Pokemon: Rising Shadows

[PetuniaBubbles]

Lots of speculation about Echo from the other sites I've posted this comic up. The general consensus is that Echo is either creepy, evil, or both. While I will neither confirm nor deny that fact, it's always fun to see predictions. xD

Anyway, page 5 took a crudload of time. Five hours in one sitting to finish this page- I think it's worth it. ^_^ Especially since it's an on-time update. =P

 

[TheCharredDragon]

I have just recently read the WHOLE comic thus far. And when I mean recently, I mean just a few minutes ago XD.

But seriously though, this a great comic! I think now you know why the fanfic version failed. Other than your (probably) mediocre writing, the story was probably more suited to this awesome comic! No offense intended. I'm just trying to help...

Now, onto the comic itself!

So far, the plot is deliciously mysterious. With all this mystery and what not. And that wolf(?) in the near beginning is intriguing. Perhaps he or she knew Naya? And I didn't realize Kabutops can't legally learn Rock Blast. Perhaps he's some mutant, genetically modified Pokémon that has come from another dimension to destroy them all! .... Just kidding! X3 Sorry for that joke, I'm currently crazy.

Now, the art is pretty good. The prologue cover was well done even though it was not all amazing. But the lightning was well done. In my opinion at least. Now Entei was really, really, REALLY well drawn. The different angles and expressions. They were good and Entei didn't look weird in any of the panels.

The lighting for the cover of chapter 1 is pretty good. Now this is where the art is well, different in style. Talon, Mist and Naya were drawn rather strangely. To me at least. But their species was still recognizable. I would suggest making Naya's tail fluffier but seeing as this comic has been on for nearly a year, I think that would be a mistake as it sort of makes Naya distinguishable. The Pidgey and Milotic were drawn fine though.

Now Naya's reaction to the water was ridiculous and well, ridiculous. She sure is strange. Than again, so is Mist. The Moltres was well done and Dialga was REALLY well done. I still have yet to make a good Dialga lineart.

The characters' personalities are great. Mist reminds me of my brother's Mismagius character in every way except the fact that he's a guy XD.

Well, whoever this Echo is. I have a feeling he (or she?) will be either friend or neutral. Or worse, foe.


I would like to ramble on and on, but unfortunately I have run out of time.

I really hope you continue this!

 

[PetuniaBubbles]

I have just recently read the WHOLE comic thus far. And when I mean recently, I mean just a few minutes ago XD.

But seriously though, this a great comic! I think now you know why the fanfic version failed. Other than your (probably) mediocre writing, the story was probably more suited to this awesome comic! No offense intended. I'm just trying to help...

Now, onto the comic itself!

So far, the plot is deliciously mysterious. With all this mystery and what not. And that wolf(?) in the near beginning is intriguing. Perhaps he or she knew Naya? And I didn't realize Kabutops can't legally learn Rock Blast. Perhaps he's some mutant, genetically modified Pokémon that has come from another dimension to destroy them all! .... Just kidding! X3 Sorry for that joke, I'm currently crazy.

Now, the art is pretty good. The prologue cover was well done even though it was not all amazing. But the lightning was well done. In my opinion at least. Now Entei was really, really, REALLY well drawn. The different angles and expressions. They were good and Entei didn't look weird in any of the panels.

The lighting for the cover of chapter 1 is pretty good. Now this is where the art is well, different in style. Talon, Mist and Naya were drawn rather strangely. To me at least. But their species was still recognizable. I would suggest making Naya's tail fluffier but seeing as this comic has been on for nearly a year, I think that would be a mistake as it sort of makes Naya distinguishable. The Pidgey and Milotic were drawn fine though.

Now Naya's reaction to the water was ridiculous and well, ridiculous. She sure is strange. Than again, so is Mist. The Moltres was well done and Dialga was REALLY well done. I still have yet to make a good Dialga lineart.

The characters' personalities are great. Mist reminds me of my brother's Mismagius character in every way except the fact that he's a guy XD.

Well, whoever this Echo is. I have a feeling he (or she?) will be either friend or neutral. Or worse, foe.


I would like to ramble on and on, but unfortunately I have run out of time.

I really hope you continue this!

