Loba Latina

Loba Latina was a Brazilian comic book series created by Armandinho and Rabisko and published by Editora Kirschner in conjunction with Catarina Produções Artísticas (CPA) through its then-newer subsidiary Júlia Cardoso Produções Artísticas (JCPA) from 1996 to 2002. The comic is based on then-popular singer and TV show hostess Júlia Cardoso, as a struggling pop singer whose life is turned around when an encounter with wolves causes her to become a werewolf.

The comic ended up a sleeper hit with Kirschner, eventually resulting in a wave of merchandise and two animated feature films released in 1999 and 2002, shortly before the comic's final volume was published.

Synopsis
Young adult female Bonita gets the career boost she desired but not how she expected it. During a trip to visit a long-lost relative in Romania, she is attacked by wolves but successfully treated medically. Upon returning to Brazil, she finds that at times, she turns into a (thankfully still sentient) werewolf, which becomes her personal gimmick and propels her to stardom.

In addition to facing the trials and tribulations of musical success, she also has to watch out for many looking to intercept her way of life, including a werewolf mafia led by Dono Rosnaldo and his daughter Bestazinha (who acts as Bonita's rival), sleazy and dishonest tabloid journalist Furão Fermino and obnoxious moral guardian Sra. Chatabraga.

Protagonists

 * Bonita Lupu da Silva: The lead protagonist, a Brazilian young adult female of partial Romanian heritage with performative talents. She is prone to being impatient, impulsive, timid and self-conscious, particularly due to stress as a result of transforming into a werewolf and involuntarily basing her career around it, but other times wants to use her passions for good and to benefit anyone around her who most deserves it.
 * Marcelo Henriques: Bonita's boyfriend, who is very compassionate and supportive of her even after discovering she has become a werewolf, reasoning that he still sees a good-hearted person under a lupine exterior.

Antagonists

 * Dono Rosnaldo: One of the main antagonists, the mafioso of a clandestine werewolf gang. He is a very hard-hearted and barely patient boss to work under, showing little tolerance of his underlings' failures or apprehensions about doing certain things. His motivation to hound Bonita is rooted in fear that humans becoming more accustomed to the existence of a werewolf in Brazil might result in her indirectly blowing their cover. Arguably his few redeeming qualities are that he refuses to do anything potentially threatening mundane civilian life and that he genuinely cares for his daughter.
 * Bestazinha: A secondary antagonist and the daughter of Dono Rosnaldo. She poses as Bonita's rival, albeit mainly at her father's orders, opting mainly to use a sexualized depiction of herself to lure male fans away from Bonita, instead of the latter learning to be herself and follow what she's most passionate about.
 * Gaspar Gulosoares: The greedy and sleazy CEO of Alimentos Soares, who asks Boni to endorse his food products along with other less than desirable favours she is quick to rebuke (him only stepping back and letting her keep the job for fear she'd use her fans to generate negative public relations).
 * Furão Fermino: A tabloid journalist who constantly follows Bonita (among other famous people) and tries to invade their privacy, expose secret facts about and/or lie about them for ratings. To this end, he is extremely tenacious in disregarding the wishes of celebrities, even after it invariably results in some forms of physical retribution played for comic and cathartic effect.
 * Sra. Chatabraga: A stubborn, opinionated and rude middle-aged woman who expresses hatred for Bonita (and other things popular with today's youth) because of perceived impurities and negative effects on children. Hypocritically, she advocates old-fashioned methods of discipline and supports censorship and conservative politicians.

Development
Júlia Cardoso was a protégé of Catarina and Tobias Kirschner during the mid-90's (selling two albums recorded in 1994 and 1995) when Editora Kirschner began proposing her likeness be adapted into a comic book character (as it would be less costly than trying to produce a scripted television series and better utilize anything deviating from reality). Her high-energy performances and charismatic personality were thought to be ideal for a cartoon heroine.

During the resulting discussions (and with Cardoso's input), the creative team eventually settled on a werewolf because it worked perfectly as a metaphor for overcoming stage fright, dealing with personal changes, facing media scrutiny and so on.

Publication history
Loba Latina was published bimonthly from April 1996 until its final issue in October 2002 (nearly four months after the animated film's sequel was released in theaters) by Kirschner in Brazil, with issues also later compiled into trade paperback and hardcover formats.

The comic was also sold in Portugal, Spain, France, Italy, Mexico, the rest of Latin/Central America, the USA and Canada via Kirschner's subsidiaries in the respective territories during the late 90's and early 2000's.