Justice League Queer, or JLQ, is a fictional

superhero A superhero or superheroine is a fictional character who typically possesses ''superpowers'' or abilities beyond those of ordinary people, is frequently costumed concealing their identity, and fits the role of the hero, typically using their ...

team appearing in

American comic book An American comic book is a thin periodical literature originating in the United States, commonly between 24 and 64 pages, containing comics. While the form originated in 1933, American comic books first gained popularity after the 1938 publ ...

s published by

DC Comics DC Comics (originally DC Comics, Inc., and also known simply as DC) is an American comic book publisher owned by DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC is an initialism for "Detective Comics", an American comic book seri ...

. Justice League Queer was an

ad-hoc ''Ad hoc'' is a Latin phrase meaning literally for this. In English, it typically signifies a solution designed for a specific purpose, problem, or task rather than a generalized solution adaptable to collateral instances (compare with ''a pr ...

team of

LGBTQIA+ LGBTQ people are individuals who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, or questioning. Many variants of the initialism are used; LGBTQIA+ people incorporates intersex, asexual, aromantic, agender, and other individuals. The group is ...

heroes formed by Gregorio de la Vega to fight off

Eclipso Eclipso () is a supervillain in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by Bob Haney and Lee Elias, the character first appeared in '' House of Secrets'' #61 (August 1963). The character bears notable similarities to Dr. Jekyll and Mr. ...

when he attacked a pride parade. The team is a variation on one of DC's long-running properties, the

Justice League The Justice League, or Justice League of America (JLA), is a group of superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The team first appeared in ''The Brave and the Bold'' #28 (March 1960). Writer Gardner Fox conceived the ...

(originally and sometimes still known as the Justice League of America, commonly abbreviated as "JLA"). The JLQ was originated by Andrew Wheeler and Luciano Vecchio.

Publication history

DC introduced the concept as one of 16 entries in a bracket tournament called Round Robin, which was announced on DC's Twitter account on March 31, 2021. The public voted for pitches they would like to see as a six-issue miniseries. JLQ was eliminated in the first round. The inclusion of JLQ in a tournament generated criticism from those who felt that it gave people a platform to anonymously reject representation in comics, "effectively a referendum on the existence of queer superheroes". Though JLQ did not win the tournament, its bracket was the focus of a sizable number of votes. The team debuted in a narrative written by Wheeler in ''DC Pride'' #1, a comic book released on June 8, 2021 (which falls during

Pride Month Pride Month, sometimes specified as LGBTQ Pride Month, is a List of month-long observances, month-long observance dedicated to the celebration of LGBTQ pride, commemorating the contributions of lesbian, gay, Bisexuality, bisexual, transgender a ...

in the United States). Their next appearance was in the 2021 holiday anthology comic book ''‘Tis the Season to be Freezin’'' (

cover date The cover date of a periodical publication is the date displayed on the cover, which is not necessarily the true date of publication (the on-sale date or release date); later cover dates are common in magazine and comic book publishing. More unusu ...

d February 2022).

Members

All members joined in ''DC Pride'' #1 (August 2021): * The Aerie – a gender non-binary terrorist, first appearing in ''

Suicide Squad The Suicide Squad is an antihero/supervillain team appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The first version of the Suicide Squad debuted in ''The Brave and the Bold'' #25 (September 1959) and the second and modern version, cre ...

'' Volume 6 #1 (February 2020). They are dating

Wink A wink is a facial expression made by briefly closing one eye. A wink is an informal mode of non-verbal communication usually signaling shared hidden knowledge or intent. However, it is ambiguous by itself and highly dependent upon additional c ...

and are a

metahuman In the DC Universe, a metahuman is a human with superpowers. The term is roughly synonymous with the terms '' mutant'', '' inhuman'' and '' mutate'' in the Marvel Universe and '' posthuman'' in the Wildstorm and Ultimate Marvel Universes. In ...

, with organic blue wings. *

Apollo Apollo is one of the Twelve Olympians, Olympian deities in Ancient Greek religion, ancient Greek and Ancient Roman religion, Roman religion and Greek mythology, Greek and Roman mythology. Apollo has been recognized as a god of archery, mu ...

