Changeling: an Urban Fairytale
Changeling: an Urban Fairytale is one of the three initial launch titles for the Mythoverse shared comic universe. Changeling focuses on its protagonist Maeve MacKenzie , a fourteen-year-old girl from Aberdeen, Washington, who discovers that she is in fact a changeling (A fae infant exchanged for a human one). This is distressing for Maeve as coming from a Christian household, she now has a heritage that is at odds with her upbringing and must figure out how to reconcile the two while figuring where her place in the world is.
Development
Changeling initially spun out of an unused story idea that its creator Brett McGowan had for a supernatural noir title that never moved past development. In it, there was a character named Maeve who was a changeling, but shared very little in common with the Maeve people would come to know. (Aside from the name) Liking the name, Brett retooled the character concept around 2017 and launched Changeling: An Urban Fairytale, though the road to production would come with its issues as Brett had to go through one artist before being introduced to Victor Campan who would become Changeling’s line artist. GingerFoxy would join shortly thereafter as the book’s colorist. The most recent member to be added to book’s production team is letterer Jesse Clark as of Issue 2.
Changeling pulls chiefly from two sources inspiration-wise; Celtic mythology/folklore and Brett’s experiences growing up in Christian household and the Church.
Plot
Issue 1
In late summer of 2019, fourteen-year-old Maeve MacKenzie is dropped off at her local church’s youth group at the behest of her well-meaning mother as an attempt to get Maeve to make friends with kids her age. Maeve has a near panic attack from her social anxiety after bumping into a boy. The next day Maeve confides in her therapist that she feels that despite her mother’s best intentions, she doesn't really know how to help her, while her father seems distant.
After spending her day volunteering at an animal shelter with the cats Maeve has an encounter with what at first glance seems like an injured cat that, to her shock, can talk. Before Maeve can wonder if she’s having a mental episode, a monster attacks her and she runs away with the cat in tow. The cat later reveals that it is in fact a mysterious cat boy, but before Maeve can get answers to the boy’s nature the monster finds them again and moves to attack Maeve. Maeve attempts to run but the monster throws a dagger at Maeve that ends up passing through her with no harm. Overcome by stress, Maeve ends up screaming and the monster finds itself vulnerable to a kill from the cat boy. The cat boy later reveals his name to Maeve as Gavin and that he is a changeling, like her. The revelation that Maeve not only isn’t human, but isn’t even her parents’ biological daughter ends up shaking her to her core. With Maeve’s Glamour now shattered, and her true form revealed, she wonders if she can even go home. As a thanks, Gavin loans Maeve a temporary Glamour and says if she wants a more permanent one to meet with him tomorrow. Maeve goes home, wondering what she’s supposed to do next.
Issue 2
Taking place the next day after the events of issue one, Maeve will go with Gavin into the fae realm of Avalon to get her a more permanent Glamour, and maybe answers on where she came from.
Themes
Reception
Feedback for Changeling Issue 1 has been mostly positive. The first issue was praised for its expressive anime inspired art style, vibrant and atmospheric colors, dialogue, and storytelling. The only criticisms it has drawn thus far are for the first half being slower than the second half.
Trivia
- Maeve’s name was originally inspired by the Warcraft character Maiev Shadowsong. Brett found Maeve and presumed it was an alternate spelling, not realizing they were actually pronounced differently till much later.
- Maeve shares her name with a figure from Celtic mythology but that is where the similarities end. The Celtic Maeve is an evil queen who is behind the death of Cú Chulainn, a legendary hero of Celtic myth.
- Aside from Celtic mythology, and his own life experiences, Brett has also named anime such as Bleach and Fooly Cooly, and indie-pop music contributing to Changeling’s makeup. “It helps me to get in that headspace I was in when I was fourteen”.
- Brett chose to write a female character so as discourage himself from writing Maeve as a self-insert.
