Green Lantern is gay in new comic book

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NEW YORK, June 1 (UPI) -- American superhero Green Lantern will be revealed as gay in the next edition of "Earth 2," DC Comics announced Thursday.

The character, whose alter ego Alan Scott was originally conceived as a married father of two, first appeared in comic books in 1940.

However, Green Lantern is gay and has a boyfriend in the next issue of "Earth 2," which is part of DC Comics' The New 52, a reboot of the franchise set it in a parallel universe to previous superhero stories.

"A team leader with a Type-A personality and an appetite for justice, Alan also happens to be homosexual," DC Comics said on its Web site. "And while his origins won't be shown in full detail until issue No. 3, we can tease that a traumatic event will serve as the catalyst for him assuming his superhero identity as The Green Lantern. ...

"In 'Earth 2,' he is getting an update for contemporary times to reflect the world we live in. He is younger, has an updated costume and is being introduced to DC Comics' The New 52 for the very first time. It is also important to note that while Alan is a gay man, his sexuality is merely only one part of his multi-layered character."

"I'm very proud to be introducing Alan Scott into DC Comics' The New 52," said series writer James Robinson. "He was my favorite Golden Age character and one I'm very familiar with so I'm really excited to be updating him for a contemporary readership. However, I think old-time readers will be pleasantly surprised by how, in some ways, I'm trying to show the 'classic' Alan Scott at the same time. He's still the same dynamic, heroic guy he was."

The character's sexuality is "incidental," said "Earth 2" artist Nicola Scott.

"Every time I draw him, I love him even more," she said.