Mary Cagle
Mary Cagle, also known as Cube Watermelon, is an American webcomic artist known for creating Kiwi Blitz, Let's Speak English, and Sleepless Domain.
Mary Cagle | |
---|---|
Born | [1][2] | December 1, 1989
Nationality | American |
Pseudonym(s) | Cube Watermelon |
http://www.marycagle.com/ |
Personal life
Cagle was raised in Corpus Christi, Texas and developed a strong interest in Japanese pop-culture, including both older and more modern anime and video games. In 2013, Cagle graduated from the Savannah College of Art and Design[3] and became an English teacher at an elementary school in Kurihara, Japan.[4]
Works
Kiwi Blitz
In 2009, Cagle started the action/comedy webcomic Kiwi Blitz. Its plot follows a couple of teenagers attempting to fight crime in the pseudo-near future. Kiwi Blitz draws many of its influences from anime, featuring Americanized Japanese mecha designs.[4] Brian Cronin of Comic Book Resources described the set-up of Kiwi Blitz as a "strong concept" that should be able to sustain itself for a long time. Praising the "interesting" cast, Cronin noted that Cagle is willing to "mix things up" so that story doesn't become stale.[5] Lauren Davis of io9 listed Kiwi Blitz among her top ten superhero webcomics.[6]
Let's Speak English
In November 2013, Cagle began illustrating her experiences of being an English teacher in Japan in the form of slice-of-life snippets. The webcomic, titled Let's Speak English, shows Cagle dealing with subjects such as Japanese pop-culture, toilets, thin walls, and the language barrier.[4]
Sleepless Domain
Cagle started the webcomic Sleepless Domain in 2015. The story, set in a city that is invaded by malicious monsters on a nightly basis, features a group of magical girls and their interpersonal issues. Kotaku Australia described Sleepless Domain as a tragic story about the "loss of fellowship".[7] Hachette began publishing a French-language physical release of the comic in 2018.[8] In 2020, Seven Seas Entertainment announced a print and ebook release of the comic.[9]
References
- Cagle, Mary [@cubewatermelon] (30 Nov 2010). "Livestream again! Join me as I finish this page and ring in my 21st birthday :< bit.ly/cifE3R" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- Cagle, Mary [@cubewatermelon] (30 Nov 2013). "Eeheehee thank you so much for the birthday wishes! (My bday is the 1st, which it is over here already)" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- "Let's Speak English - Prologue 1 - Off We Go!". marycagle.com.
- Cruz, Larry (2014-08-29). "'Let's Speak English': One Cartoonist's Adventures in Teaching". Comic Book Resources.
- Cronin, Brian (2011-05-16). "A Month of Webcomics – Kiwi Blitz". Comic Book Resources.
- Davis, Lauren (2014-09-01). "10 Superhero Webcomics You Should Be Reading". io9.
- Davis, Lauren (2016-10-09). "What Happens To A Magical Girl After She Loses Her Team?". Kotaku Australia.
- "Robinson, une nouvelle collection de bandes dessinées en partenariat avec Hiveworks". hachette.fr (in French). Hachette Livre. 25 May 2018.
- "Seven Seas and Hiveworks Comics Join Forces to Bring Webcomics to Bookstores". Seven Seas Entertainment. December 21, 2020.
External links
- Official website (Let's Speak English)
- Kiwi Blitz
- Sleepless Domain