Happy Anniversary!

Today marks the two year anniversary of Travis and his wife Tiffany. With Tiff’s love of Tim Drake and Trav’s love of Stephanie Brown, them going out for an anniversary dinner dressed as Robin and Spoiler seemed only natural.

I’ve always been a hopeless romantic when it comes to fictional couples, and I believe a well written relationship can add to story, even more than the ‘will they or won’t they’ tensions a lot of stories seem to fall back on. Some comic couples have taken the leap into a strong committed relationship, and I think they are better for it.

Lois and Clark are the prime example, married in 1996 (Almost 60 years after their creation), they have shown to be a strong relationship that adds to the dynamics of the book. Even with Superman living on New Krypton for the better part of the past year, there was no question of their faith in each other.

I don’t think you can talk about comic couples with mentioning Ralph and Sue Dibny. Ralph was one of the first comic characters to marry his love interest and their relationship was shown to be equal, loving, and without any of the drama comics can be known for. Their relationship was also what made the tragedy in Identity Crisis so powerful. Even with all the hardship superheroes face, losing one’s family is shown to be the breaking point.

The last comic couple I want to mention is the recently separated Green Arrow and Black Canary. Dysfunctional almost from the start, they finally seemed to find a way to make it work under writer Judd Winick in Green Arrow/Black Canary. I personally thought they would become another permanent fixture in the relationship landscape. But it seems it was not to be, Cry for Justice and the Fall of Green Arrow saw the end of this couple, possibly for good. I can’t help but wonder if this was simply a case of someone think a strong, healthy relationship is boring and not what the reader wants to see.

Only time will tell if successful comic book relationships will continue to be few and far between. Whether the recently reunited couples of Aquaman and Mera, and Hawkman and Hawkgirl will survive the Brightest Day. Or if Dick Grayson will stop being an idiot. I’m personally excited to find out. Also, if Dick and Babs do get together, I’ll be throwing a party and you are all invited. And I don’t care how lame that sounds when you read it out loud either!

Character Bio: Gnome

Name: Alice “Gnome” McFiercen

Occupation: Music Teacher

Powers: Ability to understand Al & Kyle, Cooking, High tolerance for “comic book madness”

Likes: Capes, Tiny Titans, Tim Drake, Kilowog, Slightly awkward nerdy guys

Dislikes: Frank Miller, Superboy Prime, Creepy Comic Shops and the People who occupy them

The Gnome is a very special woman since she seems to be the only one who can interact with Al and Kyle without getting completely sucked into their insanity. She and Al met her last year of high school and have been inseparable ever since. Short in stature, she was christened with the nickname of Gnome in college and it stuck to such a degree that neither Al nor Kyle refer to her by her real name (if they even remember what it is). The Gnome loves to cook and make sure that people are well fed, a trait that Al & Kyle gladly reap the benefits from. While she is definitely not as eccentric as Kyle or Al, she clearly has her own quirks. Her penchant for wearing a cape has become so commonplace that neither Al nor Kyle notice it, nor remember why she started wearing one.