Aug 1, 2009

2nd Year Anniversary & Comics News

2nd Year AnniversaryWell, it feels just like yesterday, when I sat down and thought about giving some form to my long standing ambition to start an exclusive website devoted to one of my long cherished passion over Comics. What came out of that thought, was the blog which has come to be known as Comicology.

And what we have here, is the Second Anniversary of our Blog. Time does run fast, isn’t it? I will save you of my blabbering for the end of the post, but before that, just like our 1st Year Anniversary post, let’s look into some of the most happening news around Indian Comicosphere, to mark the occasion.

A glimpse of Modern Indian Comics (Ramayan - Virgin Comics) On the Indian Comics front, the past year was one of the best in terms of more players joining the Comics field, meaning to its true essence. Ever since Virgin Comics closed shops in 2007, which previewed a whole new face of Indian Comics, there was a dearth of fresh air in the Indian Comics space. Finally, the call seems to have been answered by a host of new start-ups, which are vying to fill up the void left by Virgin/Gotham.

Let’s look into some of those who were recently in the news for their newer endeavours. The list includes only those brands who are still in active publishing, thus steering past the forerunners Indrajal Comics (which had its run from 1964 to 1990, amassing 803 titles in total), Amar Chitra Katha (started in 1967 and running till 1991, amassing 436 titles, and since have been reduced to just reprints. Read more about ACK, here), and the recent casualty Gotham Comics (which never made a long run, through its entire start and stop publishing. Read about their last set release, here).

Donal Duck - Junior Diamond Diamond Comics: From a publishing house which has it roots earlier to the Indian Independence (which dates back to 1907), Diamond Comics, which was started in 1978, remains the most sold comics brand in India, which continues even today. Despite being the forerunner of Comics biz in India, comics fans were always apprehensive about their restrictions into evolving the comics beyond the Chacha Chowdhary, Pinky faces (most commonly referred to as Pran Era), to move to an evolved Graphic Novel format. But, Diamond Comics continues to remain on the same foothold, where they feel themselves more comfortable at.

The only good news heard from them recently, was their foray into bringing Walt Disney back to India, under their sister brand “Junior Diamond”. Read more about it over here. But for the sheer fact of being one of the forerunner of Indian Comics, much more is expected out of them.


Raj Comics Superheroes Raj Comics: The only other brand which could rate up to Diamond to claim their share of the longest in the business; is the 1984 starter Raj Comics. They truly deserve every bit of the accolades, which is reflected by their slogan ‘The Home of Indian Superhero Comics’.

Raj Comics picked up the area which was mostly untouched by Diamond, to base their storylines on in-house created Superheroes, Raj Comics Nagraj & Dhruvamost famous of them being the Raj Comics trio of Nagraj, Doga, and Dhruva.

The superior artwork went hand in hand with the wonderfully written plot, to make their series one of the most recognised ones, very close to the fame enjoyed by DC/Marvel characters in India. Till date, their line-up consists of an amazing 3500+ titles.

The only complaints over Raj Comics, was their ever standing image of being a regional language player (For starters, Raj Comics is predominantly published in Hindi), which long deprived them of the international recognition, which they thoroughly deserve for their splendid work on the Indian Comics front.

Incidentally, there was a recent announcement from the publishers, on them reaching out to more languages (which I presume should include English too) with their brand, which should put them right on with the elite in the business. I am staying hopeful. For details, refer www.rajcomics.com


Karna PreviewVimanika's Karna GN

Vimanika Comics: The only comics company which can claim to have picked up from where Virgin left-off. A brain child of Mumbai based Karan Vir, which was started with much fanfare in 2008. They have two series, in their line-up, namely The Sixth and Moksha, which have so far been released in 3 issues each (including the #0).

The artwork is clearly of the highest standards, you can find at present in India. The plot-work is mostly based on the Indian Mythology, with a retake on some of the forgotten heroes from the myth. (Read more about it, here)
 

Vimanika's Dashaavatar GNDashaavatar PreviewIn 2009, Vimanika Comics have planned to release their first two Graphic Novels, in the forms of The Legends of Karna (which talks about the life and times of Karna from the Mahabharata epic), and Dashaavatar (which talks about the ten incarnations of Lord Vishnu, as per Hindu Mythology).

The two will become the first volumes, of a series which would run for a couple of years, as per Karan.

Here is a preview of both of those Graphic Novels, which is sure to draw attention towards those incredibly drawn and colored panels. I am eagerly looking forward for them to hit the stands. For details, refer www.vimanika.com 


Campfire: Another new start-up from the publishers Kalyani Navyug Media, based out in New Delhi. Their initial concentration is totally different from the original Virgin or new-gen Vimanika, as they decided to license out the famous classic novels known to one and all, and present them in a whole new package.

