‘X-Men’ hero Iceman to come out as gay in upcoming comic

Marvel’s “X-Men” comic series has been known as one of the most progressive in terms of diversity since its creation, and one of the superhero team’s original members is now making headlines for coming out as gay. Bobby Drake, better known to fans as Iceman, will officially be outed in “All-New X-Men” No. 40, which hits stands this Wednesday.

When X-Men hero Northstar married his boyfriend Kyle Jinadu in a 2012 issue, Marvel made headlines for publishing the first gay wedding in superhero comic history. Now, the company is adding one of the original X-Men characters to their list of LGBTQ superheroes. Bobby Drake notably dated fellow X-Man Kitty Pryde and a number of other women over the years, but in the upcoming issue of “All-New X-Men,” Jean Grey uses her psychic powers to determine that Iceman has always secretly been homosexual.

In Wednesday’s issue, Jean Grey confronts Bobby about her discovery, and while he initially denies her claims and claims to either be straight or possibly bisexual, he eventually admits the truth. Bobby’s sexuality has been a huge topic of discussion among X-Men fans since the issue was leaked online Tuesday morning, but “All-New X-Men” No. 40 writer Brian Michael Bendis is bothered that the media has been sensationalizing the reveal.

“I swear on my dogs, I wanted the issue to come out and just be. No press. No sensational headlines. No leaks. Oh, well…,” he wrote on Twitter.

“There are thousands if not millions of stories of people who, for many different reasons, felt the need to hide their sexuality,” Bendis explained to CNN in a statement. “The X-Men, with the conceit of time travel, give us a fascinating platform in which to examine such personal journeys. This is just the first little chapter of a much larger story that will be told.”

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