A Villain's Sexuality

As I read fellow blogger Hanna White's post "Homosexuality in the Media of Different Cultures" I recalled a comic book character whose sexual actions are somewhat ambiguous. His name is Daken and he is the long lost son of Wolverine, the infamous 120 year old mutant member of the X-Men and the Avengers.

Daken's history is a tragic and violent one. He was born with the name Akihiro in the 1940's as the illegitimate son between Canadian Wolverine (also known as Logan) and a Japanese woman named Itsu. His mother was killed by an assassin who was targeting Logan at the time and he was cut from the womb of the dying mother by a shadowy villain named Romulus. Romulus, who had tormented Wolverine from behind the scenes, gave him up to a Japanese family in a small village where he was tormented by other children for his biracial heritage. They gave him a racial slur which became his nickname "Daken". Because of the hate and prejudice he encountered, he grew up with a resentment of the world. His hatred of the world combined with his mutant powers (genetically inherited by his father) of bone claws and his healing factor led him to becoming a dangerously violent villain. He killed his parents when they tried to abandon him and he worked as an assassin for decades never aging thanks to his healing factor. He also had a burgeoning hatred for his father Wolverine, who was unaware at the time that he had a son because his memories of the past were wiped out by government program Weapon X. It would be years later when he met his father (who regained his memories) and the two confronted each other. In the mean time Romulus manipulated through torture and training Daken turning him into a relentless killing machine.

Daken is not the first LGBT comic book character introduced but he is the most fascinating. For example, in one issue he emotionally pushes a woman to commit suicide when he reveals that he had sex with her husband. His homosexuality is also evident when he kisses his Dark Avengers teammate Bullseye in an effort to calm him down while they fight the Asgardians. Later when he fights the Fantastic Four's thing, he manipulates him through pheromones while goading him with homoerotic remarks. Readers can assume that Daken is obviously homosexual but this might not be the case. For example, when teammate Hawkeye (Bullseye in disguise) questions Daken's dual membership in the Dark Avengers and the Dark X-Men Daken simply responds "I always did like playing for both teams". This double entendre is evident when he is sexually involved with women in other issues only to manipulate them into doing his bidding.

To explain Daken's sexuality one must understand his personality. He is a victim of society's prejudice against mutants and a victim to emotional manipulation by a shadowy being he could not resist. He has been for his entire life subject to the bidding of Romulus. So, Daken simply uses his sexuality to manipulate others into doing his own bidding. Like his master he is not above cruelty as he has sadistically damaged the emotions of his victims often forcing them to commit suicide. As "Wolverine" writer Daniel Way explains, "He is no more homosexual than heterosexual. It's about control." Because Daken never received love from anyone and only experienced pain and suffering, he is completely incapable of giving love. As a result, his sexuality is not an expression of love or desire, but simply a weapon he uses for cruelty and sadism.