Previous Posts: Introduction | Chapter 1: Lee/Kirby Part 1 | Chapter 2: Lee/Kirby Part 2 | Chapter 3: The Roy Thomas Era (1966-1968) | Chapter 4: The End of the Silver Age (1968-1970)

Before we’re done with the Silver Age, there are several modern stories that fit chronologically into this era. Some of these stories are meant to give a modern update to looser stories of the sixties, some are used to establish themes that wouldn’t be as important until decades later, and some are just using a convenient location for nostalgia-based stories. This week, we’re looking at continuity implant stories that take place in Iceman’s backstory or during the X-Men’s first year, up to around X-Men #6.

 

Iceman Vol 1 #1-4 – flashbacks (December 1984-June 1985)
Writer: J.M. DeMatteis
Penciler: Alan Kupperberg

We’ll cover the first Iceman mini – which is chock full of stuff to unpack – when we get to the New Defenders era, but for now we’ll just cover the flashbacks and back story it contains.

In issue #2, Iceman reminisces about a beach vacation when he was 3. Other parts of the miniseries have Bobby explaining that his parents suffocated him with their love – a reading that is somewhat at odds with later stories where William Drake was always cold and distant.

In the rest of the mini, we also learn that Bobby has a never-again-seen cousin Mary, with whom he was so close she figured out he was a mutant when they were children. For what it’s worth, the miniseries also establishes that Bobby is half-Jewish, half-Irish Catholic, and he jokes about having gone to Hebrew school as a kid. Other family members introduced are an uncle George who died in World War II before Bobby’s parents were married, a couple of aunts, and a cousin Joel who works as an accountant – none has been seen again. The mini also establishes his hometown as Port Jefferson on Long Island.

Continuity glitch: Bobby’s childhood bedroom has a diploma from “Prof. Xavier’s School for Gifted Children” on the wall. Oops.

 

Uncanny X-Men #319 -flashback (December 1994)
Writer: Scott Lobdell
Penciler: Steve Epting

As a kid, Bobby builds sandcastles on the beach and his dad is not impressed.

Bit of a swipe at the beach memory from above, but it continues the theme of his dad being quite cold and distant. We’ll come back to this issue and storyline when we get around to the Lobdell era.

 

 

X-Men Forever Vol 1 #1-6 (January-June 2001)
Writer: Fabian Nicieza
Penciler: Kevin Maguire

A time-travelling scratch team of Iceman, Jean Grey, Mystique, Juggernaut, and Toad are assembled by Prosh and a surprise villain must solve the mysteries of human mutation and potential.

This series inserts a handful of scenes into Bobby’s youth and the silver age. The earliest is an anecdote about how Bobby broke his arm when he was 10 and his father yelled at him for crying – continuing a theme of Bobby’s father being distant and cruel to a son who’s not manly enough.

We also get a couple of scenes of teenage Bobby suffering from feeling constantly cold – he’s wearing a parka in summer and shivering. This seems to be referencing the non-continuity miniseries X-Men: Children of the Atom (2000), the only previous place we’ve seen Bobby physically in pain as his powers developed. But it works well thematically for Bobby to be suffering as puberty arrives and he begins to understand his difference. Bobby also makes a joke about asking out cute blonde girl who lives down the street, causing time-travelling adult Jean to roll her eyes because, again, she knows he’s gay.

Finally, issue #4 inserts a scene between X-Men #13-14, where the team is training in the danger room, and Jean and Iceman are inhabited by their time-travelling adult selves. Iceman takes the opportunity to play-wrestle with the other boys (referencing a scene in X-Men #11), which Jean captions by thinking “Come to think of it… Maybe this wasn’t such an innocent time after all.” Hmmm.

This series has only been reprinted in the X-Men: Eve of Destruction Omnibus and is not on Marvel Unlimited.

 

 

 

X-Men Origins: Iceman (November 2009)
Writer: Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa
Penciller: Phil Noto

This may be the first Iceman comic written by a gay man, and Aguirre-Sacasa does not hold back on the parallels. Still, this is a fairly straightforward retelling of the “Origins of the X-Men” backup strip from X-Men #44-46 but slightly updated and expanded.

First, we see Bobby first develop his powers in front of his parents, who, in line with the original story, reassure him that they still love him, but make it clear that he’s got to keep his powers hidden.

Aguire-Sacasa slightly expands on Bobby’s brief romance with his girlfriend Judy, but there’s still some definite coding here. Bobby’s big date idea is to take her to a screening of West Side Story. Aside from being a lavish musical, the clips of the movie we see in the story are bits where Tony and Maria fight over identity. “But you are not one of us and I am not one of you,” is one of the few lines given, which as a reader we’re meant to read as a key moment that registers to Bobby. Obviously it lands because of Bobby’s mutation, but also because of his sexuality. Is Bobby making an advance specifically to deny that difference?

Judy kisses Bobby, prompting him to tell her his big secret but gets cut off by the gang before he can say anything. Was he going to come out as a mutant or as gay?

The threatened gang-rape of Judy, more explicit in this story than the original, comes along with an assertion from gang leader Rocky Beasley that Bobby doesn’t or can’t perform sexually for her. During the attack, Rocky even asserts that Bobby’s efforts to defend Judy are a come on to him.

In other parts of the story, Bobby considers news reports he’s seen about mutants and how many teenage mutants commit suicide out of fear when they’re discovered. This is, of course, an obvious and sad parallel to Bobby’s other difference.

We also get a heart-wrenching moment when we get to the part where Xavier wipes the town’s memories of Bobby’s powers and Bobby notes that his parents won’t really know him anymore. Xavier, an old school mutant, sadly notes “…Sometimes it’s better for our loved ones not to know.”

By 2003, speculation about Iceman’s sexuality had leapt well beyond a small subsection of comics fandom, after the “Have you tried not being a mutant” coming out scene in X2: X-Men United. So the comics are getting quite a bit more explicit at dropping clues at this point.

Minor continuity point: This story gives Bobby’s home town as “Fort Washington,” a fictional town on Long Island. The earlier Iceman miniseries had established it as the real Port Jefferson on Long Island.

 

X-Men Unlimited Vol 2 #9 (August 2005)
Writer: Damon Hurd
Penciler: Mark Brooks

Bobby reminisces about being recruited into the X-Men while writing a resignation letter he doesn’t send.

This one-page summary of the origin backup in X-Men #44-46 doesn’t entirely match, but it can be slightly written off as Bobby’s idealized memory of the events.

Bobby reminisces about his date with Judy, “Back then all I worried about was my first kiss.” Probably a terrifying moment for a closeted teen, despite what the art is showing.

Bobby also idealizes Scott in this story as the hero who saves them from the mob – in the original Bobby did that himself, and Scott was the asshole who broke him out of jail and threatened to beat him up if he didn’t come with him. But Bobby is writing this letter to Scott, so he may be trying to flatter him. Or Bobby may honestly be idealizing this memory: “Most people just saw you as a skinny kid with weird glasses. But I saw you as a hero. A leader. I wanted to be you. I joined the X-Men because of you.” That does match some of Bobby’s more gushing thought balloons from the Stan Lee era (see X-Men #19, for example)

 

As mentioned last week, Angel’s origin story is retold in Uncanny Origins #3, but nothing of consequence is added for Iceman.

 

X-Men Origins: Beast (November 2008)
Writer: Mike Carey
Artist: J.K. Woodward

A straightforward retelling of the origin story in X-Men #49-53. Notable for us only for this final splash where Iceman is again in his arms akimbo pose.

As mentioned last week, Iceman also appears in retellings and flashbacks to this story in Uncanny Origins #6, Amazing Adventures #17, Marvel Comics Presents #85, and X-Men: Legacy #216, but they don’t add anything consequential.

 

 

 

X-Men: Season One (March 2012)
Writer: Dennis Hopeless
Artist: Jamie McKelvie

Okay, this isn’t strictly continuity. This graphic novel condenses and retells the Lee/Kirby era and, frankly, does it better. The original X-Men have more realistic and interesting character dynamics, and a real shape is given to the overall story. It gets some trivial events out of order and advances the Scott-Jean-Warren romance in ways that were never in print. That said, I’m including it because it follows the spirit of the official continuity and was meant to be read as such.

Anyway, as the story is told largely from Marvel Girl’s perspective, Bobby (who sports a Justin Beiber haircut throughout) is marginal to the plot, though he is developed nicely and there’s a little bit of material to examine here. He enjoys parading around naked in front of the guys, for example:

He shows very little interest in Jean, though he acts frustrated that she treats him like a little brother. His friendship with Hank is deep and meaningful, though there is an unfortunate “no homo” moment toward the end. We can probably brush that off as a manifestation of Bobby’s insecurities. There’s also a cute little Danger Room sequence where a lonely Bobby strips off his clothes and tells Scott he’ll do whatever he says.

