DC Pride (comics)

Last updated
DC Pride
DC Pride 1, standard cover.jpg
Publication information
Publisher DC Comics
FormatYearly
Genresee below
Publication date2021 - present
No. of issues4
Creative team
Written byVarious
Artist(s)Various

DC Pride is an annual LGBTQIA+-themed comic book anthology first published by DC Comics in June 2021. The second anthology was published in June 2022, the third was released in May 2023 and the fourth in May 2024. A fifth issue is set for release on June 4, 2025.

Contents

Publication and promotion

DC Pride was first announced in March 2021 as an 80-page anthology comic focusing on DC Comics' various LGBTQ characters. [1] It was published in June as a celebration of Pride Month. [2] The anthology is also meant to celebrate the LGBT creators working at DC, with the anthology's writers and artists being members of the LGBT community. [3] [4]

As part of their celebration of Pride Month, DC also announced the limited series Crush & Lobo, focusing on the mercenary Lobo and his lesbian daughter Crush; [5] June would also see the release of the graphic novel Poison Ivy: Thorns. [4] [6] DC Pride also marks the first instance of Nia Nal / Dreamer appearing in comics; the story is written by actress and activist Nicole Maines, who originally portrayed the character in the television series Supergirl . Maines described herself as very excited at getting the opportunity to write the character. [7]

A second anthology, DC Pride 2022, was released in June 2022. [8] DC Comics stated that it is a "100+ page Prestige format annual anthology comic". [9]

In 2023, DC Comics published three titles for Pride Month: DC Pride 2023 #1 (released in May), DC Pride: Through the Years #1 (released in June) and The DC Book of Pride (released on May 16). DC Pride 2023 #1 is the annual 100+ page prestige format anthology. DC Pride: Through the Years #1 is a reprint "collection of three older DC comics that featured LGBTQ+ characters". The DC Book of Pride, by Jadzia Axelrod, is a character guidebook on the 50+ LGBTQ+ DC characters. [10]

DC Pride 2024 was released on May 28, 2024. [11]

DC Pride 2025 was first announced on March 11, 2025, and will be released on June 4. In contrast to previous editions, this issue will feature one singular story arc of interweaving narratives centered around a century-old LGBTQ+ tavern in Gotham City. Additional variant covers of the issue will also be published throughout June and related variant covers will be published in other series throughout the year. [12] [13]

DC will release a trade paperback collecting DC Pride 2024 and other related stories under the title DC Pride: To the Farthest Reaches, and the DC Pride Box Set collecting the first three issues on May 27, 2025. Additionally all previous DC Pride comics will be released as webcomics on DC GO!. [12]

Content

2021

DC Pride was released on June 8, 2021, and consisted of the following stories: [14]

2022

DC Pride 2022 was released on June 14, 2022, and featured a foreword from Nicole Maines. The anthology consisted of the following stories: [15]

2023

DC Pride 2023 #1 was released on May 30, 2023. It featured a foreword from Phil Jimenez and an extended tribute to the late trailblazing writer Rachel Pollack, who died before she could begin working on a story for the book. The anthology consists of the following stories: [10] [22]

DC Pride: Through the Years #1, released on June 13, contains:

2024

DC Pride 2024 was released on May 28, 2024, and includes stories featuring Dreamer, Jon Kent, Poison Ivy, Steel (Natasha Irons), Aquaman (Jackson Hyde) and The Ray and a preview of the upcoming graphic novel The Strange Case of Harleen and Harley. [11] The anthology consists of the following stories:

2025

DC Pride 2025 is due for release on June 4, 2025. In contrast to previous editions, the 2025 issue of DC Pride will feature one singular story arc of interweaving narratives written by Vita Ayala, Jude Ellison, Maya Houston, Sam Maggs, Tim Sheridan, and Josh Trujillo. When a century old LGBTQ+ tavern in Gotham City announces its closure, Alan Scott and a host of other heroes and villains, including Question, Midnighter and Apollo, Harley Quinn, Jo Mullein, Bunker, Connor Hawke, and Blue Snowman, arrive to pay their respects. [12] [13]

Reception

Upon release, DC Pride #1 received widespread acclaim from comics critics. At the review aggregator website Comic Book Roundup, which assigns a weighted mean rating out of 10 to reviews from comics critics, the series received an average score of 9.2 based on 17 reviews. [23] Oliver Sava, for The A.V. Club , wrote: "Corporate offerings celebrating Pride Month often feel like disingenuous attempts to cash in on a social movement, but DC Pride #1 succeeds by showcasing the ways DC Comics has been pushing LGBTQ+ representation for years. [...] Many of the stories in DC Pride feel like the start of something more, and ideally there's enough interest in this one-shot that these heroes can spend more than a month in the spotlight". [24] Sava compared this issue to Marvel Voices Pride and called Marvel's issue "more of a mixed bag". Sava wrote that "while Marvel has dragged its feet in regards to meaningful LGBTQ+ representation in film and television, DC has spent the last decade expanding representation across all of its media". [24]

