Law of the Wild - More Character concepts!

 Hey Everyone!

Since my last post announcing the new comic project that I'm working on (click here if you missed it!) I've been sharing some more sneak peeks of pencils and inks on social media, so I thought it was high time I introduced you all to a couple more of the characters who have featured in them!

The first character I'm going to share concepts of today was actually the first character I drew! Though he doesn't play a big part in the story, mixing an aquatic animal with a cast of land mammals was always going to be a design challenge. How I decided to draw this guy would ultimately influence the design of the rest of the cast! I mean, do I draw a human shaped bodies with animal heads and tails? Or do I draw and animal shaped bodies that stand on two legs, wear clothes and talk? 

If you're familiar with my previous work on MULP: Sceptre of the Sun, then you'll know that I favour the latter of those two styles... So when then script called for a Great White Shark character, I wondered if it'd be possible to draw him as a real Shark would look, but on land and wearing a suit!

As ridiculous as that sounds, I'm pretty happy with the outcome!
So without further a-do, let me introduce to you our King of Crime, the Mob Boss, Godfather, Kingpin and cruel Loan Shark.. Bruce!

Bruce's design was inspired by and mixture of Marvel Comic's Wilson Fisk (Kingpin) and the character from Shark Tale that Robert De Niro voices (Don Edward Lino), with a good dose of Bruce the Shark from Finding Nemo.
Because our Bruce operates on land, I needed to make a Shark's survival out of water plausible if he was going to look like an actual Shark! The collar around Bruce's neck was inspired by the breathing apparatus that Abe Sapien wears in Guillermo Del Toro's Hellboy adaptation, allowing the amphibious Abe to walk on land for extended periods. The idea behind Bruce's collar is that water flows through the tubes from a tank on his back, over his gills, allowing him to breathe on land. I also saw him getting about in a huge motorised wheelchair (Professor X style) flanked by lackies and henchmen to do his dirty work for him, however this detail doesn't appear in the comic.

The final player in our cast of miscreants is Bunky the Chimpanzee.
Bunky is Sebastian's faithful flunkey. He's a cheeky chappy, streetwise and quite rough around the edges, but with a good heart for a petty criminal!

Inspiration for Bunky's design came partially from DC's Detective Chimp character but mostly I heavily relied on real life reference photos of Chimpanzees, those guys have enough charisma that practically draws themselves! 

As I mentioned before, I've been sharing sneak peeks at the progress of this comic over on my various social media outlets! 
Here's a little look at these characters on the page.

Head on over to Instagram, Tumblr or Facebook to keep up to date with the latest look at Law of the Wild!

Sector 13; the 2000AD Fanzine - Law of the Wild!

 

Hey Everyone!

In my last post I hinted at some comics work I've been quietly working away on, so let me take the time to give you lot a bit of background on what this project is all about!

During the first Lockdown last year I was approached by Peter Duncan about contributing some material to an extra special edition of his all ages anthology SPLANK! It was Peter's intention to showcase the wealth of British comics talent with a special bumper issue of his comic during the time when COVID 19 meant comic conventions and fairs had to be cancelled, as well as collect donations for NHS charities to help those who needed it most during this difficult time.
I took Peter up on his kind offer and used it as an opportunity to revive my own anthropomorphic, autobio comic strip; Paws for Thawt! 

The free digital download for SPLANK went live on May 28th 2020. If you missed the launch post you can read more about it here!
I can also happily say that since this issue of SPLANK! my Paws for Thawt webcomic has kept going strong! I'm continuing to post weekly updates on the Paws for Thawt Tumblr and Instagram pages so give them a like and a follow to stay up to date!

Anyway, you're probably wondering what all this has to do with this latest project and Sector 13!?
Well, after my involvement with SPLANK! Peter introduced me to the 2000AD Fanzine he is Editor for and presented me with the script for a short anthropomorphic he thought would be a perfect for for my illustration style!

Sector 13 itself is a strictly non-profit 2000AD tribute comic founded by the Belfast-based fan group of the same name. What started as a compilation of articles and photo stories featuring the groups cosplayers, has turned into a high quality A4 sized publication teeming with talent from the British indie comic's scene! You can read more about Sector 13's story and get hold of previous issues over on Peter's website: BOX OF RAIN
Or check out the Sector 13 Facebook page for regular updates and news!

