Get ready to say “awwwww” a lot as you read the new queer romance anthology Young Men in Love. These twenty comic stories range from sweet first loves to parables of adversity with everything from pirates, superheroes, sentient light bulbs and more thrown into the mix.
Editors Joe Glass (writer of queer comic The Pride) and Matt Miner have assembled an array of queer talent to tell these stories of male same-sex attraction. The collection kicks off with Tate Brombal (Barbalien: Red Planet) and Jacoby Salcedo’s sweet Second Star to the Right, about a gay teen at summer camp who meets a magical boy in the woods, perfectly setting the tone for much of the anthology; romance with a touch of magic.
Living by Terry Blas and Bradley Clayton details the love between a ghost and a young man in Mexico. In Josh Cornillon’s My Personal Super Scout a guy discovers the truth behind the date who ghosted on him. Bright Idea, by Charles Pulliam-Moore, Dennis Yatras, and Daryl Toh, sees some smart tech play havoc with a couple’s domestic life.
More down-to-earth stories include Dave Ebersole, Robert Ryan and Vincent Batignole’s Theatre Kids about a high-school showmance. Thingaversary by Sina Grace (Marvel’s Iceman, Ghosted in LA) is a cute domestic scene of a modern day couple. Joe Glass and Auguste Kanakis’s Love Yourself looks at the dating life of a bigger guy. And Hamish Steel and Lucas Gattoni’s touching Christmas story, Big Man, shows us romance coming from unexpected places.
But it’s not all just whimsical happily-ever-afters. Another Name by Ned Barnett and Ian Bisbal is the coming out story of a trans man in a heterosexual relationship. Act of Grace by Anthony Oliveira (Marvel’s Hulkling & Wiccan) and Nick Robles sees a religious teen come to terms with his sexuality.
Glass and Miner keep the collection moving between tones and art styles—which vary from cartoon to traditional comicbook, to indie comics—so that you are never bored. The collection is wrapped in a cover by superstar Kevin Wada, and lettered by Lucas Gattoni.
In the end, Young Men in Love will give you a warm glow, seeing our stories told and our loves affirmed in so many ways. From the everyday to the supernatural, these stories are rich, funny, honest and charming to the very end.
By Chad Armstrong
Young Men in Love, A Queer Romance Anthology, is published by A Wave Blue World comics in July. Pre-order now from your local independent bookstore or online here.
Oliver Gerlach, Joe Glass and Hamish Steele will be signing copes of Young Men in Love at Gosh! Comics, 1 Berwick Street, London on July 9th, 2022.