 

X-Men Origins: Cyclops (January 2010)
Writer: Stuart Moore
Penciler: Jesse Delperdang

This one is a train wreck for continuity, but you can just about squint and fit Cyclops’ conversation with Magneto into the margins of X-Men #1. Iceman is there, but he doesn’t even get to speak a full sentence.

 

 

 

 

 

Uncanny X-Force Vol 1 #17 (November 2011)
Writer: Rick Remender
Artist: Jerome Opena

Dark Angel reminisces about the other X-Men hanging out under a tree while he mopes about how useless his powers are. He has a point, but Xavier cheers him up by telling him he has more courage than the others. Nothing Iceman fans need to worry about.

Chronology Project puts this right after X-Men #2.

 

 

 

Thor Corps #3 (November 1993)
Writer: Tom Defalco
Penciler: Pat Oliffe

A time travel story where the original X-Men make a cameo when a medieval knight spontaneously appears in the Danger Room. Nothing to worry about here.

Chronology Project places this right after X-Men #3.

 

 

 

 

X-Men: Odd Men Out (July 2008)
Writer: Roger Stern
Artist: Dave Cockrum

A clip show filler story where Xavier narrates the history of the X-Men up to 1991 to FBI Agent Fred Duncan, including some scenes of the early years. Nothing really to say about this one.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sentry/X-Men (February 2001)
Writer: Paul Jenkins
Artist: Mark Texeira

A one-shot that exists to establish that Sentry met the Silver Age X-Men before he made the world forget about him. It’s basically a story about how Sentry inspired Angel to be more brave, with the other X-Men in the background.

Chronology Project places this between the pages of X-Men #5, but that has to be a mistake as Xavier is meant to be in a coma through that whole issue. Let’s place it right after.

 

 

 

Fantastic Four Vol 6 #24 (September 2020)
Writer: Dan Slott
Artist: Paco Medina

Human Torch and Iceman reminisce about the time Iceman subbed in for him, becoming the first new member of the Fantastic Four. Strictly speaking, I could skip this, as it was published post-coming out, but we may as well cover it.

After the other X-Men laugh at Iceman for fouling up in the Danger Room, he storms off and stumbles into an FF battle against AIM. As Torch quit earlier that morning, the FF welcome his help. That same day, Iceman helps against Doombots, the Red Ghost, and the Puppet Master, and an unnamed cosmic threat.

Iceman is still in the closet here and there aren’t many clues otherwise. Whereas there was at least a hint of a crush on the Torch in Strange Tales #120, there’s really no space for that here. As for the continuity, I’d place it in the gap between X-Men #5-6, after Sentry/X-Men, Strange Tales #120 and before X-Men: First Class Vol 2 #16 (where Torch and Iceman become roommates) and Fantastic Four #28 (where they all meet the X-Men).

 

Marvels #2 (February 1994)
Writer: Kurt Busiek
Artist: Alex Ross

Marvels told the history of the Silver Age through the eyes of photojournalist Phil Sheldon, who in this issue covers the dawn of mutants and the debut of the Sentinels. Sheldon participates in a mob that attacks the X-Men after they save a falling construction worker and throws a chunk of brick at Iceman’s head. Later, that action haunts him when he meets a runaway mutant girl, Maggie, and tries to find the X-Men around Greenwich Village to help her. He decides not to ask Iceman for help, afraid he’ll remember him from earlier.

This is the best issue of a classic miniseries. The tragic ending, where we don’t know what happens to Maggie, is given some closure in Marvels: Eye of the Beholder #5-6 (January-February 2010), the conclusion of a sequel series where Sheldon witnesses events up to the “Fall of the Mutants” story. Naturally, Bobby appears in a bit part in #5, where Sheldon is frustrated that no one else notices that X-Factor are the original X-Men – a very dumb plotline.

The first half of this issue fits immediately after the above story before X-Men #6, with the balance taking place in the background of X-Men #14-16.

Next week, we’ll take a look at the flashback stories that take place during the rest of the silver age.

Where to find these stories: Unless otherwise noted, they’re all on Marvel Unlimited.

Previous Posts: Introduction | Chapter 1: Lee/Kirby Part 1 | Chapter 2: Lee/Kirby Part 2 | Chapter 3: The Roy Thomas Era (1966-1968)

When we left off last week, new writer Gary Friedrich had just taken over X-Men and was finishing off the big X-Men/Avengers crossover that Roy Thomas started. Friedrich only writes three issues and some backup stories before he leaves, but he does give us Iceman’s origin story. He’s replaced by Arnold Drake, whose short run introduces a new love interest for Bobby. Finally Roy Thomas comes back and scripts the fondly remembered run drawn by Neal Adams before the series is sent to oblivion.

 

X-Men #44-46 – backup stories (May-July 1968)
Writer: Gary Friedrich
Penciler: George Tuska

The “Origins of the X-Men” backups get to Iceman.

Teenage Bobby is on a date with a girl named Judy when he’s attacked by a group of guys who – a Code-approved book can’t say this in the 1960s, but the implication is very clear – want to rape Judy. Bobby stops the attackers with his ice powers, which he and his parents are already aware of. Naturally, Judy is terrified of Bobby and after word spreads a mob shows up and drags Bobby to jail. In part two, Cyclops attempts to break Bobby out of jail, but he’s not interested in leaving. Cyclops won’t take no for an answer so they fight until the lynch mob catches up with them. It’s the first time Bobby covers himself in his frosty/snowy form. Finally, in part three, the lynch mob literally sets up nooses and drags off the sheriff when he attempts to stop them. They eventually escape and Xavier wipes the whole town’s memories of Bobby being a mutant, including his parents. Iceman takes Xavier’s offer to go away to his school, and can you blame him for leaping at the first chance to get away from this town?

A few interesting points in this story. First, Bobby is already dating a girl, which puts the lie to assertion that Bobby’s disinterest in girls in X-Men #1 is due to his being too young. Second, we haven’t yet settled on the characterization of Iceman’s father as a bigot. His parents certainly would prefer that people not know about his powers for his own safety, but William Drake also stands up to the mob that comes to attack his son. It’s a reading of their relationship that’s closer in line with Mr. Drake’s portrayal in the landmark Uncanny X-Men #340.

While this story is fairly straightforward and simple for Bobby, later retellings and flashbacks will go deeper into his how this story affects him, including his conflicted feelings toward his parents, Judy, and Xavier and Cyclops. We’ll cover them next week.

The X-Men Epic Collection Vol 2 stops at X-Men #45, part 2/3 of this story. SMH.

 

X-Men #46 – main story (July 1968)
Writer: Gary Friedrich
Penciler: Don Heck and Werner Roth

The X-Men fight Juggernaut and disband on orders of the FBI.

Foggy Nelson shows up to read Xavier’s will – he’s left his fortune to the X-Men with Scott as trustee. I guess he didn’t consider bringing Moira in at this stage? Meanwhile FBI Agent Fred Duncan orders the X-Men to disband and spread across the country. This story doesn’t really go anywhere.

Meanwhile, the Juggernaut suddenly returns from his cosmic exile and wants revenge on his step-brother but doesn’t know what to do when he finds out he’s dead. The battle stops when Juggernaut disappears back into his exile.

 

X-Men #47 (August 1968)
Writer: Gary Friedrich and Arnold Drake
Penciler: Don Heck, George Tuska, Werner Roth

Beast and Iceman go on a date with Zelda and Vera and fight the Warlock.

There can’t really have been demand to see more of the Warlock, could there?

In the opening splash, Hank laments the barrier that’s come between him and Bobby since the X-Men split up. It’s not clear where they’re living right now since they left the mansion last issue, and when we next see them they’re living in San Francisco.

This is their last double date with Zelda and Vera, who are starting to get downright suspicious of all the times Bobby and Hank sneak off together. They’re not even bothering to come up with excuses anymore! We never actually see a breakup with Zelda or Vera. ­X-Men: The Hidden Years #2 eventually confirms that Bobby just ghosted Zelda, while Vera went on to date Mimic, as revealed in Incredible Hulk #161.

The backup strip is an explanation of how Iceman’s powers work.

 

X-Men #48 (September 1968)
Writer: Arnold Drake
Penciler: Don Heck, George Tuska, Werner Roth

Cyclops and Marvel girl fight Computo and Fantastic Four villain Quasimodo. Iceman doesn’t appear in the issue.

Scott and Jean are acting like a couple for the first time. Jean’s now working as a model and Scott is a radio new reporter. Of minor interest, Computo warns that Jean has “infinite mental powers” – I believe this is the first hint that Jean actually possesses significant power on her own.

The most important part of this issue for our purposes is the backup strip, an explanation of Beast’s powers and personality. We are pointedly shown that among Beast’s favorite books is a volume of Proust.

