| Our favorite Poptropica comic has now grown into an epic graphic novel! The novel is being published page by page daily on the Creators' Blog and the official page. Here's the description: A freak thunderstorm during a hot air balloon ride rips brother and sister Oliver and Mya and their companion, Jorge, from the "normal" world to the dangerous, unpredictable, and mystical world of Poptropica. The kids embark on a perilous journey to discover the truth about this mysterious place... and the shocking reason they were brought here. |  |
Trust me, this is not just another marketing shenanigan. Mystery of the Map is going to explain Poptropica's backstory, the secret history of why Poptropica is the way it is. Sounds exciting to me! You can read it here.
| |  |
So far, what has happened is that Oliver, Jorge and Mya are on a blimp ride, when the evil Octavian time-travels the entire blimp to the prehistoric times of Poptropica, where they meet several dodo birds. They have just discovered a Viking ship. We haven't gotten to the real action yet, since they only release one page a day. If you're like me and want to read ahead, then I made this page that lets you read all the pages at once, including the unreleased ones! Check it out.
But even more exciting -- judging from some recent sneak peeks, it seems very likely that Mystery of the Map will become an island (or, I'm guessing, an episodic island) on Poptropica. Check these out:
Looking closely, they give clues about where the comic book will go (and it is going to be made into a book). But the images look like they're in a very early stage. Who knows if it is on the Island track or if it's just an idea they're throwing around? Only time will tell.
UPDATE: The Creators explained on Twitter why and how the graphic novel is different from the original comic strip. It clears up quite a lot, I think:
Wow, you’re really paying attention! Great questions. It’s all about being on Poptropica, not how one arrives. Comic Creators used school experiment, graphic novel creators used balloon trip. Comics will go on and on, for laughs, no substantial story or targeted end. Graphic novel, 12-book series, beings with Mystery of the Map, will introduce many more characters & pursue a substantial & complex story completing with 12th book. Other stores could then evolve.
 | As you might remember from the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge, when things go viral, they can make their way into Poptropica once in a while. If you log in one of these days, you'll get a special, limited-time Dressgate costume. In case you aren't familiar with it: this image of a black and blue dress makes it look gold and white to some people (myself included) because of the light coming from behind. Apparently people get really upset when they see colors differently from someone else, so it has gone viral. And now you can support your side through Poptropica! |  |
| Last but not least! The winner of the previous Poptropica Hide & Seek contest is Incredible Coyote! Here's the image that she successfully guessed. If you missed this challenge or want to know the correct answer, there's a new one up at the Hide & Seek page. Happy guessing!  |  |
| Before I go (I'm bursting with news since I've been gone for a while, sorry about that) -- have you noticed something new on the bottom of many pages on Poptropica? It's a little seal that certifies it as kid-friendly. Like we needed any convincing ;). I wonder why the Creators went for that all of a sudden. I suppose we'll never know. |  |
Later this week I'll be back with some cool sneak peeks for upcoming episodes -- like PoptropiCon 3. Stay tuned!
