate their marriage
[Cover for Astonishing X-Men #51]

Today in Astonishing XMen's New York, a Canadian mutant superhero named Northstar is getting married to his same-sex civilian partner Kyle.

Wait... WHAAAAAAT?!?

Marvel comics undoubtedly makes queer comic book history today by not only playing host to the first wedding of its kind, but by unapologetically placing the happy event on the cover of Astonishing X-Men #51.

I'll be honest, I'm still in a little bit of shock. It's a happy kind of shock. I just never expected to see something like this in my lifetime.

I can only imagine what the impact this cover would have on my fellow queer geeks and nerds everywhere. The in-comic wedding has already inspired real-life gay comic book weddings. In Canada, the ability to do that is a given right and privilege. And in New York, gay marriage has been legal for almost one year. In fact, the timing of this comic book release with the anniversary of the Marriage Equality Act is more than coincidental. It's an incredibly smart move on Marvel's part (again, real-life same-sex weddings in comic book stores... who'd have thought?)

Northstar's Proposal

Geek culture and certain aspects of gay culture have a heavy basis on consumerism. Living as both has always struck me as a bit off because you very rarely feel visible. With the advent of blockbuster Hollywood movies making comic book icons a little more mainstream, more and more queer persons have been coming out of the rainbow woodwork as visibly and openly geeky.

In the realms of nerd and geekdom, this visibility matters more. I still remember my feelings of love and loathing for my weekly visits to Friday Night Magic at the local comic book store. Back then, playing Magic regularly was one of the highlights of my week. Except I kept getting constant reminders that I was not in a safe queer space. Spewing queer insults at opponents is common, and is definitely my least favourite part of geek culture as a whole. Since coming out, I have noticed that people around me are a bit more mindful about what they say. But I am still not happy with the fact that I have to constantly keep coming out to be in that space. To quote a friend, "Queer people are like ninjas. You never know when they're around."

Marvel is not the first comicbook company to release a gay wedding. Early this year, Archie comics character Kevin Keller tied the knot with his partner, Clay. Kevin first appeared in the comics in September 2010. I was vaguely and happily aware of Kevin's existence. His rollercoaster year in the limelight of gay news brought a smile to my face mainly because of all the support his arc seemed to be getting. While his wedding did seem a little rushed (he had only been around for a year!) the fact that he met his partner while in service was very timely. And the issue sold out!

This cover is beautiful. Not only because it shows two men expressing their love and devotion to each other, but because it's being witnessed by a sea of smiles from friends, supporters, and allies. Which is why this cover is so emotional for me. It's not just the fact that it's a gay, legal-in-real-life wedding. To me, this wonderful portrait, with all the characters that I've grown up with since childhood, represent all the amazing allies that the queer community is gaining in our fight for equal rights and safe spaces. We still have a lot to fight for. This comic book cover is a testament that we as a minority have allies, and we are not alone in our fight for equality.

Posted by SnapDragon