There must have been some editorial chaos on the title at this point. Last issue promised Angel’s origin story, but that actually gets bumped by several months, even though it’s chronologically next. And this issue says the next issue will feature Beast and Iceman vs “Metoxo the Lava Man” – a story that never saw print but was eventually alluded to in Marvel Holiday Special 1994 (I’ll cover that eventually). Another Angel solo story from the aborted “team split-up” era also eventually ran as a back-up feature in Ka-Zar #2-3 and Marvel Tales #30 (the first two parts are on Marvel Unlimited, but the final part is not). None of the other X-Men appear in that story, where Angel fights his uncle, a villain called the Dazzler, who wears a lovely studded pink and orange getup.

 

 

 

X-Men #49-52 (October 1968-January 1969)
Writer: Arnold Drake
Penciler: Don Heck, Jim Steranko, Werner Roth

The X-Men reform to fight Mesmero, who is using his hypnotic powers to draw latent mutants to San Francisco to build an army for Magneto. And Polaris debuts.

A lot to unpack in this story. Suddenly Bobby and Hank are living together in San Francisco, where they’re working as… parachute testers? It’s not clear why they’re jumping out of a plane, but Hank says it’s their new cover job. There’s got to be a reason the boys chose to move together to the gay capital of America.

Bobby comes across Lorna Dane wandering San Francisco in a daze and stops her from walking into traffic. He acts very smitten and protective of her throughout the story, which seems to make Hank irritable and jealous throughout. Halfway through, the X-Men think Bobby’s lost his objectivity because he’s too in love with Lorna, and I can only imagine Jean is quietly smirking to herself throughout this scene.

Hank and Bobby seem to make up toward the end. He literally gushes about having a “gay gavotte” (dance) with him once the adventure is over. While it looks like Lorna is being set up as his new love interest, she doesn’t appear again for months after this story.

Lorna’s green hair and Mesmero’s green skin make them the first mutants who don’t “pass” as humans to appear in the book (Beast, Angel and Toad are all borderline on this regard).

The villains try to get Lorna on their side by telling her she’s Magneto’s daughter, an assertion she accepts at face despite the fact that she didn’t even know she was adopted at this point in her history. Iceman eventually finds documentation that establishes this is false and the “real” story of who her parents are. This remains the line for decades, until a Chuck Austen story has her perform a DNA test and discover she’s actually Magneto’s daughter. A later Peter David story in X-Factor Vol 3 attempts to patch this all over, but it’s best just kind of hand-waved.

The Magneto in this story is actually a robot, and credit to Paul O’Brien for pulling out the explanation for a dangling plot thread: “Eventually, in The Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe #7, the whole thing was written off as a scheme of Starr Saxon, the Machinesmith – a villain who hadn’t even been created at this point and who has nothing whatsoever to do with the X-Men.  He seems to have been selected for no reason other than the fact that he was a robot-themed villain.”

Meanwhile, in the backup strips, we get the origin of Beast. Iceman, Cyclops and Angel all  try to recruit him, but they don’t really do anything important.

 

Avengers #60 (January 1969)
Writer: Roy Thomas
Penciler: John Buscema

The X-Men appear in the background of Yellowjacket and Wasp’s wedding. This story is retold in Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes 2 #6-7 (Joe Casey/William Rosado), and not much is added, although Iceman and Human Torch say something about how they feel strange standing next to each other, and Hank says it has something to do with their body chemistries. Why would Beast be making up reasons to keep Bobby away from the Torch? This has never come up before or since.

 

 

 

X-Men #53 (February 1969)
Writer: Arnold Drake
Penciler: Barry Windsor Smith and Werner Roth

The X-Men fight another Fantastic Four villain, Blastaar.

In the backup strip, Beast’s origin concludes when the X-Men rescue him from the Conquistador and Xavier wipes the entire town’s memories of him having powers. The whole story is reprinted with a couple extra pages added as a framing sequence in Amazing Adventures #17. Lightly updated and expanded versions of the story are retold in Uncanny Origins #6 and X-Men Origins: Beast, but neither adds anything important. Flashbacks to this story appear in X-Men: Legacy #216 and the Beast story in Marvel Comics Presents #85 – I don’t have the latter on hand and it’s not in Marvel Unlimited, but I don’t remember anything relevant to this blog in it.

 

Sub-Mariner #14 (June 1969)
Writer: Roy Thomas
Artist: Mary Severin

The X-Men cameo reacting to the ransom demands of Mad Thinker and Egghead.

 

 

 

 

 

X-Men #54-56 (March-May 1969)
Writer: Arnold Drake and Roy Thomas
Penciler: Don Heck, Werner Roth and Neal Adams

Havok debuts, and the X-Men fight the Living Pharaoh.

Pharaoh is the sort of silver age villain who gets all his henchmen to dress up like ancient Egyptians and hide in sarcophagi until he gives orders. He’s also the sort of villain who kidnaps Cyclops’ younger brother Alex, knocks him unconscious, undresses him, and straps him half-naked to a table.

Pharaoh believes that all the ancient pharaohs were mutants and thus as a mutant he is a pharaoh. He believes killing Alex will increase his power, because Alex draws his power from the same source. This is eventually explained in the “Twelve” story: Mr. Sinister spliced Alex’s DNA into the Living Pharaoh, at the direction of Apocalypse.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Also, in the back up strips, we get the goofy origin of Angel, in which he fights Cyclops and Iceman when they try to recruit him, but nothing of much importance happens. But can we talk about what’s going on with Angel’s bulge in the above shot? Iceman is thrilled to have a Angel join the team — remember, Warren was his original crush — and caps off this story with his sassy little arms akimbo pose. This origin story is retold in Uncanny Origins #3, and a flashback to this story appears in X-Men: Legacy #216.

 

X-Men #57-59 (June-August 1969)
Writer: Roy Thomas and Linda Fite
Penciler: Neal Adams and Werner Roth

The X-Men fight the new Mark II Sentinels, who’ve captured basically every mutant on earth. Havok gets his costume and codename.

I feel like it’s clear silver age Bobby and Hank were a gay couple by this point. They go to kill time in Scott’s Manhattan apartment and instantly Bobby’s just chilling in his undies with Hank. Then the Sentinels attack.

The X-Men all treat Lorna as Bobby’s girlfriend, and Bobby seems genuinely upset when she’s in danger. Iceman is also still being a bit over-the-top about pretending to be into the Scarlet Witch.

This is altogether one of the best stories of the Silver Age, with good soapy team dynamics and a compelling threat that actually deals with the themes of bigotry that are supposed to be at the heart of the series. Plus, Neal Adams’ art is fantastic.

Quicksilver, Scarlet Witch, and Toad next appear in Avengers #76, where they are captured by Akron, the former two rejoin the cast, and Toad remains on Akron’s world.

The Sentinel story actually got a couple of follow ups. First, Roy Thomas’ Avengers #102-104 (Aug-Oct 1972) follows up on it directly. We see Judge Chalmers decide to release the super-villains and Mastermind, Blob, and Unus decide to reform the Brotherhood, which will go on to appear in a few stories. It’s also established that Larry Trask becomes Chalmers’, uh, “permanent house guest” from here on. What we end up seeing of this is just Larry hanging around Chalmers’ pool and being shirtless. One of the Sentinels that goes to attack the sun returns to Earth with a plan to wipe out all life and start again by selectively breeding human clones to eliminate mutants. It’s also revealed that Bolivar Trask had set up a second Sentinel plant in the Australian Outback. The Sentinel’s plan falls apart when Trask realizes that the Sentinel actually became a mutant from the solar radiation and gets the other Sentinels to turn on him (needless to say, this is a stretch of even Marvel’s definition of mutants). Larry completes his Trask cycle when the defeated Sentinel collapses onto him, crushing him to death. And Quicksilver disappears during the battle – it turns out he was injured and found by Crystal, who took him to Attilan to recover, where they fell in love. The get married in Fantastic Four #150 (September 1974), bolting him onto the Inhumans, which remains their status quo through several infidelities, team affiliation changes, evil periods, and deaths until 2007’s Silent War miniseries.

Next, X-Men: The Hidden Years #8 has several of the damaged Sentinels from issue #59 assemble into a new unit that tracks a new mutant to Beast’s hometown.

There’s also a backup feature of Marvel Girl demonstrating her powers, which is fine, but I’m glad to be done with the backups.

 

X-Men #60-61 (September-October 1969)
Writer: Roy Thomas
Penciler: Neal Adams

The X-Men fight Sauron, who appears to commit suicide.

The X-Men take the injured Havok to Dr. Lykos, even though he is absolutely the creepiest doctor ever, because he was an associate of Prof. X. We learn that Lykos is something of an energy vampire, which somehow makes his patients feel better, but when he siphons the energy of mutants, he turns into Sauron.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lykos is the second villain in six months that strips Alex naked and straps him unconscious to a table.

