Extraño

Extrañois asuperheromagicianappearing inAmerican comic bookspublished byDC Comics.Created by writerSteve Englehartand artistJoe Staton,he first appeared inMillennium#2 (January 1988). Extraño is noted for being the first openlygaysuperhero in DC Comics.

Extraño
Extraño (right) as depicted inDC Pride#1 (August 2021). Art by Stephen Byrne.
Publication information
Publisher	DC Comics
First appearance	Millennium#2 (January 1988)
Created by	Steve Englehart(writer) Joe Staton(artist)
In-story information
Alter ego	Gregorio de la Vega
Place of origin	Earth
Team affiliations	New Guardians Justice Foundation Justice League Queer Lords of Order Justice League
Partnerships	Tasmanian Devil(love interest/husband) Sylvan Ortega(apprentice)
Supporting character of	Midnighter
Notable aliases	Count Control
Abilities	Expert magic user & extensive knowledge of the supernatural

Originally a minor supporting character affiliated with theGreen Lanternmythos, the character in recent stories is instead cast as a powerful sorcerer in theDC Universe,serving as the magical ally ofMidnighterwho is both leader and founder ofJustice League Queer,a loose network for LGBTQ superheroes who can call on each other for superheroic and personal support.

Publication history

Extraño first appeared inMillennium#2, created bySteve Englehartand artistJoe Statonas an openly gay character. While the character originally never said the word "gay" in the comic, one writer states: "Extraño embodied nearly every stereotype of a gay man. He was flamboyant and colorful, and he referred to himself in the third person, as 'Auntie'. Extraño was mainly used as comic relief, and he never had a boyfriend".The character was controversial, both internally at DC Comics as well as with the readership; Englehart wanted to explore the character more, including a storyline aboutHIV,but Englehart later said that the editor,Andy Helfer,didn't want gay characters in his comics, and "he thought that Extraño was 'cured' at the end ofMillennium".Extraño was ultimately killed by HIV infection, but it was contracted from a fight with an "AIDSvampire"supervillain called the Hemo-Goblin.

The character was later revamped for the modern era in the post-DC Rebirthuniverse, as a supporting character inMidnighter and Apollo(2016–2017), a six-issue miniseries about two gay superheroes.

Fictional character biography

During the 1988Millenniumstoryline, Extraño was part of a group selected by theGuardians of the Universeto take part in an experiment in human evolution. Extraño was aPeruvianman, Gregorio De La Vega, from Trujillo City.As a minor magician, his magical powers were heightened by the procedure, and his fellow participants gained new abilities as well. Together, they formed the superhero teamNew Guardians,and they fought evil wordlwide.

Extraño initially wears loose colorful garments and refers to himself as "Auntie", often imparting parental advice to his teammates. Serving as the team's resident magician, he could fire blasts of energy from his hands, levitate, and perform a large number of "stage tricks, including ping-pong 'balls' to outwit his foes. He had an earnest sense of justice and love of life that made him popular with his teammates. DuringThe New Guardians'short run, Extraño acquired a powerful crystal skull (which seemed to greatly amplify his abilities) and a more traditional, "masculine" superhero costume, perhaps as a reaction to the comments of readers.

InThe New Guardians,Extraño helped his team defeat a number ofsupervillainswhile trying his best to assist teammates with their personal problems. On one mission in particular, he was attacked by an "AIDS vampire" Hemo-Goblin (a name using wordplay on the blood componenthemoglobin). Extraño was subsequently confirmed to beHIV-positive,but it is unclear whether he was infected by Hemo-Goblin or had already been infected prior to his introduction. Though he showed no outward signs of the disease, his infection remained a somewhat unorthodox plot point. Although the Guardians continued to fight evildoers behind the scenes even after their comic ended, their island base was attacked and engulfed by the villainEntropyin the pages ofGreen Lantern.For a time it was assumed Extraño died during this incident, but the subsequent reappearance of other New Guardians throws this into doubt.

DC Rebirth

The post-DC Rebirthincarnation of Extraño as depicted inMidnighter and Apollo#1 (December 2016), art by Fernando Blanco.

After the timeline-altering events of the 2016DC Rebirthrelaunch, Henry Bendix tries to recruit Extraño againstMidnighterandApollo,but Gregorio De La Vega now shuns his previous persona, and he refuses.Midnighter subsequently journeys to Gregorio'sLima,Peruhome,The Sacrarium,that Gregorio shares with a man named Hugh and Suri, an adopted girl with wings. Gregorio agrees to help Midnighter, and locates Apollo's soul in Hell, where it was relegated after Apollo's encounter withMawzir.WriterSteve Orlando,who is bisexual, explains his decision to reintroduce the character, "With a book likeMidnighter & Apollo,which from cover to cover is a love letter to queer characters and our struggle to live, be visible and love, it felt right to return to one of the first and reintroduce Gregorio to a new generation ".

Extraño next appears inDC Pride(2021), a special compilation celebratingPride Month.In the story "By the Victors", also written by Steve Orlando, Extraño meetsJohn Constantinein a bar and tells him the story of when he and Midnighter fought the homophobic vampire Count Berlin to save the canonical history ofAchilles and Patroclusbeing lovers, which Berlin wanted to modify to make the Greek heroes straight. After leaving the bar, Constantine flirts with Extraño, who explains he is in fact married. In the story "Love Life", by Andrew Wheeler, Extraño is summoned alongside a crew of heroes he refers to as theJustice League Queer(JLQ) to defend a Pride Parade from attack byEclipso.Later, the heroes enjoy the festivities, and Extraño is seen kissing his husband, Tasmanian Devil.

External links

• Extraño (Pre- "Flashpoint" )at the Comic Book DB (archived fromthe original)
• Extraño (Post-DC Rebirth)at the Comic Book DB (archived fromthe original)