Review : Odayan #1-4 (Level 10 Comics)

Story/script : Suhas Sundar
Main Art & Colour : Deepak Sharma
Greyscale : Santosh Pillewar
Letters : Raghavendra Kamath

Odayan at first glance seems to be Level 10’s answer to Alan Moore’s V for Vendetta. It is actually a well-written, classic tale of revenge and the restoration of power, incorporating very delicately the elements of surprise, deceit, suspense and valor. It is perfectly illustrated to compliment the excellent writing, introducing certain nuances which distinctively define the theme, showing the inspiration and the influences.

[Editors Note: Some minor spoilers, you have been duly warned!]
 

The series starts off with a bang, very smartly using elements of mythology, history and here-say to create a backdrop for a complex saga. It introduces us to the main protagonist – Odayan – who with his mysterious origins, killer instinct, rebellious ideals and a little narcissism, becomes an instant hit with the reader. We see his impeccable skills while he duels with and beheads a father whose son would play a major role developing an ideology, similar in certain ways to the one that is instilled in Odayan himself.

CA EXCLUSIVE : Level 10 Comics' 1st Ever Crossover Teasers!

Exclusive : The Good People from Level 10 have News. 

We have Details.

(Click for eye-ball feeding super-sized goodness!)

The other day, Level 10 put up the above Devmalya Pramanik penciled image on their facebook page, teasing what appears to be the first instance of characters crossing over from different titles, and defining the common shared universe inhabited by the casts of Daksh, Shaurya and Northern Song, immediately putting plenty of fanboys in knee-deep intrigue territory.

Comic Con Special Review : Daksh 1-4

Courtesy the fine people at Level 10 comics, the Indian comic book geek finally has something to hand the irritating buggers who follow the retarded notion of comic books being for kids. After the success of the first issue in the independent creator-owned edition of the Comic Jump anthology, and the subsequent excellent fan reception of the second issue, we now have our hands on the first four issues, thanks to the launch of the Daksh Graphic Novel at this year’s Comic Con India.

Wishing Well : Indian Comics in 2012

 In a lot of ways, the future will remember 2011 as the year the Indian comic-book geek came out of the closet. The success of the first ever comic-book conventions in the country being held in Delhi and Mumbai went a long way in illuminating fanboys in regard to the presence of their fellow comic addicts.

It’s a year that saw Ravan’s side of the story, the beginning of an indigenous Martial Arts epic, Shiva finding his way back into comic books, the conclusion of India’s first home-grown Zombie comic book series and an arguably ballsy move from print to digital (and free), among many other exciting prospects.

Keeping in mind all these developments, It’s difficult not to imagine what this oh-so-beautiful monster, currently in its infancy, is going to grow into tomorrow. Bear in mind, however, that this is all just speculation and wishful thinking, but its fulfillment would make this little geek very happy:

A Shared Universe

In my mind, this is the one thing from a creative point of view that needs to happen soon. We are already seeing the seeds being sowed for this, with Yumi coming to a computer screen near you soon, as a Shaurya spinoff, but there is still quite a long way to go. The reason a shared universe is important is that it opens a whole world (literally) of literary possibilities, and helps give multi-dimensional looks at a character and settings. If the upcoming Avengers movie can’t convince you it’s awesome, I don’t know what will. Picture the cast of Shaurya stuck in a zombified Bangalore or a Daksh-spinoff Ravana escaping from hell into the modern day, keen for redemption.

Nish's Notepad: Odayan #01

Friends, romans, and countrymen, after 5 months of this "academic exile"; Nish returns. :D
So today I'm reviewing Level 10's first title to go digital: "Odayan". I was interested in it from the day I saw its first teaser as it carries with it, the names of some great people in the comic industry.

Story: Suhas Sundar
Art: Deepak Sharma
Colors: Deepak Sharma
Greyscales: Santosh Pillewar
Letters: Raghavendra Kamath

Rajat's Reviews: Daksh Issue #01 (late but not lost)

When I opened Level 10's Jump #11, the one title I was eagerly looking forward was the new chapter of Daksh.

 Issue 0 had piqued my curiosity and anticipation and there were expectations aplenty for Shamik’s new venture!

The first page looked familiar. So did the second. And then  I realized that it was the same issue which was printed the last time!! “What on earth…” was my first reaction and I was on the verge of shooting a sweet little mail to Shamik and Suhas when I suddenly noticed the word "Uncensored" at the top of the first page. I discarded the mail, picked up the book and started reading again.

