Young Avengers in Love: Hulkling and Wiccan Get A New Story in Time for Pride: WATCH
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Just in time for Pride, two of our favorite young heroes in love, Hulkling and Wiccan get a story from Marvel Comics.
“Anthony Oliveira understands a Marvel Comics reader’s need for a Wiccan and Hulking story. He will be featuring the two characters in a tale titled “My Drag Brunch With Loki” during War of the Realms: War Scrolls Issue 2. I can’t wait!” wrote The Geekiary.
Writer Anthony Oliveira wrote on Twitter: “It’s a ten page story in the WAR SCROLLS #2 anthology for the @Marvel#WarOfTheRealms event. It’s about a gay superhero couple and a dark night of the soul for their friend, the Norse god of mischief.
He even posted the opening panels.
Who is this Anthony Oliveira?
Writer Oliveira is a writer, film programmer, pop culture critic, and PhD living in Toronto according to his website.
He is the host of the Revue Cinema’s Dumpster Raccoon Film Series, a recurring guest on CBC’s The National Pop Panel and host for TIFF red carpets and events, while his pieces have appeared in The Washington Post, Hazlitt, Xtra, Torontoist, Fangoria, and others. He has been nominated for four National Magazine Awards, including three for his work “Death in the Village,” chronicling the aftermath of the Bruce McArthur murders.
His graphic novel work includes The Queer Guide to Comic Con for Dark Horse’s Pros and Cons anthology; “Sunlight” for the Shout Out Anthology of Queer YA anthology; “When the Light Breaks”, the story of Steven’s first Pride Parade for Cartoon Network’s Steven Universe; and “My Drag Brunch with Loki” featuring Wiccan and Hulkling for Marvel Comics.
He is at work on his first novel, Dayspring.
He can be found on Twitter at @meakoopa, where he tweets about the arts, politics, and LGBT culture, or on his podcast, The Devil’s Party, as he reads through Milton’s Paradise Lost and its demonic twists and turns.
The Origins of ‘Bill and Ted’
The two characters made their debut in Young Avengers #1 and were created by out writer Allan Heinberg and artist Jim Cheung. Wiccan aka Billy Kaplan’s appearance is patterned on Thor and Scarlet Witch. Like the Scarlet Witch, Wiccan possesses powerful magical abilities making him the center of many of the story lines where he can’t control his exponentially increasing abilities. Kaplan is revealed at one point to be a manifestation of Scarlet Witch’s desire to have children with her husband, the android, The Vision.
Hulking aka Teddy Altman, is despite the characters’ resemblance to The Hulk, actually the scion of the Skrull princess Anelle and the Kree Mar-Vell aka the original Marvel Comics’ Captain Marvel.
They shared their first on-panel kiss in Young Avengers: The Children’s Crusade #9 in 2012. Comics Alliance said at the time,”It’s a big moment for fans of the characters; an awwwww-inducing, infinitely rebloggable image seven years in the making.”
The Geekiary said of the issue: “Seeing Billy and Teddy in domestic bliss was enjoyable. It was fun to watch Billy talking to his friend and former teammate. However, things changed quickly when (because of Hulkling’s text) Billy realized he had been talking with Loki. Turns out, Loki wanted to speak with Wiccan about where the Demiurge would stand when the war reached Earth.”
“Oliveira has does an impressive job of showcasing the differences between the two powerful characters as well as their many similarities. They have a history together. So, it was understandable why Loki would seek forgiveness from Billy.”
The characters continue to resonate on Instagram.
Watch the video below.