References

  1. Haring, Bruce (March 11, 2021). "DC Will Celebrate June's 'Pride Month' With Big Rollout Of LGBTQIA+ Projects". Deadline Hollywood . Penske Media Corporation. Archived from the original on March 29, 2021. Retrieved May 11, 2021.
  2. Doran, Michael (March 11, 2021). "Batwoman, Harley Quinn, Poison Ivy, and more take the spotlight in DC Pride #1 preview". GamesRadar+ . Future plc. Archived from the original on March 13, 2021. Retrieved May 11, 2021.
  3. Beresford, Trilby (March 11, 2021). "DC to Celebrate Pride With Anthology Comic Featuring Batwoman, Harley Quinn and More". The Hollywood Reporter . MRC. Archived from the original on May 11, 2021. Retrieved May 11, 2021.
  4. 1 2 Polo, Susana (March 11, 2021). "DC Comics' 2021 summer special is a wall-to-wall Pride celebration". Polygon . Vox Media. Archived from the original on March 16, 2021. Retrieved May 11, 2021.
  5. Jacobs, Mira (March 11, 2021). "DC Pride Anthology Comic Will Celebrate LGBTQIA+ Characters and Creators". Comic Book Resources . Valnet Inc. Archived from the original on March 16, 2021. Retrieved May 11, 2021.
  6. Johnson, Lauren M. (March 17, 2021). "DC and Marvel Comics will celebrate Pride month with comics featuring their queer characters". CNN. Archived from the original on March 21, 2021. Retrieved May 11, 2021.
  7. Jennings, Collier (March 11, 2021). "Supergirl Star Nicole Maines Pens Dreamer's Comic Debut in DC Pride #1". Comic Book Resources . Valnet Inc. Archived from the original on March 15, 2021. Retrieved May 11, 2021.
  8. "DC and Marvel Comics' Pride Month Plans Are Not Created Equal". Gizmodo . March 15, 2022. Retrieved April 19, 2022.
  9. "DC Pride 2022". DC (Press release). March 15, 2022. Retrieved April 19, 2022.
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "DC Pride Month to Include Collection of Out-of-Print LGBTQ+ Comics". ICv2 . March 13, 2023. Retrieved March 13, 2023.
  11. 1 2 "DC PRIDE 2024 #1". DC. Retrieved 2025-05-13.
  12. 1 2 3 "DC Pride 2025: A Triumphant and Timely Story of Community!". DC (Press release). March 11, 2025. Retrieved 2025-05-13.
  13. 1 2 Jules Chin Green (March 11, 2025). "DC's original Green Lantern headlines 2025 Pride anthology, alongside Harley Quinn, Green Arrow Connor Hawke, Midnighter and Apollo, and the Question". Popverse. Retrieved 2025-05-13.
  14. Rude, May (May 7, 2021). "DC Comics Previews 'DC Pride #1" Art, Includes 'Be Gay, Do Crimes' Story". Out . Archived from the original on May 8, 2021. Retrieved May 11, 2021.
  15. "DC Comics' 2022 Pride Anthology Gets a Boost From the Best Batman Ever". Gizmodo. 13 April 2022. Retrieved 2022-04-19.
  16. Doran, Michael (May 5, 2022). "Superman gets a new cape for DC Pride 2022". gamesradar.
  17. Theron, Clint (June 7, 2022). "DC Pride 2022: Nubia in "Confessions"".
  18. Jesus, Gabriel De (June 7, 2022). "DC Pride 2022: Tim Drake in "Special Delivery"".
  19. Hochwender, Lillian (June 7, 2022). "DC Pride 2022: "The Gumshoe in Green": The Bi Sleep".
  20. "Discovering Asexuality with Connor Hawke". DC. June 9, 2022.
  21. ""Finding Batman" By Kevin Conroy Is A Story For The Ages". June 13, 2022.
  22. "DC Reveals First Look at DC Pride 2023 Specials and Variant Covers". ComicBook.com . March 13, 2023. Retrieved March 13, 2023.
  23. "DC Pride #1 Reviews (2021)". Comic Book Roundup. Archived from the original on March 16, 2022. Retrieved March 16, 2022.
  24. 1 2 "DC Pride highlights the publisher's commitment to LGBTQ+ stories". The A.V. Club. June 29, 2021. Retrieved April 19, 2022.