June is the beginning of summer. Tt’s the rush of excitement and preparation leading up to San Diego Comic-Con, and for many countries all over the world it is Pride Month! Whether you identify as LGBTQIA+ or are an ally, there is an abundance of ways to celebrate and an abundance of content to focus on throughout the year – but in celebration during the month of June in particular.
Comic books have more openly queer content now than ever before, representing the diverse spectrum that unites under the rainbow flag. No matter what you are a looking for or who you are, there are places to find queer representation across a number of publishing companies.
Some of these characters haven’t always been LGBTQIA+, but it has since become an integral part of their identities, whereas others were always queer and their fictional biography sprang up around that fact. In many ways this dichotomy is representative of queer representation, slowly emerging and making its way into mainstream comic book publications.
Below is a list of titles that we think not only represent the queer community well, but tell great stories accompanied by some amazing art! They range from all-ages to adult and are readily available in most local comic book stores as well as all over the internet. Queer content can be found everywhere from independent slice-of-life autobiographical content to big time superhero fighty-fighty stories. We hope that in our Ten Amazing Comic Books to Read for Pride Month you can find something that represents you and your tastes in literature.
Ten Amazing Comic Books to Read for Pride Month:
Top Photo: Boom! Studios
10 Fantastic Comic Books to Read for Pride Month
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10. Young Avengers: The Children’s Crusade
Wonder Woman movie writer Allan Heinberg and all-star artist Jim Cheung created one of the first set of legacy characters Marvel comics ever had and put them all on a team together. Scarlet Witch’s son Wiccan and the half-Skrull Hulkling are a strong couple from the beginning of the story to the present day. They even get engaged in one of the series’ best scenes. Wiccan and Hulking remain leading figures of the Young Avengers to this very day. Good for readers of all-ages and extra good for MCU fans who will find familiar powersets with different faces on the Young Avengers!
Photo: Marvel
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9. Midnighter
It’s easy to sum up Midnighter as “angry gay Batman” in this series by award-winning writer Steve Orlando and artists Aco, Stephen Mooney and Alec Morgan. This is Midnighter’s first DC Comics solo series where he struggles to balance the supercomputer wired to his brain and how he elects to mete out his unique brand of justice and his relationship with Apollo - who is as good as and bright as his name would seem to suggest. Midnighter and Apollo balance each other very well, while at the same time feeling like a real couple with real flaws and real love. This is a great read for fans of the Batman family, as Nightwing is a prominent character. (Not appropriate for children.)
Photo: DC
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8. Batwoman: Elegy
Current Wonder Woman writer Greg Rucka and iconic artist J.H. Williams III reinvented Kate Kane for the contemporary age of comic books. Not only is the art out-of-this-world gorgeous, but a big part of Kate Kane’s updated identity is that she is a lesbian. And not only does this storyline bring a depth of character that Kate had been sorely lacking up to this point (in her personal life and in the construct of her immediate family as well), but it features Detective Maggie Sawyer as her love interest. This run is a really well-designed detective story - as the best Batman family stories often are - that peels away the layers of who Kate Kane is, why she became Batwoman and what is special to her about Maggie Sawyer. Since Elegy was first published Kate and Maggie have been a staple couple of the DC Comics universe (with their ups and downs), recently featured in the DC Bombshells series. Batwoman is a good choice for most readers.
Photo: DC
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7. Fun Home & Are You My Mother
You’ve heard of “The Bechdel Test”, correct? It’s named for lesbian cartoonist Alison Bechdel who wrote both of these comic memoirs. Fun Home came first and reflects on Alison’s relationship growing up with her closeted father - as she came to terms with her own queer identity - up to the point of his suicide. You may also recognize Fun Home from the Tony Award winning Broadway musical it was adapted into a couple years ago. Are You My Mother follows up Fun Home as a companion examination of Bechdel’s complicated relationship with her mother in her adult life, and how that has affected her romantic life as a result. Both are stark, real-world looks at what it is like to be a queer person growing up in modern North America. Due to some adult themes, both memoirs are best suited to a teenaged or older readership.
