LGBTQIA+ characters are more visible than ever in the DC Universe, and today there is no shortage of romantic moments between queer characters. That means queer characters get their chance to shine in series throughout the whole year, not just in the month of June. Still, it is Pride Month, so while we welcome and applaud the DCU’s steps towards becoming a more inclusive and authentically diverse world, romance between queer characters is still infrequent compared to all that’s come before. Perhaps that’s why it resonates and stays with us when we do get to experience it. Without further ado, let’s take a look at the five most romantic moments found in DC comics, starring our favorite queer couples.
Midnighter and Apollo Reunite While Liberating Warworld
Happens In: Superman: Warworld Apocalypse #1
It’s tough to pick just one romantic moment for Midnighter and Apollo because their commitment and connection to each other is so moving. But their reunion in the midst of fighting Mongul’s hordes in the finale of Action Comics’ Warworld Saga showcases everything I love about them as a couple.
For much of the Warworld Saga, Apollo was imprisoned and the two had been separated. All the while, Midnighter was working with Superman to rally the prisoners of Warworld to liberate the planet and rescue his husband. With the help of their fellow Authority member, Manchester Black, Apollo was able to free himself of Mongul’s control. What’s more romantic than spending months working out an impossible plan to save your husband from an evil tyrant?
Io Makes a Weapon for her Partner, Nubia
Happens In: Nubia and the Amazons #4
The Amazons have some of the most distinctive weapons in the DC Universe, and Nubia is no different. In Stephanie Williams, Vita Ayala, Darryl Banks and Alitha Martinez’s Nubia and the Amazons #4, the heroine’s partner, Io, gifts her with a brand-new weapon that she forged herself. Io is the chief blacksmith of Themyscira, who uses her talents to support Nubia in her greatest hour of need. By creating a versatile new weapon that can act as both a spear and a whip, Io gifts Nubia with a tool to save Themyscira.
One of the loveliest parts about Io giving Nubia this weapon is the way it represents Io’s understanding of her partner. She isn’t there to talk someone as headstrong as Nubia out of the mission she’s committed to. Instead, Io has already anticipated her partner’s decision, and come up with a truly remarkable and unique weapon that she can use to protect herself.
Batwoman Proposes to Maggie Sawyer
Happens In: Batwoman #17
It’s not easy being a superhero with a civilian partner. When Batwoman proposed to her girlfriend, Maggie Sawyer, in Batwoman #17 by J.H. Williams III and W. Haden Blackman, it was a groundbreaking moment for queer characters in superhero comics. The proposal came after Kate spent the issue fighting Medusa with Wonder Woman and Hawkfire.
Williams’s artwork on Batwoman is masterful, and this splash page with Kate and Maggie is the perfect romantic ending to an action-packed issue. While the couple unfortunately didn’t work out in the long run, there’s still hope that the Kate and Maggie can reunite in the future. Fingers crossed!
Poison Ivy Devises a Way for Her and Harley Quinn to be Reborn Together
Happens In: DC Love is a Battlefield #1
Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy are perfect matches for each other. In one tear-jerking moment in Tim Seeley, Rebekah Isaacs, Kurt Michael Russell and Travis Lanham’s story, “The Beginning,” Ivy reveals to a dying Harley that she’s created a way for them to stay together forever. With both of them now in their old age, Pamela has created a pill using Lazarus seeds that will allow them to be reborn as plants.
This reveal comes after an extended flashback sequence that we don’t realize is a flashback sequence at first, as Harley and Ivy reminisce on their adventures together when they were young. The commitment that Ivy shows to her dying partner is one of the most bittersweet moments in DC history.
Jon Kent and Jay Nakamura Defeat Henry Bendix
Happens In: Superman: Son of Kal-El #15
Being Superman requires the bravery to not live in hiding. When Jon Kent and Jay Nakamura first got together, Jon was concerned about his new boyfriend potentially getting hurt. But as the two took on the powerful villain, Henry Bendix, Jay revealed that he had the power of intangibility, making it almost impossible for him to get hurt.
Later in Superman: Son of Kal-El #15 by Tom Taylor, Cian Tormey and Scott Hanna, the two share a kiss in front of a crowd of people after defeating Bendix. Because neither of them were wearing disguises, this was a moment of powerful queer visibility that was a perfect ending for this particular arc in Jon Kent’s story. The fact that it happens after they take down a dictator makes it even better.
Jules Chin Greene writes about comics for DC.com, and his work can also be found at Nerdist, Popverse and Multiverse of Color. You can follow him on Twitter and Bluesky at @JulesChinGreene.
NOTE: The views and opinions expressed in this feature are solely those of Jules Chin Greene and do not necessarily reflect those of DC or Warner Bros. Discovery, nor should they be read as confirmation or denial of future DC plans.