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Reviews

The Zhingchak, It's been unleashed! :)

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Jimmy Zhingchak Agent of D.I.S.C.O.Jimmy Zhingchak Agent of D.I.S.C.O.Well it’s finally here, Jimmy Zhingchak – Agent of D.I.S.C.O. is now out in comic book stores across the US and also available for purchase at Virgin Comics Store

And the initial reaction has been great :)

Raja Sen of Rediff.com did a “First Look” review.

In the blogopshere, reviews have started popping up and in general the comic seems to have been received in the right spirit (I’ve always maintained its equal parts homage and spoof, I simply can’t stress enough, how much my fragile little mind was warped by the Electric Bugaloo of 80′s Bollywood.)

Here is a brief list of reviews (I shall update the post as I find more)

Rediff.com First Look : http://www.rediff.com/movies/2008/jun/03look.htm
Comickal Review : http://iainpj.livejournal.com/93892.html

Animation Express Article : http://www.animationxpress.com/index.php?file=story&id=9021

they misspelt my name as “Sorav” :(

Rediff.com First Look at Jimmy Zhingchak

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Rediff has a review up about my new release Jimmy Zhingchak, Agent of D.I.S.C.O.
Jimmy Zhingchak - Agent of D.I.S.C.O.

An excerpt from the review:

Jimmy Zhingchak, Agent Of D.I.S.C.O is one of the latest comics on the Virgin assembly line, and the first issue on stands across the US right now. A collaboration between Virgin Comics and UTV Spotboy — who surely want to make this into a film — this is one mad trip down 70s road.

Writer Saurav Mohapatra channels his inner Manmohan Desai, tosses in a dash of Mad Magazine, and emerges with a comic that is likely to have Farah Khan chuckling awhile.

India Authentic review at Beliefnet

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A review of the India Authentic vol 2. is up at Beliefnet.com.

An excerpt from the review

What makes [INDIA AUTHENTIC] so effective and impressive is that these gods and near-immortals exhibit very human concerns. In fact, many of the stories allow the pictures to “breathe”–to dominate the space of the page–as the reader is exposed to the protagonists’ thoughts. Inner monologue is not something I commonly associate with sacred stories; we never get inside either Moses’ head as he leads Isaac up to the sacrifice or Jesus’ thoughts on Judas or Mary Magdelene. “India Authentic” takes readers inside the super-humans who still seem identifiably human-like.

Nevertheless, each story operates in a sort of god-logic (or, maybe more precisely, Hindu theo-logic), where devotion, will, or ethic leads to a transcendent resolution. These are not Aesop’s Fables with some simple moral to convey. Instead, “India Authentic” demonstrates universal themes refracted through Hinduism–both pictorial introductions and everyday reminders.

Full Review

Buy India Authentic @ Amazon.com :

(India Authentic Vol 1 – Book of Shiva)

(India Authentic Vol 2)

ComicCritique.com gives INDIA AUTHENTIC 5 out of 5 stars :D

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ComicCritique.com in a recent review has given the INDIA AUTHENTIC series 5 out of 5 stars. You can read the review here.

Excerpted from the review

True mythic wonder to surpass any mortal special effects is packed into the one-issue stories of the recently-started India Authentic series. These spotlight one deity per issue in a kind of Secret Origins for the living spirits of Hinduism, aspiring to give readers the straight story of forces and personas that are elaborated on for modern fictional purposes in many of Virgins other books. Though this ones a kind of primer on a religious belief, the lore of India is readymade for the sword-and-sorcery sensibility, and the atmospheric, mystical art well conveys otherworldly figures in dreamlike landscapes. The biggest surprise is the way the tales are personalized, usually through narration by witnesses whose identity or role remains a surprise until the end and puts a poignant human-interest spin on the clashes of titans the books mostly concern. Its a big pantheon, so India Authentic has as promising a future as it has a rich mythic history to draw on.

Well that’s the good news :D but the bad news is the reviewer does not like the way DEVI #11 and #12 have shaped up a lot though. Them’s the breaks.

