The Aswang within the Heterotopic Spaces of Malonzo’s Tabi po

May Lynn Abella-Tabar

Ateneo de Manila University | Ateneo de Davao University, Philippines

Abstract: Through the modern graphic novels, readers are introduced to Philippine mythology as these texts produce reinterpretations of mythological characters and settings. This paper investigates the representation of a popular lower mythological creature, the aswang, in the two issues of Mervin Malonzo’s Tabi po. It argues that the representation of this supernatural creature creates heterotopic spaces that construct and reconstruct the identities of the aswang from supernatural others to that of “weaponized” entities. These sites include heterotopic deviations and crises which become apparent when the aswang inhabit spaces that are both sacred and profane. Such spaces are unfixed, nameless, and yet are real spaces for the creature to perform its ritualistic practices of killing and consuming human flesh, blood, and guts. These heterotopic sites, framed with various western artworks within the existing storylines of Noli me tangere and El filibusterismo, also serve as witnesses to the aswang’s transformation, which highlight their supernatural otherness.

Keywords: Aswang, heterotopia, lower mythological creatures, Philippine graphic novels