The famed heterosexual superhero will embark on a same-sex relationship with a friend in the latest comic. Kent, the son of Clark Kent and Lois Lane, started his tenure in July. His new love interest is a reporter, Jay Nakamura, who cares for him after he ‘mentally and physically burns out from trying to save everyone that he can’ in an issue of Superman: Son of Kal-El #5, which is set for a release in November 2021.
Kent’s sexuality is not the only way the character has been updated for a new audience. Recent issues have also seen him stopping a high school shooting, protesting against the deportation of refugees, and trying to put out wildfires that were the cause of the climate crisis.
“I’ve always said everyone needs heroes and everyone deserves to see themselves in their heroes and I’m very grateful DC and Warner Bros share this idea,” said Tom Taylor, the series writer, in a statement. “Superman’s symbol has always stood for hope, for truth and for justice. Today, that symbol represents something more. Today, more people can see themselves in the most powerful superhero in comics.”
