Review: Archie Comics Gets Their New Gay Character, Kevin Keller, Absolutely Right

For those of us who are depressed about the issue of bullying of teens perceived to be gay — and let's face it, right now is there anyone who isn't depressed by that? — something revolutionary happened this week that just might give you a little hope.

Archie Comics introduced a gay character in Veronica 202, one of several comic books that document the lives of the iconic Riverdale teens.

I know it sounds silly to talk about an Archie comic at the same time we're talking about gay teen suicide, but I absolutely believe the debut of Kevin Keller, the gay kid, is a revolutionary moment in gay pop culture. Archie Comics absolutely deserves credit, but I see this more as a bellwether moment for U.S. society in general.

Sure, superhero comics have long had gay characters. But Archie Comics is different; they may be about teenagers, but these comics are really written for the "tween" and under set. But how many times have we heard that "gay" is synonymous with "sex," and that talking about sex isn't appropriate for children? How many previous controversies have their been over the mere existence of gay people in books and television shows aimed at kids?

Kevin Keller has elicited some controversy — and let's face it, the demagogic voices over at Fox News may still choose to whip up some bigoted New York City mosque-like frenzy — but the anti-gay voices have mostly been ignored as Archie and company move along with the rest of society proudly into the 21st century.

So how's the comic itself? I found it terrific. I thought they played it absolutely spot-on, pitch-perfect right.

There's a new kid in town, Kevin Keller, and uber-bitch Veronica immediately decides that he's the guy for her. But Jughead has befriended Kevin too (and there are several nods to the longstanding gay rumors about girl-phobic Jughead, although their friendship here is clearly platonic), and Kevin soon tells Jughead that he's not into Veronica because he's gay.

Here's what the comic doesn't have: any angst whatsoever. Kevin Keller is out and proud and happy and accepted by everyone, including his parents — it's even implied that he has a boyfriend back in his "old" town — and the only reason he doesn't immediately also tell Veronica he's gay is because he's always stopped by the others (Jughead, Betty) who hold longstanding grudges and want to embarrass her.

Kevin, the outsider, is also the voice of reason when it comes to observing all the crazy heterosexual antics in Riverdale: why do Betty and Veronica stay "friends" when they clearly hate each other? Why doesn't Jughead just tell Big Ethel he's not interested in her? Sadly, Reggie doesn't appear in this issue, because I would've loved to know what Kevin thinks about that obvious closet-case.

Like many Archie issues, this one ends up being a comedy-of-errors (and — spoiler alert! — all is resolved when Veronica and Kevin bond over shopping at the mall, the only obvious "gay" stereotype in the strip).

Finally, the issue concludes with a Q&A with Kevin, Riverdale's "newest student." We learn a little about his interests (food, journalism) and his past (his bff's William and Wendy), but no more is said about his being gay. The message, of course, is that Kevin is just another character, and that his being gay is just one small part of who he is.

Like I said, pitch-perfect.

You might say this isn't entirely realistic in a world where teens perceived to be gay are killing themselves (the GLBT gay community goes back and forth on this: "No more doom-and-gloom!" "Wait, this is too happy, it's not realistic!"). 

I say that the world of Archie and Betty and Veronica is an "idealized" world. Do teenagers really still share malteds at the Chocolate Shoppe? Do they really never have zits? 

What Archie Comics is saying very clearly is this: GLBT people are now part of this "ideal" world that they're offering up to our small kids as a safe, simplistic romantic fantasy. All the sharp edges and greasy spots have been buffed and scrubbed out of the world of Archie.

But those sharp edges and greasy spots? That no longer includes gay people.

We're no longer a sharp edge! 

All my life, we've been excluded from the safe, idealized world of Riverdale — and Leave it to Beaver and The Brady Bunch and Little House on the Prairie and all the rest. I don't think we think about this much in our daily lives, but I absolutely believe it takes its toll.

Guess what? We've not excluded anymore! And that is so fricking profound that just typing that out gives me a little chill.

See Kevin's "coming out" scene on the following page!