Ever had an Archimedean moment when you were on the seat, only to find out - when you pop back into the real world - that someone else has screamed “Eureka!” with their towels on? For this author, Masq is one such no-one-could-have-thought-of-this (other than flying cars, Star Wars-esque holographic communication, reusable space planes and oh, apple doused in cheese) that kept rolling around noisily in his head till good old Krishnan pointed out that someone more industrious had taken care of it already. When we learnt she had made it to PC Gamer’s list of 100 Best Games Ever, we were even more jea…intrigued!

Masq is - to oversimplify - an interactive graphic novel played in the first-person and follows the trials of The Nameless You, head of a fashion firm about to unveil a new line called - well - Masq. The show’s up in a few days, and you have to secure a good bit of money to make sure your work is seen on TV. It starts off as a simple matter of either securing a bank loan, or working out a deal with your wife’s boss. But just like in real life, something as simple and momentary as sipping coffee for a while longer can have dire (and we mean DIRE) consequences; among other things like if you bought cookies or not, are you dipping that cookie in the coffee or munching it straight, how much sugar you put in it, how noisily are you sipping on that cup…. hey STOP it already!

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Its been almost an year since Virgin Comics launched three all original comic series in the international market. Since then they have launched almost 50 issues under various series and certain independent graphic novels. Virgin has already made a stamp in the International arena with its magnificent art work. Now that their leading comic series: Devi, The Sadhu and The Snakewoman are about to get a new story arc, they have launched yet another series. This time around they are coming out with India Authentic series and the character is none other than Lord Ganesha.

The comic totally focuses on the Indian Mythology unlike the Ramayana reborn, which was a retelling of the original myth with new story elements and twists. Ganesha features the lineart from the hands of Satish Tayade and the myth has been scripted by Saurav Mahapatra. This is what the officials say about the series:

For generations, all enterprises in India have been launched with an invocation of His name. He is called the Vinayak - God of Endeavors, Vighneshwar - the Remover of Obstacles. Perhaps the most adored of all in the Indian Pantheon, Ganesha is the God that best represents India - benevolent, wise and noble.

Come with us on a journey to witness the origins of a God, a timeless tale of an inanimate golem crafted from primordial clay by Uma, the all-mother. His innocent bravado in defying Shiva, the mightiest of the Gods and even giving up his life to uphold a simple promise he made to his mother, the twist of fate that intertwines his destiny with another and the “rebirth” of the two as they become one.

I have already gone through the comic and I must say that this time around they are lacking in the artwork. If one compares it to their earlier issues, one can easily spot the weariness and the hurried frenzy at the hands of the coloring artists (three of them in this one, namely M. Vishwanathan, S.M. Bhaskar and R.C. Prakash). Most of the panels have flaws in them and certain characters lack the emotive feel completely. For instance at the bottom of page 9, the character of boy Ganesha is the worst portrayal I have ever seen. The face is nothing but a couple of random lines… this is definitely not expected of artists working at Virgin. Perhaps the best portrayal in the whole comic is that of Lord Shiva and the fight that commences between Lord Shiva and the Child avatar of Lord Ganesha. The ambiance of the landscape has surely been done well, but its no compensation for an average art concerning characters.

The story, as I said earlier is totally based on the Indian Mythology, but the comic’s pace is very, very fast. In the very first issue they have already covered the initial phase of the protagonist. Mostly we see comparisons being made to western philosophies and ideologies which totally confuse the rhythm of the story. A lot is being said, and at the same time a lot is being left untold… it really leaves the reader asking.. hey wait.. what about that?… and what about what you said on the last page… !!

As usual, the comic is very high on metaphors and similes, which are told with style as usual, but this time they went ahead and used the story of the elephant mother and her son as a visual metaphor in the storyline. This story which moves sideways with the main storyline serves as a metaphor initially and totally makes a bolting impact later, when we see its relation to the main plot. A really good device to narrate a story this vast.

Still the credit goes to the Virgin Comics for sticking to the Indian roots and not moving to the glorious superheroes to lure more readers. This indeed is a noble effort and moreover the stories do keep in touch with the real myth. So, lets hope the artists get back to their magnificent artworks back again and the scripter’s pen slows down the story a little bit in the coming issues, till then enjoy yet another effort from Virgin Comics.

Halo fans rejoice! After the success of the amazing Halo Graphic Novel, Marvel promised to bring us more graphic novel goodness based on the exploits of the Master Chief and the other principal characters in the Halo mythos. And now, it looks like the first details on the comic have finally emerged at Marvel.com. Updating their catalog, Marvel has posted details on the new comic, titled Uprising, which is being penned by Marvel genius Brian Michael Bendis (Ultimate Spiderman/Daredevil/The Avengers/House of M) and drawn by the supremely divine Alex Maleev (Daredevil/Civil Wars/What If…?/New Avengers).According to Marvel, this 40 page graphic novel starts at the end of Halo 2 and ties in nicely with the beginning of the hugely anticipated Halo 3:

The Eisner Award-winning team of superscribe Brian Michael Bendis and artist extraordinaire Alex Maleev unleash an epic story of mankind’s struggle against the alien threat of the Covenant. Picking up from the conclusion of blockbuster video game Halo 2, the must-read issue reveals how the Master Chief, while onboard a hostile ship headed towards Earth, is battling against Covenant forces! Intertwined with Master Chief’s interstellar one-man-war is the saga of a great American city’s rebellion and downfall, two disparate lives’ collision and shared fate, and the Convenant’s hunt for an ancient relic of untold power and value. With hope dwindling and the fate of humanity hanging by a thread, is there any chance for a future?

Selling for $3.99, Uprising promises to be the first in the line of some truly amazing comics that will be set in the epic Halo universe and will be available for the rabid masses on July 18, 2007, which should tie in nicely with the time people start going crazy outside the Bungie offices for Halo 3 and Halo: Wars. Looks like the fight is finally starting to finish…