Cleopatra in Space

Cleopatra in Space is an American children's graphic novel series drawn and written since 2014 by Mike Maihack, and published by Graphix, a division of Scholastic.

This article is about the graphic novel series. For the animated television series based on this comic, see Cleopatra in Space (TV series).
Cleopatra in Space
Publication information
PublisherGraphix
FormatOngoing series
Creative team
Written byMike Maihack
Artist(s)Mike Maihack

The premise of the series is that a teenaged Queen Cleopatra is brought to the far future to attend school and fight a space tyrant together with her friends Akila and Brian.[1] So far, five comic books have been published: Target Practice (2014), ISBN 978-0545528436, The Thief and the Sword (2015), ISBN 978-0545528450, Secret of the Time Tablets (2016), ISBN 978-0545838672, The Golden Lion (2017), ISBN 978-0545838726, and Fallen Empires (2019), ISBN 978-1338204124, with a sixth one, Queen of the Nile (2020). Maihack revealed in October 2020 he wrote the protagonist, Cleopatra, as a character with bit of ADHD and having "depressive disorder."[2]

It was adapted into an eponymous animated television series by DreamWorks Animation; the series was first broadcast in Southeast Asia on DreamWorks Channel beginning on November 25, 2019, and was released in the United States on Peacock, which launched on April 15, 2020,[3] to certain customers. Maihack would help produce the TV series.[4]

Reception

Reviews of Maihack's comics have been generally positive. J. Caleb Mozzocco, in School Library Journal, 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."[5] Rich Clabaugh, a staff writer for The Christian Science Monitor 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."[6] 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."[7] 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"[8] and The Golden Lion as having beautiful illustrations, complete with a "terrific cast of characters that continue to evolve."[9]

Apart from this, others called Maihack's comics "a rollicking all-ages adventure,"[10] and involving a "series of Star Trek–style space adventures punctuated with far-future high school drama."[11] On September 11, 2020, Daniel Toy described Target Practice on CNN'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."[12]

References
  1. "Cleopatra in Space, Book 1: Target Practice". Christian Science Monitor. May 21, 2014. Archived from the original on December 4, 2019. Retrieved November 29, 2019.
  2. Maihack, Mike [@mikemaihack] (October 18, 2020). "1. Sorry, she was't (although she would put her life down on the line for Akila more than anyone else--even Antony) 2. Clearly a bit of ADHD (even if it was never at my forefront). From the very beginning tho--& I guess I can say this now--I wrote her with a depressive disorder" (Tweet). Archived from the original on October 18, 2020 – via Twitter.
  3. Maihack, Mike [@mikemaihack] (January 16, 2020). "The #CleopatraInSpace toon finally has a home in the US! It was announced it'll be on @peacockTV as part of @Dreamworks original programming slate" (Tweet). Archived from the original on January 17, 2020 – via Twitter.
  4. Maihack, Mike [@mikemaihack] (December 10, 2019). "Probably all sorts of Cleo TV show stuff out there I don't know about because I'm too busy finishing up the actually book it's based on" (Tweet). Archived from the original on January 17, 2020 – via Twitter.
  5. Mozzocco, J. Caleb (May 1, 2014). "Review: Cleopatra In Space". School Library Journal. Archived from the original on January 19, 2018. Retrieved April 12, 2020.
  6. Clabaugh, Rich (May 21, 2014). "Review: Cleopatra In Space". Christian Science Monitor. Archived from the original on December 4, 2019. Retrieved April 12, 2020.
  7. Greenberger, Robert (March 28, 2014). "REVIEW: Cleopatra in Space". Comic Mix. Archived from the original on January 25, 2017. Retrieved April 12, 2020.
  8. Lu, Alexander (March 23, 2016). "This Exclusive Excerpt from CLEOPATRA IN SPACE: SECRET OF THE TIME TABLETS Channels the Mos Eisley Cantina & Doesn't Leave you Arguing About Who Shot First". Comics Beat. Archived from the original on December 5, 2019. Retrieved April 12, 2020.
  9. Hayes, Patrick (June 27, 2017). "In Review: Cleopatra In Space–Book Four: The Golden Lion". Scifi Pulse. Archived from the original on September 23, 2017. Retrieved April 12, 2020.
  10. Sims, Chris (April 18, 2014). "Mike Maihack's 'Cleopatra In Space' Is The All Ages Sci-Fi Heroine We've Been Waiting For [Preview]". ComicsAlliance. Archived from the original on July 24, 2017. Retrieved April 12, 2020.
  11. Hansen, Judith (May 2014). "Cleopatra in Space #1: Target Practice". Publishers Weekly. Archived from the original on April 12, 2020. Retrieved April 12, 2020.
  12. Toy, Daniel (September 11, 2020). "The best graphic novels for readers of all ages, from kids to adults". CNN. Archived from the original on September 11, 2020. Retrieved September 12, 2020.
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