Category Archives: Things I Like

A friend of mine posted this article on Facebook and I found it interesting and thought I’d share it.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/sudbury/new-dc-comics-superhero-inspired-by-young-cree-activist-1.2288680

I am happy to announce the launch of Ian Thomas Healy’s latest “Just Cause” super-hero novel, “Deep Six“, featuring a cover design & illustration by yours truly. The book is a lot of fun and sure to be a hit with anyone who loves the genre.

Just found this on Facebook. Pretty awesome if you ask me. See how many you can name before you look up close.

(Massively down sized to fit on page)

Here’s a bigger version: http://img.gawkerassets.com/img/191accgnmnevzjpg/original.jpg

On Google+ I saw this very interesting article that DCUO ( DC Universe Online ) shared and I wanted to share it with you all!

Here is an excerpt:

 

This statement will reveal my impending old age to anyone that reads this, but here goes: to me, Lynda Carter will always be Wonder Woman. As a young child, I was obsessed with the television show in which she starred, and it was my introduction to the raven-haired Amazonian princess.

Alas, it is obviously time for me to let go of my childhood crush and admit the character has evolved since the days I watched a bespectacled Diana Prince twirl around and explode into her Wonder Woman disguise. And who better than Susan Eisenberg to take Carter’s place as my mental image of such a goddess? Eisenberg is the voice of Wonder Woman to modern audiences; she’s performed the role in Justice League, Justice League Unlimited, and Injustice: Gods Among Us.

She also inhabits the role in DC Universe Online, a game which takes its superheroes veryseriously, and as well it should. I approached Eisenberg and several of her colleagues, all of whom voice larger-than-life characters in SOE’s online role-playing game, to find out how they unleash their inner heroes and villains. When comic enthusiasts are so invested in a character, how much pressure is there to get it right? After all, superfans are known for being vocal about both their likes and their dislikes. Luckily, Eisenberg understands just how seriously she needs to take her role.

“There is always pressure to ‘get it right,’ “she says. “As I’ve said many times, playing her has been the biggest privilege of my career, so I always want to do her justice (pun intended). But with Wonder Woman and Diana, that’s the gift, too because there’s a built-in fan base which cares enormously for what you’re doing. And with social media, you’re able to communicate with them directly, which is a fabulous bonus! When I first recorded [the role] for DCUO, I couldn’t wait to share it with the fans because they’ve been with me since I started on Justice League in 2000.”

To read the full article just follow this link: http://www.gamespot.com/features/its-a-wonder-the-voice-actors-of-dc-universe-online-speak-out-6414454/

This week, I’m going to look at one of Trekkie’s newest creations, Bolt.

The main reason I chose this is the colouring. It is simple but very effective, especially when combined with the shading. By combining the orange for the shading and the white for highlighting, Trekkie has achieved an unusual effect which half reminds me of highlighter colour. The best example of this on the mask, where it is accentuated by the excellent shading on the face, however the shading done on the black areas of the costume also illustrate this well (see the abdominal area).

Another great thing about this piece is the costume design. To start with we have the excellent detailing on the abdomen with the two yellow areas, made, I believe (but Trekkie will have to confirm this) with insignias and on the lower one, possibly, a piece of leg wear (but this is only a guess, judging by how I would do the same thing). We also have the boots and the dress item cape, which you get the impression links up to the back of the shoulder design of the costume.

The final part that makes this design work so well is the background. Firstly there is the contrast between the bright yellows and dark blacks on the costume against the duller purples of the background square and mid-range blues of the stars, which help the character stand out. Then you have the fact that the stars overlap the square, going onto the plain white default background, which breaks up the boarders and gives the viewer a more interesting visual than just a clean straight line.

Don’t worry, I’m not about to spring a new random blog topic on everyone. This is only a one off thing because I feel this needs to been shown. There’s this guy on DeviantART called ChasingArtwork who does some of the most amazing mech characters I’ve ever seen. But the best thing is he does redesigns of things like Assassins Creed, The Avengers, Alien and the three below which are my faves. You can check his stuff out here: http://chasingartwork.deviantart.com

Teenager Mutant Ninja Turtles (a.k.a: Turtle Tech)

Spider-Man

Batman + Villains (Gotham Gears)

Yeah, I know it’s got nothing to do with Heromachine, but oh well.

For this week’s character of the week we’ll take a look at Torog’s Brain-Bot-3.0.

The thing that attracted me to this is the attention to detail used when constructing the subject. This is especially prevalent around the centre of the picture, the rocket mechanism made from the glove and shoulder items. The masking here really works, sometimes masking to join two items together can leave a mismatched line along the join, but here there doesn’t appear to be one.

Also, the design is very well thought out, it looks like it could conceivably be used in either a comic or a sci-fi movie. The item choices work well together and nothing seems out of place. There is also a menacing quality to the machine, having no face (the essential part of the anatomy for human interaction, without it there is no emotion, something which is inherently unnerving to us) as well as the large, fearsome looking claws, which, coupled with the non-humanoid body structure, suggests something alien and antagonistic.

The final thing I like about this piece is how it is finished. The colour choices for the body  help the menacing aura, being dark and dingy. This is nicely juxtaposed against the bright and brilliant flame from the booster, although this may have been enhanced if there was some sort of reflective glow on the adjacent bodywork. Finally, the shading is very effective, especially on the claws and head. There are still some bits that could have been shaded where they aren’t, but there is a very good contrast between light and dark, especially as the dark seems to be more prevalent on the main body whilst the light is more noticeable on the extremities, such as the head, booster and claws.