Hi. I know Marvel. You know Marvel. Everyone and their grandma’s hairdresser’s cousin twice removed’s dog’s babysitter knows about Marvel. So let’s talk about Marvel. There’s a lot of Marvel heroes, since it’s a superhero franchise and all. But, with the entirety of X-Men being about discrimination, you’d think there’d be a lot more LGBTQ+ characters in the Marvel universe. So… Let’s go over some of them.

For starters, let’s discuss the first ever canon LGBTQ+ couple: Yukio and Negasonic Teenage Warhead (amazing name). In Deadpool 2, it’s confirmed that N.T.W. is dating Yukio,
and it’s not made a big deal at all, with no dramatic reveal and just a simple quote: “She is my girlfriend.” In the comics, N.T.W.’s abilities are harnessing, generating, and absorbing nuclear energy, as well as, you know, being able to manipulate reality at a quantum level.

Normal stuff. Yukio in the comics is an assassin who’s worked with Deadpool significantly more times than comic N.T.W. can hold a candle to.

Now it’s time for the moment you’ve all been waiting for, where I talk about Marvel’s first EVER LGBTQ+ superhero: Northstar. Northstar grew up as Jean-Paul Beaubier, born and raised in Canada. Shortly after his birth, his parents died in a car crash, him and his twin sister (Jeanne-Marie) being labelled as orphans. The twins were soon taken in by the Martins, cousins of their mother. Unfortunately, they couldn’t afford to raise the twins and sent Jeanne-Marie to a Catholic school for girls.

Fast forward a bit to when his mutant abilities start developing, he consults with his mentor about his abilities and budding sexuality. He is eventually convinced to take up skiing to control his super-speed. Soon, he publicly announces him being gay, naming him as the first ever Marvel superhero that’s canonically part of the LGBTQ+ community.

Now, the burning question. Are there lots of LGBTQ+ characters in the Marvel universe?

Absolutely. Are any of them super mainstream? …Besides Deadpool, not really. But the fact that there are even characters in the LGBTQ+ community in the first place showcase that Marvel hasn’t ignored the community as much as you might’ve thought.