Comic Addicts Presents: The First Indian "Minicon"

If you have been following our social media platforms ( Facebook/Twitter) then you are already aware of the minicon. If you aren't , before proceeding to tell you all about it , let me ask... Why aren't you with us on our social media? See the link on the right there ... yep , the facebook page pluggin, click and join us!

Now, self promotion done. Lets talk about our little project that we call "Minicon" .

Comicon Express Mumbai : A Comic Addict's journey from Delhi to Mumbai

It was a Friday night (yesterday, apparently) and the world was partying, while I was in the office, trying to wrap up my work as soon as possible so that I could go back home and finish my packing. After all, I was leaving Delhi early morning for Mumbai to attend the Comic Con Express – Mumbai representing Comic Addicts

Try hard as I might, it was 11.30pm before I could leave my office and reached home at 12.15am, past midnight, and was dead tired. Took an hour to pack up, another hour to grab a bite and rest my feet for a while and do my part of the preparation for the Comic Con. It was almost 3.30am by the time I was done, and the reporting time for our flight was 5.30am, so I decided not to close my eyes, coz if I did, I was pretty certain that I would miss the flight.

 At 5am I called Mayank and from his greeting it was certain that he had just got up!!! I told him to hurry up and left for the Airport. I reached at 5.30am and strolled around a bit and try to get some fresh air, for a change. I was expecting these guys to arrive any second. At 5.45am I called Mayank and he told me that he was just leaving his house!

What Rabhas has meant to Indian comic books.

Series End Review : The Rabhas Incident

If there ever was a Metaphor for the Indian comic book industry finally coming of age, this is it folks. Featured as part of Level 10 studios’ Comic JUMP anthology, the Rabhas Incident has captured the imagination and unwavering attention of thousands of fanboys who never believed something as good as this would ever be done by an Indian company. Probably THE most consistently awesome comic book series ever published in India, Rabhas recently ended with JUMP issue 11.

The mini-series follows the story of one RAW agent’s mission to find survivors in a zombie infested Bangalore. What really hits you about the story is the number of diverse topics and characters it manages to cover within the short span of 10 issues. On his little adventure, Major Rafeeq Ahmed encounters Zombies, political activists, a Katanna-wielding Priest, Victims of regionalism, perverts, a mad scientist, a woman getting rescued in pure bollywood fashion and a whole bunch of more zombies.

JUMP-ing with joy!

Gibba bloog boopaapa bi baap!

This is “Welcome dear readers” in Gobble-de-gook (for learning Gobble-de-gook in just 4.26 minutes contact the writer of this post)

When the last issue of Jump by Level 10 was launched, I was excited and wanted so very very much to review it! Especially the continuing adventures of Shotgun Sharma and Chappan Churi! I got the framework ready, scanned all the images I wanted to use and was all set to write it down, but sadly got stuck with something or the other, lots of office work came through at the wrong time, had a computer problem, I mean – everything that could go wrong – DID go wrong! Damn you Murphy!!!!



Is it a plane? Is it a bird? No! It's the opposing team!!!

Click to view full size


Khair, when the new double issue was released there was NO way I would let this one pass, so here I am with my first Jump review for Comic Addicts.

For those who have never read any issue of Jump before or haven’t been following the stories, don’t worry, you can still go ahead and buy this one. This one wraps  a lot of things, so you can read the “Story so far” and then continue. You can always catch up with the old issues later.

Brainstorming with Bibo Bose

Biboswan Bose - the name that has been making people crazy since his first work on Level 10 Comics' “Jump Independent’s Daksh” is the subject of our interest tonight.

This young art star was recently interview by another youngster Anupam Sarkaar - who is a budding artist himself. Here is the transcript of the same:

A brilliant rendition of Zombie by Bibo!

Click on the image to view full size

A call to arms: Talking comics with Level 10

Comic addicts announces a team up with Level 10 studios!

Do you ever wonder whats going to happen with Major Rafeeq of Rhabas incident?
Did you want to know why has level 10 been changing the art for Shaurya so much?
What is the future of Batu Gaiden?
What goes behind opening a comic studio and running it in India?
What are level 10 future plans?
What other comics are we going to see?

You can know all of this and any other question that comes to your mind , through our monthly segment .

All you have to do is drop the questions that you want to ask Level 10 studios as a comment in the post or on our facebook page (www.facebook.com/comicaddicts) ...

