YA Free Period is Lisa Gullickson’s column celebrating the best Young Adult Graphic Novels, the books that school us in how to be ourselves. In this entry, Lisa interviews Jadzia Axelrod and Jess Taylor about creating sympathetic resonance with Galaxy: The Prettiest Star.

By Lisa Gullickson — There is a phenomenon in acoustics called sympathetic resonance. When a sound is made by a vibratory body, like a string or an empty space, objects that are the same shape and harmonic likeness will also vibrate and make noise. This property adds depth and richness to the timbre of a single note, can make or break the acoustics of a room, and is how opera singers got the reputation for breaking glass. The idea of sympathetic resonance fascinates me because it is not just musical instruments that have resonant frequencies. Literally every entity has them, as if everything is waiting for the opportunity to make some noise.

I have come to think about sympathetic resonance as not only an acoustic phenomenon but also a literary phenomenon. There are times when I am engaging with a story, and an element strikes me - I might feel a flood of emotion, I may even feel a bit flush - and there is this buzz of recognition that I am seeing an aspect of myself reflected back to me. Sometimes the sensation is faint, like a distant hum, and other times it shatters me, but I do find myself looking for that rush. Like in acoustics, the greater the similarity, the more intense the resonance.

Pre-order **Galaxy: The Prettiest Star.**

This was in my mind and heart when I sat down to talk with writer Jadzia Axelrod and artist Jess Taylor about their newest book, Galaxy: The Prettiest Star, from DC Comics. It is a YA graphic novel about an alien princess hiding on planet earth, disguised as a human boy. Taelyr has no idea how long she will be stuck like this, and the cognitive dissonance of looking in the mirror and not seeing herself is beginning to chafe. She is uncomfortable, exhausted, and itching to be seen. Her military guard, posing as her human father, is constantly policing her, quashing any form of self-expression. If she is exposed, it could mean her assassination and a tragedy for their home planet.

For a long time, being on the basketball court was Taelyr’s only refuge, then she met Kat. Through their relationship, Taelyr realizes that merely existing in a body that does not express her true self is a poor substitute for living a full life. Using the organic technology of her home planet, she is able to transform back into the magenta, super-powered princess she was always meant to be; controlling, fake fathers, and enemy alien assassins be damned.

I adore Galaxy: The Prettiest Star. The writing is sharp, funny, and poignant. The art is colorful, hip, and ebullient. I even feel a little ring of sympathetic resonance - there have been times I have felt like I don’t fit in, and of course, I have felt that disorienting intoxication of having a high school crush - but I feel acutely that there are women who will experience the phenomena with Galaxy more profoundly than me.

When Jadzia was invited to pitch to the editors of DC Comics for a YA Graphic Novel line, she presented several ideas for them, including the obligatory Superman tale and a story about Lex Luthor taking over a boarding school, but she also included one idea for herself:

Jadzia: At the very bottom, there was the pitch that became Galaxy, and I did it because I was like, “I’m going to regret this if I don’t toss this story in. This is my chance to give them a trans superhero that would be very dear to my heart. Let me do that.” And I never thought they would go for it. I was like, this is just to say that I’ve done it, and I can sleep at night knowing that I’ve done it, and that was the one they wanted to do. And I was over the moon to do it.
Jess: I joined the project a little bit after it had been taken on at DC. The editor approached me in a general way, being like, “Do you want to do something at DC?” And I was like, “Yes, of course, I would love to do something at DC.” That’s everybody’s dream, isn’t it? And then, a couple of weeks later, they were like, “We have an opening on this comic.” And I read the script that Jadzia had put forward and just instantly fell in love. I read it, and I was just like, this is such a powerful script, it’s such a brilliant story that needs to be told, and I was like, “When can I start?” And I believe before I’d even signed the contract, me and Jadzia were sitting down, designing things.

Jadzia understood the tremendous privilege and responsibility in creating Taelyr for Galaxy. She would be giving other girls like herself the superhero they were seeking. Jadzia grew up loving superhero stories, but she always knew, on some level, that she had been rounding her heroes up to relatable.

Jadzia: As a queer person and as a trans person, I have had to see myself through a lot of metaphors - a lot of metaphorical stories where people are metaphorically queer or metaphorically trans - and I wanted to flip that a bit and write a story where the transness was literal. The queerness is literal; that’s actual. But there was still a metaphorical element so that cis people and straight people could read the story and still get something out of it.
So it’s your turn [straight and cisgendered people] to see yourselves through metaphor. And hopefully, I did that right. That was the goal. I don’t know if I threaded that needle; it’s a hard one to do. Essentially, to take that superhero origin that is so common and it’s so common because it’s so resonant. Who doesn’t feel like they’re an alien when they’re a teenager? Who doesn’t feel like there’s a whole bunch of rules and identities that seem strange and foreign to us, and we have to get along the best we can and have to present ourselves as someone who we think we should be, who our parents think we should be, who our peers think we should be when in reality we feel very different on the inside? That’s just adolescence. Doubly so for queer people, doubly so for trans people, but I think everyone feels that way.