The story that I'll be working on for this next issue is called "Law of the Wild" written by the fantastic Ed Whiting!

Ed has written stories for Sector 13's pages previously, making his debut with his 50's throwback Futureshock story "Lethal Weapons" April this year! Ed has also produced his own self published comic "Bigger Fish", a 44 page gritty crime story set in the New York of the early seventies. Bigger Fish is available from Get My Comics (follow the indie tab and then look under B for £5.99) https://getmycomics.com/Release/Indie

"Law of the Wild" is a quirky anthropomorphic, sci-fi based, hard boiled detective story! It combines sci-fi body swapping ideas with the seedy criminal underbelly of a noir detective story, all told with quirky anthropomorphic characters! It's so much fun!! Here, to wet your appetites for what's to come, I'll share some character sketches for two of our main characters! Colt Winchester is this story's super cop! A gruff, no-nonsense detective who's not afraid to get his hooves dirty in the fight against crime! He's a horse by the way!

Inspiration for Colt came from a combination of Bojack Horseman and one of my favourite anthro comics of all time; Blacksad by Juan Díaz Canales (writer) and Juanjo Guarnido (artist). Seriously if you haven't heard of it check it out! It's incredible! 


Next up we have this villainous venomous viper; Sebastian Ssstan! Sebastian is our story's criminal mastermind, highly intelligent and superior, he might get away with his heinous criminal operation if it weren't for Colt's meddling!
Sebastian was mostly inspired by the Disney characters; Sir Hiss (Robin Hood) and Kaa (Jungle Book) with a nice dash of the stereotypical Supervillain aesthetic.

If you liked to look of these guys, then keep your eyes peeled for the reveal of more character concepts soon!

Don't forget to give the Sector 13 Facebook page a like in order to keep up to date with upcoming news and sneak peeks for this story and the rest of the issue's content, as well as any snippets I might share on my own social media!

Doctor Who: The Impossible Crossing UPDATE

Hello Whovians!!

I apologise, it's been a whilst since you all had an Impossible Crossing update and a sneaky peek at some behind the scenes art!
You've been introduced to the Harriet, Howard and the rest of the Daniels family, and of course the Doctors you all know already. So today I'll let you have a gander at some studies for additional background characters that'll feature in the comic.

Most of theses studies are of members of the Titanic's crew, and of course the uniforms and insignia have been throughly researched, however there are a couple of additional passengers also! Some of the characters here are based on people who were actually present on the Titanic, we've done our homework to ensure that there is a bit of historical accuracy amidst all the Timey-Wimey!!

Also each character's likeness is based on an actor/actress, but I won't tell you who. You'll have to guess! :)

As far as progress of the 1st issue goes I'm just over half way with the pencils and inks! 10 pages to go before I start lettering and colouring!

But although the finished thing is a little way off yet, don't worry I'll soon start revealing a few odd panels to keep you all excited!
Ooooo also I've also got a bit of news!! Geek Syndicate's Luke Halstall was lovely enough to give a little review of the 5 page Prologue, that launched back in April. You can find Luke's article here

Doctor Who: The Impossible Crossing - The Daniels Family

Hey there Who fans and Impossible Crossing readers!!

I thought it was about time you all had a progress update and a bit more art to keep your appetites wet! 

Progress with the remaining 17 pages of issue one (following directly from the 5 page prologue) is going well! Though I've been working on pages in a bit of an odd order.. I drew page 6, panel 1 then skipped ahead to page 8! Though I blame Alex for this as he wrote in what promised to be a challenging yet beautifully intricate panel to draw on page 8 that I just couldn't wait for!!

(If you follow me on Twitter you'll have seen a sneaky WIP peek, if not here you go!)

However now pages 6 and 8 are completely drawn and inked, ready for colour, I'll be moving on chronologically to page 7 next.

For now though here're some character studies and colour concepts for the remaining members of the Daniels family!

If you need a little reminding about who  the Daniels family is, then heres a quick re-cap.

Travelling 2nd class on the Titanic is Harriet Daniels, and adventurous and quick witted girl who befriends the Doctor for the duration of this story. she is travelling with her father, Howard Daniels, who finds in the Doctor an understanding and mutual respect, Thought the Doctor know he's more important than he knows!

