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In Deadpool 2, Negasonic Teenage Warhead gets a girlfriend

7 years ago
by gaytourism
Written by gaytourism

Negasonic Teenage Warhead and Yukio in the Deadpool 2 trailer

If you saw the original Deadpool movie from 2016, you may remember Negasonic Teenage Warhead, the moody mutant who ultimately helps Deadpool. In Deadpool 2, it’s been confirmed that Negasonic Teenage Warhead (real name: Ellie Phimister) will be getting a girlfriend.

In the much-anticipated sequel, we meet Yukio—another female teenage mutant that has a budding romance with Negasonic Teenage Warhead.

Tell me about it!

‘The scene in question takes place when Deadpool visits the X-Mansion for the first time and meets the couple together, holding hands. This alone would mark a major milestone for the comic book genre, as openly queer superheroes are still virtually nonexistent, let alone ones who enjoy a healthy relationship,’ writes David Opie for Into. ‘What makes this representation even more powerful is that Negasonic Teenage Warhead explicitly tells Deadpool that the pair are an item, making it impossible to deny their queerness on screen.’

‘From that point on, Deadpool makes an effort to interact with Yukio whenever he sees her and in the film’s final act, he even tells her and Negasonic Teenage Warhead that “You guys make a super cute couple!” Given that the first Deadpool film was the highest grossing R-rated movie of all time, this is a huge step forward towards normalizing queer relationships in the mainstream. Even more impressive is the fact that Negasonic Teenage Warhead is played by Brianna Hildebrand, an openly gay actor who is extremely vocal in her support of the LGBTQ community.’

Bi/pan erasure

Many are saying this makes her the first explicitly queer hero in the Marvel universe. However, some fans disagree—even making comics about how this bi/pan erases Deadpool in his own story.

A comic by Tikva Wolf about Deadpool’s bisexual erasure

A comic by Tikva Wolf about Deadpool’s pansexual erasure

Indeed, the Deadpool films don’t address the character’s pansexuality like the comics do.

‘The hero has an onscreen girlfriend in Vanessa. In keeping with Deadpool’s story, Vanessa is a sex worker and his feelings for her ground him, exposing his humanity throughout the films. But he can love a woman and still be attracted to other people — does the new film address this? Not outright,’ writes Jenna Whitecar for PopSugar.

‘There have been arguments that due to his regenerative cell power, Deadpool can literally be fluid, constantly regenerating as a person who is sometimes homosexual and sometimes heterosexual, just depending on the new cells he grows. This concept makes his powers a metaphor for pansexuality in a sense.’

‘In a more obvious sense, clues to Deadpool’s sexuality can be found in his trademark one-liners. He lightens the severity of situations with his scrappy comments that revolve around sexual, sometimes flirtatious, jokes, mostly at the expense of the men (or even fellow superheroes) who he is alongside at the time.’

Fan reactions

Either way, some fans are disappointed that the sequel didn’t give Deadpool a boyfriend or allude to his pansexuality that much. Deadpool 2 also introduced Shatterstar, another bisexual/pansexual hero, but apparently didn’t make this explicit either.

Still, many are applauding the general queer representation in the film.

Deadpool 2 is out in theaters in the United States and United Kingdom now.

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