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Filipino webtoon creator Maria Mediarito spins a sapphic sanctuary through comic series 'Katlaya Rising'
MANILA, Philippines (Philippine Daily Inquirer/ANN) -- Magic, monsters, and maidens are mainstays in fantasy stories. However, when the relationships and dynamics of these story staples have largely remain unchanged, Metro Manila-based comics creator Maria Mediarito -- or MariaMediaHere, as she's known online -- gives the genre a fearlessly Filipino and queer twist in Webtoon Originals comic, "Katlaya Rising."
"Being queer is integral to the work that I have," says Mediarito. "I know when people don't feel safe to come out, they will end up in bad situations."
Through "Katlaya Rising," Mediarito creates a sanctuary where her audience, especially queer and sapphic readers, could see themselves as heroes in epics.
Don't be fooled, though. Mediarito's Filipino-driven fantasy world is anything but safe. Wild animals infected by frenzy run rampant in the stratified Pilipit Town. Exterminators, like Katlaya De los Kalye, risk their lives hunting these beasts for meager pay. Yet, for Katlaya, unhinged giant boars are a small part of her daily tribulations.
Like her heroine, Mediarito leaps headfirst into the fray. In "Katlaya Rising," the author tackles tough topics like gender roles, classism, and religion.
"Subtext is for cowards," she quotes fictional author Garth Marenghi in an interview. For Mediarito, comics create spaces where authors and readers can explore different facets of their identities.
Self-discovery through comics
Inspiration is found in mundane places. Mediarito found hers in her high school's art room. "I wouldn't have been able to access all of that if it weren't for my art teacher, Sir Norman Ramirez."
Sir Norman was a personal hero to young Mediarito. He shared his personal comics collection with interested students looking for some company.
The moment when Mediarito flipped through those comics, she was a goner. "Even if you pick up Chapter 400 of a long series and don't know these characters, you should still be able to be engaged," she explains. "That's proof of good comic book writing."
Beyond appreciating the craft of comics, Mediarito internalized the importance of media consumption. Sir Norman knew that sharing comics, instead of letting them gather dust at home, was what was best for them. "I do believe the entertainment we consume molds our values and personalities."
Sir Norman's influence set Mediarito on the path she's on today -- not only in her art but also in her identity. "I was in denial for a very long time, which is funny because my sister knew the entire time."
Though her sister was supportive, Mediarito was self-conscious and scared.
"I was so in the closet and so afraid of people judging me." In high school, she was desperate to find a boyfriend in order to fit in with her peers. The possibility of being ostracized distressed her.
"They say that being queer makes people depressed," reflects Mediarito. A study conducted with 165,000 participants by the Open University reveals that LGBTQ+ teens face significantly higher risks of depression. But, being queer doesn't inherently affect one's mental health.
"It's because the experience of queer leads people to situations where they're mocked, slighted against, or physically hurt."
The Katlaya origin story
For college, Mediarito majored in information design at Ateneo De Manila University. She didn't think she could earn a living from art alone, so she practiced corporate design. "I had a lot of side hustles in college," she says. "Because you have to feed your mouth and then you have to feed your heart." In between commercial gigs, Mediarito carved out time for comics.
In 2018, Komiket, a Filipino nonprofit that organizes conventions, held a comics competition. Mediarito didn't want to join at first, but her best friend and poet, Ives, encouraged her to try it out.
Mediarito's 16-page entry was shortlisted but didn't win. Though, losing one battle sometimes means winning the war.
"Being acknowledged in this competition was a sign that I can go for it. Maybe I can win," she reflects. Komiket gave her a green light to pursue comics along with her commercial projects.
The author came face-to-face with an adversary, as many other college students in the late 2010s did: COVID-19. Suddenly, her corporate gigs dried up. Not only was getting through the pandemic economically challenging, but it was also lonely for creatives.
Without the routine of corporate gigs and art events, Mediarito poured her time into web comics. In 2021, she published "Ghoul Crush," which centers on a romance between a woman and the ghost haunting her apartment. Mediarito also submitted her work to literary publications and awards.
