Meet the African Avengers, heroes of a new age
Black comic book artists challenge the dominance of white superheroes
Comic books might be good at imagining alien worlds and gritty fictional cityscapes, but when it comes to depictions of real-life countries, they can fall down.
DC’s Superman/Wonder Woman annual release recently accidentally allowed a placeholder caption to go through to production which said the dialogue in one scene was translated from “Pakistanian” – there being no such language, of course, with Urdu being the primary tongue spoken in Pakistan.
Things might be looking up – New York Times bestselling writer Ta-Nehisi Coates has been brought on board by Marvel to write the adventures of one of its few truly African characters, the Black Panther, aka T’Challa, ruler of the fictional African country Wakanda – but it’s hardly surprising that after decades of a landscape mainly populated by white supermen, African creators and companies are finally doing it for themselves.
Jide Martin, founder and CEO of Comic Republic, says he set the company up because “there was a moral vacuum in the present generation, a general lack of icons. People stopped believing in the institutions of old. To fill this gap, I went back to my childhood and I remembered that I used to reflect on what Superman or Batman would do when I wanted to make decisions; so I decided to use the same medium to give this and the next generation something to believe in.
“I don’t think Africa and Africans are well represented in mainstream Western comics. That is why we are here ... to give us a place in this genre and to show the world what Africans are capable of.”
Interestingly, half the digital downloads from Comic Republic come from outside Africa – specifically, the US and the UK. Martin says the general response has been “amazing” and adds: “Africa and the world in general has welcomed us with open arms and we are grateful.”
His creation, for which he’s running a Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign to finance a graphic novel , is EXO, a superhero in Lagos in the year 2025.
“I moved to Washington DC in 2002 and boy was it a perfect time. That’s when the whole superhero blockbuster genre started to take off,” says Okupe. “I remember leaving the theatre after Toby Maguire’s Spider-Man with teary eyes. I couldn’t believe I had seen a live-action Spider-Man. However, a light bulb went off in my head. I was like, hold up ... Wouldn’t it be cool to someday go into a theatre and watch a superhero movie based on an African character?”
It’s important for all African comics creators to show the real Africa – not the “barren wastelands” Richardson mentioned. Okupe says, “I want them to see a different side of Nigeria, our booming tech industry, amazing city architecture, unique culture, African humour, Afrofuturism … a side that is not regularly shown in mainstream media.
Martin of Comic Republic agrees. “The possibilities are endless. There is a rise in the desire for diverse content. African comic creators can own this space.”
And could the rise of the African comic industry also herald a sea-change in the way the continent is portrayed in mainstream comics over here? It wouldn’t be that difficult, according to Richardson. “We live in an information age,” she says. “Go out and do a little damn reading. No one is keeping that from you. But this is a great opportunity for someone to tap into a narrative not yet being utilised. I notice fictional media and entertainment in general, will paint a very one-sided representation of African countries and its people. I imagine the world would have an obscured view of the United States if all that was ever seen of its people were the ghettos, the impoverished, the starving and the vitriolic, you’d probably not want to visit.
“I am not a person who will complain about something if I am not contributing or strategising towards its betterment. So when I write more of my own comics in the future, I will be sure to do research into what culture I’m symbolising as accurately as possible.
“But if it doesn’t change in my local superhero’s world, I’m not going to sweat it. I don’t look to fiction to teach me about world culture. It just means there will be plenty of scenes yet to be painted on my pages that the heroes of today have yet to walk on.”
The Guardian