By Jacob Cordas — Queer culture has often had a contentious relationship with comics. Our existence being there in metaphor, but as an unstated one. We were treated to stories that hinted at our truth or stories that leaked from editorial boards showing how close we nearly got.* In the last few years we’ve had gay characters pop up here and there in the mainstream but even they have often been sidestepped and ignored. Sure, there were indie comics you could try to find or the rare big name that was dedicated to more progressive representation - but it never lasted.

This all just leads to…I don’t know what the right word would be. What’s the word for fear that progress won’t last? Or the fear that progress was illusionary to begin with? Because every comic book fan who didn’t clearly fit in the heteronormative dominant ideology can report they felt that. But here, in this book, on every page, that word I never knew faded. 

Be Gay, Do Comics aims to provide a comfort that can’t be found anywhere else. Be Gay, Do Comics aims to provide a showcase for a series of creators speaking honestly about their experiences. Be Gay, Do Comics aims to do what should have been done already. Be Gay, Do Comics aims to be a cute and fun read.

And on every count, Be Gay, Do Comics succeeds. 

As a fan of compilation works, it’s rare to get one this consistent. But that probably speaks to the lack of representation in the overarching media landscape. Every creator involved does astounding work. There isn’t a single comic I didn’t enjoy here, all while having intense diversity within content and art styles. 

There are single page comics that run the gamut from hilarious to heartfelt. There are longer stories that take up pages dedicated to a wide variety of tones and styles. The arrangement of the stories is well considered making it an easy read to get through, never wearing down the audience. The editorial staff did wonderful work assembling this. 

Considering the amount of the content here, it be impossible to write about each story in depth, though each comic definitely deserves it. Instead, I’m going to focus on the stories that spoke to my experiences in the community because that seems to be the true goal here.

If you identify in any way on this spectrum, you are represented here. There are stories for every way a person can be in its most honest and empowering form. And for myself I saw that truth most heavily in Sometimes I Call Myself Queer. Sometimes I Feel Like A Liar. 

It’s the story of someone poly, queer and trans, someone who’s relationship to their queerness is one that feels isolated from the community that they supposedly belong. It’s a beautiful crafted story by Nero O'Reilly that expresses a part of myself I had never seen depicted before, at least not this frankly or sincerely. 

In the first paragraph of this article, I used the word “our.” And honestly, that feels disingenuous. I’m not straight. I’m not cis. I know what I’m not. But for some reason I feel wrong identifying myself as part of the community that ostensibly I belong to. When they wrote “Shared experiences are a part of strong communities - and the queer community is such a part of people's identities that it makes me - feel like a liar,” it felt like having someone look into me and pull out a truth that I struggled to say.

That line is so comforting in so many ways. I keep attempting to write poetically about it and can’t. It’s just rewarding knowing somebody else knows. 

I was discussing this feeling with my amazingly talented trans friend, T.P., a few days ago. When I told her I don’t feel like I belong in this community and don’t feel right identifying as a part of it, she offered me some ideas on how to ease my way in. Baby steps don’t hurt. Dip your toe in the water. And that still seemed wrong to me for some reason. But even at the end of the conversation with all my flip flopping and waffling, she said, “But for what it’s worth, you’re deserving. You’re queer. So you can wear that label.” 

And while I didn’t believe it in that moment, I honestly believe it after reading that story.

I can’t stress how amazing it is to have such a series of stories that empower like these do. It’s rattling. I’m twenty-six years old and almost crying writing about this feeling about being seen. It’s a beautiful thing Be Gay, Do Comics provides the world. And the fact it is all as high quality as it is; so special. 

But there are still others that spoke to me, that reminded me of moments I’ve lived. Or moments I wished I had. 

Bianca Xunise and Sage Coffey’s When You’re Invisible In Pop Culture captures that conversation I’ve had an infinite number of times with friends that inevitably ends in us pitching ideas for how to make our favorite fandoms more gay. And while we live in a world that is constantly evolving and improving it’s depictions, this is still glaringly true. 

Maia Kobabe’s Dancing With Pride reminds me of every school dance we learned in PE while living in the Midwest and feeling terribly uncomfortable with the part assigned to me. I wish I had the courage the main character has here/ I hope teens reading this can be braver than I was. 

Kazimir Lee’s What's it Like To Raise Kids in Malaysia When You're LGBT? is a powerful depiction of youthful queerness and the way valuing it is revolutionary. I grew up on military bases and remember the fall of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell. But I wish this was the way my childhood had gone. Instead I am left with memories of my giving me shit because I preferred to sit on the toilet to standing. 

Don’t let these few stories referenced seem minimizing. On every page, someone will be able to find an identifier that I can’t promise they’ve seen before. Be Gay, Do Comics makes you feel seen. It makes you feel heard. 

I may not feel like I belong but, in the pages of this book, I do.

We all do. 

All I can say in response is thank you. 

Overall:  A heartwarming, comforting and loving compilation book of queer stories. I have never read a work that made me feel like I belonged more. 10/10

*I still take great comfort in the leak that revealed Mystique and Destiny were supposed to be Nightcrawler’s parents. When talking with my comic book friends, we will often bring it up with a whispered, “The dream.”

Be Gay, Do Comics

Be Gay, Do Comics
Writers/Artists: Various
Publisher: The Nib
Price: $25.00
The dream of a queer separatist town. The life of a gay Jewish Nazi fighter. A gender reveal party that tears apart reality. These are the just some of the comics you’ll find in this massive queer comics anthology from The Nib. Be Gay, Do Comics is filled with dozens of comics about LGBTQIA experiences, ranging from personal stories to queer history to cutting satire about pronoun panic and brands desperate to co-opt pride. Brimming with resilience, inspiration, and humor, an incredible lineup of top indie cartoonists takes you from the American Revolution through Stonewall to today’s fights for equality and representation. Featuring more than 30 cartoonists including Hazel Newlevant, Joey Alison Sayers, Maia Kobabe, Matt Lubchansky, Breena Nuñez, Sasha Velour, Shing Yin Khor, Levi Hastings, Mady G, Bianca Xunise, Kazimir Lee, and many many more!
Release Date: September 9, 2020
Buy It Digitally: Be Gay, Do Comics

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My name is Jacob Cordas (@Jacweasel) and I am not qualified to write this.