Kevin Keller Sells Out Inaugural Archie Run!

Our favorite resident gay boy of Riverdale has been making some waves in the comic book industry. I, like many other a gay boy waited for my copy of the highly anticipated issue of Veronica which would introduce Archie Comics' first openly gay character. But low and behold, I never got a chance to because it sold out at my local comic book store. I waited for weeks as my comic store attempted to order more copies, but they never came. Evidently for good reason. Kevin Keller single-handedly sold out the entire run of Veronica #202.

While I'm saddened by my noticable lack of gay issue of Archie, it does tickle me pink that the rainbow dollar was able to demonstrate to Archie Comics publishers that their fans support the inclusion of a truly diverse cast and that their decision to reach out to new audiences by more closely emulating contemporary society pays off. 

Check out the official press release, after the jump:

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SuperQueeros! for September 29th, 2010

A much better showing this week when compared to last: two clans of ambiguously bi/gay women, two out and proud gay supes, and TORCHWOOD!

Torchwood #3

GARETH DAVID-LLOYD WROTE THE FIRST STORY! Everyone done swooning? Good: The tale involves Ianto (solo adventure?) meeting "a beautiful, deadly woman who may upend his life." So this looks like a prequel, but is it a pre-Lisa-the-Cyberwoman story or post-Cyberwoman? Is Ianto working for Torchwood One, or is this even earlier? There's only one way to find out! #buyit

(Also, Broken Part 3 is the back-up story and I think we are all eager for some inappropriately timed Ianto-Jack flirting!)

Wonder Woman #603

Last month JMS surprised us with one of the most kick-butt Wonder Woman stories I've read in a long while, and this month he adds to the growing mythology by introducing the monstrous Keres to fight Diana. Check out their wiki article here. Very exciting, no? Despite not featuring Anole, Ianto, or any visibly queer characters, this book is one of my most anticipated this month! #excited

X-Men: Legacy #240

The penultimate issue of the Dubai storyline, guest starring Anole! This'll mostly be watching Anole get his butt handed to him by the Children of the Vault until Luz steps in to save 'im (and the rest of the team), but any time in the spotlight is good time in the spotlight! Plus, maybe we'll get to see his camouflage powers interacting with Luz's light manipulation abilities!

JSA #43

Post-JLA crossover, Obsidian and his dad deal with the fall out. I am SO excited to finally get an Obsidian-centric story! Hopefully it will be a good one: I don't really know Obsidian beyond his sexuality, and, especially after putting him through the ringer, I think this book has an opportunity to redefine him as a person and a superhero. Also, maybe we will see something about his boyfriend?????

GCS #16

AWESOME CROSSOVER ALERT! Zatanna and Talia Al Ghul guest star as Catwoman is kidnapped, probably for her knowledge of Batman's identity. The December solicits are hinting at a potential secret tearing apart the Sirens: could this storyline - and Batman's impending return - be the end of this incarnation of the GCS??? It all starts here, folks!

Fan Art Friday: Rainbow Hulk!

I've been a big fan of the webcomic: The Gutters. It's a comic parodying the comic book industry by some of the best artists in the industry. 

Today's comic comments intersects the geek and the gay, and that's what we're all about here at Scarlet Betch. I really should make more of an effort to read Hulk related material, especially since my dreamy imaginary boyfriend, Greg Pak, does a tremendous amount of writing for the Hulk franchise. More than anything I'm hoping that She-Hulk makes a good resurgence. I liked her when she was with that super-powered law firm, and lost interest when she went from a high powered, superpowered attorney-at-law, to a convict-chasing bounty hunter with her "bosom buddy" Skrull compatriot. #RandoCalrissian.

Without further ado, here's the comic in question. And definitely check out the Gutters for more fantastic and hilarious work!

 

Wildstorm Goes Bye!

