As if getting through high school isn’t difficult enough, Max has to reckon not only with coming out as a trans man, but also with the responsibility of taking on his family tradition and becoming the next in a long line of magical girls.
Magical Boy
Logline
Summary
Though he may have been assigned female at birth, Max is just your average high school student… or at least, he wishes! On top of classes, crushes, and transitioning, now he also has to save humanity from evil after his mom reveals that he’s next in a long line of Magical Girls. Amidst all of the chaos, one thing’s for sure: he’s definitely not going to save the world in a dress. Magical Boy is hilarious and charming, but doesn’t shy away from the realities of what it’s like to navigate the world as a young transgender man. With the heartwarming, timeless magic of Sailor Moon and humor of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Magical Boy is a uniquely relatable and contemporary coming-of-age story.
Story and Art by The Kao
Edited by Brooke Huang
The Comic
Magical Boy debuted as a comic on Tapas in January 2019. All rights have been optioned by Madison Wells Media, and a television adaptation is currently in development.
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Concept Art
Trailer & Creator Spotlight
Trailer
Creator Spotlight
Main Characters
Max
Max, formerly named Áine, is a closeted, gay trans man who desperately wants to come out but has always feared rejection. Despite hiding his queer identity, he openly behaves in a very “masculine” way, which results in most people (including his mom) thinking he’s just a tomboy. He’s your typical punch-first-ask-questions-later type of guy, and he never backs down from a challenge… unless, of course, dysphoria kicks in. The only person who knows his secret is his best friend, Jen, who supports him while he’s transitioning. As time goes on, he’ll learn to get past rejection and find more people who will accept him for who he is. But as he is thrust into the world of magic, he’ll face challenges that cause him to question what it really means to be a man or a magical girl, and he’ll learn that power can come from being open and true to yourself.
Jen
Jennifer, mostly known as Jen, is Max’s confident best friend. She’s tall and quite tomboyish herself, but she doesn’t identify as a man. She’s perfectly happy being a girl that rocks short hair and the skater-punk look, and she’s perfectly happy liking girls, too! Having grown up in a very supportive family, she doesn’t feel the need to hide her sexuality or go out of the way to tell people about it. Jen has a naturally happy and caring nature, and she strives to be both the friend and family that Max needs to be himself, just like she had growing up. When the time comes, she doesn’t let Max fight alone in his battles with evil.
Pyper
As the daughter of the town’s pastor, Pyper grew up in a very religious and close-minded environment that forced her to oppress her same sex attraction, and gave her strong feelings of internalized homophobia. This causes her to lash out and bully Jen and Max out of jealousy and fear. But once she comes to terms with her sexuality, she does whatever she can to help make it right with Jen and Max… even if that means facing her worst nightmare: confronting her dad and his church.
Sean
Sean is the son of the town’s chief of police. He may look like your classic delinquent, being broadly-built and standing a little over six-feet tall, but despite the menacing look and stereotypically standoffish behavior of a kid who might get away with anything, he’s actually incredibly kind and loyal. His tough-guy appearance is just an act to appease his dad’s narrow-minded and toxic ideals of masculinity. His true passion in life is to become the director of a fictional anime show called “Sunshine Girl”, which encompasses the tropes and ideals of the archetypical magical girl. He loves cute things and immediately becomes fascinated with Max’s story, becoming a helpful and comically enthusiastic ally.
The World of Magical Boy
The world as we know it was once ruled by Aurora, the goddess of light, and Devoid, the king of darkness. Both oversaw the balance of light and darkness within living creatures, known as life energy. However, as humans rose to power, they began to favor Aurora and fear Devoid, pushing the king into the shadows. As their resentment and anger grew, Devoid abused their power by tainting human life energy and consuming them for raw power. This consumption corrupted Devoid and their following of angered spirits into monstrous beasts that had to be stopped. Aurora was forced to seal Devoid and their minions into another realm by making the ultimate sacrifice and disappearing as well. However, the seal eventually weakens, and it’s up to Aurora’s descendants to protect and reinforce the seal, with the help of a spiritual guardian that was personally appointed by Aurora. Throughout the years, the story of Aurora and Devoid was eventually lost to the rest of humanity, but not to the descendants of Aurora. Their history and responsibilities were passed on from one generation to the next, all detailed in a single book.
Aurora’s powers are passed down from a mother to her first child, who is always born female. Once they show signs of power (for example: seeing the life energy of others in the form of various colored auras depending on their dominant emotion, and/or seeing through their guardian’s disguise as their pet cat), the new descendant of Aurora will be presented with an amulet. The amulet was originally bestowed by the guardian and is meant to cultivate each descendant’s inner goddess power. This results in them transforming into a magical girl.
