With the recent announcement that Marvel Comics will be releasing its second annual Marvel Voices: Pride collection during Pride Month 2022, the publisher has now also shared eight stunning variant covers featuring iconic LGBTQ+ heroes. The new variant covers, celebrating classic characters like Destiny to new characters like Aaron Fischer, were drawn and colored by queer artists Luciano Vecchio and Betsy Cola.
With LGBTQ+ people's rights, especially trans folks, being contested everyday in the United States and globally, it is more important now than ever to have equitable and genuine representation of queer people in the comics industry. For decades the two biggest comics companies Marvel and DC did not allow queer heroes to exist, relegating queerness to subtext and saving queer identities for villains, so the way that these two companies are now investing in LGBTQ+ writer, artists, characters, and stories truly does show how far the industry has come. While LGBTQ+ pride and representation should exist all year round it is encouraging to see Marvel put queer characters and creators front and center, refusing to hide them in plain sight anymore.
The artists behind these truly breathtaking variant covers revealed by Marvel are both up-and-coming queer artists whose careers are on a meteoric rise, with Luciano Vecchio illustrating Hulkling & Wiccan and Iceman New Years Resolution Infinity Comic and Betsy Cola gaining massive popularity after her cover for America: Made in the USA was released. Uplifting queer creators is such an important part of Pride Month because it advances queer advocacy beyond just a simple moneymaking venture for a massive conglomerate, and instead ensures that queer artists are being paid equitably for their contributions and are being put into the spotlight. Having these eight covers be variants to established series across Marvel's portfolio is also encouraging to see because it means that Marvel is not relegating its queer representation to just the pages of an annual anthology. Check out Marvel's covers and breakdowns of all the queer characters featured below:
- Somnus — A mutant hero with the power to control dreams, Somnus debuted in a poignant story in last year's MARVEL'S VOICES: PRIDE and now a member of Kate Pryde's mutant rescue squad in MARAUDERS.
- Aaron Fischer — Also known as the Captain America of the Railways, Aaron made a big splash during Captain America's 80th Anniversary in THE UNITED STATES OF CAPTAIN AMERICA limited series. Look out for him in upcoming issues of the ALLIGATOR LOKI INFINITY COMIC.
- Destiny — The recently resurrected classic X-Men foe now serves as one of the most prominent leaders of mutantkind. See what the future holds for her in the upcoming IMMORTAL X-MEN series.
- Iceman — An original X-Man, Iceman is fresh off a stint on the Marauders that saw him use his omega-level abilities in some of his most impressive feats yet and the next big thing for this iconic hero is just on the horizon. Keep an eye out on upcoming X-Men issues to see what title he'll be ice sliding into next!
- Karma — A founding member of the New Mutants, Karma uses her many years of experience defending Charles Xavier's dream to guide the next generation of mutantkind in the current run of NEW MUTANTS.
- America Chavez — The breakout star of the Young Avengers, America will use her superhuman strength and interdimensional star portals as part of a new team of THUNDERBOLTS.
- Valkyrie — Rūna debuted as the mysterious and only surviving original Valkyrie during KING IN BLACK. Since then, fans have learned more about her in titles like MIGHTY VALKYRIES and WOMEN OF MARVEL. Stay tuned to find out where to witness her next legendary battles starting in June!
- Daken — The son of Wolverine, Daken will put his claws, healing factor, and fierce fighting skills to good use as a member of the current lineup of MARAUDERS.
One thing that is very clear from the line-up of queer characters illustrated for these variant covers is that the X-Men franchise is incredibly queer, with five out of the eight characters being mutants active on Krakoa. Somnus, one of the newest major characters to Marvel Comics, was created for last years Marvel Voices: Pride by Steve Orlando and Luciano Vecchio, and is now joining a major X-Men team, Kate Pryde's Marauders along with Daken. Additionally Karma, the first canonically out lesbian character at Marvel Comics has been underutilized in recent years, but Vita Ayala has reinvigorated the young Vietnamese woman's role in their New Mutants series, so it is nice to see her highlighted in this art. Other newly introduced characters who are taking center stage in these covers are Valkyrie, a queer woman of color connected to Asgardian mythos, and the young gay man Aaron Fischer, a member of the "United States of Captain America."
While fans can hope that future covers will show queer people together and in love, as well as some transgender or gender non-conforming heroes, it is amazing to see such explicit and loving representation of long running and new LGBTQ+ characters for Pride Month. Make sure to grab 2022's Marvel Voices: Pride anthology by Marvel Comics when it debuts on June 15, and keep an eye out for Betsy Cola and Luciano Vecchio's gorgeous variant covers featuring everyone's favorite iconic LGBTQ+ heroes.
Source: Marvel