When it comes to stories, you see some and you wonder why no one has done it sooner. Virgil is one of those ideas. That’s why it was easy to choose our latest Kickstarter Spotlight.

Welcome to Jamaica. A resort destination. 70% of citizens don’t think gay men and women deserve basic human rights. The world’s highest murder rate.The worst place on Earth to be gay.

Created by Steve Orlando, Virgil will feature the art of JD Faith, coloring by Chris Beckett and design and lettering by Victor Ochoa. The idea for the graphic novel began with Archie Comics’ announcement of Kevin Keller. The idea of taking this series that was unchanged for decades and infusing an LGBTQ character smoothly, as if he always belonged, struck Orlando. The normalcy of it all stood out.

Then came Django Unchained, and its commentary on racism in the form of a blaxploitation film. Orlando wanted to do his version, his gaysploitation story. With the anti-gay violence in Jamaica largely unknown, he had a place to set the book- a place commonly thought of as a vacation paradise, with an unexplored underbelly.

This is his way to explore the LGBTQ battle withing a story we’re all familiar with and can get behind and support. It’s a bold packaging and an interesting way to push forward a struggle that’s very much going on every day around the world.

You can find a preview below.

Best Pledge: $35 – Gets you the print edition with a Kickstarter only cover

Risk: LOW – I don’t expect there to be too many issues. This is a pretty veteran crew and the time frames makes sense to me. Amounts too also make sense. Maybe there’s some slight slips in delivery dates, but I don’t expect them, to be horrific like many I’ve experienced myself.