There aren’t enough comics that focus on Philippine Mythology. This isn’t an opinion, it’s a fact. So I get super excited when I come across anything that looks promising in beefing up the genre. Recently, I stumbled on the Facebook Page for Agla – a new, FREE, online comic which will tackle the world of Philippine Mythology through Visayan eyes. This prompted me to reach out to its creator, Kael Molo, and pester him on when it will be available and what inspired him to embark on this cultural artistic journey into the mythical Visayan beliefs of the pre-colonial Philippines.
“…we have more accounts of Spanish history and relics than pre-colonial Philippines –so I had this great desire to help resurrect our roots.”
An interview with AGLA creator, Kael Molo
What is Agla?
– Agla is a fiction Graphic Novel in web-comic format based on Visayan Mythology. It is a story retelling the origins of the very first Pintados Warrior(s), how they got their tattoos, the abilities that they harnessed from it, and the conflict they faced as they delved more into the realms of the supernatural.
Agla is the primary protagonist of the story, as he is the very first human to have a “patik” or a traditional visayan tattoo.
[disclaimer: patik is the waray-waray/bisaya word for the traditional visayan tattoo. It is called differently in other areas of the Visayas.]
In pre-colonial Visayas, the tattoos were a sign of bravery and strength, but it had much darker roots.
Will we be seeing any familiar characters from Philippine Myths?
– Yes, definitely! However, I’ve strictly limited myself to only using characters / elements of the Visayan Mythology vs the more generalized Philippine pantheon.
You will be seeing familiar creatures, of course. : )
What made you decide to tell a story about local mythology?
– I’ve always adored the local comic scene. I’m a big fan of the newcomers Tabi Po by Mervin Malonzo and Maktan 1521 by Tepai Pascual. They were actually one of the few people who inspired me to continue this personal project because I was doing this in secret at first.
I’ve seen how the Philippine comic scene has touched elements of western comics, even the style is eerily similar, and I wanted to see something fresh and new. So when I saw tabi po and 1521, I was excited. They were game changers. And from then on I’ve discovered older comics that were based on Philippine mythology, like The Mythology Class, Sky World, Trese, and MythSpace to name a few. And since then, I’ve been thinking, hey I can draw, I love making stories, why can’t I do this too? So I started brainstorming and researching.
What made me decide to stick with Philippine Mythology was my love for history and ancient mythology. I’ve always been in love with mythology from all over the world. It’s fascinating how one mirrors the other. Our country’s pre-colonial culture is very special; especially the less mentioned one, like the Visayans. We know about the Visayas through Lapu-Lapu, but beyond that, there isn’t really a lot of material to draw information from and this is what made it hard for me to do research. I wanted to continue this project not only because Visayan Mythology is rich in its cultural aspects, but also because I am a Visayan, and I feel like it is my responsibility to impart my culture to the rest of the Philippines, and the whole world.
The Pintados subject was very special to me. I was born in Tacloban City, and we have this huge-ass festival in June that runs for a whole month. It’s called “PINTADOS FESTIVAL” –Well it used to be, until a bunch of politics and other religious mumbo-jumbo intervened. I’ve always been fascinated by the pintados parade. Dancers were painted with geometric shapes all over their bodies. They would often shout war cries whilst dancing along the streets of Tacloban. It was magical. It opened a new world to me as a kid, but it wasn’t until I was 22 that I started reading more about our own people. I feel ashamed as a Taclobanon, and as a Filipino, that we have more accounts of Spanish history and relics than pre-colonial Philippines –so I had this great desire to help resurrect our roots. It’s what drives me to do this project after all.
Do you feel that Philippine Mythology is represented well in the Filipino Comic Industry? Anything you’d like to see change?
- The Filipino comic industry has come a long way in terms of its relationship with Philippine Mythology. As a matter of fact aside from the aswangs in shake rattle and roll, the current local comic industry is spearheading cultural awareness –not television, not the local movie industry, but comics. I’ve always been frustrated that we as Filipinos are so afraid of our own culture. I understand that it’s because of our Spanish colonialization –300 years is more than enough time to brainwash a whole nation, but since we’ve long attained freedom, isn’t it time for us to be looking back? Apparently, not too many Filipinos realize this and we as a nation is heavily white-washed and I feel envious of other countries in South East Asia that have retained their culture despite marks of colonialization from the western world.
As for portrayal, there are some artists, including myself, who have played a lot with ‘modding’ the characters in Philippine Mythology. And I don’t see that as a big problem. Different artists have different interpretations but they share a common ground and that’s what makes it interesting. It is not uncommon for gods and creatures from other countries’ mythology pantheon to be modified to fit a particular story; I think we’re just following this pattern.
Right now, the comic industry is very well mentioned amongst comic-lovers, but little to no media coverage. I would love it if the industry had more of the limelight, especially those who are writing and illustrating stories about our own culture.
What do you hope people will walk away with after reading Agla?
– Well, It’s always been a goal of mine for this project to be able to share the culture of my own people. It has been long forgotten, and I would want people to remember it. It would be much better though if this ignites cultural awareness among readers. It’s particularly aimed at my fellow Filipinos and Visayans, but I’m also targeting audiences from across the globe. I’m hoping the people who read this, especially Filipinos, see our culture in a new light.
When and where will Agla be available?
– Agla will be available sometime in the middle of March this year. Everyone can read it for free both on the official website aglakomiks.com, and on Tapastic (a webcomic publishing platform).
It has been a long time coming and I apologize to the people who have been bugging me for a much earlier release /bows profusely
Links will be posted to my page as soon as I release the first few pages. I hope you enjoy reading! : )
Thank you so much The Aswang Project for this feature! I’m a huge fan and it’s a huuuge honor to be noticed by you guys. More Power!
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At the conclusion of our interview, Kael mentioned how much encouragement and support he has received from his friend Dennise. How about we ALL show Agla the support it deserves – head over to their Facebook Page and give it a “like”, then stay tuned until the comic is available for us all to enjoy!
Jordan Clark is a Canadian born descendant of Scottish immigrants living on the homelands of the Lekwungen speaking peoples. His interest in Philippine myth and folklore began in 2004. Finding it difficult to track down resources on the topic, he founded The Aswang Project in 2006. Shortly after, he embarked on a 5 year journey, along with producing partner Cheryl Anne del Rosario, to make the 2011 feature length documentary THE ASWANG PHENOMENON – an exploration of the aswang myth and its effects on Philippine society. In 2015 he directed “The Creatures of Philippine Mythology” web-series, which features 3 folkloric beings from the Philippines – the TIKBALANG, KAPRE and BAKUNAWA. Episodes are available to watch on YouTube. Jordan recently oversaw the editing for the English language release of Ferdinand Blumentritt’s DICCIONARIO MITOLÓGICO DE FILIPINAS (Dictionary of Philippine Mythology) and is working on two more releases with fellow creators scheduled for release later this year. When his nose isn’t in a book, he spends time with his amazing Filipina wife of 20 years and their smart and wonderful teenaged daughter.
