''O Human Star'' is a

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...

webcomic Webcomics (also known as online comics or Internet comics) are comics published on a website or mobile app. While many are published exclusively on the web, others are also published in magazines, newspapers, or comic books. Webcomics can be co ...

by Blue Delliquanti.

Synopsis

''O Human Star'' follows Alastair "Al" Sterling, the person who invented the modern robot. Sixteen years after Al dies, his mind is put into a synthetic replica of his human body. The world now is populated with robots living alongside humans. Al finds his old business partner and lover, Brendan, who has built their company into the world's largest tech company, and meets Sulla, the first humanoid robot, who was made with a copy of Al's mind but has chosen a female body. Al tries to reintegrate into the new world and determine who brought him back and why. The comic is presented with sections both in the present and the past; the past is illustrated in orange, while the present is in blue.

Author and publication history

''O Human Star'' is written and illustrated by Blue Delliquanti. Delliquanti, who is

non-binary Non-binary and genderqueer are umbrella terms for gender identities that are not solely male or femaleidentities that are outside the gender binary. Non-binary identities fall under the transgender umbrella, since non-binary people typically ...

and is from

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

, previously worked with Soleil Ho on the graphic novel ''Meal'' for

Iron Circus Comics Iron Circus Comics is an American graphic novel publisher founded in 2007 by C. Spike Trotman. Based in Chicago, it is known for publishing the ''Smut Peddler'' line of "lady-centric porn" anthologies and graphic novels, and for its pioneering us ...

, and has contributed to ''Smut Peddler'', ''The Sleep of Reason'', and ''Beyond''. ''O Human Star'' began publication in 2012 and concluded in August 2020.

Reviews

Polygon In geometry, a polygon () is a plane figure that is described by a finite number of straight line segments connected to form a closed ''polygonal chain'' (or ''polygonal circuit''). The bounded plane region, the bounding circuit, or the two toge ...

reviewer Samantha Riedel called ''O Human Star'' "the best robot comic in a decade", saying that it "delves into complex themes of gender and the need to belong" and calling it "one of the most sociopolitically relevant works of the past ten years". Writing for the DiNKY Awards, DiNKY director Ted Intorcio said "In addition to being a wonderful love story for these men, it challenges the reader’s perceptions of what “normal” looks like... OHS explores LGBTQ issues in a very sensitive way without having this context / subtext overpower the story... Blue's Manga-influenced style is more than competent and complements the tone of the story nicely. I can't recommend this book enough for anyone who likes great stories with rich context and tons of applicability."

Awards

, - ! scope="row" , 2018 , Webcomics Category ,

Prism Awards The Entertainment Industries Council is a United States non-profit organization founded in 1983 that promotes the depiction of accurate health and social issues in film, television, music, and comic books. The Council provides guidelines on the depi ...

, , For excerpts of ''O Human Star'' from 2017 , , - ! scope="row" , 2016 , Best in Show , DiNKY Awards , , , , - ! scope="row" , 2016 , Best Work - Self Published , DiNKY Awards , , , , - ! scope="row" , 2016 , Outstanding Work – Diversity , DiNKY Awards , , , , - ! scope="row" , 2015 , Outstanding Online Comic ,

Ignatz Award The Ignatz Awards recognize outstanding achievements in comics and cartooning by small press creators or creator-owned projects published by larger publishers. They have been awarded each year at the Small Press Expo since 1997, only skipping a ...

, , , , - ! scope="row" , 2015 , LGBT Graphic Novel ,

Lambda Literary Award Lambda Literary Awards, also known as the "Lammys", are awarded yearly by Lambda Literary to recognize the crucial role LGBTQ writers play in shaping the world. The Lammys celebrate the very best in LGBTQ literature.The awards were instituted i ...

, , , , - ! scope="row" , 2014 , Favorite Webcomic (Continuing Story) ,

Autostraddle Autostraddle is an independently owned online magazine and social network for lesbian, bisexual, and queer women ( cis and trans), as well as non-binary people and trans people of all genders. The website is a "politically progressive queer femin ...

, , , , - ! scope="row" , 2012 , Queer Press Grant ,

Prism Comics Prism Comics is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that promotes awareness of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) creators, stories, characters, and readers in the comics industry. It does this through informational booths and prog ...

, , ,

External links

References

Science fiction webcomics 2010s webcomics LGBT-related webcomics LGBT speculative fiction Transgender-related comics LGBT-related graphic novels Robots in literature {{Webcomic-stub