In the most recent episode of Agatha All Along, Billy Maximoff (Joe Locke) kisses his boyfriend, Eddie (Miles Gutierrez-Riley). And while it’s not the first LGBTQ+ kiss in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, as some sites want to claim, it is easily the best LGBTQ+ kiss in the MCU.
…Not that there’s a long list or anything. Even before Marvel was bought by Disney, a company notorious for downsizing LGBTQ+ content on screen, likely because that limits the play of the movies and TV shows in more homophobic countries, Marvel’s productions were mostly devoid of any gay, lesbian, bisexual, or other content or characters… Other than what fans intuited on blogs and social media.
There was the awkward moment in Avengers: Endgame where co-director Joe Russo mentions his (unseen) husband, something that parallels other what are mockingly called Exclusive Gay Moments from Disney. You’ve gotten some characters who have mentioned interest in members of the same gender, or general preference for anyone and anything, like Korg (Taika Waititi), Valkyrie (Tess Thompson), and Loki (Tom Hiddleston). Ayo (Florence Kasumba) and Aneka (Michaela Coel) in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever were together, but they only went as far as a kiss on the forehead and a declaration of love.
In fact, the only on-screen kiss was a quick one in Eternals between Phastos (Brian Tyree Henry) and his husband, Ben (Haaz Sleiman), which was censored in a number of countries. There have been pre-MCU kisses (Runaways is notable for an actual LGBTQ+ couple with a plotline and everything), but that’s pretty much it, for the most part.
Until now, with Billy and Eddie. It’s not necessarily groundbreaking in the “first!!” way that garners headlines and traffic, but in a way that’s preferable. There’s an argument to be made that “second!” and “third!” and “fifty-sixth!” go farther to normalize LGBTQ+ relationships on-screen than the groundbreaker. Yes, that first kiss in Eternals was important, but seeing two teens sweetly make out in a car and then tell each other they love each other makes as much of an impact with a younger audience that may be watching MCU shows while figuring out their own sexuality.
It’s also, as noted, very cute. Locke and Gutierrez-Riley are an adorable couple that channel the teen “first relationship” energy perfectly. Whether the pull of the MCU ditches Eddie for Billy’s canonical comic book (and rhyming name) boyfriend Teddy is TBD. But for now, it’s nice to see them together and happy, at least for half an episode.
So yeah, it’s the best LGBTQ+ kiss in the MCU, and it’s not close. At least until Agatha and Rio’s sure-to-be furious make-out session in the Agatha All Along finale.
Agatha All Along Premiere Dates And Episode Guide:
The first two episodes of Agatha All Along premiered September 18 at 6 pm PT / 9 pm ET on Disney+. It streams weekly, leading up to the two-episode finale on October 30. There are nine episodes, in total.
Here’s the full list of episodes in Agatha All Along, with premiere dates:
- Wednesday, September 18, 2024: Agatha All Along, Episode 1: “Seekest Thou The Road”
- Wednesday, September 18, 2024: Agatha All Along, Episode 2: “Circle Sewn With Fate Unlock They Hidden Gate”
- Wednesday, September 25, 2024: Agatha All Along, Episode 3: “Through Many Miles of Tricks and Trials”
- Wednesday, October 2, 2024: Agatha All Along, Episode 4: “If I Can’t Reach You Let My Song Teach You”
- Wednesday, October 9, 2024: Agatha All Along, Episode 5: “Darkest Hour, Wake Thy Power”
- Wednesday, October 16, 2024: Agatha All Along, Episode 6: “Familiar by Thy Side”
- Wednesday, October 23, 2024: Agatha All Along, Episode 7
- Wednesday, October 30, 2024: Agatha All Along, Episode 8
- Wednesday, October 30, 2024: Agatha All Along, Episode 9
Where To Watch Agatha All Along:
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