In late 2008, they came up with a host of these classic titles, decorated with new artwork from a number of Indian artists. Not much I could say about the venture, as I am yet to buy them, which I would do shortly, for a review at Comicology.

Campfire - Land Time Forgot Campfire - Alice Campfire - Moby Dick Campfire - Houdini

As far as I have previewed the series, even though the artworks were of varied quality, and some were real breath-taking, the sheer focus on recreating the olden classics, which were read and experienced by majority of the readers bunch, is a little let-down, as it doesn’t allow you to enjoy the title to the fullest, let alone the interest of experiencing something new.

Their company website, says that they are also in the process of creating some Original titles, along with comics based on Mythology. So, I will reserve my verdict, after experiencing their titles. As per the sales, goes I still see much of Campfire titles available on shops, which were released way back in 2008. They must think about more aggressive marketing strategies, if they want to make themselves know among the masses. For details, refer www.campfire.co.in


Arkin Comics Preview Arkin Comics: Is an aspiring comics company, started by Rohan Kapadia, IRITH #1 Preview based out in Pune. Their primary objective is to create custom comics, and also venture on 3-D comics, which they tout as the first ever in India.

Their current concentration is on releasing a line-up of comics consisting of a new superhero team, by the name of IRITH, which they pronounce as India’s First Anti-Terrorist Superhero Task Force. A huge difference from their other contemporaries, who all seem to be relying their titles on Indian mythology.

We had previewed their planned series during our V-Day post here, where the creators behind the series had expressed their concept on the direction of their dream venture. Refer to the interesting discussion on Comments section at the end of the post.

Their first issue is due in the mid of August, so do look forward for them at your local newsstands. For details, refer www.arkincomics.com


M4 Comics - One M4 Comics: Another aspiring comics company, from the recently started M4 Media, based out in New Delhi. Dheeraj Verma, co-founder of M4 Media, and former veteran artist of Raj Comics, who recently also had a stint with M4 Media - Kids MagazineVimanika, has said that they are working on a new series, titled as One, which will be a take-down again from the Mahabharata epic.

Seems that the epic Mahabharata, is the hot property among all the new comic start-ups in India at present.

Apart from the Comics, they are also planning for a host of magazines targeted at Kids and Young adults.

Not much, I could say about them, as their plans are still on an early stage, and much depends on how their final products turns-out. For details, refer www.m4media.in 


Devashard Book 1 India Cover Fluid Comics: Well, as it turned out, the wealth in offer with Mahabharata epic, or Indian mythology as a whole, is not only restricted to aspiring Indian start-ups. Fluid Friction Comics, who are based out in Hong Kong, and specialises in the Manhua (which is the Chinese art version, of Japanese Manga), have come up with a new title Devashard, which also is a take-down from the characters represented in Mahabharata.

Devashard Book 1 Original CoverThey have so far released two titles, in Hong Kong and Internationally. Out of which, the first edition was distributed for sale in India through IDB. It was priced around INR 195, which was way over cost, for a brand new comic in Indian market.

As expected, their sales weren’t as promising, and the second issue of Devashard, is yet to make it to India, which I doubt it will never be.

I had picked up the first title (which was available in late 2008), which featured a new cover from their international version, to mark their Indian entry and make it more aligned to the Indian readers (The Sun god centric cover-art).

Bhumi Map - DevashardTo say frankly, I wasn’t impressed to a great extent, either in the artwork or the storyline. The only bright aspect of the series, was the depiction of Earth, which is termed as Bhumi, and was detailed into such minute reference and geographical distribution of lands and uninhabited places, which was an entirely different takedown from other comic series I have read based on Mahabharata.

May be a second issue in the series, with reasonable pricing would have given an opportunity to re-experience the series and take a final call. But with that looking improbable at the moment, the verdict is reserved on the series. We will see more about the series, during our review of the first title, which is been pending for long time at Comicology.

For details, refer www.fluid-comics.com, www.devashard.com, and their official blog devashard.blogspot.com (which has some inside details about the characters and the world of Devashard. Definitely, deserves a visit and read)


Celeberations for 2nd YearFireworks for 2nd Anniversay And that brings to the end of the Comics News exclusive to the Indian domain, covering all the happenings around the Indian Comics Industry. Now, for a little chit-chat on our occasion of celebrating the 2nd Year anniversary at the blog.

