September 2021 • Hello Barkada Comics #1

"Family" by Maxi Rodriguez

Four panel comic strip by Maxi Rodriguez, illustrated in black and white. Panel 1 says "Blood is thicker than water" and shows a drip of blood splashing into water. Panel 2 says "But blood doesn't always mean family" and shows a young woman holding herself with her back turned to two overbearing shadowed and faceless people. Panel 3 says "Family can sometimes be the ones who took you in at your worst" and shows a man washing the young woman's hair as she sits covered in a bubbly bath. Panel 4 says "And loved you at your loneliest" and shows the young woman surrounded by four people in an embrace as she holds onto a heart.

© Maxi Rodriguez / KasutoProductions

ABOUT THE ARTIST


Maxi Rodriguez is a Latina body positivity cartoonist and multimedia designer who self-publishes the comics "Chronicles of a ChubbyBunny," "Plus Size Girl Magic," "BrownGirl Awkwardness," and "ChibiBunny’s Rules of Boundaries."


A native of Long Beach, CA, Rodriguez' works–comics, stickers, bookmarks, prints–center body positivity, mental health, and the dynamics of a mixed size relationship.


Rodriguez has a BA in Graphic Design from CSU Dominguez Hills, and an MFA in Comics from California College of the Arts. She is currently based in Norwalk, CA. 


Find Maxi at @kasutoproductions on Instagram, Facebook, and ArtStation, and @ChubbyBunnyArt on Twitter.


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TAGS: COMICS

Cartoonists are commissioned for an original comic to the Hello Barkada Comics series. Hello Barkada pays for first online rights, non-exclusive archival rights, first North American serial rights, and first anthology publication rights. Help us extend this opportunity to more cartoonists in 2023 by becoming a Barkada Backer today!


If you would like to be considered for publication in 2023, please reach out to the email address listed in our footer with a link to your portfolio site. Cartoonists who are BIP/WOC, LGBTQIA2S+, and/or disabled are encouraged to reach out. Please note that consideration does not guarantee a commission.

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