In a rare bit of self-determination for a Silver Age female character, Lorna tells Jean that “Bobby’s fun….but I’m nobody’s ‘girl’!” When Bobby starts acting jealous of her and Alex’s obvious interest in each other, she basically says that to his face. Looks like no one was interested in this relationship, but the love triangle subplot will limp on until the title is cancelled and into the continuity filler series and hiatus era.

A flashback to this story appears in X-Men #115.

 

 

X-Men #62-63 (November-December 1969)
Writer: Roy Thomas
Penciler: Neal Adams

The X-Men search for Sauron’s body in the Savage Land and end up stumbling into Magneto’s plan to turn the Savage Land’s people into a mutant army. Magneto apparently dies again, and the X-Men take it at face value even though they’ve seen him die before (he’ll next pop up in X-Men: The Hidden Years). Magneto also gives Angel a new costume, which he’ll learn in Avengers #110 was actually booby trapped.

This is a pretty fun story, even though the soapy elements are put on the backburner with Alex and Lorna stuck back at the Mansion and not appearing.

One point in this story that impacts Bobby: the mutate Lorelei has the power to entrance men and it’s heavily implied that this is based on sexual attraction. Bobby is ensorcelled by her along with the other male X-Men. Of course, it could just be that her power affects men regardless of orientation.

 

X-Men #64 (January 1970)
Writer: Roy Thomas
Penciler: Don Heck

The X-Men stop Sunfire from blowing up the US Capitol and he learns a lesson about vengeance and bigotry.

It’s a fine story, though nothing of much concern happens for our purposes. Sunfire goes on to basically redo this exact story but on a South Pacific island in Sub-Mariner #52-54, but his “I’m angry about WWII” schtick gets a little more mileage fighting a guy who literally fought for the Allies. He then makes a brief appearance in the “Avengers/Defenders  War” story in Avengers #117 and Defenders #10, fights the Mandarin in Iron Man #68-70, meets Banshee in a short in Giant-Size X-Men #4 and joins the team briefly in Giant-Size X-Men #1.

 

 

X-Men #65 (February 1970)
Writer: Dennis O’Neill
Penciler: Neal Adams

It turns out Prof X is alive and preparing to fighting the invading Z’Nox aliens.

Well, it wouldn’t be the Silver Age X-Men if it didn’t end on dredging up old continuity and fighting unrelated villains. Still, Adams manages to sell the “Care Bears” ending with the way he dramatizes Xavier recruiting the compassion of the human race to fight the invaders – and if you squint, it just kind of resonates the themes of the series. This would have been a much stronger final issue than the one that ended up running after it.

Incidentally, the “love beam” is the first example of mutants using their powers together to achieve a unique effect, a theme that is cropping up a lot in the Hickman run. We later learn that the love beam is also what attracts Lilandra to Xavier when the series reboots in a few years.

The Bobby-Lorna-Alex subplot ticks over as well, with Bobby continuing to act like a jealous jerk and Lorna showing no interest in him. At least he seems to recognize it.

Unfortunately, Jean has a thought bubble where she worries that “Iceman’s got it bad for” Lorna. So maybe Jean doesn’t yet know that Bobby’s gay (the strength of her telepathic powers was really uneven in the Silver Age). Or maybe she’s making a private joke to herself.

The X-Men have got a point to be cranky when Alex chastises them for not arriving back at the X-Mansion earlier. The story has been continuous since Alex’s college graduation in #54. No wonder they’re exhausted. Though you’d think they could have called at some point! No wonder Lorna lost interest!

There’s a flashback to this story in X-Men: Legacy #213.

 

X-Men #66 (March 1970)
Writer: Roy Thomas
Penciler: Sal Buscema

The X-Men fight the Hulk in Las Vegas in hopes that Bruce Banner can cure Xavier’s telepathic exhaustion, and the series comes to an end, for now.

Except that Iceman doesn’t go because he’s such a jealous jerk he thinks he has to stay behind to keep Alex and Lorna separated. Seriously, Bobby, she’s just not that into you. This subplot doesn’t even get tied up as the book is cancelled, so it meanders through The Hidden Years and hiatus appearances until Alex and Lorna are confirmed together in X-Men #97 after Iceman leaves the team. Still, Iceman’s apparent obsession with a woman who isn’t interested or available can also be read as a convenient cover: as long as everyone can see he’s hung up on Lorna, there are no questions why he’s not dating women. As we’ll see, this becomes a recurring character trope for Iceman for much of his published history.

Some stories in the hiatus era say that the destruction of the Vegas strip in this issue’s fight gets blamed on the X-Men, which ramps up anti-mutant hysteria and causes the X-Men to adopt a lower profile for the next few years.

And that’s the end of the original run of X-Men! But we’re not out of this era yet. In our next instalment, we’ll take a look at Bobby’s appearances in flashbacks and continuity plug-ins to this era.

Where to find these issues: Unless otherwise noted, they’re all on Marvel Unlimited. X-Men #44-45 are in X-Men Epic Collection Vol 2: Lonely are the Hunted, and X-Men #46-66 are in X-Men Epic Collection Vol 3: The Sentinels Live.

Previous Posts: Introduction | Chapter 1: Lee/Kirby Era Part 1 | Chapter 2: Lee/Kirby Era Part 2 | Chapter 3: The Roy Thomas Era (1966-1968) | Chapter 4: The End of the Silver Age (1968-1970) | Chapter 5: Origins and Flashbacks Part 1 | Chapter 6: Silver Age Flashbacks Part 2 | Chapter 7: X-Men: First Class Vol 1 | Chapter 8: X-Men: First Class Vol 2 Part 1 | Chapter 9: X-Men: First Class Vol 2 Part 2 | Chapter 10: The Hidden Years | Chapter 11: X-Men on Hiatus (1970-75) | Chapter 12: The Champions Part 1 (1975-76) | Chapter 13: The Champions Part 2 (1977-78) | Chapter 14: The College Years (1978-83) | Chapter 15: The New Defenders Part 1 (1983-84) | Chapter 16: The New Defenders Part 2 (1984-85) | Chapter 17: The End of the New Defenders (1985-86) | Chapter 18: X-Factor Part 1 (1986) | Chapter 19: X-Factor – Mutant Massacre (1987) | Chapter 20: X-Factor – Fall of the Mutants (1987) | Chapter 21: X-Factor: Inferno Prologue

Having established the basic concept, Stan Lee and Jack Kirby (along with a handful of guest writers and artists) spend the next year expanding on the X-Men’s backgrounds and considering the consequences of mutants in the wider world.

 

X-Men #11 (May 1965)
Writer: Stan Lee
Penciler: Jack Kirby

The X-Men fight the alien Stranger and the Brotherhood are disbanded.

Not a lot of clues in this one, but deep readers might get a kick out of this panel below, where Bobby erects a giant cylinder for Beast and Cyclops to jump on and ride.

A bizarre concept to bolt onto the X-Men, the only real connection the Stranger has to the mutant concept is that he’s powerful and Magneto wants to use him. In the end, the Stranger decides to take Magneto and Toad to keep in a sort of zoo in his home planet and he turns Mastermind into stone. X-Men: First Class eventually reveals that that X-Men kept the stone Mastermind in the mansion and used it as a hat rack (no explanation was ever given for how he was returned to human form, so presumably the transformation just wore off after a while). Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch are finally free of the Brotherhood and join the Avengers in Avengers #16.

I’m only including the above panels because Beast’s hypnotic jumping is hilariously stupid. Not only because it’s hypnotic jumping, but because he’s doing it so the cops don’t see Xavier, who has hypnotic powers.

 

X-Men #12-13 (July, September 1965)
Writer: Stan Lee
Pencilers: Jack Kirby and Alex Toth

The X-Men fight the Juggernaut and we learn the origin of Professor X.

Not a lot to see here, but Iceman does really love wrestling with the other boys.

At the end of the story, all the boys are in the infirmary, and Jean is their put-upon nurse. Iceman is hitting on her again, but Jean just ignores it. Maybe she’s started to piece together that it’s an act. That would be entirely consistent with Bendis’ story.

Stray thought: Juggernaut is older than Xavier, but he’s never written or drawn as such. Also, the fact that Xavier left his brother alive at the bottom of a cave for years is a plot element that went unremarked upon for decades until Chuck Austen of all people brought it up in Juggernaut’s rehabilitation arc in Uncanny X-Men.

 

Fantastic Four Annual #3 (1965)
Writer: Stan Lee
Penciler: Jack Kirby

The X-Men attend the wedding of Reed Richards and Sue Storm, along with the rest of the Marvel Universe, and are there when all the villains in the MU attack. The X-Men end up fighting Mole Man and his Moloids, Black Knight, Mandarin, Electro, Beetle, Unicorn, and others. Iceman doesn’t do anything particularly notable in this issue.

