Major spoilers for X-Men #14 ahead!
Year by year Marvel Comics continues to increase its LGBTQ+ representation, and the recent X-Men #14 offers a powerful argument for the importance of representing marginalized identities in media after the out gay hero Iceman saves the entire planet and speaks his truth. From the huge influx of transgender mutants introduced in this year's Marvel's Voices Pride 2022, to the debut of a new gay Spider-Man variant, Web Weaver, Marvel's editorial and creative teams continue to prove that they're getting more serious about the genuine, consistent representation of marginalized identities.
In particular the X-Office is chock-full of queer writers and artists, and while there is still a need for more representation of trans and BIPOC voices, the message that Iceman gives to the world in X-Men #14 is nonetheless important. One of Marvel's most famous queer characters, the X-Men hero Bobby Drake has been out as a gay man since 2015, and while there have been several solo Iceman titles that have explored his sexuality, it is still a big deal that a standalone X-Men comic features a discussion of Iceman's identity so prominently.
X-Men #14 - written by the talented Gerry Duggan with gorgeous art by Carlos Villa and Matt Milla - takes place during the horrifying Judgment Day event that has taken over most of Marvel Comics, but mainly focuses on Cyclops' new X-Men team. The issue opens with a quote from the Omega-level mutant Iceman, "No more holding back," beautifully setting the tone for the rest of the issue. Readers soon meet a journalist who has written an article about Bobby Drake saving the world that day, with the reporter's editor saying, "Lose the gay angle... 'gay mutant hero'... does it really matter to the story?" The issue then flashes back to earlier in the day when a group of violent aliens have shot a flare generator into the Earth's sun, setting up a massive solar flare that will be an "extinction level event," at least until Iceman and the mutants of Krakoa stops the flare from destroying the Earth.
Iceman Makes The X-Men's Biggest Mutant Metaphor Work
Using his incredibly powerful Omega-level mutant ability Iceman is able to create an ice shield so thick and vast that it stops the massive coronal outburst, saving humanity and all Earth. As Iceman descends to the planet he gives a speech to the reporter as well as a crowd of clearly bigoted anti-mutant humans. He effectively uses the "mutant metaphor" by not just implying that his identity as a mutant is similar to his identity as a gay man, but actually making that connection out loud, creating a legitimate intersection between his two marginalized identities.
For decades X-Men stories have used the mutant metaphor to compare the discrimination and plight of Marvel's mutants to real world issues like racism, antisemitism, and homophobia. While the mutant metaphor can be incredibly clunky or disingenuous at times, Duggan is able to effectively use it in X-Men #14 to enhance and develop the central story. Returning to the journalist, she tells her editor that he can take her article as it is or not run it at all since Iceman just saved the world "...and the least we can do is not erase his existence." She goes on to say, "I will not erase truth to coddle the small-minded," a truly beautiful sentiment about the power and necessity of genuine queer representation.
The truth is that LGBTQ+ folks exist, and are deserving of recognition, respect, and love. One of the best ways to do that is to offer honest, realistic representation of queer identities that doesn't pander to the reader or rely on stereotypes. This is something Marvel Comics has achieved in its continued development of Iceman, and its LGBTQ+ characters in general.
X-Men #14 is available now in stores!
