

Baz's real secret origin, though, may have come from a chance encounter Johns had with two Arab-American comic fans a few years ago. That got him thinking that the four-color world of comic books could use a few more hues.



"It continued to reinforce that our readership is extremely diverse, so we want to continue to diversify the characters in our universe," Johns said.



The storyline in Wednesday's issue is part the publisher's reboot of its fictional universe last year, which wiped out more than seven decades of continuity. The original Green Lantern, Alan Scott, a character first introduced in the 1940, was reimagined earlier this year as a homosexual hero in another series.



"At this point, after making Alan Scott gay — that was sort of the big one. Other than a few idiots who somehow felt it was a betrayal, there doesn't seem to be many people offended," says Harry Knowles, founder of Ain't It Cool News, a geek culture news website.



"The thing about these characters, they get redefined by the times they are in," Knowles said. "That's how they attract new readers."