Though the word “superhero” only dates back to the early 1900s, the masses have been regaled with the tales of folkloric or mythological beings throughout human history. Before we saw characters like Iron Man, Batman, Green Arrow, or the Hulk jump from the page to our screens, the legends of Gilgamesh, Odysseus, Robin Hood, and Paul Bunyan spread by word of mouth from generation to generation. Every culture has these legendary figures, but not all of them are widely known. So what happens when one Filipino-American creator decides to shine the spotlight on the renowned hero of the Philippines Lapu-Lapu and mix his legacy with modern comic book lore? Mark Teodosio and The Realest Bayani have the answer.
New York native Teodosio created The Realest Bayani in 2016. Known for dropping comic references in his verses, the rapper formerly known as Mark Marvel was inspired by his affinity for hip hop and superheroes to transform a photoshoot concept for his music into a hero of his own. When you mix those passions with end times scenarios from movies like The Warriors and Akira, plus a dash of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the futuristic street hero of Manila known as Bayani is born.
However, the final piece of the puzzle in terms of creating The Realest Bayani comes from a deeply personal place for Mark. In addition to his passions for hip hop and comics, Bayani was also created as a tribute to his beloved cousin. “It was a therapeutic way of creating his presence again,” said the writer. “Bringing him into the story, incorporating elements of his life. [My cousin] helped create the character of Marlon when he passed away […] I took his name and some details of his life and gave it to the protagonist of the story. Marlon Ramos is honored as Bayani.”
After putting two years into the development of its hero and his story, The Realest Bayani debuted at New York Comic Con 2018, where Teodosio and his company TCNY (The City Needs You) sold out of the first issue. The following year, issue two received similar acclaim and sold out as well. And in 2020, the crew was able to successfully fund a Kickstarter campaign for Bayani Rebirth and an upcoming fourth issue scheduled to be released later this year.
With the success of the series up to this point, Teodosio is happy to introduce his own Filipino heritage to a wider audience. In Tagalog, “bayani” translates to “hero” or “warrior.” And the history of the word is just one of the many aspects of Filipino culture that he is excited to share with his readers:
“When you go int it, it really begins with Lapu-Lapu. I’m pretty sure that there were other warriors before him, but he was the first and most notable resistance against colonization and the imperialism of Spain and the other European powers. To me, it was real interesting because I didn’t know just how outnumbered they were. It was like 1500 vs 60. That’s crazy. I’m pretty sure that Spain didn’t expect that kind of resistance or unity either from such a divided nation because we’re all on islands that were separated by languages and beliefs. It was amazing to know that 1500 Filipino warriors were on the shore waiting for their foreign oppressors.”
Just like those mighty Filipino warriors, the Bayani creator continues to fight for his place in the landscape of comic books because representation is important. He shared that he wants to empower young Filipinos with his creations just as characters like Luke Cage and Static have done for the Black community. And he’s looking to do so with more of an edge than the Filipino superheroes of the past like Darna and Captain Barbell or more authenticity than Marvel’s recent creation Pearl Pangan AKA Wave is given:
“[Marvel Comics] just force fed that cultural diversity thing that they wanted to run with for a minute and it doesn’t have enough body for me. In 2018, I drop [Bayani], then the next year Marvel drops a Filipino character. That’s how you know that they’re walking through the indie scene. Instead of giving us the opportunity to shine and build our brands and give us our chance to represent our people, they’ll just get somebody already in the ranks and just force a character out. Oh hey, what Filipino elements can we do on this character? Put her in Cebu? And we’ll make her work with the water? That’s great. Mad unoriginal. Nothing crazy about it. I mean, yeah you could use, [Filipino accent] ‘Oh Tito, I’ll be back okay. We can eat some pancit when I beat the villains.’ Mad corny again. Another cheesy representation.”
The bottom line is that Mark Teodosio is looking to keep it real. As the branches of comic book writing and Filipino culture continue to flourish on his tree of life, he hasn’t forgotten his hip hop roots. In conjunction with the release of Bayani Rebirth, he came full circle by merging his passions for comics and music once again to release a soundtrack for the series. Along with the legacy of Lapu-Lapu and the real Marlon Ramos, Mark Marvel lives on in Bayani as he grows into the hero that the Filipino community has been looking for.
“We need something real. And that’s where the Realest Bayani came out. We got amazing, we got uncanny, we got mighty, we got incredible, but the Filipinos are gonna be the realest.”
For the latest information on The Realest Bayani, be sure to follow Mark Teodosio on Instagram and The City Needs You on Instagram and YouTube.