I know I don't usually respond to posts unless I've got a new page to go along, but you put so much that I really want to. xD

The original story failed due to lack of planning. I jumped in without any idea where I was going. In fact, the original plot of the story has changed drastically from the original- I think it's all for the better. And of course- my writing six years ago couldn't have been all that great. xD I've never been much of a writer- but it was fun.

What hasn't changed from the original story are the characters. I've decided to bring back most of the main characters in some way or another- of all of them, Naya is the only one to have any personality change- she was too serious the first time around. I've got most characters in already- some have had very brief appearances like Alvira and the Absol so far, but you'll see more of them!

And no offense taken- even I think I was a terrible writer then (and possible still am!)

The wolf is a Shiny Ninetales- the only shiny character that will show in this story other than the rare cameo. She does indeed know Naya- but it'll be a while before they bump into each other again, I guess. As for the Kabutops- he doesn't know Rock Blast. =P And craziness is perfectly acceptable. I encourage it. Hehehe.

The prologue cover, like some of the off-site banners, were made before I had settled on the final plot idea- so I may end up having to change that cover later on. xD And I will say- Entei is a freaking pain to draw. D= I do think I've finally gotten better at drawing him. While he won't make another appearance in the comic (none that I have planned, at least), I did draw him for a character profile thing and it's nice to finally be happy with how I draw him. ^_^ I'll post the other profiles over time, but here's the one for Entei!

http://fc03.deviantart.net/fs70/f/2014/006/1/a/entei_by_nekoyugito-d717qqm.png

I've never been able to draw Pokemon exactly as they are in the anime/games. Entei was one of those exceptions since his details were actually easy to draw in my natural art style- the others... not so much. xD And yes- Naya's tail CAN get fluffier... just give her a good scare and it'll poof up about 5 times as fluffy. xD

Another change from the original story- Naya hated water/dampness/etc. originally, but I decided to add that in for fun. xD Last minute decisions do that sometimes. Mist is personally my favorite character to script out. She's so hyper and makes most things less serious. xD Dialga is a freaking pain to draw. Thankfully I don't have to draw him for a while.

Most people seem to think Echo is evil. xD I won't confirm or deny that, but it's interesting to see what people think about my oh-so-mysterious Pokemon.

And no worries- this story will definitely be continued. I (usually) post updates on Thursday or Friday- some weeks I may be late or miss an update, but I do try to stay on schedule.

 

[TheCharredDragon]

I did exactly the same thing on another site. Didn't go so well. But my writing now is palletable.

Of course not much changes in characters' personalities. After all, that's what defines them. But Naya's personality change was definately a good choice XD.

Oh, a shiny Ninetails? I guess I couldn't tell without its tails. And now that I look at it again.... Naah, still looks like a wolf to me.... Oh? A comrade off-screen maybe? Really? Encouraged? You have no idea on how crazy I can be but for the sake of my sanity and possible rule breaking, I will not do that in any thread. A lot.

Oh I see. Well, it's still pretty good in my opinion! Especially the lightning and the whirlpool. And yeah, tell ne about it. It must be very natural for Ken Sugimori to do it so many times. And really? No wonder he looks great.

Oh and nice profile. ^_^ Am watching you on deviantART now and I gotta say, I didn't expect you to like dragons 'cause I like 'em too!

Ha ha XD. That would be nice to watch *snickers*.

Yeah, I do that in my stories plenty of times XP.

Mhm. Honestly I think he's gonna be like the Mismagius in Overthrown It's by Knightfall and is in the FanFiction foruns of Serebii in case you're wondering. I don't think you've read it but that's what I'm thinking.

Oh I see. Okay now, onto my rambles!

The background at the page after Mist fixed Naya's necklace (I don't know what number was it.) was well done but for some reason, that Charmeleon in the background keeps reminding me of Leo in Overthrown. Something must be wrong with me XP. And is that a Frofrou? And I was wondering why Mist was carrying that in the earlier pages.

I wonder why didn't Naya notice?

Anyways, the necklace in the second-to-the-last page of chapter 1 was well drawn. Love the aura surrounding it. And the lighting for the last page was really good. Nice cliffhanger.