From newsarama.com:

Kiss Wildstorm good-bye! The home of Midnighter+Apollo and Rainmaker is soon to be a line of the past as the DC restructuring results in its closure! Everything ends this December, which means that, after the Wildcats issue out today, the denizens of the dilapidated Wildstorm-verse have 3 issues to fix their post-apocalyptic home! Limited series Welcome to Tranquility and DV8 will finish up after the December doom-date, but everything else will go on hiatus in 2011 until they can be revived as DC titles.

I'm fan-freaking-out about this development! What will happen to (my) Midnighter?!?! From a creative standpoint I know that a fan-loved pseudo-Batman is too much of a cash cow to radically retcon and that this is a perfect opportunity to breathe new life into his angst-ridden (and, frankly, super-boring) marriage, but if the Wildstorm-verse gets incorporated into the DCU, what will be the fate of a THIRD Batman? I just hope Midnighter doesn't turn into a guest cameo every time DC thinks it could use a few pink dollars!

On the upside, this could be like Marvel revamping th Ultimate line: a re-set for the books that were getting too bogged down or convoluted by their mythology/cast (Gen13, I hardly recognize you!) and a return to form for those titles that were getting it right (I love the Wildcats/Authority, but I'd like some sexual tension between Midnighter and Apollo. They're the only happily married couple who don't even look at each other...).

Conclusion: fingers crossed!

DC goes Bi... Bi-coastal

Big news comes out of DC Entertainment today as DCE President Diane Nelson announced that DC's multimedia and digital branches would be relocated to Burbank, CA while the publishing arm will remain in New York City. I for one am glad that DC Comics will remain in the Big Apple. Their legacy and centrality to the comic industry is really rooted in Manhattan. Newsarama did a great piece on the pros and cons of a move to the West Coast, but I think that if DC had indeed moved all of its properties to California, it would have deep implications for comic books and their future.

At Dragon-Con, I went to a panel on Comic book plotting featuring legendary comic creator Peter David (amongst others), he and the other panelists talked at length on how contemporary comics, especially those produced by the big houses, have heavy influences from Hollywood. Not only in structure and narrative, but moreso on making sure that a comic franchise is saleable and easily transferable to a Hollywood film budget.

While this might still be the general trend in comic books with DC's affiliation with Warner Entertainment and Marvel coming under the rule of the Great Mouse... there is still some hope that comic books will retain some of their wonder and iconic status.

Check out the press release after the jump:

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SuperQueeros! for September 22nd, 2010

Wow. This is an auspicious week for queer characters in comic books. Look how many titles they're featured in this week:

Wildcats #27

That's right. One. One comic book. Hopefully Apollo and/or Midnighter are featured, since the cast of this title is HUGE and neither one of Wildstorm's First Husbands of Heroics are mentioned in the solicit (though, come on: this is Midnighter's book!). Either way, it's the only comic we've got this week, so pick it up and see how the guardians of a wasted Earth work to solve the myriad of issues the apocalypse has left behind!

Fan Art Friday: Disney Princess Superheroes

I love superhero costume redesigns. I follow Project Rooftop on my RSS Reader, I draw my own superhero redesigns... So I naturally beamed when this fabulous piece of fan-art came my way. Kreugan on DeviantArt has made a pretty fantastic rendition of Disney Princesses re-imagined as superheroes. Clearly, that hits a soft spot of sorts for me. I love the Cinderella as Ice, but I can't stand that Aurora is now officially canonically Pink. MAKE IT BLUE should be the new HAN SHOT FIRST. Anyway, enjoy below: [source]

SuperQueeros! for September 15th, 2010

I've been meaning to link to my Flickr photostream of Dragon Con 2010, so there you go! And after you're done looking at that, take a look below at the three comics coming out this week that feature queer characters!

