''Cleopatra in Space'' is an American

children's A child ( : children) is a human being between the stages of birth and puberty, or between the developmental period of infancy and puberty. The legal definition of ''child'' generally refers to a minor, otherwise known as a person younger ...

graphic novel A graphic novel is a long-form, fictional work of sequential art. The term ''graphic novel'' is often applied broadly, including fiction, non-fiction, and anthologized work, though this practice is highly contested by comic scholars and industry ...

series drawn and written since 2014 by Mike Maihack, and published by

Graphix Scholastic Corporation () is an American multinational publishing, education, and media company that publishes and distributes books, comics, and educational materials for schools, parents, and children. Products are distributed via retail and on ...

, a division of Scholastic. The premise of the series is that a teenaged Queen

Cleopatra Cleopatra VII Philopator ( grc-gre, Κλεοπάτρα Φιλοπάτωρ}, "Cleopatra the father-beloved"; 69 BC10 August 30 BC) was Queen of the Ptolemaic Kingdom of Egypt from 51 to 30 BC, and its last active ruler.She was also a ...

is brought to the far future to attend school and fight a space tyrant together with her friends Akila and Brian. So far, six books have been published: ''Target Practice'' (2014, ), ''The Thief and the Sword'' (2015, ), ''Secret of the Time Tablets'' (2016, ), ''The Golden Lion'' (2017, ), ''Fallen Empires'' (2019, ), and ''Queen of the Nile'' (2020, ). Maihack revealed in October 2020 he wrote the protagonist, Cleopatra, as a character with bit of

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and having "

depressive disorder A mood disorder, also known as an affective disorder, is any of a group of conditions of mental and behavioral disorder where a disturbance in the person's mood is the main underlying feature. The classification is in the ''Diagnostic and Stat ...

." It was adapted into an eponymous animated television series by

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; the series was first broadcast in

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DreamWorks Channel DreamWorks Channel, commonly known as DreamWorks, is a pay television network owned and operated by the NBCUniversal International Networks division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast. First launched in Southeast Asia on 1 August 2015, it ex ...

beginning on November 25, 2019, and was released in the

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Peacock Peafowl is a common name for three bird species in the genera ''Pavo (genus), Pavo'' and ''Afropavo'' within the tribe Pavonini of the family Phasianidae, the pheasants and their allies. Male peafowl are referred to as peacocks, and female pea ...

, which launched on April 15, 2020, to certain customers. Maihack would help produce the TV series.

Reception

Reviews of Maihack's comics have been generally positive. J. Caleb Mozzocco, in ''

School Library Journal ''School Library Journal'' (''SLJ'') is an American monthly magazine containing reviews and other articles for school librarians, media specialists, and public librarians who work with young people. Articles cover a wide variety of topics, with ...

'', described ''Target Practice'' as having an art style with a "touch of anime/manga influence" along with other cartoonist styles, resulting in a clean, simple, and inviting looking to pages, which is well suited for various characters, settings, and technologies, while adding that Cleopatra is a likable character in these comics as a "kick-butt, teen girl heroine." Rich Clabaugh, a staff writer for ''

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'' built on this, reviewing the same book, writing that they were pleased to see a "strong, spunky female main comic character that will appeal to both girls and boys" and called Maihack a skilled artist who can breathe a "vibrant life into his characters, human, alien, and cat." Robert Greenberger was more critical but still admitted that Maihack is a talented and "clever storyteller" who uses an "expressive and a restrained color palette." Maihack's other comics were also reviewed positively, some calling ''Secret of the Time Tablets'' an all ages "sci-fi series full of pizzazz, high energy, and lots of questions to answer" and ''The Golden Lion'' as having beautiful illustrations, complete with a "terrific cast of characters that continue to evolve." Apart from this, others called Maihack's comics "a rollicking all-ages adventure," and involving a "series of Star Trek–style space adventures punctuated with far-future high school drama." On September 11, 2020, Daniel Toy described ''Target Practice'' on

CNN CNN (Cable News Network) is a multinational cable news channel headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable news channel, and presently owned by ...

's Underscored an "action-packed journey through space and time that will excite any young reader" and called the rest of the series "out of this world."

References

External links

Mike Maihack's ''Cleopatra in Space'' website
Depictions of Cleopatra in comics 2014 comics debuts American graphic novels Comics about women Mental health in fiction {{2010s-graphic-novel-stub