In a move that is stirring up debate among comic-book fans, Archie Comics is introducing its first "openly gay" character, Kevin Keller. In Kevin's first appearance, he reportedly shakes up the teenagers' old-fashioned world when Veronica flirts with him, and he has to explain to Jughead why he isn't interested. The company's CEO calls the addition of Kevin an effort to stay "current and inclusive." Is he right, or is this just a way to become relevant again? (Watch a Fox discussion about Archie Comics' gay character)
This is a 'watershed' moment: Archie's conservative hometown of Riverdale "lies at that junction of wholesomeness and Americana," says Leonard Pitts Jr. in The Miami Herald. When it's safe for a gay character there, it's clear that homosexuality is being accepted in the mainstream. This is "a watershed moment."
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