New Mutants #17

Fall of the New Mutants (a.k.a. Inferno 2.0!) continues! Last issue saw the introduction of the "10 mutant kill team" so this issue, I assume, will chronicle their first clash with the New Mutants. And that means KARMA'S-LEG ACTION! None of the villains are robots, though, so Karma may be too occupied taking over their minds to whip out the new hardware, but it's been months since she got that sucker: Let's take it for a test drive! Also Dani and Sam's crazy random kiss from last issue (or the one before?) is explained (though the explanation still assumes a pre-existing atmosphere of sexual tension. Slash alcohol consumption)!! #buyit

The Rawhide Kid #4

Marvel's queer cowboy wraps up his latest limited series this week as his Sensational Seven square off against Christos Pike's gang of cut-throats. I took a look at the preview and the first four pages building up to the climactic final assault depict... a straight kiss? Didn't the Rawhide Kid gather this gang? Shouldn't one of his exes be included in the mix, for some classic, drama-riddled sexual tension? Isn't that how stories work??? Rawhide Kid = tokenism, imo, so I haven't been reading this comic, but he's DEFINITELY Family, so pick it up if Queer Cowboy for the Straight Guy rings your bell!!

True Blood #3

Eric tells his tale this month, but Sam and Tara set a trap for the Trickster, so hopefully Lafayette will get to make a cameo during the scenes in Merlotte's. If you're mourning the end of the third season, this comic book be your crutch until next June!

One year anniversary and some exciting news!

Scarlet Betch is now on year old! A year ago, Anthony and I had an idea. We wanted to talk about comic books and general pan-geekery. We saw a lot of other people doing exactly what we wanted to do. And so... we just did it too. A year later, our podcast is still going strong and we're more excited than ever!

I guess it's only natural that our DIY enthusiasm would take itself to the next level. While we're still working out all the kinks, we're very excited to announce that Scarlet Betch, which has been your home for everything gay, geek, and gawesome... will be launching a new weekly (hopefully) webcomic series: SENSHI, a modern-day superhero re-imagining of the much beloved anime/manga series that will remain unnamed... ^_^''

We've added a new tag to our menu up top so that y'all can keep up with the latest in SENSHI. We'll post reminders here of course, but feel free to use that tab as your go-to.

and check out our teaser poster after the jump!

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More Pokemon News: CrAzY Typing!

THIS POST IS ABOUT POKEMON SPOILERS

EDIT: pokebeach.com just updated with about a google more spoilers!

Serebii.net just posted some spoilers for the soon-to-be-released new Pokemon games, and let me tell you, this sh!t is CRAZY! It's basically just the typing for the 12 legendary Pokemon in the game (counting Reshiram and Zekrom, not counting Victini), but the new typings are REVOLUTIONARY, especially the one that's bolded.

And, not spoil, but the version of the legendary birds/gerbils/golems/fairies is pretty easy to spot, and seems to be getting back to using a more diverse and interesting concept. This set appears to be dual-typed, recalling the diversity of Generation 1's Moltres, Zapdos, and Articuno. I'm also hoping that this generation will continue introducing "Regigigas"-like masters for either this new trio or past trios. That super-revolutionary monster I mentioned above could be one such master, and one of the event-only legendaries looks like it reflects the typing-pattern of this generation's trio.

Oh, and the typing of the third mascot dragon is revealed and it looks awesome! Given that Reshiram and Zekrom use their Fire and Electric-typings to propel themselves, like big jet engines, I'm not sure what that means for the central concept of the third dragon. Given that its typing seems to be opposed to motion/energy I think it's probable that we'll see a return to the third mascot's role as a peace-bringer, a la Generation III's Rayquaza. I imagine that Resh and Zek are duking it out, or constantly changing (see the hints that they will be able to change type during battle), and this third dragon will come and settle things down by stopping the cycle or locking their typing.

My last piece of speculation is that, given the tradition of having the last two event-only Pokemon be a cute, cuddly monster followed by a ridiculous, pwning monster, Generation V is definitely pulling something out of left field for its version of Deoxys/Arceus. That typing is... so... random!

Fan-Art Friday: Billy + Teddy in Avengers: Children's Crusade #2

I love fan art. I draw fan art. I troll fan art. And there are definitely a few choice artists that I follow with a burning loyalty. One of those artists is Chilean artist, Cris-art. She's been drawing Billy/Teddy for years (in addition to some *awesome* Robin/Superboy slashart) and this dropped into my deviantart notification pile:

Ripped from the pages of Avengers: Children's Crusade #2 after Wiccan disguises the team as the Von Trapp family. Way hot. Although a point of contention: I think Teddy was dressed as Rolph in his pre-Nazi Delivery boy uniform, rather than the one he has in this piece. Still... great work, and I highly suggest y'all go check out Cris-art's page. She's so HAWT.