Marvels #2 (1994) places this story happens between the pages of X-Men #14. This story is also slightly expanded on in Marvel Heroes and Legends #1 (1996), but I haven’t read it and it’s not on Marvel Unlimited.

 

 

X-Men #14-16 (November 1965 – January 1966)
Writer: Stan Lee
Pencilers: Jack Kirby and Jay Gavin (Werner Roth)

In the first story to take anti-mutant bigotry head-on, the X-Men battle the mutant-hunting Sentinels. It’s the best story of the era by far.

Xavier gives the X-Men a vacation, and they all head off into the city. But first, Bobby lovingly helps Warren get dressed in a scene that also helpfully spells out the subtext of the mutant phenomenon.

Bobby and Angel are both terrified about their parents finding out that they’re mutants, but Bobby also worries that by not coming out they’ll never really know him. The action in this scene is so intimate that I honestly struggle to imagine how this scene could possibly be read as anything other than two gay boys talking about their struggles with their sexuality. Bobby’s line, “If you ask me, nobody would care even if they found out about us!” reads oddly if he’s only talking about being mutants, given that the first time he used his powers in public, an actual lynch mob tried to execute him (as we’ll see when we get to his origin story).

Also, we’ll later find out that Bobby’s parents did know about his powers, but Xavier made them forget — we never did get a scene where he ‘came out’ as a superhero to them. The next time we see them in the 1984 Iceman miniseries they already know. Angel’s story about military school is just ignored when we get to his actual origin.

Later, he can’t help but comment on Warren’s looks as he takes Jean on a date. And, uh, what exactly is Hank implying about Angel’s feet?

 

 

Xavier spells out the themes in a televised debate with anthropologist Bolivar Trask, pointing out that parents may not know that their own children are mutants, which Angel and Iceman were just making clear.

Bobby and Hank end up back at their favorite café, now given the name Coffee A-Go-Go. Poor Zelda notes that she hasn’t seen Bobby in months but does confirm they’ve been on a date already. Note Bobby’s response when she asks where he’s been: “Beating the girls away with clubs, as usual!” Yessir, no girls for Iceman. She seems interested in a second date, but tells Bobby off when he has to leave for X-Men stuff. Bobby’s certainly in no rush to schedule it.

Minor continuity point: Bobby says he and Hank both come from the city – we’ll later learn that Hank is from Dundee, Illinois and Bobby is from a town on Long Island.

Later, when scaling a cliff to get into the Sentinels’ base, Iceman remarks that he’d make a “dandy” fireman.

While trying to escape from the Sentinels’ heavy gravity prison, Iceman gushes that Cyclops calls him a man for the first time. It is indeed a nice bit of praise from one of the straight boys who have thus far routinely dismissed him as a juvenile. (Somewhat undercut by the fact that Cyclops first called him a “boy”… who edits this?)

Why on earth is Beast carrying Iceman with his butt?

This story is slightly expanded on in Marvels #2 (1994).

 

 

 

 

 

X-Men #17-18 (February-March 1966)
Writer: Stan Lee
Pencilers: Jack Kirby and Jay Gavin (Werner Roth)

As Iceman recuperates from his injuries last issue, the X-Men attempt to rescue Angel’s parents from Magneto, but they in turn need to be rescued by Iceman.

In the opening splash, Iceman seems fine, having his pulse taken by an army doctor, who can somehow measure it through his ice form. The doctor says his pulse is “impossible” – perhaps it’s racing because he’s surrounded by all these young soldiers. Anyway, soon Iceman is faint and is taken under the care of a Dr. John Thomas. Stan Lee can’t have just picked that name randomly.

Dr. Thomas tries an experimental sulfa drug administered by a laser-induced hypodermic needle to wake Iceman from his coma. When he comes to, he sneaks out to save the X-Men.

Magneto’s plan was to use Warren’s parents’ DNA to create an army of artificial mutants. As we’ll see, a great number of Magneto’s plans through the silver age involve creating artificial mutants that will serve him as slaves, rather than, for example, leading the existing mutants of the world. But then, silver age Magneto is a lunatic who beats and degrades his followers, so he’s probably having trouble recruiting.

Jack Kirby leaves the book entirely in Jay Gavin’s hands with issue #18.

 

X-Men #19 (April 1966)
Writer: Stan Lee
Penciler: Jay Gavin (Werner Roth)

The X-Men fight the Mimic, a guy who has acquired the power to copy the powers of any mutant around him.

Let’s get this out of the way first: Per his 2012 status quo, Mimic was at least lightly implied to be in a gay relationship with Weapon Omega. It’s unlikely we’ll ever get closure on that story since Mimic’s next appearance was the Extermination miniseries in which he died (although not for the first time!), and Weapon Omega hasn’t been seen again. There’s at least a little supporting evidence in the silver age, given Mimic’s daddy issues and aggressive overcompensation. So, this issue may be notable as the first time Iceman meets another gay man (albeit a closeted one, and since Iceman’s return from the 21^st century).

Xavier tells the X-Men to go on a vacation, which prompts Hank and Bobby to head into the city, where Bobby’s girlfriend Zelda has set up a double date with her friend Vera, who’ll be Beast’s girlfriend for the rest of this run.

From this point forward, Hank and Bobby are established as a bit of a dynamic duo, constantly going off to the city together, and going on double dates with Zelda and Vera. And yet, as we’ll see, neither ever consummates their relationship with their supposed girlfriends. Well, Batman and Robin had code-approved girlfriends in the silver age, too.

Bobby is really laying on his straight horndog schtick thick as they wait for Zelda to arrive. “Zelda’s not here yet! We might as well case the other chicks!” Barf. But note that he doesn’t actually do it.

It turns out Vera’s been harassed by Calvin Rankin, who won’t take no for an answer and is upset to see her on a date with Beast. He gets into a fight with Beast and Iceman and discovers they’re mutants. Vera does eventually get into a relationship with Calvin during the hiatus years.

Later we get a passing thought bubble of Iceman admiring Cyclops’ manliness. “When I hear that tone in Cyke’s Voice, I wouldn’t wanna be his enemy if I was as strong as a hundred Mimics!” I mean, if Xavier didn’t know Bobby was gay before….

The X-Men resolve the fight by getting Mimic to use a device his father built that he believes will amplify his powers, but actually removes them. All the deception and the lengths the characters go to remove Calvin’s powers have icky implications if you consider what powers are a metaphor for in this series.

Mimic flashes back to this story and his other Silver Age appearances in Marvel Comics Presents #59.

Minor continuity point: In this issue, Mimic keeps being colored with a bright pink face. I’m not sure if that’s supposed to be an element of his powers, or supposed to indicate that he’s angry, but it doesn’t come back.

And that’s the end of the first creative era of X-Men. So, not that his intention matters, but did Stan Lee intend for Iceman to be gay? Well, the BBC asked him about it shortly after Iceman came out, and Stan Lee was very surprised — he wasn’t reading the comics anymore because his eyesight had deteriorated. He says in the interview, “I didn’t really have any gay characters, or if they were gay, I didn’t play up the fact.” Honestly, it seems from these first two chapters that both points are debatable. He certainly didn’t object to it.

Next week, we’ll take a look at the first Roy Thomas run.

Where to find these issues: Everything in this post is available on Marvel Unlimited. The X-Men issues are collected in X-Men Epic Collection Vol 1 – Children of the Atom.

The dominant story of 2020 has obviously been the global COVID-19 pandemic, which has drastically upended global economies and societies, but LGBT rights have made some progress around the world in this hell year, too. In fact, in some cases we’ve actually seen progress caused by the pandemic. But in many countries we’ve simply seen stasis, as legislatures and courts shut down for large parts of the year to contain the spread of the virus, and governments redirected their efforts to emergency relief.

These are the main highlights of 2020:

Same-Sex Marriage law came into effect: Costa Rica, Northern Ireland (UK), Sark (UK)
Same-Sex Marriage law passed: Switzerland (pending possible referendum), Mexican states of Puebla (codification), Tlaxcala
Same-Sex Marriage law introduced by government: Andorra
Civil Union law passed: Montenegro, Cayman Islands (UK)
Civil Union law proposed by government: Kosovo, Thailand
Significant anti-discrimination/hate crime laws passed/extended: Barbados, Marshall Islands, North Macedonia, Switzerland, United States; Italy (awaits Senate passage)
Sodomy Decriminalized: Angola (signed; comes into effect in 2021), Bhutan (awaits royal assent), Gabon

I usually present a table here of the populations of all the equal marriage countries, but since the newly legalizing countries add less than 1% to the total, suffice it to say that the 29 countries where same-sex marriage is currently legal are home to around 1.27 billion people.

