MISC. MANGA, *Xanadu

Anthropomorphics were huge in the indie comics market in the 80s largely due to all the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles wannabes, but out of all of them only one managed to establish what most people nowadays refer to as the "furry" genre. Xanadu started out as a 5-issue mini-series by Vicky Wyman in 1988 followed by a sequel mini-series, a color special, and its own fanzine. This was one of the few talking animal comics from the 80s that was entirely cast with anthropomorphic characters and was also a swashbuckling adventure in the spirit of Conan and Dungeons And Dragons. Borrowing traits from both European and Asian folklore, Xanadu begins as a recognizable sword and sorcery tale, but elements of Japanese mythology work their way into the plot. The late Vicky Wyman had a grand sense of romantic fantasy which translated into amazing comic art done in black and white which also leans into manga style.

Set in the magical land of Xanadu, the current Empress is Alicia, a unicorn ruler whose father Allynrud settled his empire after ceasing the quarreling Nobles who are mythical creatures and their adversaries the Freeborn who are the other anthropomorphic citizens. There are also the Domestique animals which take the place of regular animals such as ones for riding on instead of horses. Alicia's foxy handmaiden Fatima is carrying on a flirty relationship with the swaggering feline gentlemen thief Tabbe who keeps infiltrating the castle much to the chagrin of the griffen captain of the guard Plume who has plans of his own for who should be on the throne. Word of this reaches the neighboring kingdom of the Golden Realm run by golden dragons, so the high princess Kajiko arrives in Xanadu along with her younger brother Kinomon who will become one of Alicia's royal guards. Plume's treachery is revealed and he escapes, only to later bond himself with the spirit of the dark sorcerer Typhon which ultimately leads to his demise. The second mini-series shows most of Alicia's court going on a voyage to the Golden Realm but are sidetracked by pair of selfish kyryn and some pesky pirates. The color special acts a prequel set in the early days of the Golden Realm, so it's unusual that nearly half of the entire Xanadu comics run doesn't actually takes place in the empire it's named after.

Vicky Wyman didn't pull her punches when it came to having her animal people expressing their opinions and feelings which makes for a lot of passionate intrigue. Wyman's artwork had great details and unique screen tone backgrounds that are equal to even the most professional manga creators. Xanadu is a stand-alone testament to exactly how deep furry lore can go that shakes off the negative stereotypes that seem to plague the fandom.