DC Comics has released the first issue of Midnighter, a new comic series from writer Steve Orlando and artist ACO. The title marks the first time that a major comic book company will publish an ongoing monthly series headlined by a gay male superhero.
Created by writer Warren Ellis and artist Bryan Hitch, Midnighter was introduced in the 1998 Wildstorm Comics series Stormwatch. He would subsequently appear in titles featuring the superhero team The Authority — alongside fellow teammate and husband Apollo — and his own GLAAD Media Award-nominated eponymous series, published under the Wildstorm imprint. When Wildstorm was folded into the mainstream DC Universe as a part of DC’s New 52 line-wide revamp, Midnighter appeared in a relaunched Stormwatch and as a supporting character in Grayson.
Though LGBT superheroes maintain a small but visible presence in mainstream comics, they are largely circumscribed to roles in team books and as supporting characters (e.g. Alan Scott in DC’s Earth 2, Iceman in Marvel’s All-New X-Men). With the cancellation of DC’s Batwoman earlier this year, Midnighter and Catwoman become the only LGBT superheroes from a major comic book company to presently have their own solo ongoing title.