It has indeed been a long and fruitful journey so far for us at Comicology, especially to me. From a humble beginning when the blog was frequented only by a handful of friends, it has blossomed into a website which garners more than 200 hits a day on an average, from over 120 countries.

Comicology Stats (Dec 2007) Comicology Stats (July 2008) Comicology Stats (July 2009)

It speaks volume about the contribution of readers, who cherished reading about one of our unique passion towards Comics. From my side, I have always resolved to the determination, that I wouldn’t be using this blog either as a medium for making money, or to drift away to things unrelated to Comics or its sub-genre Animation.

On this sweetful journey, I also garnered a host of friends, which I believe was the biggest achievement of this whole initiative. The journey also brought some bitter pills to swallow, but they only helped me to grow more determined, and focus on evolving the content offering, day-in an day-out. In return for all those true love and support, you can take my words that we are here to stay and together will enjoy the richness in offer out of the “The 9th Art”, for years to come.

And just before I close, I often come face to face to few of the nears, who keep asking me the same question –“Do you feel your time is well spent on this childhood passion?”. Well it’s hard to explain to them on your likes and dislikes, but I simply want to leave them with some of the famous words uttered by T.S.Elliot:

“Time you enjoyed wasting is not wasted time”

Wish you a Happy Friendship day, my friends, aka fellow Comikers. Have Fun and nJoY Star

38 ComiComments:

Hey RafiQ Congratulations !!!

and yes exellent Reviews!

K.v
V Comics

Congo RR!! Wonderful post!! Keep it up :)

Dear Rafiq,

Congrats!

josh

ரஃபிக்,

என் உளங்கனிந்த வாழ்த்துக்களும், பாராட்டுக்களும்.

காமிக்ஸ்கள் குறித்த சுருக்கமான தகவல்கள் அருமை.

முத்தாக எலியொட்டின் வார்த்தைகள்.

உறுதியுடனும், உற்சாகத்துடனும் தொடருங்கள் அன்பு நண்பரே.

@ Karan
@ Toonfactory
@ Josh

Thanks for your visit and comments Friends. Needless to say, it is the wishes from friends like you, which is helping me to be determined towards our passion.

@ Shankar:
வருகைக்கும், வாழ்த்துகளுக்கும் நன்றி தோழரே. உங்களை போன்ற நண்பர்கள் துணை இருக்கும் வரை, உறுதியுடன் தொடர்வதில் ஐயமே இல்லை. உற்சாகத்திற்கு தான் நம்முடைய காமிக்ஸ் பொக்கிஷங்கள் இருக்கின்ரனவே :).

The work you started 2 years ago, is still as strong today as it was then bringing us much joy, love and happiness to celebrate again. Happy Anniversary.

Keep it up.

Raifq,heartiest congratulations on 2nd anniversary of this wonderful blog,a very nice post too for celebrations.
Keep the good work flowing.

@ Prabhat: You know I will. Thanks much buddy for those warm words :)

@ Comic World: Zaheer Bhai, it took sometime to reach the 2 year mark, but I finally caught up with what you achieved in Feb. :)

Isn't it surprising to see that almost all of our sect have started their blog in 2007, close to each other. Like minded people, Like minded thoughts :)

Happy Friendship Day to both of you, buddies :)

from spider,
rafiq i dont have words to express my feelings.u have just done a remarkable research post.congragulations.

இரண்டாம் வருட வாழ்த்துக்கள். உங்களின் Comics பயணம் தொடர எனது வாழ்த்துக்கள்.

ஒரு வலை தளத்தை 2 வருடங்களாக நடத்துவது சாதரண விஷயம் இல்லை.

உங்களின் ஒவ்வொரு post நிறைய விஷயங்களை உள்ளடக்கி இருக்கிறது.

உங்களின் comics knowledge ஒரு வியப்பூட்டும் விஷயமாக இருக்கிறது.

உங்கள் பணி தொடர எனது மனமார்ந்த பாராட்டுக்கள்.

சிறு விண்ணப்பம். Mini and junior lion comics விஷயங்கள் comics blogs ல் மிகவும் குறைவாக இருக்கிறது. அதை பற்றி எழுதுமாறு கேட்டுக் கொள்கிறேன்.

I was reading your old posts.

1. Is www.icebergcomics.com website still available ?

2. Is Diamond Comics (Donald Duck) series available in www.indiaplza.in ?

Hey Rafiq,congrats man!! :-)

I'll be practical and hopefully we will celebrate our 5th year/10th year(at least) with the same enthusiasm!! :))

Isn't it surprising to see that almost all of our sect have started their blog in 2007, close to each other.
Hey...Just before click ur blog-url, THIS WAS my thought too,and surprisingly 2007 indeed was quite a milestone-yaer to many blogger/visitors etc!!

