Magnetic Press has been building a distinctive catalog of internationally acclaimed graphic novels since 2013. With 31 Eisner Award nominations and a win for Best Production Design in 2024, publisher Mike Kennedy has proven there’s a market in the U.S. for stories from Europe. Now Magnetic is taking on one of its most ambitious projects yet: the complete seven-volume saga of Florent Maudoux’s Freaks Squeele, a manga-inspired superhero series that’s been captivating readers around the world since 2008.
Described as “Jujutsu Kaisen meets X-Men by way of Scott Pilgrim,” Freaks Squeele follows three misfit students at a superhero university where heroism is a regulated profession and deadly tournaments are broadcast for public consumption. The Kickstarter campaign launches all seven volumes at once, featuring 1,000 pages of story — plus an exclusive artbook and a limited edition “dorm footlocker” storage box.
We caught up with Kennedy to talk about what drew Magnetic Press to Freaks Squeele, how the publisher approaches translating international works and why European comics continue to offer something American readers can’t find anywhere else.
Continue reading “Smash Pages Q&A | Magnetic Press publisher Mike Kennedy on bringing ‘Freaks Squeele’ to America”