We would collate these questions and endeavor to get you answers from Level 10.. The answers would then be posted on the site

So what are you waiting for ? Ask away...

(Please frame your questions that is non-offensive to level 10 and comic community at large, else they would be removed)

"Virgin comics was both a boon and a bane on Indian comics" - Shamik Dasgupta in a tell all interview

Comic addicts got up close and personal with the talent power house Shamik Dasgupta, well known for his hit series from erstwhile Virgin comics - Ramayana 3392 AD , and his latest collaboration with Level 10 comics - Daksh.

Shamik speaks about his career post Ramayana 3392 AD , Irkin comics , the Daksh controversy , his current work and provides his perspective on Indian comic scene.  

Q:. After your stint with virgin comics is level 10 the first Indian comics company you have worked

with?

A: No, I have worked previously with Arkin Comics, a Pune based company which came out with

a bunch of interesting content in 2009-10. I was writing for their flagship title 'Irith' which is about a

band of Indian super-soldiers designed specifically to combat a newly emerged terrorist outfit who are

packed with alien technology.

Q: Sounds interesting, what happened with your work with them then?

A:: Arkin management had shut down in mid 2010...as it is with most new fangled comic publishing

houses they ran out of money. We had published around two issues of Irith and had work done for

almost five issues but they never saw the light of day.

Exclusive Preview : Jump issue 3 (season 2) - Shaurya..

Level 10 comics have kindly shared the previews form their upcoming comic anthology Jump (season 2 volume 3), series - Shaurya..

If you haven't been reading level 10 comics, you are missing out on a revolutionary comic company in India. They are doing a tremendous job in bringing back the comic culture that we used to love and enjoy so much..

Their stories have been fresh and energetic. They have been experimenting with art styles recently, which is good as far as we are concerned.. slowly and steadily they are becoming a force to reckon with.

We at Comic Addicts love Jump anthology and wait for it every month with bated breath ...Watch out for our special article focusing on Jump and level 10 next week right here!

We are also going to make a very special announcement relating to Level 10 next week.. so stay tuned and enjoy the preview pages below..

Don't forget to tell us what you thought of these pages!!

Exclusive: Level 10 on Comicon India

Shreyas and Suhas  , Level 10's dynamic duo offer their perspective on Comicon India exclusively to the adventures team..

What is your take on Comicon india 2011?

Totally exceeded any and all expectations we had. We were kinda expecting a small intimate affair with a smattering of comic aficionados. We were caught surprised, and certainly did not expect the kind of footfall the con finally received. This may have had a lot to do with the location (Dilli Haat), but we sold out all our comics, that means as far as comic enthusiasts are concerned, they were present in droves!

 What did you do throughout the comicon?

Visited all the stalls, met with a lot of fans. It was almost like attending a small gathering of friends. Many of our comic followers I know only by their handle or name via facebook and emails. It was refreshing to put a face to the name and finally get a chance to talk comics with more of our ilk

Are you coming back next year? If yes what are your plans?

Absolutely! Next year we shall do more cosplay and of course carry a lot more books :)

What are your expectations from next comicon?

We expect more people to turn up. If this comic con taught us anything is that comic fans come in all shapes, sizes and ages and with this con, hopefully more fans would be enticed to crawl out of the woodwork and proclaim their love for this medium more openly. We have hidden in the shadows for too long, now India, nay the world shall bear witness to the eccentricities of the Indian Comic Buff! 

Exclusive: Daksh inside peek....

This post ends our exclusive coverage of Jump independent specials with the reveal of inside pages for Daksh in all their glory!
I for one cannot wait to get hold of this one! Enjoy!

Exclusive: Shotgun Sharma and Chappan Churi

Now talking about the third and final series being showcased in the Jump "independent special" - Shotgun Sharma and Chappan Churi by Shreyas Deshpande

                                                       Cover Courtsey of Level 10 Studios

The characters were created by Shreyas Deshpande with creative inputs from Deepak Sharma. Originally planned as a more mature series, the series was rewritten as an action comedy, at the suggestion of Level 10.
Here are the older designs for the characters.

The characters are mainly influenced by Buddy Cop Movies, Looney toons, and the Asterix comics. The artwork, too, is distinct from the other series it is featured with.

“It’s easier for me to draw stylised characters. I think stylised characters are more fun to look at, but more importantly more fun to draw! Making comics should be fun!” - Shreyas

I have to agree ! Looking forward for this action-adventure-humor tale.