Animorphs:The Graphic Novel

[rocklobster]

I think we could do filler stories of our own that take place in between the main stories.  What do you think?  I've got some ideas.

[Yarin]

yes good idea

[Gafrash]

Okay, guys, it's been a while and I've lost track.
I'm gonna try this.

Who can help with an experimental piece?!?!

Who can turn that first scene where the Anis are introduced to the point where Visser 3 appears, into a decent 'comic-book' script?

How many people can help come up with some image references for fashion, a Mall, an abandoned construction site, etc...?

Who has any experience with type and can add speech balloons and SFX using comic book fonts?

I gotta work on drawing some alien ships. My andalite fighter came out a bit wonky.
I will do my best to co-work with some scripting (page splitting, scene details etc... but dialogues, really not my forte), and come up with pencils for the layouts.
I could in turn ink and colour my drawings, if we can't find anyone else. But all those things must come first.

WHO'S IN?!?!?!

[SuperBlue]

I'll help in any way I can

that's nice, although the look on Jake's face makes him look a little...mentally challenged, and Marco's skin should be like a very verrrry light brown lol had to point out that he was darker than Cassie. Other than that, this looks really good

[Hunter]

lol i just noticed that!!!

as for the mall shots, in the references thread i posted some pics of the largest shopping center/mall in the southern hemispehere... XD lol

[Gafrash]

I can see what you mean, BlueFire!.
People also don't like the tufts of hair on Ax's wrists. These are the sort of things one can fix at the initial stages. It just takes organization.

Hunter, I thank you for the contribution. But the more the merer!

Any of you guys writers?! Where are the aspiring play/screen/book-writers in this Thread?!!?!?

[Sub Visser]

Gafrash, I looked at your deviant page and it seems you are very good at Animorphs art, and I like your Yeerk pool scene a lot.  The only thing I would change is what others have pointed out already which is some of the eyes on the characters are too close together and it makes them look...special.  Pretty soon I'm going to have three weeks off from work and school so I am game to write script if you need me.  I am pretty decent at designing logos maybe for the covers and such.  Here is a quick remake of the normal Animorphs logo, maybe this can work for the graphic novel series.  Don't feel like you have to use it, I'm just throwing it out there.

[Gafrash]

WOW! I like what you've done with the logos, Sub Visser-dude. Especially the bottom one. The 'gold' really works.

The feedback is always appreciated. The help with the script would be welcome. Thanks!
I am tied up with uni and work too. But should have a few weeks off mid August. Let's see how we go. I'll contact you through here!

[Sub Visser]

Okay cool, that is pretty much exactly when I'm free too.  Maybe we can crank out The Invasion in that time.  I can't wait to get started, keep in touch.

[Yarin]

shouldn't tobias' tail be red? lol great drawing

[Blocky97]

  I don't actually think that its that good, try make the mouts lower

[Homiegee]

Alright Gafrash, I'm an OK writer. So here's my vision of the first twelve frames of the Animorphs Graphic Novel. If you like it, I'll write some more. I hope it's not too long, but I wanted to capture all of the beginning of the Animorphs series. Once it progresses I can start leaving out more detail.

ANIMORPHS: THE GRAPHIC NOVEL
BOOK ONE

FRAME ONE
Shows Jake in frame, speaking to reader
JAKE: My name is Jake. Just Jake. I can’t tell you my last name, or where I live, because humanity faces a powerful evil who wishes to enslave us and will stop at nothing to do so. If the controllers found out who I was, mankind’s only resistance to this evil would be finished.

FRAME TWO
shows Jake and Marco walking out of arcade at the mall, Tobias approaches them
NARRATION: My life used to be normal until that one Friday night at the mall. Marco and I were headed home from the arcade when we ran into Tobias, a kid who I’d stuck up for at school when he was getting picked on.
TOBIAS: What’s up?
JAKE: We’re just headed home.
MARCO: Some people keep losing our quarters. (gesturing towards Jake)
TOBIAS: Um, can I walk home with you guys?
JAKE: Sure.

