Final Novel Ideas - Comm 343

                My expectations for my final novel project for Graphic Novel are to create a compelling story that uses minimalistic imagery.  After reading novels such as Maus and Essex County, I have come to realize that flashy, over-animated panels are not as important to conveying a story as I once believed.  Both of these novels are in black and white, and feature hand drawn characters that, despite their silly appearances, all do a fantastic job of expressing emotion on a human level.  We instantly sympathize with Lester in Essex County before we even discover his mother’s passing prior to the story.  His lonesome behavior and superhero attire suggests that he has a minute social life that is going unattended to by his uncle, his new guardian.  In Maus, even though all of the Jewish characters are portrayed by mice we are still able to feel the tension and sadness that goes into a story dealing with the Holocaust.  Making sure the characters can convey a message rather than relying on cool and flashy over the top artwork will prove to be what separates collegiate level work with that of a professional.

                My novel takes place in feudal Japan, during a time of roaming samurais working as swords for hire.  Our hero is a young male samurai in his early twenties that is in search of a way to end the ongoing war at hand and therefore keep his family (consisting of his younger sister and his grandfather) from becoming another casualty of war.  Whenever an individual prays for guidance one of 4 voices is heard.  This leads many to believe that there are four Gods (known as the Ancients) who are truly in control, and countless warriors have attempted to meet these Ancients face to face to ask them questions but none have lived to tell the tale.  The story will pick up with our hero already very close to the dwelling when his younger sister chases him down to join him and aid him in battle.  He is reluctant since he has only begun teaching her how to fight, but he is seemingly at ease knowing that he can keep his watchful eye on her.  When they finally meet the Ancients they will discover a secret that has escaped everyone in their attempt to know the truth; however, the truth about the Ancients may cause even more problems for our hero.
                To essentially spoil the ending, our heroes discover that the Ancients are really just one cloaked figure with 4 different rotating masks, each one with a different personality and a different type of advice to give.  When it’s true form has been discovered, the Ancient replies with anger and violence.  The story will end with our hero destroying the Ancient, and therefore the source of answered prayers for the world.  With this lack of a religious deity to fight for the war, many stop fighting as a reaction to their unanswered prayers and concerns about their family, and instead simply go home to be with them.
                The themes present are about family and nonconformity.  For many people who do not have the answers to the world for themselves, they rely on others to give them this information.  If this “other” is some type of religious figure, then your decisions will be skewed by what you are told is right and wrong rather than using your gut to tell you how you truly feel about a situation.  This is a generalization I understand, but this voice of reason is why many individuals choose to fight for what they think they believe in.  My novel will explore themes of individualism while breaking away from conformist roles that society would pressure us into performing, knowing that at the end of the day it is better to please yourself and those you love rather than the world who would probably not do the same for you.