''LaGuardia'' is a four-issue

Africanfuturist Africanfuturism is a cultural aesthetic and philosophy of science that centers on the fusion of African culture, history, mythology, point of view, with technology based in Africa and not limiting to the diaspora. It was coined by Nigerian Americ ...

comic book A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are of ...

limited series Limited series may refer to: *Limited series, individual storylines within an anthology series *Limited series, a particular run of collectables, usually individually numbered *Limited series (comics), a comics series with a predetermined number of ...

by Nigerian-American writer

Nnedi Okorafor Nnedimma Nkemdili "Nnedi" Okorafor (formerly Okorafor-Mbachu; born April 8, 1974) is a Nigerian-American writer of science fiction and fantasy for both children and adults. She is best known for her ''Binti Series'' and her novels ''Who Fears ...

and artist Tana Ford. The series was published by

Dark Horse Comics Dark Horse Comics is an American comic book, graphic novel, and manga publisher founded in Milwaukie, Oregon by Mike Richardson in 1986. The company was created using funds earned from Richardson's chain of Portland, Oregon comic book shops known ...

imprint Berger Books from December 2018–March 2019, when it was also reprinted in a collected trade paperback format. The series takes place in the same universe as Okorafor's ''

Lagoon A lagoon is a shallow body of water separated from a larger body of water by a narrow landform, such as reefs, barrier islands, barrier peninsulas, or isthmuses. Lagoons are commonly divided into ''coastal lagoons'' (or ''barrier lagoons'') a ...

'' and ''Binti'' trilogy. The story was inspired by Okorafor's own experience with TSA at

LaGuardia Airport LaGuardia Airport is a civil airport in East Elmhurst, Queens, New York City. Covering , the facility was established in 1929 and began operating as a public airport in 1939. It is named after former New York City mayor Fiorello La Guardia. ...

. In 2020, the collected trade won an Eisner Award and a

Hugo Award The Hugo Award is an annual literary award for the best science fiction or fantasy works and achievements of the previous year, given at the World Science Fiction Convention and chosen by its members. The Hugo is widely considered the premier a ...

Plot

;Characters: *Future Nwafor Chukwuebuka *Letme Live *Citizen Raphael Nwabara *Future Citizen Lives Chukwebuka

Development

Reception

The comic series was well received by critics scoring an average rating of 9.2 for the entire series based on 13 critic reviews aggregated by Comic Book Roundup. It received a starred review from '' Library Journal'' where Michael Dudley praised the glowing colors and found that although the characters were not subtle, the real-world story of the problems faced by immigrants was "both humanist and hopeful." ''

Publishers Weekly ''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of ...

'' called the art "wittily illustrated" and also found the colors vivid, ultimately comparing it to the best sci-fi for the story's handling of contemporary debates on immigration policy.

Accolades

In July 2020, the collected book won the Eisner Award for Best Graphic Album: Reprint, and shortly afterwards won the

for Best Graphic Story in August 2020.

Collected editions

References

{{Hugo Award for Best Graphic Story Dark Horse Comics limited series Eisner Award winners for Best Graphic Album: Reprint Hugo Award for Best Graphic Story-winning works Works by Nnedi Okorafor