Although the X-Men's Jean-Paul Beaubier, aka Northstar, isn't the most high-profile hero in the Marvel Universe, his wedding tops the list of most historic comic book weddings -- because it was Marvel's first gay wedding. When he married Kyle Jinadu in 2012's Astonishing X-Men #51, it was an important event; seven years later, it still has the potential to rock the status quo.
Debuting on the Canadian super-team Alpha Flight, Northstar and his sister Aurora are mutant speedsters who can fly and project photon energy blasts. Many of Northstar's early stories revolved around the team or focused on his sister. Later, he joined the X-Men and his character arc began to focus on him as an individual -- which also meant coming to terms with and embracing his sexuality.
Although Jean-Paul had a crush on his teammate Iceman -- who expressed homophobic views before later coming out as gay himself -- it wasn't until he met the human Kyle Jinadu that he found a partner with whom he wanted to settle down.
Kyle's first appearance came in Uncanny X-Men #508 (also notable for being the first time lesbian character Karma had a romance with another woman appear on panel) and he began a romantic relationship with Jean-Paul soon after. Though Kyle knew Aurora for years, it was not until Kyle started managing Northstar's line of sportswear that the two became close. Just after they started dating, Northstar moved to San Francisco with the X-Men, which put a strain on their fledgling relationship.
What further strained their relationship was prejudice against mutants. While the X-Men were on Utopia, Kyle was unable to join Jean-Paul, which was difficult for them. Furthermore, Kyle was at one point kidnapped by the Marauders, which pushed him and Northstar to their limits and posed the age-old question of whether it's ethical to involve a civilian in the superhero lifestyle. Luckily, the two came out all the stronger for it and decided to get married.
The move was a historic one for Marvel and the publisher wasn't afraid to capitalize on it. Before the release of Astonishing X-Men #51, Marvel chose to announce the storyline on ABC's television program The View. This announcement and its placement posited that Marvel planned to make its Universe more inclusive and progressive.
Immediately, Marvel was criticized by both supporters and detractors for the publicity stunt. However, despite the tone-deaf announcement, Jean-Paul and Kyle's wedding was still a very big deal -- but since it happened, neither character has had a significant role in X-Men comics or the Marvel Universe.
That said, the Dawn of X relaunch will bring them and their relationship back into the spotlight.
Jean-Paul and Kyle are still together and seemingly quite happy. Along with other human relatives of mutants living on Krakoa, Kyle has permission to be on the mutant nation-state alongside his husband, who has worked with his sister Aurora on several missions.
The new X-Factor series launching later this year, by Leah Williams and David Baldéon, will surely catch up with the couple. Northstar will be leading the team and Kyle's presence in the series has been confirmed -- which means one of Marvel's most historic couples can keep making waves, together.