The cover for chapter two was really good. The flames, those eyes. And I can faintly see the silhouette of Naya and Talon on Mr. Familiar's scythes. The first page of Chapter Two was well drawn, the Hyper Beams (which I first thought was a meteor) was good. And I thought that Umbreon eye was an Axew's xD. The banner was really good too. Moltres didn't look all that weird and Naya's expression was well, grave.

When Naya first woke up, I found it strange that the background was dream like. But then Echo shows up, making my thoughts correct. And poor Naya, if I was woken up by that Mist as I was so close to finding something important out, I'd go to the nearest poltergeist store and whack her with whatever can hit her since she's a ghost XD.

Now, that was all I have left to say so, hope you have a good time. ^_^

 

[PetuniaBubbles]

I did exactly the same thing on another site. Didn't go so well. But my writing now is palletable......

I posted the story here on serebii and got lots of bashing because the chapters weren't long enough. Six years later and no one care about all those people who type up 4 paragraph chapters. xD Figures. Oh well- it's in the past.

Yeah- shiny ninetales. I suppose I do draw her more wolf-like than fox-like. xD I should work on that a bit before she gets more time in the comic. I've got her profile drawing here- it's a bit more up to date with how I'm drawing her now (I draw the characters a bit differently now than I did when I started, and it may change some still!)

http://fc06.deviantart.net/fs70/f/2014/007/2/3/2347d0520923e3e6aa09180b3714e9cb-d717r7a.png

And yeah- Sugimori must have so much fun with these. xD If I could do this comic in his style, I would, but I'm not that good at mimicking styles.

And everyone loves dragons. =P They're epic.

I'm sure eventually Mist will freak out Naya enough to get her tail completely poofy. =P

I've had plenty of last-minute decisions in this story. Some examples- the reflection of Naya in the water wasn't originally going to have creepy eyes- but I decided last minute to let Echo's expressions be shown that way. Even those references to my other non-Pokemon story I threw into the last panel of that last page (not that anyone would figure it out, but I felt like it!). Jasper was another one of those on-the-spot choices- and that decision ended up creating an entire back-story for Mist. (I'm still working on some plot details and all- but got enough to keep me going for a while!)

I went ahead and read portions of Overthrown with the Mismagius (don't quite have the time to read all of it at this moment), and it's an interesting thought. I won't give any details- but I suppose they share similarities.

That background took forever- it's tied with the latest page with total time spent. xD The Furfrou, Pikachu, Charmeleon, and Bayleef are all cameo appearances from other comics I believe- there may be a few more cameos soon.

As for why Naya didn't notice the necklace- she didn't know it was hers to begin with. Memory loss and all- If Mist hadn't taken it with her, then it'd probably still be on the island... and that would cause some issues. xD

The aura surrounding the necklace in that panel is just Mist's Psychic- and I will say this. I love cliffhangers. I will torture people with them just for the fun of it. =D

I like drawing fire. The eyes on the cover aren't necessarily the Umbreon's- though the one on the first page is. Also, Mist is there on the scythes too. =D You're not the only one who believes those were meteors. xD And Moltres is hard to draw... well- the legs. Birds aren't my favorite thing to draw. And yes- serious stuff to come- Naya CAN be serious when needed.

Poor Naya indeed. It's only going to get worse for her. =D I have a strange habit of torturing my characters. xD

And thanks for all that feedback. It really is a pleasure to see what people think about what has happened and what may yet occur. ^_^ I've gotten ideas for stories based on some of the feedback- in the original story, our Absol friend had quite a twist through some ideas from one member on another (now dead) forum.

 

[nathandg0924]

That just had to be interrupted. Seemed like she was about to figure out something. Oh well...

I've seen your profiles for the characters as well. Hopefully you can post 'em one they're done.

 

[SilverChiko]

Nice new page and due to all the mystery in it now, it's becoming more intense.

The Character profiles are good and I'd love to see them when they're finished.

 

[PetuniaBubbles]

Nathandg0924: Bahahaha. That's how it always works. =P

SilverChiko: Yay for mystery!

And I just finished up the last of the character bios- here's the cast for the prologue + Chapter One! (Links for the full bios are below the image!)

