Dark Horse is teaming-up with Roye Okupe's YouNeek Studios to publish the company's entire line of comics, which focus on African stories by African creators. Their deal includes all previously self-published works by YouNeek Studios with never-before-seen material as well as series. YouNeek Studios has been part of Roye Okupe's vision to create an African superhero universe.
Roye Okupe first created YouNeek Studios back in 2012 with the goal of crafting stories to empower African creatives and storytelling. He found a lot of success in self-publishing his comic books through Kickstarter campaigns, which many big-name creators are using now to propel their comics forward. Okupe is the Owner, Creative Director, and writer for YouNeek Studios. His work is award-winning and has received a lot of praise, and Okupe was also named one of New African Magazine's 100 Most Influential Africans of 2016 and 2017.
The Black Panther as well as other strides inside the comic book industry, the importance of representation seems more at the forefront of people's minds than ever before, and YouNeek Studios is looking to bring something unique to the landscape of comics. Dark Horse CEO Mike Richardson says: “YouNeek Studios is unlike anything in American comics today.... I hope to see the YouNeek acquisition prove to comics that there is absolutely a market for these stories, told by creative teams that have the knowledge to tell them right, and I see more publishers picking up books like these in the future.”
While there have been movements in the mainstream comic book universe to increase awareness of the importance of representation, such as Marvel's Voices from last year highlighting diverse creators and prominent heroes of color, YouNeek Studios is primarily focused on African superheroes created by African creators. Three YouNeek Studios series will be published by Dark Horse Comics in 2021. Malika: Warrior Queen, written by Roye Okupe with artwork by Chima Kalu and Raphael Kazeem with a contribution by Godwin Akpan, will be available on September 7, 2021. It follows the journey of a woman who inherits the throne from her father, who must unite and expand her kingdom at grave costs. Iyanu: Child of Wonder, written by Roye Okupe with artwork by Godwin Akpan and contribution by Spoof Animation, will be available on September 21, 2021. The story centers around a teenage orphan with amnesia who discovers she has powers that could save the entire world. E.X.O: The Legend of Wale Williams, written by Roye Okupe with artwork by Sunkanmi Akinboye and Raphael Kazeem with contribution from Spoof Animation, will be available on October 19, 2021. This Afrofuturist superhero story is about Wale Williams, who must use technology to save his city from extremists.
All three series have previously been published, but these versions from Dark Horse will include never-before-seen bonus material. It's wonderful to see stories from companies, such as DC Comics bringing back Milestone, which celebrate the importance of diversity. Representation is extremely important, and it appears Dark Horse is attempting a giant leap forward this year with its line-up of comics from YouNeek Studios. Pre-order your copies so you don't miss out on Roye Okupe's ever-expanding African superhero universe.
Source: The Washington Post
