When I started college, I found myself with less and less time for books. I couldn’t fit them into my schedule (or my bag), but then I found webcomics, and through that, stumbled onto Magical Boy by The Kao. Woah. I was amazed by the story and the colourful art that filled each chapter!
When I picked it up in mid-2020, I had just started figuring myself out. It was maybe the second piece of queer literature I’d read, ever. It really surprised me how great it felt to see myself represented in fictional characters (looking at you, Pyper). That feeling slowly grew into this blog! That’s why the first-ever author spotlight is on the magical Vincent Kao, a.k.a The Kao.
Vincent Kao is a Taiwanese-American illustrator and comic artist with a bachelor of fine arts in illustration from Columbia University in Chicago, U.S.A. He’s been drawing since he was a kid and pursued it with passion, and gives us many comics that show the joy of being queer! He is known for his Prism Award winning webcomic-turned-graphic novel, Magical Boy, a story that takes the magical girl tropes and turns them on inside out. Like with all magical girl stories, it starts with a mysterious, otherworldly threat that, for generations, has been subdued by the descendants of the goddess Aurora! Descendants of light and the embodiment of femininity!
In the present day, Max struggles to come out to his family as trans. His mother’s reaction is less than ideal, as Max is supposed to be the next “Magical Girl” in a long, long line of them. The story follows Max coming into his own, finding a great circle of support and defending the world from the evil Devoid! It’s definitely worth the read, and you could probably finish both volumes in a weekend.
His ongoing comic is Mondo Mango, a semi-autobiographical slice-of-life comic strip that often focuses on fun, wholesome moments with his partner CK. I simply adore it! Some of my favourite strips are Rainbow Madness and Spooked. Where Magical Boy shows us the power of being true to yourself, and the importance of having diverse characters and stories, Mondo Mango shows the simple joys of queer life. The little moments of care and humour are a reminder that there is love and peace to be found in our world. That queer relationships live outside the stereotypes that still persist in media today. It gives hope that maybe one day, you too, will find someone who clears the path of spiderwebs like CK does for Kao!
The Kao is an incredible storyteller and artist who has captured the hearts of so many over the last five years. If you haven’t read any of his comics, I highly suggest it. Magical Boy brought much-needed representation to the transmasc community and a feeling of being seen and belonging. The use of magical girl tropes is a wonderful metaphor for transition, and for the transformative nature of finding yourself. If you’re looking to start reading, Tapas has the first four chapters available to read for free, or you can pick up the physical copies from bookshop.org or Amazon.
You can follow The Kao on X or Instagram, and support him on Patreon, to keep up with his latest work!
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