apollo

One is a kind, caring and sweet person who wants to make a difference. The other is brash and feels isolated from a world that would paint it as an outsider. Somehow, they find a common bond and fall in love, which makes both of their lives a little bit more complete. The archetypes behind the classic fairy tale "The Beauty and the Beast" are ones you can spot again and again in stories dating back centuries. We've assembled some of our favorite examples of "beauty and beast" romances in comics.

If there’s one thing we’ve learned from our years on the Internet, it’s that there’s no aspect of comics that can’t be broken down and quantified in a single definitive list, preferably in amounts of five or ten. And since there’s no more definitive authority than ComicsAlliance, we’re taking it upon ourselves to compile Top Five lists of everything you could ever want to know about comics. While Valentine's Day maybe behind us for another year, love is still in the air and to celebrate the seasons, we're counting down the best couples in all of comics.

Steve Orlando, Fernando Blanco and Romulo Fajardo Jr's Midnighter and Apollo straddles a sweet spot between being one of the most brutal and visceral superhero comics on the stands, and also one of the most tender and heartfelt romance stories. That intersection is exactly where my musical taste lies, so this playlist reflects these two beating hearts of the series.

If the stated goal of DC's line-wide Rebirth was to restore the connections and the sense of history that have been building between those heroes for 75 years, then at this point, I think we can call it a success. For the first time in a long time, the DC Universe feels like a universe again, and that foundation of interconnected characters and relationships, all those bits and pieces that can unify all these disparate stories, have led to some truly great comics. The unity of the Batman books, the bizarre excesses of Superman and Son battling against an island of dinosaurs, the breath of fresh air that's giving the Green Lanterns a whole new appeal, and all the way down the line. For a reader like me, who has a love of that universe that's built on those connections and tied up into those relationships, there's so much out there that's genuinely great. And nothing on the stands has done it better than the first issue of Midnighter and Apollo.

Midnighter was, without question, one of the single greatest books of DC's New 52 Era. The combination of high-octane, senses-shattering action, a thrilling romantic subplot about a man who had always been defined by his relationship finding himself single for the first time, and a premise that pitted Midnighter against some of the stranger and more obscure pieces of the DC Universe, made it an irresistible read. Now, Midnighter's coming back --- and for the first time in a while, he's not alone. In Midnighter and Apollo, Steve Orlando and Fernando Blanco have reunited two of DC's most prominent gay superheroes --- and the first thing they're going to do is take on the Half-Beard and the Subway Pirates. Check out a preview!

Everybody's favorite super-boyfriends are returning to DC Comics this October, and we've got some gorgeous Fernando Blanco art to show you from the first issue. The in-progress pages are from the first issue of the six-part Midnighter & Apollo miniseries written by Steve Orlando, who also wrote the recent Midnighter series, with Blanco on interiors and ACO (the primary artist on Midnighter) handling covers.

The end of Steve Orlando and ACO's Midnighter series with its twelfth issue signaled for many the death of DC You, the much beloved but ultimately doomed publishing initiative that also gave us the likes of Starfire and We Are Robin. Midnighter was crazy inventive, action-packed, and did not shy aware from its lead character's sexuality, but also avoided making it the only thing about him. Now DC Comics has revealed that Orlando is returning to Midnighter, and bringing his on-again/off-again love interest Apollo along for the ride, in a new Midnighter & Apollo miniseries drawn by Fernando Blanco.

A hero is defined by their villains, and the world of superhero comic books is filled with some of the scariest and silliest bad guys around. Rogues’ Gallery aims to settle the score and determine who is the true arch-nemesis for some of favorite superheroes, and we need your help to do it! Wonder Woman has a great mix of villains, from ancient and mythic threats to humans corrupted by greed and opportunity. This week, we want to know who you think is the ultimate Wonder Woman nemesis.

Costume design is one of the great strengths of the superhero genre, a way to establish distinctive visual shorthand for a character and reveal key details about concept, purpose, and personality. But which is the best superhero costume of all time? This month, we’re asking you to decide, by voting up your favorites and voting down the rest. When we have your votes, we’ll compile a list of the greatest super-costumes of all time. We're wrapping up our super-poll with a few unusual takes on classic superhero design, from a 00s Superman pastiche to a very 80s Green Lantern, plus an arguably under-appreciated Kirby classic, and two particularly quirky robots.

We are not the mainstream. That's a truth understood by anyone who identifies as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgendered or in any other way queer. We are not the audience. We are not the market. We are not the people. It's also a truth understood by a lot of people with a passion for comics...