Tom Swift

Character
Character description from the official synopsis:
 * Black, gay, billionaire inventor who is thrust into a world of sci-fi conspiracy and unexplained phenomena after the shocking disappearance of his father. Tom takes to the road on a quest to unravel the truth, leaving behind the comforts of his usual moneyed lifestyle, all while fighting to stay one step ahead of an Illuminati-scale group hell-bent on stopping him. Tom’s missions will require his genius and flair for innovation guided by love, romance, friendship and the mysteries of the universe yet-unsolved.

History
Tom is the only son of naval Commander Barton Swift, who became a business mogul and CEO. He strived to search space and the world around him, while raising Tom to follow in his footsteps. He demanded excellence from his son. This led Tom to hide his gayness from his father as a way to seek Barton's approval. At the age of eight, Tom invented an AI companion and tough-love mentor that he named Barclay. Over the years, Tom attempted to come out to his father multiple times. However, Barton would conveniently forget and continued to set Tom up for heterosexual romances. Tom attended MIT where he graduated with honors. He then became a billionaire tech mogul in his own right and invented hundreds of gadgets to aid him in his endeavors.

Plot summary
In The Celestial Visitor, Tom comes to Horseshoe Bay and hires Nancy for $2,000  to help him a rare meteorite that crashed down in her town 90 years ago. Nancy asks why he wants the meteorite, and Tom is cagey.

Bess realizes he is Tom Swift, the billionaire heir to the Swift invention empire. He and his family are genius inventors, with Tom as the younger face of the company. Nancy agrees to help after he tells them that new comet is heading their way at a rapid pace. Nancy and Tom head to the historical society for information. Barclay unwittingly reveals that Tom is gay and hiding it from his father when he reads aloud a text message he sent. Tom moves right along and Nancy follows his lead, showing him a book she found showing a group of men touring the meteorite around the country for years in the 1930s. Nancy realizes they bought Icarus Hall, which must be where the meteorite is now. The two head to the hall after Tom changes into a new and equally fashion-forward outfit he deems fit for the adventure. Inside the abandoned building, Tom immediately leaves Nancy to investigate with Barclay even as she tells him to stay with her. Barclay buzzes as Tom gets closer to where he believes the meteorite is as we see a ghostly figure in a robe. Tom tries to reach past it to get the meteorite, and it lunges at him. Tom screams and runs out of the hall as the monks chase them.

Outside, Tom frantically tries to come up with any scientific explanation to explain what they just saw as Nancy calmly repeats that they were ghosts. He says he will science his way out of this. Tom eventually realizes that Nancy is right after he tries many attempts to get pass the ghosts get the meteorite which leads him to admitting to Nancy she was right. They strike up an new deal He offers to help her with her blackmailing billionaire problem if she helps him with the meteorite. She agrees and this time they call in the rest of the Drew Crew to help. As they are looking up leads Tom bonds with Nick which catches George's attention sad that at the fact her boyfriend seems more open towards Tom about certain experiences. At Icarus Hall, Tom created nanobots that will fool the ghosts into chasing after them, not the human Drew Crew. They follow Barclay to a hidden alcove where they find the meteorite. Unfortunately, Bess goes two-for-two on demonic possession and starts swinging a sword around. The rest of the crew runs and locks her inside, promising to return. Nancy tells Tom the Women in White likely caused Bess’ possession. Tom is incredulous about the claim as Nancy pulls out her research.

Nancy picks up on Tom’s anxiety, and she asks why he needs this meteorite so badly. He explains that it contains a rare element that could help him build a spaceship to help his father explore the cosmos. Tom loves and admires his father greatly, but he feels he has always been lesser in his father’s eyes due to his sexuality. He says he plays along with his father’s attempts to set him up with women and doesn’t share anything about his love life to keep the peace. Nancy urges he can still be his authentic self with his sexuality and be an inventor. He turns the conversation back to Nancy, saying she needs armor to deal with the Hudson's.

They realize they need to break the hex to get the meteorite. Nancy with the help of Tom and Barclay manages to break the hex therefore saving Bess as their combined science and spirit world knowledge worked. Tom takes the meteorite to his car and has a heart-to-heart with Nancy. He tells her that to survive the Hudson's, she needs to put Nancy Drew away and let Nancy Hudson take over. He put two-and-two together about her origins, and he says her secret is safe with him. Nancy tells him he needs to get rid of his armor if she is going to put hers on. He says he’s tried to explain to his father before, and Nancy says he needs more than words. Tom jokes that he needs to find a gorgeous man to kiss and put it on the Internet which gives the idea to kiss Nick and post in on social media which Nick agrees to with George's blessing. The picture goes viral and Tom is relived to be out of the closet.

Tom gives Nancy one last parting gift: a beautiful Balmain dress for the party calling it her armor. Tom’s father calls, having seen the post, and Tom tells him he found the meteorite. It goes well, and Tom drives away with Barclay, off to his next adventure.

Quotes
Tom to The Drew Crew: Are you all broomstick people?

Tom: Nancy, I appreciate you, but I went to MIT and you went to a thrift store to buy that hat, okay?

Trivia

 * Like the character Nancy Drew, the character Tom Swift was created by Edward Stratemeyer and was also the lead in his own book series from Stratemeyer Syndicate. Unlike the Nancy Drew stories, which are mysteries, the Tom Swift stories are adventures about science, invention, and technology.
 * The Celestial Visitor serves a backdoor pilot for a potential Tom Swift series.