When I asked Jess what it was like collaborating with Jadzia on Taelyr’s final design, they shared a knowing laugh. Jadzia explained that Jess was a dream to work with, and most of her character designs were spot on, but Taeyler’s final alien design required a lot of back-and-forth, variations, and tweaks.

Jess: Sometimes, when you read somebody else’s script, you don’t get a very good idea of what the characters look like, what they sound like, how they move - that wasn’t the case with Jadzia’s script. Everything was very clear. The first time I read it, I had such a distinct vision in my head of the Barzelay family. Specifically, ‘Taylor,’ the human guise of Taelyr, I really wanted to get something that would just be run of the mill, very normal, very relatable. But when we started to sit down and actually design Taelyr’s true self, there was so much thought put into it. Because obviously, it’s very difficult to get good trans rep without finding that an artist has stepped into some sort of harmful stereotype.
We wanted to walk that line of having a trans woman that is a trans woman without playing into that. I think that is why we ended up sitting down and going through so many designs with Taelyr’s true self. It’s something that meant a lot to Jadzia, and it was something that meant a lot to me to get right. Seeing yourself reflected in a comic properly is such an important thing, and it’s not something that I had as a kid. There weren’t comics out there that were telling me that it was okay to be non-binary or that it was okay to be bisexual. There was nothing out there like that.

Even though Taelyr revealing her true form could have intergalactic consequences, Taelyr’s primary concerns in Galaxy: The Prettiest Star are extremely local and not that far removed from what really matters to any queer youth who is struggling to express themselves. Will friends and family reject her? Will she still get to play on her basketball team? Will she get to go to the school dance with her girlfriend? Jadzia prioritized the messaging she wishes she received as a teenager in the storytelling.

Jadzia: When you come out as trans, you will lose friends. You will have people angry at you for no reason. You will lose opportunities that you maybe took for granted. That certainly happened to me, it’s happened to a lot of trans people I’ve spoken with, and I wanted to show that. I didn’t want to shy away from that because I also wanted to show that those sorts of things are survivable. That, just because these things happen and these things are taken away, it doesn’t mean that that’s the end of the world.
People would ask me a lot, what would you say to your younger self? Because I transitioned late - “late” in quotation marks. I transitioned at 36, so late-ish. I was already an adult at the very end. And what would I have said to my younger self? And I would’ve told me, “Everything that you’re afraid of and everything that you hope for is going to happen, and you’re going to survive all of it.” And so that was the impetus. There are consequences to transitioning, there are consequences to being yourself, but that it’s not the end of the world.

Because Jadzia chose to lean into those more grounded stakes, Galaxy: The Prettiest Star defies some of the more conventional Superhero tropes. The climax is not a vast, knock-done, drag-out final fight with some archnemesis-type. The showdown is with a school principal rather than a supervillain.

Jadzia: It’s a slow-burn superhero origin. That’s how I like to think of it. At the end of the book, Taelyr, I feel, is a superhero, and the person she saves is herself. And then, if we get a sequel - fingers crossed - there will be more of a traditional superhero presence.
I don’t know if there’s going to be fight scenes. Part of the joy of this was to write a superhero story without fight scenes. To write a superhero story that is my interest as well asks, how do people really react to these weird outside sci-fi ideas? Like, if you found out that your best friend was an alien this whole time, how would you react? If you found out that you are happier being purple with horns coming out of your head than you ever were when you looked like everyone else, what does that mean for you? What does that mean for your family? What does that mean for your girlfriend?
That sort of stuff is really interesting to me, and more interesting to me than a fight scene. And I will say the first draft of this had a big slam-down superhero fight at the end, and I want to thank the editor who said “This isn’t the story. The story does not end here.” And I was like, “You’re right.” This isn’t about fight scenes. This isn’t about superheroes in that way. This is about Taelyr not saving the town or saving the world. It’s about her saving herself.
Jess: There is such a long and storied analogy of superheroes being LGBT icons and allegories. That such a big part, the hero origin story is often coming to accept themselves and their power and who they really are, that I think Galaxy is like a purified hero origin story. In that, we follow her through all of those steps that she takes to become the best version of herself that she can be going forward. And that’s really what a superhero origin does.

When Galaxy: The Prettiest Star is released in May, Taelyr will join the DC Universe, where presumably she will be folded into the canon. Part of the beauty and the vulnerability of creating a comic book character like Taelyr is that she will be embraced by other writers and artists in their stories. Included in her agreement with DC is a stipulation that Jadzia will continue as part owner of Taelyr, and any other writer wanting to use Taeylr will consult with her. A strong trans voice must stay behind Taelyr so that her story can still ring true, but Jadzia knows that Galaxy's future is somewhat out of her hands. There are complicated emotions for both Jadzia and Jess, releasing their creation into the world, but mostly what they feel is gratitude.

