Mioasis: Shrines

Mitsurrea

_{Work in progress...}

Mitsurrea is my big passion project I've been working on since 2021. It's a bit of a reboot and complete reimagining of my previous comic project, Flightless Birds (2018-2021). So, in actuality it has been cooking since 2018. The comic will be in full color and spans 5 chapters, each chapter between 15-30 episodes long (each episode being about 5-10+ pages, it depends). This is where I'm going to pitch it to you, as it isn't seeing the light of day for another year or so. I've gotta do SOMETHING while I'm stuck in writing hell.

Fear not! Mitsurrea has reached the late stages of pre-production, but needs a little more time in the oven until the pages are ready to be drawn. Many many chunks of script, concept art and conceptual pages are ready, so I want to share them here for all to see, since—come on—after all this time I really am itching to tell people about it. Also- my OC's are very cool. They will get a little summary alongside their role in this story. What better way to spread it around than to put my new HTML skills to the test and create a faux-Wikipedia page?

I'm not alone through this feat. I've concepted with and run this story through my beloved best friend and co-writer Majini, who has his own comic set in the same universe coming up! We own all of the characters featured together and have been writers in crime since 2014. We're obviously very excited to finally get this show on the road. Stay tuned for 'Project Vanity' as well!

Synopsis

It is with shock and terror that Ben Anatina has realized that he has evaded death, and this death evaded him, two months from now. In fact, this death is yet to happen, and it keeps happening, over and over again. The latter part is entirely at the fault of his own. You see, he will simply not stop crawling down that hole, out of some innate desire to curl up in a place where it is warmer.

At two different points in time, in two different places, Astraea Lorryia tries to supervise this new recruit. One side of her regrets everything that has happened, and another has decided that Ben is the key to her best idea yet. When he starts mumbling about having traveled through time, being killed by her ex-fiancé, combined with resurfacing whispers about golden birds, things start getting serious.

The demon is not dormant, the pipes are not dormant, and not even Halcyon or Marshall are able to explain either how or why. Astraea rewrites her draft and decides that it is up to her to find out what the hell is wrong with bumbling Benevolence, and what it is that summons this demon, the pet soul puppet he has lovingly named Peanut.

Themes

Identity, sexuality and social roles

This comic isn't about coming into your queer self, but crushing and smashing all those small nuances that separate us to bits. You have already had your sample and your fill of this life. You have found your people, you have left them behind. You have mixed with new ones, and even had a taste of what you once considered a shocking idea. Despite all of this, Ben and Astraea never found their favorite— their comfortable resting place—their sanctuary.

Ben forever wrestles with his morality. Astraea has lead a double life. He hates his feeling of complacency among people who only want him for his body. Her fleeting presence and low sense of urgency has severed even her tightest bonds. They have both lost their touch and their sensitivity. Together, they use each other's bodies just as much as they used up the last of their luck pleasing anybody elses.

Food culture and cooking

Anyway, this comic also has cooking in it! Mostly out of my own food interest as the author, but also because of the amount of things you can say and write about when it comes to consumption and its cultural significance. It's not as centralized on episode specific meals or clever cooking sequences à la Dungeon Meshi, but more of a backdrop to the world the characters inhibit, as well as a great motivational source for a very hungry main character.

Food is good, food is comfortable. It doesn't matter what the rest of the world will tell you—you simply deserve to eat your fill of all the things you find satisfactory and significant.

Disability and mental health

Goes without saying that an autistic writer will have an autistic main character. I reflect a lot of my own anxieties and troublesome relationship with other people in Ben.

Running out of time

I wish I had a more eloquent way to put it, but this is quite simply a time travel plot. There are a thousand things about the metaphor to address here, isn't there? Who you are, who you wish you could have been... The person you never became... There is a lot to be said and a lot of feelings to be had when it comes to the idea of being too late, of missing out and falling behind. This is obviously just as tightly knit to neurodivergence as anything else in this story. You step out in the world as your own person, and all things seem to keep slipping through your fingers, and suddenly all those opportunity you think you could have had start pooling at your feet. But-! What if you got to try again? -Would you want to try again? -Would it even make a difference? Ben continues to ruminate over these questions, and he keeps trying, again and again.

Setting

Mitsurrea was once a feeling, and a taste in your mouth. Mitsurrea was a song, a wail and a salty breeze. It is only one of many confusing names that will keep coming up around here, as this comic takes place in a story world that is much larger than the narrative itself! I am hoping to make many more comics alongside my co-writer exploring all of its corners, but I am afraid I might not get the chance to do so until I get very old. Oh well. For now there are a few names to keep in mind. The world is Ariera, and this comic takes place in a few pieces of it: Merlurra, Navorio, Cinistera and Aurea. These are districts—technically countries.

Ariera is your standard fantasy universe featuring strange creatures, malignant mysteries, and a magic system of its own, stylistically grounded in a bit more of the boring realities of ordinary life. The setting is vaguely 1920's and magic is outlawed in modern society. The people here live out their very avarage routines, and talk about the dull duties you'd expect; work, chores and the weather.

Our protagonists—as you'd expect to lead a narrative—have to break out of this peaceful existence of selling cakes and sipping teas. When the planet turns toward you and decides to keep you as their vessel, there is no room for you in this society any longer.

Inspiration and influences

The following list is not exclusively based on what directly influenced the project, but also overlaps in vibes. In other words, if you like the following media you will probably like parts of this comic at least a little bit.

Ratatouille (2007)
Dungeon Meshi
Super Paper Mario
Paprika (2006)
Steven Universe
Howl's Moving Castle (2004)
Groundhog Day (1993)
Silent Hill 2 & 4
Disco Elysium
Everything Everywhere All at Once
Atlantis: The Lost Empire (2001)
The Grand Budapest Hotel
Fanny and Alexander (1982)

Art style and design

I've gone through many iterations in terms of how I want to draw comics throughout the years. Different from my previous projects, I want Mitsurrea to look a little crusty and gross. I want to master a highly textured and moody atmosphere that I haven't been very good at replicating until recently. In turn, I'm practicing a looser lining technique alongside the painted style I usually enjoy working with. You can see some concept sketches below, but I continue to work with the style to get the feeling I want. This means that the final comic is likely to look a little different and a little more refined (i.e. even more texturally gross).

My art style influences are uh... I gotta think about it.

Gallery and media

The following concept art is not fully representative of the tone or mood of the final project! I redraw a lot of shitposts to hone my art style and I love to put my OC's in Situations. Some are clickable if it's hard to read!

Artist Mio
Script Mio, Majini
Release ≈ 2027 (estimate)
date

Genre Drama, Mystery, Fantasy
Tags Time travel, cooking, LGBTQ+

Category Adult/YA graphic novel
Flags Violence, nudity, strong language

Lord Megalara
Antagonist

Megalara used to be so much happier. So happy in fact, it used to be this prince’s entire schtick. Concerts, parties, movies and all the other worldly amusements filled the greener streets of Navorio with noise. His eyes shone, his skin was much warmer, softer, and his hair was in curls. One glorious day he met the love of his life—Lorryia, a stunning maiden with many wisdoms. What Megalara didn’t notice at the time, was that Lorryia was increasingly putting him into an isolated state, where her pleasures were the only ones to sing of.
Then it happened. Dreadfully and mysteriously, he could only weep into the only arms who remained. Lorriya. All his previous joys were absorbed by a desert. He became the desert, he dried and shrunk, and his throat turned into a wasteland. She could only tell him not to be scared.