It is with great pleasure that we present the twelfth issue of CLOSURE Kieler Journal for Comics Research.
With the theme »Queer Comics,« we explore queer representation across comic cultures – from queer characters, forms, and narratives to intersectional identities and the unique visual possibilities the medium offers for representing gender and sexuality (with contributions by, among others, Marina Rauchenbacher and Janek Scholz).

Enjoy reading – here’s the link to the issue:

https://www.closure.uni-kiel.de/start_en

From the Introduction:

“The visual language of comics offers unique possibilities for representing gender and sexuality visually. Colors, shapes, and styles can be employed to depict genderfluid or non-binary characters and their experiences. Medium-specific gaps resist fixed and normative determination. At the formal level alone, comics artists can experimentally rearrange the sequencing of panels, signs, and storylines to create non-linear narrative structures that reflect diverse identities in queer narratives. While we close the gaps between panels as we read comics, these gaps remain decisively visible and present—a refusal of continuity that queer comics have taken up in order to suggest »queer temporalities« (Halberstam) outside normative conceptions of time.

Comics demand that readers actively participate in interpretation, as they must not only follow the plot but also interpret the visual information. This interactivity enables queer stories to be more subversive by using visual allusions or symbolic representations that can only be grasped through active engagement with the comic. »Phenomenology is, after all, full of queer moments, moments of disorientation« (Ahmed). Starting from this insight, the question arises: How does the media phenomenology of comics disrupt and transform our perception and interpretation of identities and relationships?

Whereas it was initially the gay community that was represented from the 1950s onward in publications by independent or self-publishers, the scene expanded through events including the Stonewall riots of 1969 (Hall 2012). Queer themes found expression in underground comix. A community of alternative lifestyles created a space in which gender roles and sexuality were questioned. Artists such as Howard Cruse (1944–2019), editor of the anthology Gay Comix, brought explicitly queer stories into focus and created space for LGBTQ+ narratives that were still taboo in mainstream comics.

Since the 2000s, webcomics and independent publishers have contributed significantly to bringing an even broader diversity of queer identities, gender roles, and stories into the world of comics. These stories are not just about showing queer characters but about establishing them as fully realized characters who take center stage and whose identity is not merely a side note. Narratives about the queer experience appeared early in the field of graphic medicine, both in activist and utoabiographical form and for targeted health education (such as Marbles by Ellen Forney 2012, Taking Turns by MK Czerwiec 2014, or Pregnant Butch by A.K. Summers 2014). In the mainstream, queer characters became increasingly visible from the late twentieth century onward, though often only as supporting characters or in metaphorical contexts. But this too is changing. One example is The Young Avengers, whose characters Wiccan, Hulkling, and America Chavez have been among Marvel‘s first prominent LGBTQ+ characters since their introduction to the universe in 2005. These comics challenge both social norms and comics conventions by making queerness visible on the page. Understanding their impact requires examining the works and the communities that surround them.

CLOSURE #12 gathers contributions that explore queer representation across different comics cultures, investigating intersections with queer characters, forms, and narratives.”