hoof . 2019
late last year, i worked on a short comic that was meant to be published in an upcoming comics anthology for release some time this year. unfortunately, because of the covid situation, the publication is on hold until further notice. until then, i wanted to share with you the mini comic i worked on titled 'hoof'!
'hoof' is based off a gazelle like creature that's been in the back of my mind for some time. hoof was conceived during a comic book making workshop i was part of years ago, where i created a more child-friendly version of the character (see 'hoof & fin'). 'hoof' is this mythical creature inspired from folktales from the uae. the realm of emirati folktales is fairly new to me, and have only recently been researching it because of access to stories translated to english (in case you've forgotten, my arabic is quite bad!). there are countless stories of creatures luring in the dark, to scare children and keep them away from wandering off into the desert or away from their homes. this also goes back to the tradition of believing in spirits and djinns which is quite common.
i wanted to create a short story inspired from these local traditions of folktales and storytelling, as well as the action packed superhero comics i grew up reading. 'hoof' in short, is about not believing everything you hear. sometimes, what you're told to fear or believe is bad, might not be as bad as you think.
i hope to develop the world of 'hoof', and create an epic comic about his adventures, where he comes from, and the colourful characters he meets along the way. i just hope i get to do it someday. until then, i hope you enjoy this short story.