But there were also significant developments around the world, which I’ll cover in this article, broken down by continent.

THE AMERICAS

Canada: Much of the legislative agenda in Canada simply ground to a halt during the pandemic as Parliament and provincial legislatures were shut down or only holding emergency debates through much of the year. Nevertheless, the government’s main priority for LGBT people – a ban on “conversion therapy” – made a little progress this year.

“Conversion therapy” on minors was already banned by regulations or laws in Manitoba, Ontario, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island. They were joined this year by Yukon and Quebec, the latter of which passed a more extensive ban that applied to adults as well. The federal government has proposed its own ban, which would impose criminal penalties on various activities around “conversion therapy,” banning advertising or profiting from it, or forcing a minor or vulnerable person to go through it. The distinction is that in Canada, only the provinces may regulate business and health activities, while only the federal government may amend criminal law. The federal bill has broad support in Parliament, but has run up against how few days Parliament has sat (and it will likely face some opposition in the unelected Senate, which is sitting even less than the House and is substantially holding up all legislation). There is also a significant chance of an election in 2021.

There was no progress on the federal government’s other major promise to LGBT Canadians dating back to 2015 – ending the ban on blood and tissue donation from men who have sex with men.

United States: The headline this year is obviously Donald Trump’s loss of the presidential election to Joe Biden, who takes office Jan 20. While it’s likely that Biden will face difficulty enacting his agenda in a divided Congress – even if Democrats win two seats in the Georgia runoff Jan 5 – Biden has already announced sweeping actions he will take to promote LGBT rights through executive actions, including repealing the ban on trans military service, promoting LGBT rights abroad, and recognizing LGBT families for immigration and refugee resettlement. He has also prioritized passing the Equality Act for LGBT non-discrimination within 100 days, though again, that faces an uphill climb in the Senate.

Also important, the US Supreme Court found in a 6-3 ruling that current federal anti-discrimination law bans discrimination against LGBT people under the ground of “sex.” The ruling applied immediately only to federal employment discrimination claims, but it’s easy to see how the ruling extends to other statutes that ban sex discrimination in housing and accommodations, including possibly at the state level, but we’ll have to see how states and other courts will apply it. The court also refused to take up cases seeking a right for states to discriminate against LGBT parents on birth certificates, but did hear a case seeking a broad religious right to discriminate against LGBT couples in adoption cases, on which a ruling is expected in 2021.

At the state level, we saw Nevada become the first state to repeal its constitutional ban on same-sex marriage. Voters in Alabama also decided to begin the process of amending their constitution to remove outdated or unconstitutional language – we’ll see if that includes the marriage ban. The Maryland legislature repealed the state’s law against sodomy, but oddly preserved the law banning oral sex. 14 other states still have these defunct sodomy laws still on the books.

Virginia and Utah banned conversion therapy, though Utah’s ban is by regulation, bringing the total to 20 states plus DC that ban it. 15 municipalities across the country also passed conversion therapy bans, bringing the total to 83. A federal court struck down two local conversion therapy bans as unconstitutional, but appeals have already been filed. Virginia also passed a suite of pro-LGBT laws, including a comprehensive discrimination ban and a hate crime law, and adding a gender X option to drivers’ licenses.

The Turtle Mountain Band in North Dakota is the latest Native American tribal nation to legalize same-sex marriage.

Mexico: LGBT activists faced a lot of frustration this year, but they did get equal marriage passed in Puebla and Tlaxcala states (the former codifying an earlier court ruling); bringing the total states where same-sex marriage is legal to 19 + Mexico City (including five states where the laws have not yet been brought up to date with judicial or administrative decisions). Activists were frustrated by votes in Baja California, where the legislature took multiple votes and fell 1 vote short of the 2/3 needed to pass a constitutional amendment to legalize, and in Guerrero and Sonora, where bills died or were not brought to vote. The Sinaloa state congress did not take up an equal marriage bill despite a court ruling in 2019. The state of Mexico passed a conversion therapy ban but refused to vote on an equal marriage bill. The federal congress is also still sitting on final amendments to a bill it passed in 2018 to federally recognize same-sex marriage for purposes of accessing social security. Various Supreme Court appeals have been filed against Veracruz and Yucatan states seeking access to same-sex marriage.

Belize: The government’s announced plan to introduce an anti-discrimination law sparked protests across the country led by bad faith actors. The government withdrew the bill. The bill was in part a codification and extension of the 2016 ruling that struck down Belize’s sodomy law and found that the constitutional ban on sex discrimination included a ban on sexual orientation discrimination. The government’s final appeal of that decision was lost on Dec 30, 2019.

Costa Rica: The 2018 ruling for same-sex marriage came into effect in May 2020.

Panama, Honduras, El Salvador: All three states have pending cases seeking same-sex marriage at their constitutional courts. An effort by the government of Panama to constitutionally ban same-sex marriage was stalled after massive protests by people who recognized it as a smokescreen for a power grab.

Cuba: Planned debate over a new Family Code, which was to include same-sex marriage, was deferred initially due to the pandemic, but revised schedules have it off Congress’ agenda in 2021 as well.

Haiti: In June, the President introduced a new Penal Code by decree, which takes effect in two years, unless Parliament overrules him. Reports that the new Penal Code, which was heavily inspired by French and Belgian penal codes, included an anti-discrimination provision sparked protests from bad-faith actors who suggested it legalized same-sex marriage. I haven’t been able to track down an actual copy of the new Penal Code to analyze the language myself, but reports say this isn’t true. The new code also includes a hate crime law and repeals a vagrancy law that had been used to harass trans people. So far, the government has not backed down.

Barbados: Barbados is one state where COVID may have actually hastened progress on LGBT rights. When the government introduced an immigration scheme to encourage foreign workers to come to Barbados to self-isolate and telecommute, it was instantly criticized for regulations that initially barred same-sex couples from applying together. The PM hastily had the criteria edited to allow same-sex couples to be recognized for the program’s purposes and then doubled down by swiftly passing a law that bans sexual orientation discrimination (but not gender identity discrimination, to the consternation of the island’s most prominent LGBT activist, a trans woman). In September, the government tripled down, announcing plans to pass civil union legislation and possibly hold a referendum on same-sex marriage. Reports suggest a repeal of the sodomy law will be included with the civil union legislation and/or other sweeping criminal justice reforms. A court case seeking repeal of the sodomy law is also pending.

Cayman Islands/Bermuda: When the Cayman Islands legislature voted down the government’s domestic partnership bill, which its Court of Appeal had ordered it to pass, the Governor stepped in and passed a civil partnership bill by reserve powers in September 2020. An appeal of the court’s decision upholding the marriage ban has been filed to the Privy Council in February. The Bermuda government’s appeal of its Court of Appeal’s equal marriage decision will be heard at the Privy Council in February – it is possible that the Privy Council’s decision may impact or at least influence equal marriage battles in the other UK territories: Turks and Caicos, Anguilla, Virgin Islands, and Montserrat.

Curacao: An equal marriage bill submitted in 2019 remains before the Estates of Curacao.

Jamaica: The Interamerican Commission on Human Rights found that Jamaica’s buggery and gross indecency laws violated human rights and called on the government to repeal them.

A coordinated set of court cases seeking decriminalization of sodomy was launched last year and remains pending in Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Grenada, Dominica and St Kitts and Nevis.

Venezuela: Chaos still rules the political landscape in Venezuela. After legislative elections boycotted by the opposition, President Maduro called on the newly elected, government-friendly Assembly to pass a same-sex marriage law next year.

Bolivia: The civil registry finally agreed to register a same-sex couple as being in a “free union” – an arrangement distinct from but equal to marriage in effect. It’s unclear at this point if this decision set a precedent for other couples, but activists have vowed to use the ruling to press for further legislative change.  

Chile: In January, the Senate took the first steps to advance a long-stalled same-sex marriage bill, but it has made no other progress. Nor has a separate bill to allow LGBT couples in civil unions to adopt children. In June, the Constitutional Court vote 5-4 to reject a petition seeking a right to same-sex marriage.

Peru: The Constitutional Court rejected 4-3 a case seeking recognition of a foreign same-sex marriage.

EUROPE

United Kingdom: The equal marriage bill passed last year by Parliament for Northern Ireland came into effect, and Parliament expanded it this year to allow existing civil partnerships to be converted in marriage. Final approval and effect for Sark’s equal marriage bill also come into effect, so now all territories associated with the UK in Europe allow same-sex marriage. There remain five British Overseas Territories that do not allow same-sex marriage, all in the Americas: Cayman Islands, Virgin Islands, Turks and Caicos, Anguilla and Montserrat. The Bermuda government’s appeal of its Court of Appeal decision upholding the right to same-sex marriage will be heard by the Privy Council in February 2021.

