SuperCakes

The cover to SuperCakes

I’ve written before about the metaphorical breadth that superhero comics offer, despite few mainstream comics taking advantage of it, but Kat Leyh’s SuperCakes manages to find refreshing takes on several possibilities a few pages at a time. One story can start as a meditation on work/life balance to become a quiet exploration of a relationship milestone, while another can start as a more introverted story before turning to raucous superhero exploits. It maintains a light tone throughout, even when hinting at disturbing backstory, and is all the better for it.

Published by Yeti Press in September 2015, SuperCakes began as a short comic about a superpowered lesbian couple. It collects five vignettes of artist Kat Leyh’s webcomic: “Pancakes,” “Giant F#@%ing Robot Head,” “Manifest,” “Welcome to the Family,” and “Bad Weather.” Each is a delight for its own reasons. May Ai and Molly “Mo” Lamarck protect their city as Tank and Shift, respectively, a superhero duo with complementary powers that mirror their relationship dynamic. The character design is wonderful, and subtly plays with expectations of their roles as superheroes and women; Tank is strong, but curvy with long hair, while Shift is small and sometimes literally transparent, but mistaken for a man at one point. The blocking within panels and the page layouts accentuate how they relate to themselves and other characters.

Ms. Leyh mentioned in an interview that Tank and Shift were originally going to be nonpowered bystanders in a world of superheroes. The choice to make them active participants was a spur-of-the-moment decision to create a fun twist, but it was a wise one. The superheroics don’t overwhelm the story, and serve as an elastic metaphor for various stages of the central pair’s story. The fun part is evident throughout, from small details like how Shift likes her pancakes to the very title of the second story. It is a delight.

Noelle Stevenson described SuperCakes as “a welcome and fresh take on the superhero genre.” You can support Ms. Leyh’s patreon here.