– a

gay ''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'. While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late ...

superhero, also known as Andrew Pulaski, first appearing in '' StormWatch'' Volume 2 #4 (February 1998). He is married to

Midnighter Midnighter is a superhero appearing in American comic books first published by WildStorm and later DC Comics once it absorbed the former. The character was created by writer Warren Ellis and artist Bryan Hitch. The character made his first appe ...

and is a metahuman with solar abilities, as well as flight, speed, and strength comparable to

Superman Superman is a superhero created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, which first appeared in the comic book ''Action Comics'' Action Comics 1, #1, published in the United States on April 18, 1938.The copyright date of ''Action Comics ...

. *

Aqualad Aqualad is the alias of several superheroes in American comic books published by DC Comics and appearing in media published by DC Entertainment. The character was originally created by writer Robert Bernstein and artist Ramona Fradon, serving as ...

– a half-Atlantean gay superhero, also known as Jackson Hyde, first appearing in ''

Brightest Day ''Brightest Day'' is a 2010–2011 Crossover (comics), crossover storyline published by DC Comics, consisting of a year-long comic book Limited series (comics), maxiseries that began in April 2010, and a number of tie-in books. The story is a dir ...

'' #4 (August 2010). As well as possessing superior Atlantean physical attributes, Aqualad can control and create hard constructs out of water. *

Batwoman Batwoman is a name of several superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, depicted as female counterparts and allies of Batman similarly to Batgirl. The original version of the character, Kathy Kane (eventually given t ...

- a

lesbian A lesbian is a homosexual woman or girl. The word is also used for women in relation to their sexual identity or sexual behavior, regardless of sexual orientation, or as an adjective to characterize or associate nouns with female homosexu ...

superhero, also known as Katherine Kane, first appearing in '' 52'' #7 (August 2006). She deploys her considerable combat training and wealth in a never-ending war on crime. *

Bunker A bunker is a defensive military fortification designed to protect people and valued materials from falling bombs, artillery, or other attacks. Bunkers are almost always underground, in contrast to blockhouses which are mostly above ground. T ...

– a gay superhero from Mexico, also known as Miguel Barragan, first appearing in ''

Teen Titans The Teen Titans are a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, frequently in eponymous monthly series. As the group's name indicates, the members are teenage superheroes, many of whom have acted as sidekicks to DC ...

'' Volume 4 #1 (November 2011). Miguel has the

ability to create constructs out of energy bricks, similar to

Green Lantern Green Lantern is the name of several superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. They fight evil with the aid of rings that grant them a variety of extraordinary powers, all of which come from imagination, fearlessness, ...

. *

Crush Crush may refer to: * Infatuation or limerence, the romantic attraction to another person * Puppy love, feelings of love, romance, or infatuation felt by young people Crush may also refer to: Film * Crush (1972 film), ''Crush'' (1972 film), a H ...

– a lesbian superhero, also known as Xiomara Rojas, first appearing in '' Teen Titans Special'' #1 (August 2018). She is the daughter of the Czarnian alien anti-hero Lobo and inherits his considerable strength and regenerative abilities. *

Extraño Extraño is a superhero magician appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Steve Englehart and artist Joe Staton, he first appeared in ''Millennium'' #2 (January 1988). Extraño is noted for being the first openl ...

– a gay superhero sorcerer from Peru, also known as Gregorio de la Vega, first appearing in ''

Millennium A millennium () is a period of one thousand years, one hundred decades, or ten centuries, sometimes called a kiloannum (ka), or kiloyear (ky). Normally, the word is used specifically for periods of a thousand years that begin at the starting ...

