Over the past few years DC Comics’s annual Pride celebration has become a highlight of the publisher’s schedule. Yesterday DC announced their plans for Pride 2024, and they feature some pleasant surprises. Along with the annual anthology one-shot and variant covers spotlighting queer creators and characters, DC will also publish a one-shot tribute to trailblazing creator Rachel Pollack, as well as a collection of the many Pride-themed variant covers from past celebrations.
Here’s the info on everything that’s coming, from DC’s PR:
DC Pride 2024 #1
DC’s Eisner and Ringo award-winning Pride comic book anthology returns for 2024 in the form of a universe-spanning travelogue like you’ve never seen! DC’s comics are as vast, varied, and fantastic as the incredible and weird locations found across the DC cosmos, and DC’s LGBTQIA+ characters are everywhere, belong anywhere, and can do anything they set their hearts and minds to. How they get there is as important as where they’re going, so join them as they explore the farthest edges of the DC Multiverse, together! DC’s 2024 Pride collection of books and comics will be available at your local comic book shop, bookstore, library, and beyond, taking DC’s characters across the far reaches of the Phantom Zone, the Fourth World, and beyond!
DC Pride 2024 #1, DC’s annual anthology containing all-new stories spotlighting LGBTQIA+ fan favorites, will publish on May 28. The 104-page Prestige format comic will feature a main cover by Kevin Wada, an open-to-order wraparound variant cover by David Talaski, foil and card stock variants by Babs Tarr, and Wada’s main cover offered as a 1:25 card stock variant.
In DC Pride 2024, DC will host an unmissable autobiographical story written by industry legend Phil Jimenez about the fantastical worlds that shaped him, brought to life by Giulio Macaione. This heartwarming story is a can’t-miss highlight, plus Dreamer makes a first-time pilgrimage to her ancestral planet, Naltor, in a story by Nicole Maines and Jordan Gibson; Poison Ivy and Janet from HR go spore-hunting on Portworld in a story by Gretchen Felker-Martin and Claire Roe; Superman (Jon Kent) gets Jay, Bunker, and the Ray together for a boys’ night out in A-Town in a story by Jarrett Williams and D.J. Kirkland; Steel (Natasha Irons) works up the courage to face Traci 13 at the Oblivion Bar’s Pride party for the first time since they broke up in a story by Jamila Rowser and ONeillJones; Aquaman (Jackson Hyde) catches an unexpected ride to the Fourth World just in time for their annual Love Festival in a story by Ngozi Ukazu; Circuit Breaker’s unstable powers fritz him into the Phantom Zone in a story by Calvin Kasulke and Len Gogou; plus a Blue Starman story written by Al Ewing and character pinups, in a volume celebrating how the LGBTQIA+ community is everywhere and belongs anywhere—even the farthest reaches of the known and unknown worlds!
As an additional DC Pride teaser, this year’s anthology features a special preview of DC’s upcoming YA OGN The Strange Case of Harleen and Harley by New York Times bestselling author of Wicked Lovely Melissa Marr, teamed up with celebrated artist Jenn St-Onge.
Past DC Pride one-shots have included stories from first-time DC creators, and this one is no exception, as, among others, this will be superstar writer Al Ewing‘s first work for the publisher. Hopefully it portends more to come.
DC Pride: A Celebration of Rachel Pollack #1
In the 1990s, writer Rachel Pollack did the impossible: she raised the bar for surprise and strangeness in her beloved run following Grant Morrison’s career-making Doom Patrol! To celebrate her life and works, DC will publish a spotlight issue,DC Pride: A Celebration of Rachel Pollack, hitting shelves on June 6. This 96-page one-shot comic book reprints the debut of the iconic Coagula, DC’s first transgender Super Hero, from Doom Patrol #70, pencilled by Scot Eaton, along with the long-unavailable one-shot Vertigo Visions: The Geek (with superstar artist Michael Allred)!
And in a final, original short story, Rachel’s most beloved creation, Kate Godwin, a.k.a. Coagula, returns to the spotlight in a tale of triumph over death itself written by Joe Corallo, Rachel’s longtime friend and collaborator, and drawn by Rye Hickman!
Pollack’s passing last year led to a massive outpouring of tributes from fellow creators, and it’s really nice to see DC honoring the impact she had on the comics community and on DC specifically.