Photo: Mariner Books / Houghton Mifflin
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6. Kim & Kim
Writer Magdalene Visaggio and artist Eva Cabrera smash the patriarchy with the adventures of two Kims that work as intergalactic bounty hunters and all-around rock and roll cool kids! It’s bright and flashy and the queerness of the tale is addressed with a casual acceptance that heralds the type of future so many people are hoping for. One of the Kims is trans (I leave it to you to deduce which Kim before it is revealed in the plot), and many characters vacillate on the Kinsey scale set against a bright neon background of epic adventure. The addressing of Kim & Kim’s characters’ queerness as something that is a non-issue is a wonderful lesson about how we should be treating everyone around us, on top of the fact that it’s a kick ass, super fun comic book! Great for teens and adults!
Photo: Black Mask Studios
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5. Wic + Div
Kieron Gillen and Jamie McKelvie have a cast full of reincarnated Gods and Goddesses from across a number of mythologies and the majority of them fall under the LGBTQIA+ umbrella. They even incorporate characters that identify as genderqueer or fluid, and not just what is traditionally thought of represented by the rainbow flag. Each character is thoroughly realized and unique - there’s a reason Wic + Div is one of Image Comics’ most popular series currently being published - and they are allowed to be adult and do adult things. A very cool epic, although definitely not for the children.
Photo: Image
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4. Lumberjanes
If you are looking for something to give to readers of all-ages, look no further than Lumberjanes. Created by Noelle Stevenson, Brooke A. Allen, Shannon Watters and Grace Ellis, Lumberjanes focuses around the misadventures of a group of Lumberjanes who prize friendship above all else. They must navigate the weird mystical threats to their camp, their respective adolescence and emerging feelings for their fellow campers. When romance finally blossoms in Lumberjanes it is well-developed and earnest, like everybody’s first love is. The art is adorable and the story is sweet.
Photo: Boom! Studios
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3. Sunstone
Another choice that is 100% not for the kids. Stjepan Sejic weaves the five volume courtship between Ally and Lisa through the framing device of Lisa’s writing. The couple just happens to be two women who bonded over their shared interest in BDSM and, before they know it, they are both in over their heads. The drama in Sunstone focuses on Ally and Lisa’s inability to communicate and, ultimately, commit to each other rather than a struggle with finding themselves in a queer relationship. Many of the couples are fluid in their sexuality. They are all consenting and respecting adults with a shared passion.
Photo: Top Cow
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2. My Brother’s Husband
Unfortunately for the strictly-Anglophone, My Brother’s Husband only has one volume currently translated into English, though there more are on way. Yaichi is a single stay-at-home dad trying to do his best for his daughter, Kana. When his dead brother’s husband, Mike, shows up on their doorstep all the way from Canada on a quest to learn everything about Ryoji’s life before they met, Yaichi is forced to confront the homophobia of Japanese culture, his own fractured relationship with his brother, and decide what kind of role model he wants to be for his young daughter. My Brother’s Husband is heartbreaking and beautiful. For brief nudity it’s recommended for teens and older, but the story is truly transcendent.
Photo: Pantheon Books
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1. Love is Love
Full disclosure, I worked on a page featured in this book. In spite of that, it deserves to be on the top of this list for a number of reasons. In the wake of the Pulse nightclub attack, writer Marc Andreyko knew that he had to do something. Love is Love is an anthology with stories that don’t range more than two pages, contributed by phenomenal talent such as: J.K. Rowling, Jim Lee, Matt Bomer, Mitch Gerads, Tom King, Amanda Connor and many more. Not only does all of the proceeds for the purchase of this book go to benefit the ongoing care of victims of the attack, but the book represents a coming together and celebrating of a community in the wake of vicious ignorance. There is something in Love is Love that will tug at the heartstrings of every reader, each of which defies you not to burst into tears. There is an even a digital version with material that didn’t make it into the printed anthology. Don’t only buy it, but buy it twice. A tough read for everyone, but that’s a good thing.
Photo: DC / IDW
