Singapore and its street cats like you’ve never seen them in DC Comics artist and wife’s new graphic novel
- The brainchild of husband-and-wife duo Shane Davis and Yanzi Lin, Starlight Cats stars Singapore’s street cats and highlights the city state’s iconic elements
- Despite his years of experience in the world of DC Comics, Davis says working on the eight-year-old main character’s storyline pushed him into new territory
With scenes of feline superheroes flying past the famous Marina Bay Sands resort and a character modelled on the country’s symbolic mythical creature, the intergalactic comic-like graphic novel Starlight Cats presents Singapore in an altogether alternative universe.
The brainchild of husband-and-wife duo Shane Davis and Yanzi Lin, the comic stars the city state’s population of street cats – a common sight in the alleyways and backstreets of Singapore.
Three years in the making, Starlight Cats features a team of feline superheroes who join forces with a young girl to battle evil rat-like aliens. The first in the series, Starlight Cats: Merlion Rising, is set to hit the market next year after initial funds were raised on the Indiegogo crowdfunding website.
“We both felt that setting the story in Singapore is a great fit, as Singapore is a cosmopolitan, multicultural, modern city,” Davis says. “A lot of people in the United States have heard of Singapore, but there are very few representations of Singapore in American pop culture.” Superhero comics are usually set in metropolises like New York, he adds.
Lin’s own experience as a Singaporean brings authenticity to Starlight Cats. The main character is a strong-willed and spirited eight-year-old Singaporean named Rebecca Chow, who is thrust into an action-packed adventure alongside her pet cat, Barnaby.