'' #2 (January 1988). He is married to

Tasmanian Devil The Tasmanian devil (''Sarcophilus harrisii''; palawa kani: ''purinina'') is a carnivorous marsupial of the family Dasyuridae. It was formerly present across mainland Australia, but became extinct there around 3,500 years ago; it is now con ...

and is one of the DC Universe's top sorcerers. *

– a gay superhero first appearing in '' StormWatch'' Volume 2 #4 (February 1998). He is married to

. His use of stealth and martial arts combined with a metahumanly high pain tolerance and the ability to predict his opponents' movements to make him a formidable opponent. * The Ray – a gay superhero, also known as Raymond Terrill, first appearing in '' The Ray'' #1 (February 1992). He has the metahuman ability to manipulate light and radiation, both offensively as well as to fly or turn invisible. *

Shining Knight Shining Knight (; ) is the name of multiple fictional superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The original version was created by Creig Flessel and first appeared in ''Adventure Comics'' #66 (September 1941). Fict ...

– a gender non-binary immortal swordfighter from

Arthurian According to legends, King Arthur (; ; ; ) was a king of Britain. He is a folk hero and a central figure in the medieval literary tradition known as the Matter of Britain. In Welsh sources, Arthur is portrayed as a leader of the post-Ro ...

England, known as Ystina, first appearing in '' Seven Soldiers: Shining Knight'' #1 (May 2005). *

Steel Steel is an alloy of iron and carbon that demonstrates improved mechanical properties compared to the pure form of iron. Due to steel's high Young's modulus, elastic modulus, Yield (engineering), yield strength, Fracture, fracture strength a ...

– a

queer ''Queer'' is an umbrella term for people who are non-heterosexual or non- cisgender. Originally meaning or , ''queer'' came to be used pejoratively against LGBTQ people in the late 19th century. From the late 1980s, queer activists began to ...

superhero, also known as Natasha Irons, first appearing in ''

'' Volume 2 #1 (February 1994). She uses highly advanced armor and technology made from sentient metal. * Sylvan "Syl" Ortega – a gay superhero from Brazil who is the magical apprentice to

, first appearing in ''DC Pride'' #1 (June 2021). The would-be '' pajé'' of an extinct South American tribe, he has a natural affinity for plant-based magic. *

– a gay

therianthrope In mythology, folklore and speculative fiction, shapeshifting is the ability to physically transform oneself through unnatural means. The idea of shapeshifting is found in the oldest forms of totemism and shamanism, as well as the oldest existen ...

superhero from Australia, also known as Hugh Dawkins, first appearing in ''

Super Friends ''Super Friends'' is an American animated television series about a team of superheroes which ran from 1973 to 1985 on ABC as part of its Saturday-morning cartoon lineup. It was produced by Hanna-Barbera and was based on the Justice League of Am ...

'' #9 (December 1977). He is married to

. *

Traci 13 Traci Thirteen, also known as Girl 13 and Traci 13, is a superhero featured in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Joe Kelly and artist Dwayne Turner, she first appeared in ''Superman'' vol. 2 #189 (February 2003). Trac ...

– a bisexual superhero, also known as Traci Thirteen or Traci Thurston, first appearing in ''

'' Volume 2 #189 (February 2003). She is a member of the ''homo magi'' race with magical abilities linked to "the magic of cities". *

Tremor A tremor is an involuntary, somewhat rhythmic muscle contraction and relaxation involving neural oscillations, oscillations or twitching movements of one or more body parts. It is the most common of all involuntary movements and can affect the h ...

– an

asexual Asexual or Asexuals may refer to: *Asexual reproduction **Asexual reproduction in starfish *Asexuality, the lack of sexual attraction to anyone or lack of interest in or desire for sexual activity. **Gray asexuality, the spectrum between asexualit ...

Bengali superhero from India, also known as Roshanna Chatterji, first appearing in ''

Secret Six The so-called Secret Six, or the Secret Committee of Six, were a group of men who secretly funded the 1859 raid on Harper's Ferry by abolitionist John Brown. Sometimes described as "wealthy," this was true of only two. The other four were in po ...

'' Volume 3 #25 (November 2010). She has the power to create shockwaves. *

– a queer terrorist, first appearing in ''

'' Volume 6 #1 (February 2020). She is dating The Aerie and is a metahuman whose power is to teleport short distances at will.

References

{{Justice League characters DC Comics superhero teams DC Comics LGBTQ superheroes Superhero comics Comics characters introduced in 2021 Justice League