Original X-Men character 'Ice Man' to come out as gay in latest Marvel comics storyline

Robert “Bobby” Drake, popularly know as the Iceman, one of the founding members of X-Men and an immensely popular character in the Marvel comic book universe is coming out of the closet. [caption id=“attachment_747243” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Reuters[/caption] In pages leaked from upcoming X-Men issue no. 40, Jean Grey, another popular charter in the universe, quite bluntly outs Bobby over his sexual orientation, saying “Bobby, you’re gay,” to which he agrees. The series is currently following a complex plot, where the young selves of the characters are time-traveling and teaming up and fighting alongside their adult selves. This only further complexes the situation of the teenage Bobby being gay, as his adult self in the series is presented to be a heterosexual and had many relations with women through his life. What this will mean for the adult (present) Iceman is unclear. Initially, the series author Brian Michael Bendis wasn’t too amused with the leak.

i swear on my dogs, i wanted the issue to come out and just be. no press. no sensational headlines. no leaks. oh, well.

— BRIAN MICHAEL BENDIS (@BRIANMBENDIS) April 21, 2015

“There are thousands if not millions of stories of people who, for many different reasons, felt the need to hide their sexuality. The X-Men, with the conceit of time travel, give us a fascinating platform in which to examine such personal journeys. This is just the first little chapter of a much larger story that will be told,” said Bendis later in a statement released by Marvel . Iceman is now the most popular character to come out as gay in the Marvel universe, although not the only one. Northstar, Marvel’s first openly gay hero, recently tied the knot with his boyfriend in superhero comics’ first same-sex wedding. This comes as the latest in Marvel’s attempts to diversify its characters. Here’s the essential leaked page: [caption id=“attachment_2207310” align=“aligncenter” width=“615”]  IMAGE: MARVEL/MAHMUD ASRAR[/caption]