Monthly Archives: July 2010

SOD.203

Got a day behind again, but thanks to Facebook fan Chip McDaniel for the suggestion.

Best cosplay outfit ever

I don't know why I haven't ever seen another Comet the Super-Horse costume at comics conventions, because this rocks:

Can "Streaky the super-cat" be far behind? Possibly not, as the number of "You have the nicest [alternate word for cat] I've seen yet!" jokes from socially awkward attendees would be astronomical.

RP: And don't I look FABulous!

(From "Gunmaster" number 1, 1964.)

Playing non-demi-human characters

I bet the dragon on the left is a rogue.

When I was growing up, monster Player Characters were strictly verboten in D&D campaigns -- you were one of the main races, or you didn't play. Plus we had to walk uphill to the dungeon in the snow both ways.

Nowadays, of course, that's not the case, and you can play all sorts of various monster-influenced characters, both in D&D and other systems. Which got me to wondering, have you ever played a non-demi-human character (meaning not a dwarf, elf, human, halfling, or other common pre-set race)? If so, what was it?

Going a step further, if your DM said you not only could, but had to play a monster-based character, which monster would you want to use as your base?

And finally, let's say you were given the task by a major comics company to develop a super hero based on a mythological monster, what would you come up with?

RP: Actually I was just happy to see you.

(From "Gunmaster" number 1, 1964.)

SOD.202 – Invisible Woman 3

Apparently I am on an invisible kick today. This one I was going for something much more feminine and fun, rather than militaristic and "Reed Richards' cast-off PJs".

I think this also catches me up from my missed days this week so I am back on schedule with the sketches of the day. Phew!

SOD.201 – Invisible Woman 2

Another attempt at a redo of Sue Storm's Fantastic Four outfit. I wanted to go a little more traditional with this one.

(Invisible Woman is ©Marvel Comics, Inc.)

SOD.200 — Invisible Woman

Sue Storm has always sort of been an afterthought in terms of costume design, an unfortunate (and possibly unavoidable) byproduct of being only 25% of the vote on an otherwise male team. I can imagine the design meetings as one session of her getting overruled after another. "Sue, come on, you're invisible most of the time, who cares if you look like you're in an awkwardly tailored set of man's pajamas?!"

Anyway, I took a stab at a makeover for her. I added some technical goodies, figuring she'd need a good way to stay in touch with the team while she's scouting out the enemy formations. And while she's back there she might as well take some readings, shoot some guards, etc.

(Invisible Woman is © Marvel Comics, Inc.)

Open Critique Day

Someone mentioned that we haven't had an "Open Critique Day" in quite a while, so here you go.

Feel free to post a link to a HeroMachine character (or even just a drawing you've done) that you would like to get a constructive critique about in the comments to this post. Please limit it to one such image per person. I'll do my best to make remarks about each one regarding where it works and where it maybe falls a little short.

The other commenters here should feel free to make their own observations on each one as well, but I do ask that you make your critiques constructive -- don't just say "This sucks", say why specifically you think it isn't working, and if possible how it might be improved. At the end of the day it's not the critic's job to actually figure out how to fix something, but it is the critic's job to make coherent, specific, and constructive observations about a piece's strengths and weaknesses.

I look forward to hopefully helping you out with any illustration you're having trouble getting to the place where you would like it to be.

RP: The unforunate intersection of history pedantry and adventure

(From "Prize Comics" number 1, 1940.)