Galaxy: The Prettiest Star -- Astronomical Acceptance

Galaxy: The Prettiest Star

Author: Jadzia Azelrod.

Illustrator: Jess Taylor. Date: 2022.

ISBN: 9781401298531.

Publisher: DC Comics.

Genre: Science Fiction

Reading Level: Grades 8-12.

Trailer: Most people would describe Taylor as the boy who plays basketball, gets good grades, and doesn't go out much. No one would suspect Taylor is actually a purple alien from another planet who is not a boy at all. but actually a princess. Maybe that's the way Taylor likes it. At least, it was....

Taylor Barzelay is just like every other boy at school. He plays basket ball, keeps up with his school work, talks about pretty girls, and fights with his siblings. The only thing people might find unusual is Taylor doesn't seem to go out much, or at all really. What everyone at school can't see is everything that Taylor really is. A badass warrior princess from another planet who is in hiding from threats not even she really understands. Under pressure from her guardian, Taylor keeps her real identity secret. That is, until Taylor meets Kat.

When Taylor meets a new, (other)worldly friend, Kat, everything changes. Suddenly, Taylor doesn't feel so scared to let her real identity shine. In fact, Taylor doesn't know if the threat of violence from some unknown source is enough to keep her in hiding anymore. With help from her friends, Taylor must find the strength to be her true self.

This graphic novel was so overwhelmingly stunning I have to share a couple of panels and concept art. Art for Galaxy: The Prettiest Star was done by the talented Jess Taylor. All Via Jess Taylor Arts

Via Jess Taylor Arts

No spoilers but here is a panel from the story!!! So vibrant!

Created by: Jadzia Azelrod is a multimedia artist and expert in all things unusual. From circus performing, to puppetry, then back to writing, Jadzia does it all ( Jadzia Axelrod, n.d). Illustrator Jess Taylor also touts an impressive resume with work on personal projects, this project for DC, and projects for the popular Dungeons and Dragons content creators, Vox Machina (Jess Taylor, resume, n.d).

Jadzia did an awesome (and rather lengthy interview about Galaxy: The Prettiest Star that discusses the graphic novel and what it means to be a trans artist!

Analysis: Galaxy: The Prettiest Star is part of the DC universe, which is really cool. Now, how this story fits into the DC universe is sort of up for debate. First off, the characters in this book make frequent reference to Superman, a DC comic hero. Establishing the fact that Superman is a known entity and not a fictional character is the first way that this graphic novel is tied into the DC universe. The next element that makes this story fit into the DC universe is the "powers" that the main character, Taylor, is able to use when they are presenting their true identity. So, sort of a superhero of sorts even though she hasn't used her powers to solve universal conflicts like superman does. This is a superhero who is super because they are true to themselves but would lose those abilities if she were to conform to what society is used to seeing her as.

This story has interesting connections to transgender identities. The main character is a woman, assigned female at birth, who was forced into living as a man because her identity as a woman was coming under threats. Then, she decides to abandon this male facade in order to be her true self. "Being normal was never going to save me,” was one of my favorite quotes because it addressed the fact that performing one identity that was more accepted by her community was not going to change the fact that she was herself, a woman who is in danger of being killed by a looming threat. I think where the trans element lost some folks is that the character is assigned female at birth, then dresses as a man as a costume, and then returns to her true identity as a woman. On a couple of book review sites I saw comments about the book feeling distinctly anti-trans. In these interpretations, readers felt that the male persona was an articulation of the character's trans-ness and that their acceptance of their female identity was an expression of de-transitioning. They felt that the male identity being forced onto the main character as a means of survival articulated the idea that transgender identities are being forced onto children by inclusive media and liberal politics. I did not get this read on the graphic novel, but I understand how people might get mixed up in the sort of complicated story line. I feel that the author was emphasizing that the main character is a woman and who was forced to occupy a man's body, and that in the society she occupies she will be seen as a transgender body even though she is just being true to who she literally/physically is. Moreover, I think that the author is emphasizing the idea that trans people are intrinsically the gender they feel regardless of their bodies. In a way, the author might have been creating a backstory for a transgender identity. Like, providing a reason the body is not properly articulating the gender. "I wasn't born into the wrong body, I'm a badass alien warrior princess in disguise!" I thought it was really rad, and after reading more about the author I feel like that is definitely what they were going for.

I live for colorful art. Seriously, my living room is a gallery of brightly colored drawings, I have a rainbow carpet, rainbow blankets, the works. This book was the most vibrant, fabulous, color saturated book I could ever dream of. It's like every single frame has an entire rainbow concealed within it. It's incredible. I am not a huge comic person but I found the paneling really easy to follow along with. As a visual artwork this book is impressive and captivating.

The title of this book AND the characters both reference David Bowie, otherworldly talent and renown artist. If you are not already familiar with David Bowie he is definitely worth checking out, especially since you are a person who found yourself on a blog page about a unique, gay, space adventure (that will make more sense once you get to know Bowie). Anyways, here the Bowie song that inspired this graphic novel title:

Potential Issues: This book features a sapphic relationship and discussion of Queer identities, if anyone were to have an issue with those topics in a YA novel they would be directed to the collection development policy.

In the Library: The amazing illustrations of this book are so inspiring and I would love to use them to get young people interested in graphic design and digital art. I would spend a week highlighting cool graphic novels and then host a digital art creation class using iPads and similar drawing resources as they were available.

Reason for Inclusion: I thought it was really cool to find such a diverse comic in the DC universe. I figure this comic will appeal to both DC fans, young Queer people, artists, and more!

Sources:

Character concept. (n.d). Jess Taylor Art https://www.jesstaylorarts.com/characterdesign

David Bowie. (2017, January 25). Youtube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8SWb0ShWDQg

Galaxy: the prettiest star. (n.d). Goodreads. https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/59235529

Graphic Policy. (2023, February 26). Creator Jadzia Axelrod on Galaxy The Prettiest Star for DC Comics. Youtube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jfiTkKnLy_k

Illustrations. (n.d). Jess Taylor Art. https://www.jesstaylorarts.com/illustrations

Jadzia Axelrod. (n.d) Jaren Axelrod. https://www.jaredaxelrod.com/

Resume. (n.d). Jess Taylor Art. https://www.jesstaylorarts.com/about

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