Magical Girls in West Africa? An Inside Look Of The New Comic From Adorned By Chi

The last time I spoke with Jacque, the founder of Adorned by Chi, she was a trailblazing entrepreneur, putting out creative new pieces in her store that encouraged Black women to embrace their nerdiness with vibrant colors. I am happy to say, that she is embracing 2018 with fire and her Instagram continues to inspire me. More recently, Adorned by Chi has started a new project, one that dives deeper into the graphic novel world and focuses on Igbo legends while combining classic anime storylines. This new tale involves 5 extremely different but inextricably connected Nigerian students who must learn to harness their magic in order to defeat a great terror, The Nothing. I am a huge Magical Girl aesthetic fan, so you know my nerd alert was piqued. I was able to get more detail on the exciting new development, so please enjoy an inside look on Adorned by Chi’s new series!-Monica Black Nerd Problems: Please tell me more about Magical Girls in West Africa! Where did the idea come from and how was the journey of making it into a reality? Jacque: I’ve always been such a fan of magical girl anime and aesthetics. I had the idea of creating a story in the same vein (celebrating feminine power and friendship) but in a setting I’ve been interested in exploring- Nigeria! Many people don’t know but the “Chi” in Adorned by Chi is actually an Igbo word- it essentially means “God”. As an Igbo American lady myself I feel like our mythology, deities and magic aren’t as celebrated and explored as…