Dayo Akinyele Pedro aka Ekun, today you are charged with numerous counts of plagiarism and are accused of lacking originality ,what do you plea?…..well it’s not like it matters anyway because we are going to get to the bottom of it here and now!
THE EVIDENCE
Ever since the release of Ekun #2 there has been some controversy concerning Ekun’s originality. For those of us who have been paying attention we have noticed certain similarities between the wild cat and numerous heroes from various American publishers including marvel’s Nova and image’s Shadowhawk, these have come in various forms from poses to full blown action sequences thus raising the question ….is Ekun simply a ripoff of numerous characters? Is there really any originality to the character and are these similarities merely coincidental? lets hear what Ayodeji Afolabi the creator of Ekun had to say!
INTERVIEW
How did Ekun come about?
Ayodeji: Ekun was the result of sheer creativity, I have been working on the character since my days in secondary school.
Who is Ekun to you?
Adoyeji: I personally see Ekun as myself and any other African teenager.He is the kind of kid who is warmhearted, humorous,kind and who we as the African youth can associate ourselves with.The only difference is the challenges he faces are a bit more strange and fantastical.
Where do you mainly source material when writing his adventures?
Adoyeji: My inspiration for Ekun comes from the lives of young African adults and their challenges.
What do you hope to achieve with this character?
Adoyeji: I simply wish to create an African character who will captivate the hearts of Africans.
If you were forced to alter one of the character’s traits what would it be and why?
Adoyeji: I wouldn’t change anything about Ekun/Dayo, he is fun, lovable and interesting, though there is room for improvement just stay tuned.
Would you consider him a superhero and why?
Adoyeji: Yes I do! He’s a superhero in every way, though he is still finding himself the tragedy and drama that comes with the story will eventually mold him into a supreme wildcat!
Is his costume spandex or some kind of mystical material?
Adoyeji: It appears to be spandex but that is far from the case. His costume is actually a metallic costume magnifying and containing his untrained spiritual energy when his helmet is activated, all will be made clear in future issues.
what are your thoughts on the claims saying Ekun is actually a shallow copy of the marvel character Nova and do you think they actually have base or not?
Adoyeji: I do think the critics have a say, after all everyone is entitled to free speech however even if some of the poses and references were derived from Nova, Ekun is an original and I believe the publication love him and are willing to give him a chance.
VERDICT
It is quite obvious that Ekun’s story is heavily influenced by American characters especially Nova but as Adoyeji stated that alone does not mean he is not original.However Adoyeji also confirmed Ekun is in every way a superhero and with that made clear I for one have problems considering him African.
The issue here is not limited to the imitation of poses or action sequences or even similarities in the story ,the issue is: has the African core of the story been compromised?and in I in all honesty believe it has!
But fortunately it seems this issue has taught us all a valuable lesson.We are in this together for better or worse and that said we are going to make mistakes just like our young Hero.So yes Ekun has his faults , he has his flaws like a lot of the African Heroes out there but Adoyeji was right about one thing, we are willing to give him a chance.
No matter the creases or flaws we love him and we are most certain that these incidences will just work for the better forging the warriors we need!After all no one can take it away from him the Cat has great promise and potential and we are not abandoning him because of his mistakes!
IN THE MEANWHILE CHECK OUT THIS HILARIOUS FAN COMIC
Art and Script: Laycon Salam
Well Ekun I have no doubt you will be the greatest but COME ON I LOVED THAT SUIT!!!!
ROOKIEPENCIL 
this is wrong you are supporting plaigarism! yet you criticise other companies for doing the same you are bias , you are undeserving to even have a godamn view, it is clear your one sided , i will do my best to block ban and preach against your nonsense and make sure everyone considers thiss blog for the trash it is
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You are entitled to your opinion and if you believe I am biased well there is not much I can do to change that, nonetheless I wonder why you would say such a thing, I never condoned plagiarism in fact I condemned it …openly stated the African core was compromised and as I always do clearly pointed out that I find that I have problems considering him African.That said Ekun apart from the mimicked poses and action sequences has strongly showcased Africa in his title from the Akara seller to his own personal life and as already stated here he does not wear spandex…he is a superhero and in my take thus not African but I only said we love him and would give him a chance because so far that is what the industry seems to be doing from Exo to guardian prime …..I NEVER CONDONED THE PLAGIARISM so go ahead …PREACH, BAN ,BLOCK…it has already happened to me numerous times because of the sensitive issues I touch on ,but one THING I AM NOT IS BIASED!….I have articles praising comic republic here more so than any other organization so what proof do you have implying I am one sided?In fact my very favorite is the lovely Ireti Bidemi (it’s a known fact) and if that were the case I would seem to be favoring the republic more!So go ahead do your worse , you would just be another in a long line of haters who didn’t like the fact I pointed out facts!
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