Comics: Introducing the Greatest Singaporean Heroes You’ve Never Heard Of in this Epic Comic Book Anthology

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SINGAPORE – Local and regional talents come together to create the greatest Singaporean Superhero experience: SINGAHEROES – The Greatest Singaporean Heroes You’ve Never Heard Of!

And there came a day, a day unlike any other, when Singapore’s mightiest heroes and heroines found themselves united against a common threat! On that day, the SingaHeroes were born—to fight the obscurity no single SingaHero could tahan! Through the years, their existence has been, well, mostly ignored… even going forgotten many times… but their glory will no longer be denied! Heed the call, then—for now, Majulah SingaHeroes!!

A collaboration of Singaporean and regional talents have come together to create Singapore’s first superhero comic book anthology. With 12 entries and counting, the anthology features a mix of short stories, art galleries, and even a fold-out board game, all inspired by Singapore and the ideals of a Singaporean superhero… or supervillain?

Headlined by comic regular Ryan Mennen, SingaHeroes also introduces some familiar guest talents such as Jedd Jong, Joshua Simon, Fauzi Azzhar & Mark Kinoshita, and David Goh.

The project has seen over a year in development as the team sought out local writers and artists of the comic book discipline. Uniting almost 30 local and regional talents, SingaHeroes is an initiative jointly organised by The Fandom Menace Ltd. (TFM) and CS Comics (CSC). Having embarked on the mission of creating and publishing Singaporean sci-fi and fantasy characters with Crimson Star in 2018, TFM and CSC have since set their sights on projects involving larger pools of Singaporean creators.The Singapore-inspired stories within SingaHeroes include:–

• • Singafist, a hero inspired by a little known Singaporean martial art;
  • Crimson Star, Singapore’s first all-Singaporean superhero;
  • Kucinta, an ordinary furball with an extraordinary approach to paying it forward;
  • King of the Straits, a mythic take on a familiar icon;
  • Scalemail & Ixora, Singapore’s first LGBTQ+ superheroines, the dynamite duo, battle the true villainy of bullies and bigotry;

– and many more tales including feature stories by guest writers, and crusades inspired by the beloved Japanese Tokusatsu genre (i.e., Power Rangers, Kamen Rider, Ultraman).

include:–

• • Jedd Jong, film critic and pop culture enthusiast & geek extraordinaire;
  • Kiss 92FM’sJoshua Simon, multi-talented radio presenter known for his memorable interviews with the likes of Hugh Jackman and Ryan Reynolds;
  • Fauzi Azzhar & Mark Kinoshita, a remarkable duo of madcap energy and pop culture irreverence who challenge the boundaries of insanity;
  • and game designer David Goh of Hyperlixir, the brains behind hit card game Endogenesis, and its sequel Endogenesis: Beyond.

And what would comics be without the eye-catching brilliance of colourful art? Well, they’d be very sparsely written scripts… so here are the artists who’ve graced SingaHeroes:-

• • 17-year-old Tasha Leah Santiago pushes the term wunderkind with her astounding mixed media illustrations. An SCGS graduate, the young talent is the cover artist of SingaHeroes in addition to contributing to other stories within the anthology;
  • Local art legends James Leong & Elvin Ching take on the heroism of everyday heroes with a Frontliner Tribute Gallery;
  • Collateral Damage Studios‘ Jolene Yeo & Ariel Tan tackle Singapore’s chase for perfection on Jedd Jong’s The Scholar;
  • All-rounded comic creator Kang Jing (writer/artist of The World, My Arena) lends his line work to Crimson Star’s debut to the public;
  • Instagram sensation Samara Gan brings her vivid and colourful palette to the early days of Scalemail & Ixora’s adventures (and misadventures);
  • The fine lines of James Pereira outline the bold mythic tale (and tail) of the Merlion in King of the Straits;
  • Stunning action and detail come through in Collin Yap’s take on deep space adventures of The Medallions;
  • Malaysian comic art extraordinaire Zehe Abdul Rahman henshins blank paper into Japanese-style Tokusatsu action on not one, not two, but three stories!

If superheroes are icons of triumph in the face of adversity, the unhindered efforts behind SingaHeroes are tribute to the relentless nature of talent and passion. While the characters and stories exist outside of Singapore’s, and the world’s, current predicament, the existence of this anthology is dedicated to the many frontliners who selflessly ensure the continuing lives of every other Singaporean.

In light of their contributions, the SingaHeroes campaign will include a limited edition COVER-19 variant. All profits from the sale of this variant, along with additional proceeds from sales of the regular edition, will be donated to organisations supporting those affected by the pandemic and the resulting circuit breaker. More details to follow.

With a S$15’888 goal and a campaign duration of 31 days from 27th April to 27th May 2020, SingaHeroes hopes to kickstart a new age of local stories and out-of-the-box creativity!

Until then, Majulah SingaHeroes!