Switzerland: Switzerland’s long, torturous path to equal marriage appears to be approaching its end. In December, the federal Parliament finally passed its same-sex marriage bill that was first introduced in 2013. The far-right party immediately launched a campaign to have the bill subject to a referendum, and they have until March to collect 50,000 signatures to force the issue. Nevertheless, public opinion polls suggest that any referendum to overturn the law will be doomed to fail. Switzerland also passed a suite of other pro-LGBT laws this year. The marriage law includes automatic co-parentage and the right for lesbian couples to access IVF. A comprehensive anti-discrimination and hate crime bill was also passed and survived a referendum in February. And trans people were given the right to change their legal gender based on self-determination.

Liechtenstein: The microstate between Switzerland and Austria began talking about same-sex marriage after the Swiss parliament passed equal marriage this year. Governing parties appear reluctant to debate it but seem to believe it’s an inevitability. Parliamentary elections are scheduled for Feb 2021, after which it’s more likely we’ll see real debate. Previously, the Prince has expressed opposition to allowing same-sex marriage and couple adoption. Late last year, the European Court of Human Rights ruled that the ban on LGBT couple step-child adoption was discriminatory, although this opinion was advisory only. 

Andorra: The tiny Pyrenees nation announced in March that it would erase the distinction between civil partnerships and marriage, essentially becoming an equal marriage nation. The bill was tabled in December and will take effect six months after it is passed.

Montenegro: The former Yugoslav state and current EU candidate passed a limited life partnership bill in July, which comes into effect in 2021. It excludes adoption rights.

Kosovo: The breakaway state introduced a new Civil Code in July and announced plans to introduce a civil partnership law. Local LGBT groups expressed disappointment that the proposal would not create equal same-sex marriages.  No bill has actually been brought forward as far as I can tell. US President Trump spent a little energy trying to get Serbia and Kosovo to make peace with each other and break the deadlock on international recognition of Kosovo, but it didn’t go anywhere.

Monaco: The cohabitation (civil union) bill passed last year came into effect. As well, a bill that increased penalties for sexual orientation bias crimes came into effect.

Italy: The lower house of the Italian Parliament passed the country’s first comprehensive anti-discrimination and hate crime law covering sexual orientation, gender identity, sex, and disability. It’s pending in the Italian Senate.

Norway: Parliament amended the hate speech and hate crime law to explicitly protect bisexuals and transgender people.

North Macedonia: After courts struck down last year’s LGBT anti-discrimination and hate speech law on procedural grounds, a new anti-discrimination and hate crime law was passed in October.

Czechia: A same-sex marriage bill that at one time seemed to have momentum didn’t make any progress this year and is not expected to advance until after elections in October 2021.

Germany: A nationwide ban on conversion therapy was passed in May. The government issued an apology for discrimination in the military in September, and a compensation scheme approved by the government is pending in parliament. A bill to recognize automatic co-parenthood remains stalled in the legislature.

Hungary: The ongoing retrenchment of rights in Hungary deepened this year, with the government passing a constitutional amendment banning single people and LGBT couples from adopting. A constitutional ban on same-sex marriage was already in effect. The government also amended its definition of sex to be limited to “sex at birth,” effectively banning recognition of gender change. On the other hand, Hungary did drop its ban on blood donations from MSM this year.

Poland: A retrenchment of LGBT rights was also evident in Poland – though a Liberal, pro-LGBT rights candidate nearly claimed the presidency in 2020. The government has proposed a constitutional amendment and law similar to Hungary’s which would ban LGBT people from adopting children. Some EU members have proposed penalties for Hungary and Poland for violating human rights and rule of law, but no strong actions have been taken as yet.

Russia: A new constitution giving Putin the right to run for President for two more terms was passed in part due to support for new provisions that would constitutionally ban same-sex marriage. Parliament later deferred a proposed bill that would have banned gender change.

Estonia:  While regulations bringing the 2016 civil union law into effect remain in limbo, the new governing coalition agreed with a far-right party to hold a referendum in 2021 to constitutionally ban same-sex marriage. The proposed referendum remains controversial in Estonia, with even the government seemingly unsure if a yes vote would repeal the civil partnership law or force it to finally bring regulations into effect.

Lithuania: A newly elected, openly gay MP has stated that he expects a civil partnership bill to be passed in 2021.

Belarus: The country saw widespread protests after an election widely regarded as fraudulent officially returned President Lukashenko, who has governed since 1994, to power. While the opposition has not been explicitly pro-LGBT, it is expected to be better on human rights and democracy, should it ever be able to take power. A Liberal and pro-EU candidate also won the presidency of Moldova.

France: A bill to allow lesbian couples access to IVF remains before the Senate, with hearings expected in February.

Bosnia: A proposal for civil union legislation in the FBiH remained under study since 2018.

Cyprus/North Cyprus: The Cyprus dispute got even further from a resolution this year after a hardliner was elected president of TRNC. Possible reunification may bring Cyprus’ civil partnership law into effect in the North, as well as the generally stronger human rights protections of an EU member state.

AFRICA

Gabon: After Parliament passed a law criminalizing sodomy for the first time last year, the government did an about face and repealed the law in July, amid strong international criticism (from France particularly).

Sudan: In July, the transitional administration governing the country after the overthrow of the previous authoritarian Islamist regime removed the death penalty and corporal punishment for sodomy, although it remains criminalized. This was part of a broader justice reform that also removed a number of other vice offences. Neighboring Chad eliminated the death penalty for all crimes, however, sodomy remains a crime there, having been criminalized in 2017.

Angola: The 2019 Penal Code, which fully decriminalized sodomy, was finally officially published in Nov 2020, and will come into effect in Feb 2021.

South Africa: Parliament amended the equal marriage law to remove the right of civil servants to refuse to solemnize a same-sex marriage.

Mauritius: A case seeking decriminalization of sodomy is slowly winding its way through the courts. Leave was granted to appeal to the Supreme Court in June.

Namibia: A trio of cases seeking recognition of same-sex marriages have been very slowly winding through the courts since 2017-19. No progress was recorded this year. A sodomy law remains on the books in Namibia too.

Western Sahara: In December, US President Trump announced that the US would recognize Moroccan sovereignty over the Western Sahara. While Morocco’s claim is still disputed by other major powers (and the Western Saharans themselves), if this does eventually become accepted, it would reduce the number of criminalizing states by one.

ASIA

Bhutan: The tiny Himilayan nation’s Parliament finally came to agreement on a new Criminal Code that clarifies that the ban on “unnatural sex” does not include gay consensual sex between adults. It awaits the king’s signature.

Japan: Efforts to get the national government to legalize same-sex marriage before the cancelled 2020 Olympics fell flat, but dozens of local governments passed laws to issue partnership certificates to same-sex couples, bringing the total to 3 prefectures (including Osaka and Gunma, which passed laws this year), and 66 municipalities, with a further 27 municipalities whose laws take effect over the coming year. Additionally, several of these jurisdictions have struck agreements for mutual recognition of their certificates.

Several cases seeking the right to same sex marriage advanced over 2020. A ruling from the Sapporo District Court is expected on 17 March 2020.

Thailand: A civil union bill supported by the Cabinet and an equal marriage bill supported by the opposition are both being debated in parliament. Meanwhile, ongoing pro-democracy protests in the country have also taken on explicit pro-LGBT equality messaging.

China/Hong Kong: A court case seeking a right to same sex marriage was still pending in Hong Kong, but given the increasing crackdown on the city’s separate jurisdiction from Beijing, I wouldn’t hold my breath expecting a good result. Still, smaller victories have piled up in the territory, including a March ruling that the city cannot discriminate against LGBT couples in the provision of public housing.

South Korea: Amid continued failure to pass a nationwide anti-discrimination law, a trans woman was discharged from the military.

Philippines: Two bills seeking to legalize civil unions and ban anti-LGBT discrimination were stalled in congress, particularly as Senate leadership has remained adamantly opposed.

Israel: Political deadlock between the left and right factions in the Knesset ended in the face of the coronavirus pandemic, leaving the right wing with a significant advantage for now, and likely spiking attempts at marriage reform. MKs gave initial approval to a bill to ban conversion therapy. The Supreme Court ruled that LGBT couples must have access to surrogacy. And the city of Tel Aviv announced plans to recognize same-sex marriages, although this won’t have national legal effect, but does allow couples to access municipal services.

India: A number of cases seeking recognition of same-sex marriage under the countries various denominational and nondenominational marriage laws are winding their way through the courts.

Singapore: The High Court dismissed three cases seeking to decriminalize sodomy in March, but the Court of Appeal will hear the case again in early January.

Nepal: The Human Rights Commission called on the government to fully legalize same-sex marriage, repeating calls it has made since around 2008. In 2017, the Supreme Court ruled that foreign same-sex marriages must be recognized for immigration purposes.