DC’S ONGOING COMIC BOOK SERIES CONTINUE DC PRIDE ALL YEAR
Throughout its line of monthly comic books, DC will highlight Pride-themed variant covers on series that feature queer characters in regular and lead roles. This year, look for DC Pride covers on Action Comics #1066 (Betsy Cola), Batman #148 (Skylar Patridge), Green Arrow #13 (A.L. Kaplan), Poison Ivy #23 and Harley Quinn #41 (W. Scott Forbes), Nightwing #115 (Bruka Jones), Outsiders #8 (Don Aguillo), Suicide Squad: Dream Team #4 (Fatima Wajid), Superman #15 (Angel Solorzano), The Flash #10 (Nick Robles), and Wonder Woman #10 (Phil Jimenez and Arif Prianto).
And if you missed picking up previous years’ variant covers, DC has you covered with DC Pride: Uncovered #1! DC’s most iconic LGBTQIA+ artists put the party in Pride with their fabulous array of variant covers spotlighting LGBTQIA+ characters across the DCU year after year, and this art book collects a robust selection of fan favorites in one place for the very first time! Don’t miss out on a gallery of gorgeous art as imaginative and colorful as the characters themselves.
DC Pride: Uncovered #1, on sale June 11, is a gallery comic of gorgeous covers from Jen Bartel, Phil Jimenez, Jim Lee, Joshua “Sway” Swaby, David Talaski, Babs Tarr, Kris Anka, and more! DC Pride: Uncovered will have a main cover by Jen Bartel, with variant covers by Oscar Vega; Luciano Vecchio; Mateus Manhanini; and Jim Lee, Scott Williams, and Tamra Bonvillain. DC Pride: Uncovered #1 will be scripted by DC editor Andrea Shea.
Along with the one-shots and variant covers, DC also previewed a pair of young adult graphic novels coming both before and after Pride:
The Strange Case of Harleen and Harley
When Harleen signs up to participate in a clinical research trial with her girlfriend, Pamela, her only goals are extra cash and a chance to control her anxiety. But what she gets instead are increasingly larger gaps in her memory and stolen mementos from some guy named Jack. Soon Harleen discovers she’s sharing her life with Harley—a take-no-prisoners, who-cares-about-attendance, maybe-we-oughta-save-the-bunnies kind of girl. She is the opposite of Harleen in every way. And although she’s throwing Harleen’s life completely off track, maybe she ain’t so bad either…
New York Times bestselling author Melissa Marr (Wicked Lovely) and celebrated artist Jenn St-Onge (Bingo Love), with color by Jeremy Lawson and lettering by Lucas Gattoni, explore the twisted transformation from Harleen to Harley in this compelling new YA original graphic novel on sale beginning September 3!
Bad Dream: A Dreamer Story
Bad Dream: A Dreamer Story is the untold origin story of Dreamer, the first trans Super Hero ever to appear on TV! DC’s newest YA graphic novel publishes on April 2, written by Nicole Maines and drawn by Rye Hickman with color by Bex Glendining and lettering by Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou.
Nia’s spent her whole life taking a back seat to her older sister, Maeve, who was expected to inherit their mother’s Seer powers: the ability to see the future through dreams, passed down to one woman in each generation. But when Nia, a trans girl, starts having visions of the future, she must suppress her powers to protect her relationship with her sister.
Soon Nia’s dreams become impossible to ignore, and she has no choice but to distance herself as she navigates her new reality. Taking off for Metropolis, Nia is quickly swept up in the bustling city and, guided by her dreams, connects with a group of queer girls who feel more like sisters than her own. As Nia starts to discover her powers may be more than just a burden, she’s given a choice: accept her new responsibility as a Seer or give it all up for a chance at normalcy.
From Nicole Maines, the actress, activist, and writer who originated the fan-favorite role of Dreamer on the groundbreaking Supergirl TV show, and with art by Rye Hickman, who captures Nia’s depth and humor, comes this joyful and gut-wrenching graphic novel featuring characters from Galaxy: The Prettiest Star in DC’s first YA crossover!
It’s a packed release lineup from DC, and an impressive indicator of just how successful the annual Pride celebration has been for the publisher that they continue to expand on it year after year.
Check out all the variant covers revealed to-date below. The DC Pride 2024 one-shot will arrive in stores and digitally on Tuesday, May 28th; DC Pride: A Celebration of Rachel Pollack will follow on June 4th; and DC Pride: Uncovered #1 on June 11th. Pride variant covers will hit throughout the month of June.
Back in the ’90s, while working with the NYC chapter of Friends of Lulu, we were lucky enough to have Rachel attend one of our meetings. I had the opportunity to spend a brief time talking with her about her current DC work, of which I was a fan. She was interesting, witty and couldn’t have been more pleasant. Really glad that DC is paying tribute to a great talent and wonderful person.
Thanks for sharing that awesome story!
This is a great way to honor the memory of Pollack….
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