RADIUS: The Complete Saga takes Marília Metropolitana to Kindle in English
The three volumes of the first Radius arc are being collected in a single English edition on Kindle, expected in November. The cover has a six-year story behind it.
In 1996, Tiago de Moraes das Chagas was 16 and spent his high school Portuguese classes sketching a superhero at his desk at the Professor Antônio Reginato state school, in Marília, Brazil. Now, that character is about to cross the language barrier. The complete first arc of Radius is getting an English edition, RADIUS: The Complete Saga, with Volumes 1, 2 and 3 collected in a single 111 page book. The plan is to release it in November, on Amazon Kindle.
A dream that sat in a drawer
The 1996 idea came from superhero comics, with Marvel, DC and Image Comics as references. The teenager created the hero, got the first drawings from his friend Rafael Mantovani Ribeiro, and the two even made the first adventures by hand. But for lack of resources and structure, Radius stayed shelved for many years.
The turning point came in 2020. At home during the pandemic, Tiago went back to his old files and ideas and decided to start over, this time as a professional comics project. Around that time, the family adopted Pituco, a mixed-breed dog who quickly became a character. It all started with WhatsApp stickers and a picture of his little face on a soldier's body. The dog joined the story as a sidekick and ended up becoming one of the most loved characters in the Radius universe.
Two years later, in July 2022, Vol. 1 came out.
A cover that waited six years
The cover of the English edition was not made for this release. It has existed since 2020, two years before Vol. 1 came out, and the way it arrived says a lot about the project.
Back in 2020, when the character only showed up in occasional Instagram posts, someone on the other side of the Atlantic took notice. South African illustrator Sipho Foley, who signs as SFoleyArt, saw the posts and decided to draw the hero on his own. On August 12, 2020, he posted fan art of Radius in black and yellow on his profile, tagging @radiushero.
The post from August 12, 2020
His caption said only this: “Some comic inspired fanart. @radiushero with the black and yellow combo.” Among the likes is one from Ramon Franco, who two years later would write Vol. 1. The original post is still public.
Nobody commissioned that drawing. At the time, Radius had no published comic, no date and no team. It was a character that showed up now and then on Instagram, and still an artist on another continent saw a hero worth drawing. The post stayed there, dated, as a record that Radius was already getting attention outside Brazil before it became a comic. Six years later, that art opens the first international edition.
His initiative filled me with pride. I'm very grateful, and I'm happy to finally give his art the place it deserves, almost six years later.
Tiago de Moraes das Chagas, creator of Radius
Sipho's profile features takes on well-known heroes like Omni-Man and Spider-Man, as well as his own characters. He takes commissions through Instagram at @siphofoley and by email at siphofoley@gmail.com.
The saga going abroad
The story takes place in a city that has lost its life, its colors and its shape. In 3121, Marília Metropolitana is ruled by Major Pimã, who controls the population with holograms and keeps order with the Tomorrow Troops. Far from the city, the resistance survives in Aruanda.
In Vol. 1, Lukas Xagas falls into the hands of Dr. Otium and becomes the first test subject of the R.A.D.I.U.S. project, gaining powers he can't yet control. In Vol. 2, The Fall of Aruanda, released in March 2024, the war reaches the resistance's city and Pituco has to survive the Kennel, the Major's prison. In Vol. 3, released in September 2024, the final battle for Aruanda closes the arc, with Pituco returning alongside new allies, the Confronters.
Vol. 3 came out two months after a loss. The real Pituco died on July 8, 2024, at just over four years old, and the issue was dedicated to his memory.
Taking Marília Metropolitana into English
Translating comics is different from translating a novel. The text has to fit the balloon, and the joke has to work in the reader's culture. Around seven thousand words were replaced directly in the original files of all three issues, using the same lettering fonts.
The rule was to keep proper names and adapt nicknames that carry a meaning. Radius, Lukas, Pituco, Major Pimã, Aruanda and Marília Metropolitana itself stay in Portuguese. Boi became Ox, Nanico became Shorty and Faísca became Sparky. The speedster Peregrino became Peregrine, after the peregrine falcon, the fastest bird in the world, which inspired the character.
Some lines called for more creativity. The P.I.E.D.A.D.E. cannon in Vol. 3 only worked as an acronym in Portuguese, so it became M.E.R.C.Y., which is what piedade means. The Tupi war cry of a Tapanhuma warrior got a new version, with a translation in a footnote.
Credits
Radius was created by Tiago de Moraes das Chagas (@tiagomustache). These are the credits of the English edition, with the team behind each volume.
Volume 1
- Script
- Ramon Franco (@ramonbarbosafranco)
- Art
- Tony Pessanha (@tonypessanhart)
- Colors and letters
- Bruno Araújo (@brunoaraujoart)
- Graphic design
- Mustache Marketing (@admustache)
Volumes 2 and 3
- Script and art
- Tony Pessanha (@tonypessanhart)
- Colors
- Felipe Félix (@felipefelix_color)
- Letters
- Lorde Lobo (@lorde_lobo)
English edition
- Cover art
- Sipho Foley (@siphofoley)
- Translation
- Mustache Comics (@mustachecomics)
- English review
- Valdéres Barbarelli (@mr.barbarelli)
- Publisher
- Mustache Comics (@mustachecomics)
From a school notebook to Kindle
- 1996. At 16, at a school desk in Marília, Tiago creates the hero.
- 2020. During the pandemic, he picks the project back up. Pituco joins the family and becomes a character.
- August 12, 2020. South African artist Sipho Foley posts the fan art that is now the cover of the English edition.
- July 2022. Vol. 1, A New Hero Rises, comes out.
- March 2024. Vol. 2, The Fall of Aruanda, comes out.
- July 8, 2024. Pituco left us, at just over four years old. He came into this story as a sidekick and became its heart.
- September 2024. Vol. 3, Turning Point, comes out and closes the first arc.
- November 2026 (expected). RADIUS: The Complete Saga arrives on Kindle in English.
The exact launch date will be announced here on the blog and on Instagram at @radiushero.
Mustache Marketing