Like you said.... Like minded people, Like minded thoughts :)

CHEERS!!

Dear Sir

My hearty congrats for the 2nd anniversary. You can be proud of of the great work you have done to the comic fans. Keep it up , and why not a day will come when you will be publishing a great new exciting comics !@@##!!!!

There was another comics published - SB comics. I never saw the second issue.

Diamond Donald and micky III issue is released.

Good News. Checked with Euro Books Publishers. They released 12 books of Iznogoud series today. Hope we could get them soon in shops.

Hi Rafiq,
Wish you happy 2nd year anniversary!

I thought you are single :)

Well, good post...
Sometime back you said, you are going to write about the great Blueberry....

Ramg75,
Good to know Izongoud got released. Thanks for the update dude...

With warm regards,
Mahesh

Wow, it has been 2 years already? Time sure does run fast when you are having fun. Congratulations on your successful 2nd anniversary. Hope for many more anniversaries to come!

Congratulations Rafiq!

regards
Sanjay Bahl
Delhi

Hey Rafiq,

I believe you are the driving force that has kept interest of the readers in the indian comic book industry alive. Hats off to you and all the best for the future because this is just the beginning. You have all our support. Go On... Be the Hero

Rafiq, congtrats. In this time I can remember the incidents where your blog was mentioned in Anadha Vikatan & Editor Vijayan have commented in Comicology couple of times. Keep going.....

its amazing how you find out so much info on comics and then put in so much effort to put it up on your blog. hats off to you ...

Hi Rafiq,

Nice interesting review..
Congratulations on the 2nd year anniversary..
We want to see more of this..


Thanks

regards,
vimal

Hi Rafiq,

Excellent review!! Its sad that it took me so long to find this excellent site.
I am looking for Modesty Blaise and Rip Kirby comics...complete set.

Any help and guidance is appreciated from all our comics friends.

Thanks

Anand

@ Spider:
@ Sanjay Bhal:
@ Sandeep:

Welcome to Comicology, and Thanks much for your visit and wishes my friends.

@ RAMG75: நண்பரே, உங்கள் வாழ்த்துகளுக்கு முதலில் என் நன்றிகள். எந்தவித பிரதிபலனும் பாராத, உங்களை போன்ற நண்பர்கள் துணை இருக்கும் போது இன்றும் பல வருடங்கள் நம் பயணம் இனிதே தொடரும் என்றும் நானும் நம்புகிறேன்.

மினி லயன் மற்றும் ஜுனியர் லயன் பற்றி தொடர் பதிவிட எனக்கும் நெடுநாள் எண்ணம் இருக்கிறது. மற்றவர்கள் வெளியிட்டாலும் வெளியிடாவிட்டாலும் விரைவில் நாம் அதை நமது தளத்தில் அமர்க்களமாக தொடங்கி விடலாம் தோழா.

To answer your other Queries:

Icebergcomics.com is finally out of use, as I believe that they haven't renewed their domain registration. Looks they are out for longer then originally thought, which is understandable given their political situation.

2. There is a restriction in what is available at Indiaplaza. They only have Books and Albums in their Shopping List, wherein Diamond Comics (and for that fact many Old comics publishers, including Lion & Muthu) release their comics in Magazines form. So the only way to pick those titles would be reach your local newsstand, and decide to subscribe directly with Diamond.

3. The blog which you mentioned is now restricted only to few good souls, and fortunately or unfortunately, I am not that privileged enough to be on the list. But there is no stopping for you to try your luck, who knows you might get on the elite list :)

Regarding the Iznogoud series release, a friend alerted me about the news earlier that it has been sent to wholesale dealers, but they are yet to hit the newsstands. Seems we would have to wait for another week, before seeing them. I am not able to control my eagerness to see them finally.

Thanks for repeated and detailed comments, friend.

@MaNdrAke dudE: Dear Sagnik, Good that you also thought about the 2007 significance, for so many comics blogs. I am so proud to have been part of that movement, and happy to for the fact that all of them are still active in cherishing our comics passion.

I too hope that like today, we will also be celebrating the 5th, 10th and so on. Our comics passion is so pure, that there is no dearth of stuffs, or interest to die anytime soon :)

@ERB: Publishing a Comics is a dream of every comic fan. Because, we tend to look for all the improvements in each comics getting published, and it will only be a dream to pool them and correct it with a comics of our own. Hopefully we will be able to achieve it sometime in the future, when we go into retirment, and would need something to keep us busy nevertheless :)

By SB Comics, I guess you are referring to the Santa Banta Comics by a company called Illustrated Orchids. Well, it seems they never made it profitable enough to continue the series, as I haven't see any comic other than that, except a Bollywood Saif Ali Khan look alike issue which came out along with S&B. There is an interesting news about the concept of Orchid Publishers, which is quite new from the other Indian publishers, which I will share soon in this comics blog post. I didn't include the news in this post, because it was released back in late 2007, but will nevertheless would be a good addition to this blog post. I will update it shortly.