Kazakhstan: The government announced plans to fully abolish the death penalty.

Malaysia: A test case was filed seeking decriminalization of sodomy.

OCEANIA:

Cook Islands: Parliament continued to defer consideration of the new Crimes Bill, which originally decriminalized homosexuality, but in committee was revised to actually stiffen penalties for homosexuality. The committee has been given numerous extensions to conduct consultations, the latest of which will take it to around May 2021.

Australia: A bill to grant access to surrogacy for LGBT couples in Western Australia has stalled and likely will not pass before local elections. South Australia became the final state to ban the “gay panic” defense in law.  Queensland and the Australian Capital Territory became the first to ban conversion therapy, while a bill in pending in Victoria.

Marshall Islands: I didn’t catch this last year, but the government passed a Gender Equality Act in 2019 which came into force this year. The bill provides explicit protections for women and girls in all areas, including protections from discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity (though as written, it seems to only apply to women!). Its definition of marriage is also gender-neutral.

New Caledonia: Voters decided to remain a part of France in the second of three planned referenda. The next will be held in 2022.

Bougainville: Negotiations continued for the secession of this province from Papua New Guinea. Presumably, it would maintain the PNG criminal code that penalizes sodomy.

My latest short film EXT. TORONTO. NIGHT. has been making the rounds at film festivals across the world, and you can watch it now online at the Reel Out Charlotte Film Festival until Nov 1.

It’s been a weird year for film festivals, as most have been cancelled, postponed or replaced with online festivals due to the ongoing pandemic restrictions. But I’m so proud that this tiny little film has found audiences through festivals all over the world. So far, it’s already screened live at the Giornate di Cinema Queer festival in Rome, Italy and the Perth Queer Film Festival in Australia, and enjoyed an online run at the ImageOut Film Festival in Rochester, New York. We’ve got a few more screenings coming up too!

My hit solo show FIRST DAY BACK is, well, back, in podcast form as part of this year’s Halifax Fringe Festival, and you can listen to it wherever you are in the world!

Although COVID has shut down most live theatre around the world, that’s not stopping the Halifax Fringe Festival from celebrating its 30th anniversary, and I’m so proud to be a part of this year’s festival, streaming online through Bandcamp! FIRST DAY BACK will be available through the Halifax Fringe web site starting September 4.

FIRST DAY BACK follows a group of students who meet in the aftermath of a classmate’s suicide to figure out who’s responsible and find a way to heal. The Toronto production was nominated for two Dora Mavor Moore Awards for Outstanding New Play and Outstanding Performance.

“Richly thoughtful…Salerno presents each character with emotional truth.”
—Now Magazine

Download the FIRST DAY BACK audio show, starting Sept 4, here.

Ken Whyte is doubling down on his inane attack on the concept of libraries, demanding someone, anyone, to please debate him on his argument that libraries are killing the publishing industry and starving authors. Well, ok, fine, I guess I’m a someone.

The broad strokes of Whyte’s argument are easy to summarize. The publishing industry in Canada is shrinking, and with it, authors’ incomes. Libraries, by allowing, and – merciful heavens – encouraging people to read books (and other media) without paying publishers for it, are exacerbating the problem.

It does seem like a logical conclusion, but it’s full of problematic assumptions.

Before I really dig into this, I have to address the fact that Whyte’s two recent diatribes on libraries are pitched as if they are merely defending the rights of low-earning authors to fair treatment for their works, but are overly preoccupied with the way libraries allow people access to the most popular books and media for free. It doesn’t go both ways. You can’t bemoan that the Toronto Public Library’s 90 copies of Fifty Shades of Grey are taking food out of the mouths of the poet who’s sold 500 copies of her chapbook or the non-fiction author who wrote a detailed history of 19th-century shoemaking in Southwestern Ontario that’s been borrowed once. But then, arguing that E.L. James suffers because of Big Library would be ridiculous.

Ok, let’s deal with the state of the publishing industry and the state of the author. Now, I’m not the head of a fancy publishing house like Whyte. But I have self-published a book, I have another book on the way, and I’m featured in a forthcoming anthology from a Canadian publisher. I’ve also been working as a freelance writer for nearly 15 years and I’m a heavy purchaser and borrower of books. So I have a tiny window of perspective on the problem.

Through that window it seems unlikely that the relatively recent collapse of the publishing industry and authors’ incomes has much to do with public libraries, which have been around for centuries. Here are some more obvious culprits:

• competition from other media, including self-publishers and social media (how many people do you see scrolling Twitter rather than reading a book on the bus these days?)
• the rise of Amazon, which decimated bookstores and squeezed publishers’ margins
• the decimation of the newspaper and magazine industry, which used to provide both great publicity for publishers and ancillary income streams for authors.

I suspect, but can’t be certain, that Mr. Whyte may have some useful perspective on that last point.

Whyte’s rebuttal to these charges is that, well, hey, at least Amazon pays publishers something, whereas libraries pay out “peanuts” to publishers and authors. To which I have to ask: how deep is Whyte’s Stockholm syndrome?

Blaming the free books at libraries for all the ills that descended on the publishing industry when Amazon arrived is the publishing equivalent to locking up the pauper who steals a loaf of bread while bailing out the bankers that collapsed the financial system.

Why stop at books? Libraries still lend out CDs for some reason in 2020. Are they to blame for the collapse of music sales in North America too?

Whyte refuses to see any benefit to the publishing industry from the free nature of the public library system (he does at least concede there is a social benefit to them). To statistics showing that library users buy more books than non-library users, he simply complains that they’re still getting books for free.

(I’ll cop to an early bias here: As a playwright, I’m not counting on sales of my physical play scripts for income. If someone reads my play in a library, great! If they decide to produce it, even better! That’s a much better income stream than the couple of bucks I’d get from a publisher for the book sale. But this doesn’t obliterate the broader point that libraries do foster paying readers. Seriously, any librarians reading this who wanna stock my books, please get in touch!)

He proposes some kind of subscription system for libraries, where heavy users are charged a fee, or people have to pay to borrow the most popular books and DVDs. It’s one of those superficially reasonable arguments that conservatives wheel out every so often only to be laughed out of the room by people who remember that a big company called Blockbuster once existed.

However, I’ll confess that I think there’s merit in Whyte’s idea of a subscription service for heavy readers. But why on earth should the public libraries be running it? Wouldn’t that be an even more egregious attack on the rights of publishers, to have the state not only directly competing with them, but drawing profit from their works?

Wouldn’t it make more sense for publishers to more aggressively target readers with their own subscription services?

Whyte notes that 80 percent of books “read” in Canada are library loans, leaving only 20 percent for the sales market. Let’s leave aside questions about how many of that 80 percent represent actual lost sales, as opposed to:

• books borrowed by the same person multiple times
• books that would have been informally shared between friends and relatives if bought
• books that were picked up on a whim because, hey, free, and then never read
• books that have long gone out of print
• books that were borrowed before later being bought because the borrow whet the reader’s appetite for more

If we really believe that 4/5 books in Canada are borrowed rather than bought, maybe that points to a price problem in Canadian publishing. I mean, look, I’m not a fancy economist. I’m just a voracious reader whose eyes bug out when he sees that hot new hardcover retailing for $39.95 CDN, or the 70-page play or poetry book that retails for $25.

Allow me to divert slightly to a segment of publishing that seems to be figuring this out: comic books. Over the last decade, much of the comic book industry has begun the transition to digital subscription services. Readers can access comics from most publishers through the Comixology app, though some larger publishers like Marvel and DC have created subscription services that open their entire catalogues for a monthly or annual fee. And of course, many of their books are in libraries or on library e-readers, too. Physical books have become (even more) targeted toward the high-end collector market, and publishers and comics shops are dedicating more space to related merchandise like posters, t-shirts, and toys.

And, ok, fair, maybe 2019 Giller Prize winner Reproduction isn’t gonna do killer in the action figure market, but Margaret Atwood is making bank on Handmaid’s Tale merch, and Etsy is jammed with custom Offred figures, signifying a gap in the market. Maybe book publishers just need to finally adapt to the new digital marketplace, to make their products more accessible, and better compete with *waving hands generally in the direction of everything else that draws attention in 2020*. That may mean a lower price point, or offering subscription services that more resemble the way consumers now readily consume music, video, games, and comics, which could ultimately bring in more paying customers.

The publishing industry is obviously wildly diverse and full of authors with wildly diverse motives. But generally, the thing authors crave above anything else is readers. And not just for vanity. Every reader helps an author generate income even if they don’t buy the first book they read. They might buy the next one, or spread the word to someone who does, or hunt down your next article in a magazine, or create demand for licensed products.

Bottom line: If you’re a publisher, don’t blame libraries for their success at courting readers. Ask yourself what you’ve done to drive them there.