FRAME THREE
Jake, Marco, and Tobias run into Rachel and Cassie outside of mall entrance
NARRATION: We spotted Rachel and Cassie near the entrance. Rachel’s my cousin and she's the fashion-type, and she's also the Xena, Warrior Princess type. Cassie I sort of like but am kind of nervous about telling her. She's peaceful by nature and loves animals.
JAKE: You two going home? You shouldn’t head through the construction site by yourselves, I mean, being girls and all.
RACHEL: What’s that supposed to mean? (provoked)
CASSIE: Well, I’d appreciate it if they walked with us, I guess it would make me feel safer.

FRAME FOUR
The five kids walk through a construction site, with half-finished buildings, rusted steel beams, piles of dirt, construction crane

FRAME FIVE
Blue-white light moves across the sky
TOBIAS: Look, up there!
JAKE: What is it?
TOBIAS: I don’t know.
CASSIE: It’s a flying saucer!

FRAME SIX
Shows ship closer and in more detail
RACHEL: It’s coming toward us!
MARCO: We should run and get a camera! Do you know how much money we could get for a video of a real UFO?
JAKE: I don’t know, they might zap you with phasers on full power.
MARCO: That’s only on Star Trek!

FRAME SEVEN
Ship is landing , everyone’s hair sticks straight up
NARRATION: I thought maybe I should run home. But I knew this was an important, amazing thing. I knew I had to stay and see it all. I guess the others felt the same way.
TOBIAS: It’s going to land! (excitedly)
JAKE: It’s coming right at us! (nervously)

FRAME EIGHT
Ship is on the ground, the kids are about ten feet from it
MARCO: We should tell someone. Spaceships don’t just land in the construction site everyday. We’d get on Letterman for sure!
JAKE: Yeah, we should call someone, later. I’m not walking away from this.
RACHEL: We should try and talk to it, if that’s possible.  I mean, do they speak English?
CASSIE: Well, everyone speaks English on Star Trek.
TOBIAS: Please come out, we won’t hurt you.

FRAME NINE
ELFANGOR: <I know.>
Everyone freezes and looks confused upon hearing thought-speak for the first time. Elfangor begins to walk from the craft.
JAKE: I assume the rest of you heard that too.
TOBIAS: Can you come out?
ELFANGOR: <Yes. Do not be frightened.>

FRAME TEN
Elfangor is seen in full.
ELFANGOR: <Hello.>
KIDS: Hi. (Looks of disbelief)

FRAME ELEVEN
Elfangor staggers to the ground
CASSIE: He’s wounded! I need to bandage this up! Jake, give me your shirt!
ELFANGOR: <No. I will die. This wound is fatal.>
JAKE: You can’t die, you’re the first alien to ever come to earth!

FRAME TWELVE
ELFANGOR: <No, there have been others.>
TOBIAS: Other aliens? Like you?
ELFANGOR: <Not like me. They are different.>
JAKE: Different? How?
ELFANGOR: <They have come to destroy you.>

[dovelina]

Hey guys. Lurker here. I hope it's not too late to jump on. I'd love to see at least book #1 in comic book form. I'd say I am a pretty good artist, but I've been an anime freak for years, so there are definitely such manga-influenced characteristics as big eyes, small mouth, and stylized bodies in my work. Although in the past year, I've been trying to veer away from that style toward a more Western one and trying my hand at perspective and drawing facial expressions.

Anyway, like I said, I'd love to contribute. I could help out with character and concept sketches or inking and coloring or even do the speech bubbles. However, I'd say my one downfall is coming up with frames and what actually goes inside--but I guess that's the writer's job!

And speaking of writers, I likeed both Homiegee's and Gafrash's scripts. I like how Gafrash made up some original dialogue and toned down the narration--I thought it was more conducive to the comic book form, and I like the pacing in the latter half of Homiegee's script. So, I guess the question is, when are we going to see a full script for book #1? : )

[Dameg]

Note: In fact the manga style 'big eyes, small mouth) come from Disney!! The old manga, and some new manga, don't follow this rule.

[GaGs]

Homiegee, when you say frame, do you mean a panel on a page or an entire page? Beacuse some panels seem like they could be an entire page, and some like they could only be one picture.

If each one represents one panel of a page, I would suggest spacing out the conversations a lot more. Hell, some panels may have no words at all, only a reaction or maybe a sound effect as someone attacks.