"Then, I got an email from someone I didn't know who said they were a Webtoon editor," Mediarito says. She ignored that email for a few days, but in the back of her mind, she thought, "Let me check that just in case."
The email, from LA-based Webtoon editor Aria Villafranca, was not spam. Villafranca was interested in working with Mediarito on a Webtoon Originals comic. Mediarito only had short comics at the time, so she sent over a 16-page story called "Katlaya De Los Kalye."
"Aria saw what Katlaya could be," says the author. "We can make it a whole world with more creatures, monsters, characters, subcultures, and lore." Villafranca and Mediarito worked on what became "Katlaya Rising" for a whole year before publishing the first chapter on Webtoon. "Comics will bring you to places you never knew you could end up in."
Writing queer characters the right way
Katlaya De Los Kalye crashes through a married couple's tin-roofed home in Lower Pilipit Town to fight a rabid beast to the death. While Katlaya's monsters would feel more at home in a Nintendo game, Pilipit Town's atmosphere and citizens feel vaguely familiar.
"The backgrounds are so important to informing the world," Mediarito says. "It has to be Filipino." Katlaya and her motley crew fight monsters and, occasionally, each other in tight eskenitas drenched in neon light from signs in Baybayin. Capiz shell windows line houses in Upper Pilipit Town. Tricycle drivers rush past pedestrians in the morning. These lived-in details are all by Mediarito's design.
Mediarito works with a team of assistants based in the Philippines.
"We do field trips around Manila to just look at old and new architecture," she says. "And then we see how we can fuse them together."
Although readers see backgrounds for a few seconds, the rich references in Katlaya's world adds depth to the greater story Mediarito is telling.
In a moment of vulnerability, Katlaya reminisces on her childhood and time as a nun in service to Pilipit Town's local religion. Growing up, she overheard her neighbors gossip about her queerness. "What a waste of a pretty face. ... She's like a 6/10 in looks."
These comments are commonplace in the comic, with many members of the LGBTQ+ community being called "sayang" at least once.
In "Katlaya Rising," Mediarito also touches on the expectations for Filipino women to bear children and the consequences they face regardless of their decision.
"Society goes through ups and downs," says Mediarito. "In some older films, the villains were queer-coded to prove they were strange and not of this world." Giving antagonists traits and appearances commonly deemed as queer, such as crossdressing and flamboyance, feeds into stereotypes about the queer community. Now, some fandoms are at another extreme and fetishize queer characters.
"We went from villainizing queer people to putting them on a pedestal," the author says.
"We've come to the point where we can make queer characters just characters. That's why I have five different love interests in 'Katlaya Rising.'"
Representation inches closer
Planning, writing, and drawing a Webtoon -- especially one set in a fantasy world with five romantic subplots -- is no small feat. "I never expected to be in this situation, where I can say I'm a professional comic artist," Mediarito reflects. "Maybe it's not so crazy if you're from a different country where the comics industry is more developed."
The Philippines has a tight-knit and vibrant comics community that self-organizes events and conventions, like Komiket and the Manila Comics Fair. However, most, if not all, large publishers, like Marvel, DC, and Kodansha, are based abroad, making it tougher for Filipino creators to reach international audiences.
"We're just a small archipelago in the middle of the ocean. For any one of us to achieve acclaim is a net good," Mediarito says of her practice. In addition to raising the Filipino flag a little higher, she hopes "Katlaya Rising" would also hold space for the queer community.
"You have to confront what type of artist you want to be. Do you want to make something for as many people as possible, or do you want to make something for yourself?" she advises. So, what kind of artist is Mediarito?
A story about sapphic Filipinos fighting monsters and each other's love interests sounds quite niche. However, complex, unapologetic stories are cementing their place in the public's consciousness.
In February 2025, Chappell Roan won Best New Artist at the Grammys, singing about drag queens, clubs, and coming out. The first installment of "Wicked," with queer-coded heroines, graced screens worldwide and brought in $756 million at the box office.
