Riddle Me This, Batman!

Artwork:  Mark Chamberlain

Okay, so maybe Batman and Robin were never officially a couple, but that didn't stop artist Mark Chamberlain from depicting them as such. D.C. Comics actually served Chamberlain with a "cease and desist" lawsuit because of how he was artistically displaying the "caped crusader." But what's so wrong with a little slash between the hero and his sidekick (other than the obvious age difference)? 

LGBT Superheroes may be a fairly new concept, but that doesn't mean they aren't important. In fact, their role throughout modern comic history has been less than crucial in dealing with the issues facing LGBT persons (and let's not forget the awesome action and humour along the way), but that's not to say it isn't important for said characters to exist.

I am a huge nerd. This is no secret. I play World of Warcraft habitually, Joss Whedon is one of my heroes, I absolutely adore Marvel Comics and I am an anime/manga addict. I spent many hours holed up in my room and my imagination musing over what it must be like to have super powers and to be a hero of some sort. When I found out about Marvel introducing a gay member of the X-men, it was all I could do not to squeal with joy. 

Victor Borkowski aka Anole (Copyright Marvel Comics)

Anole is a reptilian mutant who can climb walls and camouflage himself. The best part of his powers is his ability to re-grow his limbs as stronger than before when he loses them. Originally, they planned to kill him off with a suicide after coming out of the closet and not finding acceptance from his parents. Weir and DeFilippis scrapped that idea feeling it would be "too controversial" and Anole has become a fan favorite. His sexuality was originally only hinted at by his relationship with Northstar, one of the most recognized openly gay characters Marvel has created. While earlier X-Men comics simply alluded to the fact that Anole was gay, it wasn't until New X-Men that the artists used his sexuality as a major talking point in the series. 

Property of Dark Horse Comics

There aren't too many of us who haven't heard of Buffy: the Vampire Slayer. Perhaps a small handful of us have taken the time to read the comics, which are basically just a direct reflection of the television script in comic-form. So, we've at least heard the names Willow and Tara whispered in the back of a classroom at some point, or even giggled as we watched them hold hands on the ground breaking show. For those of you who don't know, Willow is one of Buffy's original sidekicks- a powerful Wiccan and computer genius by trade. When Willow goes off to college (curse the liberal college world and their "brainwashing!" I kid!), she meets Tara Maclay, a fellow witch, whom she falls madly in love with. I mean, let's face it, the girls were meant to be. Hands down. For those of you who have never watched Buffy before, I implore you to do so. You won't regret it. Joss Whedon is a genius and the stories he created between these two girls are fantastic and heart-wrenching and heart-warming all at the same time. But, I digress..anyhow, Willow and Tara were some of the first lesbians to kiss on network T.V. The controversy was out of control. In fact, I distinctly remember my mom freaking out (shortly after I had ATTEMPTED to come out to her and around the time that I was obsssed with Tatu) and asking me "Chelsea, did you know about this?!" I did not, but I was ecstatic all the same.  I'll spare those of you who haven't seen it the spoilers, but I find it hard to believe that their relationship ever truly halted. Soul mates, I tell you. Soul mates.

Not everybody was an anime/manga nerd like I was, but I'm certain at least a few of the readers know of Sailor Moon. The group of pretty, sailor-suited soldiers, saving the world in mini-skirts and punishing people in the name of the moon. It originated as a Manga, but was picked up for production in Japan in the early 90's. When D.I.C. began to dub the series in English, I guess they weren't looking very far ahead. Once you get into the season Sailor Moon S, you get into what America likes to refer to as the "racy stuff." By racy, I mean a lesbian couple on a cartoon. Heaven forbid. Haruka Tenou and her partner Michuru Kaioh were a pretty standard butch (Haruka) and femme (Michiru) couple. However, they saw it fit to portray them as, ahem, cousins here in the good ole U.S of A. I was incredibly disappointed, myself, having read the manga religiously. I knew better and I mean, come on, they had too many "moments" to be simply cousins. They were madly in love with each other. 

The infamous cousin shot. Looks kinda lovey-dovey, doesn't it?

Haruka and Michiru weren't the big stickler as far as Sailor Moon goes. The final season was never dubbed in English (thank goodness) because of three transgendered MtF protagonists. Seiya, Taiki and Yaten were just too much for America to handle, so they never made it over here. Of course, they would have probably destroyed the story lines worse than they did in Italy, where the Starlights were made to be the twin sisters of the men featured in the storyline. Makes perfect sense, doesn't it? They transform into their "uniforms" and thus summon their twin sisters to fight for them? Curious. I'm sure America would have made them all cousins somehow, since that seems to be their go-to fix. Japan has certainly never been shy about showing off LGBT sexuality and for that, I am thankful. 

Aren't they fabulous?

So, then. Consider this entry a plea or a call to comic book artists around the globe to make more LGBT heroes for our community to look up to and let our imaginations carry us away. Go forth: make us some more badasses!