INDIA AUTHENTIC response

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Over at the CBGXtra forums INDIA AUTHENTIC has been making “Matt’s Picks” every issue. This is what Matt Levin (Walking Man comics) has to say about the series in his latest post.

India Authentic is a one-issue biography of a Hindu (please correct me if this’s wrong–!) deity; each’s been sumptuously drawn, and, remarkably well-written given the brevity of a one-issue story. I am hoping to see a one issue story that brings all the characters presented so far, to interact together.
If that happens, this will become far more than the attractive, well-written, one-issue bio-mag it is with four issues.

You can read his entire post here

Leah Moore (Albion, Wild Girls) has this to say about INDIA AUTHENTIC

just wanted to drop by and say congratulations on the India Authentic comics, i bought both of them and loved them so much. me and my husband were really interested in Ganesha and Kali anyway, but your comic has totally blown us away.

Her post can be read here

Thanks Matt and Leah for your encouraging words.

INDIA AUTHENTIC #1 / Ganesha Review Thread

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I have created this thread to link to various reviews of the book as i discover them. I love google alerts :D

BTW, If you intrepid reader chance upon a review or news item or blog post mentioning/reviewing/blasting INDIA AUTHENTIC, please add the link here in comments and I shall update the main article with the link and a finder’s credit :D

— item 1 –
Yay! Discovered the first review for INDIA AUTHENTIC #1 / GANESHA. It was reviewed by David “D3″ Martindale at ComicPants.com. Scroll on all the way down it is the last piece reviewed. It is surprisingly positive.

Excerpts from the review

Not a bad read at all. The book tells the origin of a Hindu god. I cant personally attest to its authenticity, but having a title that includes the word authentic at least leads me to believe that its claiming some level of authenticity. The painty art fits in very well with the classic feel of this Indian fable, and the writer gives the characters convincingly divine voices. It lacks a bit in excitement and feels a bit slow at times, but overall, this done in one issue is worth a read especially if you have any interest in the Hindu pantheon.

Head on over to the ComicPants Page to read the full review

———- item 2 ———

INDIA AUTHENTIC #1 / GANESHA has made the recommended list of walking man comics at CBG Xtra.

——— item 3 ———
Matthew McLean posted a review of IA #1 / Ganesha at Silver Bullet Comics. SBC review.

——– item 4 ———-

News Article at NYXX UNDEGROUND

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ComicDB listing for INDIA AUTHENTIC. CLICK HERE

——– item 6 ————–

A review from Savage Critics blog blasting IA #1 as Dissapointingly Awful :(

—– item 7 ———————-

A Review from ComixFan. They give IA #1/Ganesha 4 out of 5.

Damn you Warren Ellis ( for making Transmetropolitan so goddamn addictive :D )

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nope this is NOT an april’s fool day prank. I spent the last three days running back and forth to the shrewsbury public library trying to return and rent TRANSMETROPOLITAN tpb’s since they have a max. two books by author limit.

TRANSMETROPOLITAN imho simply Ellis at his acerbic best. It hit me hard, i mean literally. You know sometimes after you have read or watched something, you get that feeling in your gut like Muhammed Ali just rammed his fist into your guts?

Last time I had that feeling was when I had watched the movie THE INSIDER by Michael Mann starring Russel Crowe, that one made me quit ciggies for three whole days.

Transmetropolitan is a work so sublime and powerful that it really makes you think… It is something that should be made required reading as soon as a kid makes the age for the mature book, but then that would go against everything the book stands for.

To sum up, Transmetropolitan is the epitome of the manic anarchism that seems to peek through every single one of Ellis’s works, but this time he manages to fire away with all cyllinder’s blazing.

PS: I read TPB’s 1-8 and am desperately hunting the system for the last 2 (9 and 10 in case you are from spider jerusalem’s world and have not received the trait for basic arithmetic :D )

UPDATE:

I have managed to secure the 9th and 10th issues of TRANSMET from my library and boy! the ending is SPECTA-FREAKIN CULAR.

Warren Ellis, your mental amps go all the way to eleven!