Naya
Talon
Mist
Echo (I know Echo is Ch. 2, but I added it anyway)
Pudgey
Jasper
Isthmus
Alvira
Absol
Entei
Kabutops

 

[SilverChiko]

Really liking the profiles and I cannot wait to find out more about Echo and Alvira.

 

[PetuniaBubbles]

Silver Chiko: Haha- thanks! You'll certainly learn more about the two over time. I'm just not sure when. xD I haven't planned Alvira's next appearance- I'm expecting it'll be after the chaos I have planned. xD

Anyway- I apologize for the lateness of this page. I got really ill last week with a 'Flu-like' virus and was left unable to do about anything for several days. I've been playing catch-up since I've gotten well enough to move around and such. I'm not entirely sure there will be another page this week, but I'm going to try to make up for missing last week.

 

[TheCharredDragon]

Huh. Wondered why it was late. Oh well, better late than never, right?

Anyways, the shading was fine. But in the first panel, Naya looked a bit like a guy and her expression didn't seem to convey what she's obviously thinking. As for Mist, she didn't think about Naya too much so she's much so, she's not brainwashed or hypnotized. Hah, just kidding. XD Now, the last panel was intriguing. Raikou perhaps? We shall see... But seriously Naya, go back to sleep? Pfft. Even I don't get that tired. (Unless of course I sleep at midnight and woke up at say, four in the morning)

Keep up the good work!

 

[PetuniaBubbles]

Huh. Wondered why it was late. Oh well, better late than never, right?

Anyways, the shading was fine. But in the first panel, Naya looked a bit like a guy and her expression didn't seem to convey what she's obviously thinking. As for Mist, she didn't think about Naya too much so she's much so, she's not brainwashed or hypnotized. Hah, just kidding. XD Now, the last panel was intriguing. Raikou perhaps? We shall see... But seriously Naya, go back to sleep? Pfft. Even I don't get that tired. (Unless of course I sleep at midnight and woke up at say, four in the morning)

Keep up the good work!

Naya's supposed to be looking tired in that first panel, but I wasn't sure how to draw her expression correctly there. I did manage to make her look drunk in one attempt. xD I just settled with that one so I wouldn't delay the page any further. And Mist's attention span rivals that of a goldfish. xD

I imagine Naya is like me in the morning. No reason to get up? Back to sleep! xD I'm just horrible in the mornings... I HAVE to take 8 AM classes or I'll never get up. xD

And yes- RAIKOU! Another last minute choice was to add this scene. One thing I've noticed with my stories is I tend to withhold too much information- so I'm trying not to do that as much in this one. It'll be tough to balance it out- but I think I can do it!

And thanks! Always glad to see feedback here!

Edit: HERE, have some sketches that I meant to post earlier as an apology for missing last week. xD

http://fc06.deviantart.net/fs70/f/2014/021/e/c/charries_by_nekoyugito-d736sur.png

None of those characters will appear soon- but they're there. xD (Three of them have actually made 'appearances' already- if you look really really closely)

 

[MedMana]

Holy Moly Smokestacks! I don't have much else to say here- this is just too amazing! But I will put a couple thoughts into the world anyway. First, this Echo is NOT a nymph. If it were the same Echo from the Greek myth, the conversations it participates in would be far less interesting... On that note, what are the chances of Echo being the chimecho above?
Speaking of future character design, will you actually show the ralts' eye color? Nintendo's only shown it twice, both of which were before 2006. Nice Duskull, by the way.
Well I've said everything I need for now, so I'd best be off! See you next post!

 

[nathandg0924]

Finally, 'bout time on the page. Seeing those sketches, wonder when they'll appear. They're good, as usual from your artwork.

Whoa, Raikou is going to appear. Dunno if it'll be a good guy or a bad guy and since that and Entei are there, dunno if Suicune will come in as well.

 

[PetuniaBubbles]

MedMana: Bahaha! Thanks. Echo isn't based on any myths- I'm twisting quite a few Pokemon-world laws when it comes to Echo. For story purposes. And no, Echo is not a Chimecho. xD

As for the ralts, I might. I haven't outlined or scripted the part where those characters come in- I'm not even sure they'll all be in there- but they exist. xD

Nathandg0924: You try drawing when you cough every 15 seconds or less. Hard to keep a steady hand for drawing. xD Last week was just terrible- couldn't get out of bed to save my life.

