The New Superman Comes Out As Bisexual In New DC Comic

More than 80 years after the Man of Steel debuted on comic book pages, his son is making history as DC Comics’ newest queer superhero.

In a blog post published Monday, DC Comics announced that Jon Kent, son of Clark Kent and Lois Lane, will take Superman’s story in “a bold new direction” when he becomes romantically involved with reporter Jay Nakamura.

"I've always said everyone needs heroes and everyone deserves to see themselves in their heroism,” writer Tom Taylor wrote on DC’s blog. “Superman's symbol has always stood for hope, for truth and for justice. Today, that symbol represents something more. Today, more people can see themselves in the most powerful superhero in comics."

The blog post also coincided with National Coming Out Day, which began in 1988 to mark the anniversary of the National March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights. Now an annual event, National Coming Out Day is observed on Oct. 11.

Here’s what we know about Jon Kent’s journey and what his coming out means to the Man of Steel’s fans:

Meet Jon Kent, the newest LGBTQ+ superhero.

The recently launched “Superman: Son of Kal-El” focuses on 17-year-old Jon Kent as he grapples with the biggest responsibility of his young life — inheriting the mantle of Superman from his father.

However, like his father before him, Kent falls for a reporter. After initially striking up a friendship with reporter Jay Nakamura, he and Jon become romantically involved in the forthcoming, fifth issue of “Son of Kal-El,” set for release Nov. 9.

Here’s how it happens: Following a scene where Superman mentally and physically burns out from trying to save anything and everyone, Jay is there to care for him, according to DC’s announcement.

While the overall plot of the issue has yet to be revealed, images from the comic show Kent and Nakamura sharing a kiss and sitting together atop a building.

Kent is hardly the only LGBTQ+ character in DC comics.

While Nakamura and Kent are the newest LGBTQ characters in the DC universe, they are far from the only or the first.

Earlier this year, DC introduced the character of Tim Drake, one of many Robins to fight alongside Batman. Drake came out when he accepted a date from a male admirer. Victoria October, a transgender scientist, also debuted in a 2017 Batman series.

Before Kent and Drake, there was Batwoman, who at one point was punished for her relationship with another woman under the U.S. military's former "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy, CNN reported.

Perhaps the most well-known LGBTQ character in the DC universe is Harley Quinn, who ditched the Joker for her friend Poison Ivy in recent comic runs.

"Relationships in Harley's love life are always a crazy ride," artist John Timms told IGN. "Still, the main lesson is to be as natural as possible, going with actions from within the characters, driven by emotions and letting them be. I hope to achieve the same with Jon and Jay.”

Fans are lauding the decision.

Reactions have been mostly positive, writer Taylor told Reuters.

"I'm seeing tweets of people saying they burst into tears when they read the news, that they wished that Superman was this when they were growing up, that they could see themselves," he told the publication.

One fan tweeted, “For a bisexual character to wear that S on their chest means more than people can possibly imagine. Suddenly, I'll be reading every single Jon Kent comic there is and I hope everyone else is just as happy as I am.”

“It’s about time. Now we need more people of color and how about a lesbian superhero too?” another Twitter user wrote.

A third fan added, “DC is providing an inclusive environment. Period. Representation matters.”

Could representation aim higher? Yes, but this is a good start, some say.

A Gallup survey released in February found that 5.6 percent of U.S. adults identify as LGBT, up from 4.5 percent in 2017.

Also, about 1 in 6 adults in Generation Z identifies as LGBT, according to a Washington Post report, with younger Americans drifting away from binary notions of gender and sexuality. Younger generations are also more likely than older generations to identify as something other than heterosexual.

NPR's Glen Weldon, who has written a book on Batman and regularly writes about comics, wrote that the queering of characters such as Superman is "progress.” However, because those coming out aren’t core characters, the representation isn’t as significant as it may seem, Weldon wrote this week.

“So instead the publisher introduces much-needed, long-overdue progress along the edges — a sympathetic villain here, a supporting character there. They re-introduce deep-bench characters that haven't appeared in any comic for decades, and slap 'em with a same-sex partner,” Weldon writes.

He continues, “Finally, they start nudging a few top-tier characters out of the closet — but are always careful never to send 'em out without first attaching an all-important asterisk, as a bulwark against any backlash from homophobic readers (and/or stockholders.)”

Writers say Kent’s sexuality is “not a gimmick.”

Wearing a T-shirt with a rainbow-striped Superman logo, Taylor told Reuters the decision for Superman to come out was “not a gimmick.”

"We didn't want this to be 'DC Comics creates new queer Superman,'" Taylor told Reuters. "We want this to be 'Superman finds himself, becomes Superman and then comes out,' and I think that's a really important distinction there."

Meanwhile, Taylor said he hopes Jon Kent’s story becomes the new normal.

"I hope this isn't a headline in a few years’ time. I hope this isn't trending on Twitter,” Taylor said. “I hope this is just something about a person and a good rep for everybody that (it) represents."