I also picked up the Diamond Donald Duck 3rd issue set. Would blog about it sometime in the coming months, including the 1st & 2nd editions too. it's amazing to see the Diamond sticking with their monthly releases with every issue, goes a long way in ascertaining their strength in the distribution network.

P.S.: I hope you didn't write this comment, when you were addressing your clients.... I am referring to the Dear Sir address :)

@ Mahesh: Thanks for your wishes my friend. Well, Blueberry post is long pending, and I would definitely do it once we clear down the ones which are currently on the plate. :)

P.S.: By the way Brother, I am still single only :) No rumors spreads please ;)


@ Arkin: Dear Rohan, Thanks for your wishes and those warm words about our comics passion. I always believed that Internet could be used to put our comics into a global reckoning, and so good to see that every new publisher, including you have taken that concept and built on it.

By the way, eagerly looking forward for your Irith #1 release. Thanks much for the Preview Cover, which I have now updated in the blog post.

@ BN: Indeed time is running out pretty fast. I only come to know that we are getting old, when kids at home start taking their share on our computers. Well, we have a big competition ahead of us in years to come against the Next-Gen :)

One thing which is sure going to make us stand out from them, would be our passion towards Comics, which somehow seems to have subsidized in the Next Gen, except a select few. I hope they give Comics also its due credit among its other ART counterparts, which I am confident they will realize pretty soon :)

@ Siv: More than the occasional presence of Vijayan and mentions in the Ananda Vikatan, I rate comments from friends like you in a higher stead. Because, you are the one of the continuous supporters of our passion, which helps to blog and keep this website active for so many months. Thanks much for your wishes buddy.

P.S.: I hope you didn't mean the other way, when you mentioned "Incidents" in your comment :)

@ Sandeep: With the current facilities available in the Internet era like Wikipedia, Google Search, and so many Comics blog information sites, the information on Comics and Graphic Novels is readily available, which only needs a little effort to search and dissect them. I am neither the creator or writer in this wonderful field of art form. So, what I am doing is just collating the info about our favorite comics into one single page, and make it look interesting with my own take on them.

The biggest challenge has always been in managing your time between your work and your passion, which I have been able to do so with some effort all these years, and hope to continue it for years to come, with the support of visitors and friends like you.

@ Vimalharan: Welcome and Thanks for your wishes. Rest assured, reviews like this will always be featured at our blog regularly. :)

@ Anand: What matter is that you finally managed to make and mark your presence at our blog.

As far the Modesty Blaise comics is concerned, Titan Books have released a wonderful set of 15+ titles so far, collecting the classic strips from the Golden genre.

They are available for a conversion price of 1000 INR each, and could be obtained from the Odyssey store in your city, or you could probably refer to their Online bookstore @ http://www.odyssey.in/

I have no idea of Rip Kirby collection at the moment. If you come to know of it, kindly pass on the info.

Guys,
Eurobooks Iznogoud is out! Order today. 4 3-1 compilations or 12 individual issues.

Nachi just over took me my some min in conveying the info .Yes the much expected Iznogoud can be get from our spencer Landamark .All the 12 titles are available there .Rafiq - really sorry for using ur blog as bulletin board .But this is fastest way to reach other comic friends .Hope u willn't mind it :)

adios amicos

@ Nachi & Arun: Thanks for the info, buddies. Infact, I have it updated in my Twitter Updates down below, just a couple of days before.

The Iznogoud set was available a week back itself on other major cities (like Bangalore, Mumbai), but for Chennai it seems to have taken all the more time.

By the way Arun, you can always update any news about our beloved comics over here at our blog. As long as its helpful for all our comics friends, please feel free to do so, buddy.

The reason I haven't published a dedicated post yet on this Iznogoud new set, is because I am waiting to pick up my set, which is held up with one of my friends. So, would have to wait for some more time.

Till then happy reading guys :)

Guys,
Eurobooks Iznogoud is out! Order today. 4 3-1 compilations or 12 individual issues.

its amazing how you find out so much info on comics and then put in so much effort to put it up on your blog. hats off to you ...

Hey RafiQ Congratulations !!!

and yes exellent Reviews!

K.v
V Comics

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