Jadzia: Obviously, I would like to be the only one who writes Taelyr forever and ever, amen. That would be the ideal. And there’s certainly been conversations about where Galaxy will show up next. And if that will be in someone else’s book, if that will be in a sequel, there’s been talks, nothing concrete yet.
If this book is the only part of Galaxy I write, that’s fine because this book is perfect. Jess did an amazing job. The story is everything I wanted it to be, and if this is my contribution to Galaxy, then I’m pleased. It’s been a dream project from day one and a dream project, not just for me now, but a dream project of the child who watched Super Friends on Saturday mornings and played with their little Batman and Wonder Woman dolls. And the teenage me who wanted to tell weird sci-fi stories that were not necessarily fight scene after fight scene. And so they have accomplished that. Anything else, more Galaxy stories, whether they’re written by me or by someone else, that’s gravy. I’ve gotten exactly what I wanted, and to ask for more than that would be greedy.
Jess: Likewise. I’m honestly excited, nervous, and terrified, obviously, of handing off something that I poured so much of myself into designing. Still, I can’t wait to see what other creators could do with Galaxy. How she could grow and how she could develop with more voices and more artists contributing their stories and their perspectives to her. I think that that would be an interesting growth to watch, especially if there is a concerted effort by DC to make sure that those stories are told by other trans people. Can’t imagine someone else drawing Galaxy, though.
Jadzia: I Keep trying to imagine a different style, like a more superhero standard style, and it’s like, that doesn’t make any sense in my head.
Jess: Honestly, if I am ever given the chance, I would draw Galaxy until I am gray and old, which honestly is right now. No, I would do it forever if I could, but I am excited to see if DC trusts anybody else with her and see what they do with her.

Galaxy opens with a dedication: “For the girl who needed this book ages ago, and couldn’t find it.” There are many passionate readers who devour comics, searching for that enlivening sense of sympathetic resonance, something that rings true to their very soul, but they never find it. There are just not enough stories that vibrate at their unique, exquisite frequency. But they still read, though, finding pieces of themselves in the subtler, more nuanced contours of a story.

There is this stubborn misconception in publishing that readers only want stories where the hero looks, acts, feels, and loves precisely the same way they do, but the enduring community of queer comic book fans is proof positive that has never been the case. By marginalizing certain voices, publishers are not only denying those communities that feeling of complete sympathetic resonance, but they are denying everyone else the opportunity to hear themselves faintly through those more removed, metaphorical likenesses.

Galaxy: The Prettiest Star reverberates with honesty, heart, and specificity. Through their creation of Galaxy, a trans superhero with purple horns and a love of David Bowie, Jadzia Axelrod and Jess Taylor remind us that sometimes the bravest, most heroic act is to be unapologetically ourselves.

Pre-Order it here: Galaxy: The Prettiest Star

Extracurricular Reading for Galaxy: The Prettiest Star

Girl Haven (2021) by Lilah Sturges and Meaghan Carter. Girl Haven is a fantasy graphic novel about a girl named Ash who was born a boy, but discovers her true gender in a magical land with talking animals meant only for girls. Girl Haven is a touching and worthwhile trans story that is aimed at middle grade readers.
Buy it here: Girl Haven

I Am Not Starfire (2021) by Mariko Tamaki and Yoshi Yoshitani. This is another superhero comic from DC Comics’ Graphic Novels for Young Adults line dealing with queer themes. Mandy is the daughter of Starfire from Teen Titans, but is absolutely nothing like her. Mandy is not tall or perky or superpowered and she is sick of explaining why she is not more like her mother. I Am Not Starfire is about Mandy getting over who she is not, so she can finally celebrate who she is.
Read my full review: I Am Not Starfire
Buy it here: I Am Not Starfire

Wonderful Women of the World (2021) edited by Laurie Halse Anderson. This anthology, published by DC Comics with a stunning portrait of Wonder Woman on the cover by Nicola Scott, contains the histories of our real-life Wonder Women. Included is a comic written by Jadzia Axelrod, illustrated by Michaela Washington, about Marsha P. Johnson, the gay and trans rights activist.
Buy it here: Wonderful Women of the World

A Quick and Easy Guide to Queer and Trans Identities by Mady G and Jules Zuckerberg (2019) For those of us who feel they need a primer to the LGBT+ vernacular, and need a starting place. The term “quick and easy” is tongue in cheek, the topic of identity is infinitely complicated, but this pocket sized comic/handbook is nevertheless enthusiastically informative.
Buy it here: A Quick and Easy Guide to Queer and Trans Identities

Check out Lisa’s picks for the Best Ya Graphic Novels!

Lisa Gullickson is one half of the couple on the Comic Book Couples Counseling podcast, and, yes, the a capella version of the 90s X-men theme is all her. Her Love Language is Words of Affirmation which she accepts @sidewalksiren on twitter.