Buffy Teaser Cover PWNS Twilight

Dark Horse recently released a cover of the final issue of Buffy Season 8 and it once again pokes fun at our favorite vampire fandom: Twilight. I really shouldn't pick on the twi-tards, cuz they're really just far too easy targets. It's like making a furry joke.. it's no fun to shoot at something that won't move. Behold:

Scarlet Betch Episode 27: "Live from Dragon*Con!"

Hey betches!

Anthony and I were at Dragon*Con this past weekend which was such a friggin' blast! I lost by Dragon*Con v-card and I loved it! Highlights included meeting Peter David, asking Brandon Routh to punch out my highlights while dressed as Knives Chau, and having a deep and fascinating talk about gender politics in Superhero comics. So much fun.

Naturally, Anthony and I took advantage of the rare happenstance when we are in the same geographic location to film a vlog for you all! This is breaking new ground for us at Scarlet Betch and we hope you enjoy! Let us know if you like this format and we'll try and do more of it in the future. For those of you subscribed to our podcast in iTunes, I'll work to update the audio from the vlog asap!

Dragon*Con Photos 2010

In case you're blue because you miss (or missed) Dragon Con, here are some photos to help ease the pain: A set on Flickr.

SuperQueeros! for September 9th, 2010

WOW! Just got back from Dragon*Con last night and let me tell you: WOW! As always it was an awesome four days of hot costumes (additional photos, also from 2009), hilarious superstar panels (Firefly cast!! Brandon Routh!! True Blood cast!!!! STAN FREAKING "THE MAN" LEE!!!!! [@therealstanlee on twitter!]), internet celebrities, awesome parties, cool new and classic comic creators, educational and awesome panels, and, of course, US!!!! A great time was impossible NOT to be had, even if you only went for only one day! Thanks to everyone who attended for making 2010 such a great Con, and to those who didn't or couldn't attend: drool over the photos, start saving your dollars, and meet us there in 2011!

Now, back to the SuperQueeros! schtick of listing this week's queer-inclusive comics! Remember, comics come out on Thursday this week, not Wednesday, because of Labor Day. If you know a comic I haven't included that has a queer character or queer themes, please let me know in the comments section and I'll add it!

Daken: Dark Wolverine #1

I'm so excited for Daken #1!! Marjorie Liu is still on writing duties, and we haven't seen a bisexual character in a solo title since BKV's Mystique, so it's basically awesome on all fronts! Perhaps it's a sign of progress that, not only has the shortest male hero in the Marvel U (sorry Puck, you're dead) also become the most ubiquitous, but that he has now spawned two ground-breaking characters: a female, 616-canon hero set to rival Mayday Parker in popularity and a bisexual male anti-hero.

Postive change feels good. So will reading this book! #cuteboys #violence

Green Lantern #57

This gets put on the list because the solicit features the words "a male Star Sapphire". The phrase after that is "in the form of the Predator", which basically both negates and hetero-normalizes the former phrase**, but I'm still allowing for the possibility that Geoff Johns will stop his trend of turning the DCU back into a straight, white boys club and feature a queer space hero. Buy it if you like Green Lantern, but not if you're expecting progress in comic books.

**Predator is the force that powers the Star Sapphires. In the past he has been shown to be an obsessive, controlling male who preys on the women whose power rings he fuels. By making him the only male Star Sapphire, the Violet Lantern Corps is effectively reduced to his heterosexual space-harem. Way to go, DC.

Scarlet Betch Episode 26: "Frosty Betches"

Scarlet Betch is back at it again. Jason and Anthony talk about the latest trends with gays and comics!

Featured music for this week is Freezepop's "Do You Like Boys"

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