I don't even know when those charries will appear- I drew them just to get back into the swing of things. xD

Raikou is indeed going to appear. I'll say he's on the same side as Entei. And I have no idea about Suicune. He might appear- I haven't planned anything with him, but I wouldn't be surprised. xD

---

Anyway- to make up for being unable to do anything last week, I went ahead and tried a double update this week. Yes, a two panel page is lazy, but it works. Besides- Raikou is a bit tough to draw- not as bad as Entei, but still pretty close.

 

[MedMana]

Dun, dun, DUUUHHHNNN!!! Way to play on in game myths! Seeing as the only legendary to be "dead" at any points in the games (other than the beasts of Johto is Yveltal, I really have to wonder who the other legend(s) is/are here.
Speculation time! Okay, more like pointing out the seemingly obvious... The disembodied voice in this strip has a different text bubble color than Echo, so there's an obvious no-no. So that leaves me with... Is this at the Hall of Origin? The floor certainly seems too shiny to simply be the Spear Pillar.

Anyway, please keep it up! Stay healthy and keep an eye on any pineapples you might have! I'm outta' here!

 

[PetuniaBubbles]

MedMana: I'm going to go ahead and respond to this cause I feel like it. (No, no page today- Going back to normal schedule!)

The other legendaries who are dead would all be minor ones. Having a major legendary dead would definitely cause a bit of an uproar. I won't disclose who specifically has been killed, but I'd say at least two others now counting Entei.

As for the other voice- not Echo. I made Echo's speech bubble darker than normal ones since Echo only talks through some sort of telepathy with Naya and I didn't want Echo's thoughts and Naya's to be mixed up (Naya will soon talk with Echo through her thoughts so she doesn't look like a complete maniac in front of others!)

Hall of Origin? This isn't Sinnoh! Yet... it certainly looks like it now, does it? Well yeah. It's the Hall of Origin, I won't deny that. I figured the legendary Pokemon needed some sort of place to get together and relax... or hold important end-of-world related meetings. I may change the name of the place- but it is definitely based on the Hall of Origin, so might as well call it that for now. xD

 

[TheCharredDragon]

Hey Neko! Sorry for the late response! Been busy. XP Anyways, onto my thoughts!

I'd have to say the background was done well. The pillars really look like they were broken off instead of cut. Now, the Raikou. It's not as "your style" looking as the others, but your mark is still there. Whuch isn't a bad thing but I thought I'd say it. I like how you did it's body in frontal perspective (I forgot what it's called, but for now, I'll that viewpoint like that). The paws look very tiger-like as well as the body. It's head was good too but the thunder cloud on his back on the second panel was too short. Remember that Raikou's cloud cape runs all the way of its back so with that in mind, it makes Raikou look very, short. But the shading was good.

Now that's all I can say so, keep up the good work!

 

[PetuniaBubbles]

TheCharredDragon

No worries on the late response. xD I understand people have lives. Anyway, I did try to make the background look good. It's a shame the next page was a lot more rushed due to time constraints. As for Raikou- he just doesn't agree with my style. I'm not sure what it is, he just doesn't fit in as well. I think it's a bit better in this next update- but still a bit off. If he looks tiger like, it's because I referenced tiger photos for his anatomy. xD And yeah- I noticed the thunder cloud was off when I was coloring. A bit too late at that stage to go back and fix.

Anyway- here's the next page. Ho-oh's entrance. I figure Raikou has a closer connection to ho-oh than any other legendary (other than his trio) due to the story revolving the four. Ho-oh is a bit of a pain to draw, but unlike Raikou, doesn't hate my style. =P That head crest thing was a pain to draw though.

And I almost posted this without the page...

 

[TheCharredDragon]

Yay! First response!

Now I gotta say that, for once, I like a Pokemon that is in your style. Ho-oh to be specific, I don't know why but it looks nice to me. And yeah, tell me about it, pain to draw. I suggest you make them bigger the next time. Giratina's silhouette looks cool, for a second there I thought it was a fakemon. XD And oooooh... The plot thickens. Can't say anymore other than, keep up the good work! X3