As first revealed in June 2021’s Star Wars comics solicitations, and later on the official site, Marvel’s Star Wars comics will celebrate Pride Month with a series of Variant Covers highlighting LGBTQ+ characters! Ever since the reset for canon in 2014, there has been a steady increase in LGBTQ+ representations throughout the franchise, though unfortunately it’s been relegated to comics and novels, but this is the first time they’ve done something of this nature so I’m happy they’re taking this small though important step. Head below for the full Sana Starros starring cover of Doctor Aphra #11 (Vol. 2), as well as the a list of the other characters set to appear!
Janeth Bazaldua, contributing to the mainline Star Wars comic recently, has created the Pride Variant for Doctor Aphra #11 (Vol. 2), choosing to put Sana in her classic outfit and have her neat looking ship, the Volt Cobra, dashing behind her. Bazaldua came out as trans woman last year and has the distinction of being the first trans artist for interior art of Star Wars comics! This issue, and therefore its cover, will be out on June 30.
The rest of the LGBTQ+ characters to be featured, and their respective issues and LGBTQ+ artists include:
- Doctor Aphra, my favorite character in Star Wars at the moment and an incredible chaotic disaster to watch, will grace the cover of War of the Bounty Hunters #1, and drawn by Babs Tarr. Not having her on this list would be a incredible oversight! And while it might seem weird it’s not the variant for her own series, this miniseries is the true launch of the biggest comics crossover yet, and considering she’s still the first comic created character to have her own series, and made the jump to prose and an excellent audiobook, as well as toys, it makes sense she’s featured here. The issue is out June 2.
- Yrica Quell, a complicated, nuanced protagonist for the morally arresting Alphabet Squadron Trilogy (which just wrapped with it’s brilliant finale), stars on Bounty Hunters #13’s cover, drawn by Jacopo Camagni. The Bounty Hunter series came under fire last year for it’s shock death of an LGBTQ+ character, though this year it was revealed T’onga survived and will continue to star in the series; it doesn’t wipe away the poor way this was all handled, including silence from creative/editing teams regarding the backlash, where a simple acknowledgment and reassurance easily could’ve avoided NDAs, but it’s a minor step in the right direction. Knowing T’onga will be in this issue and it’ll have Quell on its Pride Month Variant, one of most memorable and unique protagonists, also helps matters a bit. The issue is out June 9.
- Lando Calrissian will don the cover of Star Wars #14 (Vol. 2), illustrated by Stephen Byrne, likely showing off his unique and unforgettable swagger. Here’s hoping this acknowledgement of Lando’s pansexual identity means we’ll finally get a chance to see that play out on screen in his upcoming TV show, Lando, as Solo: A Star Wars Story passed on the opportunity (though Last Shot helped a little). The issue is out June 16.
- RAE SLOANE! A fan favorite by many, including yours truly, Rae Sloane has been one of the more fascinating and ubiquitous characters in canon since 2014, and she’s so busy she’s admitted she has no time for a man or wife. Sloane stars on J.J. Kirby’s Darth Vader #13 (Vol. 3) variant cover, with the issue out on June 23.
- Last but not least, bond-twins Terec and Ceret from The High Republic comic will bring their twinning to Javier Garron’s Pride Month variant for The The High Republic #6. There are still some important conversations to be had over their representation, but putting them on the cover is good first step in acknowledging the normalcy of their identity. The issue is out June 30.
Considering this is the first of its kind celebration for Star Wars, I’m glad it’s happening and hope they keep this a tradition going forward. However, it’s hard not to wish for more, especially when DC has a full 80 pages for their Pride issue and mainstream superhero Marvel is having its first ever Pride-focused issue, so hopefully Star Wars comics can do something as expansive next year. And start bringing representation to the screen as well. Either way, cool initiative and I can’t wait to see the rest of the covers and collect them all!
Ryan is Mynock Manor’s Head Butler. You can follow him on Twitter @BrushYourTeeth. You can follow the website on Twitter @MynockManor and Instagram @mynockmanor.