Green Lantern Is Gay In DC Comics Revamp

The original Green Lantern, one of DC Comics' biggest superheroes, will have a boyfriend in a relaunch of the popular story.

Alan Scott, the Green Lantern from the Golden Age, is openly gay and in a relationship with a man in the second issue of the Earth 2 series, which hits stands on Wednesday, the Associated Press reported. The Earth 2 series is part of DC Comics' New 52, which is refreshing familiar beloved characters and their stories.

I want to stress that Alan Scott is a gay man, but that's just a part of who he is, Earth 2 writer James Robinson told Entertainment Weekly. He's a businessman. He's a hero. He's a lot of different things. His sexuality is a part of him, but it isn't his defining trait. He's an interesting, complex character that I think people will respond to on many levels. He's the epitome of heroism. And I hope that he's a positive representation of a gay man.

The character of Alan Scott, who first appeared in comics in July 1940, originally had a son who was gay (Todd Rice aka Obsidian) as well as a daughter, Jade. Since the reboot called for a much younger Green Lantern -- one who wouldn't be old enough to have mature children -- Robinson asked whether they could make Alan Scott gay. He told the New York Post that his bosses signed off on it without hesitation.

DC Comics released a snippet of the upcoming issue. It shows Alan Scott getting off of a plane and meeting his boyfriend, Samuel, who has come to pick him up. The two men promptly -- and passionately -- embrace and kiss.

Not everyone is welcoming the news with open arms.

DC should have done this years and years ago with a much more prominent character, wrote Tim Molloy of TheWrap.com. He suggested Superman should have been recast as gay, as it might have finally made him interesting.

Alan Scott isn't the only openly gay character in the comic book world.

The Archie comic books welcomed the character Kevin Keller in 2010, who eventually got his own series -- and married his husband in issue #16 of Life With Archie. The issue in which he first appeared, Veronica Presents: Kevin Keller, was nominated for a 2012 GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Comic Book (the award ended up going to DC Comics' J.H. Williams III and W. Haden Blackman for Batwoman).

Dan Parent, who created Kevin Keller, was delighted by the character's warm reception.

I'm surprised how positive it's been, he told USA Today in 2011. We knew going into it we were doing the right thing. You're always prepared in the back of your mind for some backlash. Not to say there hasn't been some. Not everybody's particularly happy about it, but from where I'm sitting it's been about 98% positive.

Marvel Comics recently announced that two of its characters -- the superhero Northstar and his human boyfriend, Kyle -- would be celebrating their wedding in issue #51 of Astonishing X-Men, which hits stands on June 20.

Now to see whether fans will accept the revamped Green Lantern, and whether they'll soon have another wedding to celebrate!