Along with Harriet and Howard are Harriet's mother, Ellen, and younger siblings, Charlotte, Theodore and Evelyn. 

 

Ellen Daniels is your typical middle class lady from 1912. She's mostly concerned about her eldest daughter's reckless and inappropriate behaviour. Harriet, being nearly of age for a girl of this era, doesn't concern herself with thoughts of the future, but Ellen is all to aware of what is to be expected of her daughter if she is to thrive in society. And that doesn't include running around freely aboard Titanic!

Charlotte Daniels, although 3 years younger than Harriet, is much more cautious and aware of the proper etiquette for a girl of 1912. She is most certainly her mother's daughter and doesn't at all share Harriet's adventurous spirit, preferring to turn a blind eye and do as she's told.



 

With Theodore (7 years old) and Evelyn (2-3 years old) you have a solid family unit, typical of the Edwardian era, and our main characters in Impossible Crossing!

The Hairiest of all the Heroes: Captain Kelly!! (UPDATED!!)

HAIRY UPDATE: This is the final batch of development sketches and character studies that you'll see from me for Hairy Heroes I'm afraid! Recent developments have meant that my involvement in the project could not continue.
My previous posts and animations clips will remain on here though as a record of my work! Enjoy! :)

Hi there Hairies!

Ready for a rather long awaited Hairy Heroes update?
Currently Laura has completed the storyboards and the animatic for the Smooth Jason animation, and after thoroughly exploring the looks and movements of Jason (as can be seen here) so Laura has enough to work from, I'm now moving on and designing the other characters.

So let me introduce you to the leader of the band of renegade heroes, Captain Kelly!!

Captain Kelly had spent his life in the hairy army (Harmy), he had served in many wars after he joined as a young and fluffy spider. Over the years he was decorated for bravery and services to the Harmy, until one day he was thrown out after a dispute with senior hairy officers. 

Kelly vowed to keep his soldier instincts, he recruited his own eclectic mob of misfits and trained them up to become a crack troop (sort of), these recruits are known as Kelly’s Hairy Hero’s!

Kelly, like Jason, is based on a real spider species. He is a Huntsman Spider, a rather fierce and freaky looking spider indeed! I can tell you I found it rather difficult to research this one without running away in terror from the google image results! But I stuck it out, with my skin crawling and turned the freaky Huntsman into a furry and much friendlier looking Kelly!

I based Kelly's appearance on the British WWII Officer's uniform, with the webbed emblem on his hat, and the Arachnid Cross medal on his chest. The Huntsman's fearsome mandibles have been transformed into a big fluffy moustache befitting of the character, and the markings on his legs and bum  I decided to simplify from the sketch in profile above, so they resemble army camouflage!

Howard Daniels

Wow, can't quite believe that the Impossible Crossing Prologue has been up for a month now!

You can be sure I was spreading the word of this fan comic further at Bristol Expo, but now that all the festivities of the weekend are over, I think you are all due some character studies!

Let me introduce you to Harriet's father, Howard Daniels!

Howard is travelling Second Class with the rest of his family on Titanic. He has resigned to the fact that his eldest daughter, Harriet, is somewhat of a free spirit and endures her adventuring mind. It is through her adventures on Titanic that he meets the Doctor and between them sparks a mutual respect. 

The Doctor realises that Howard is more important that he could ever know!

Currently on the progress of issue 1, I have competed all thumbnails for the remaining pages and am ready to start drawing!! But to tie you over until I can show you some sneak peek panels, you'll meet the remaining 4 members of the Daniels family next.

Remember, if you STILL haven't read the prologue or you want to read it again, you can do so right here:

Please feel free to comment and share with anyone and everyone!!!

The Doctor's Companion

The 5 page prologue for Doctor Who: The Impossible Crossing has been live for two weeks now!

I'm rather chuffed that since the launch on the 14th it's been getting a steady stream of hits, so thank you everyone who has had a read, or shared the link! You're awesome!

I've a little treat for you now, a bit of behind the scenes sketches and a sneaky peek at the additional cast of the comic!

Let me introduce you to Harriet!

Harriet is a headstrong and adventurous 14 year old girl from 1912. She's intelligent, sharp and doesn't care to be restricted by the proper etiquette for a young lady of her age. She and her family are travelling in second class on the Titanic. 

While exploring the ship Harriet runs across an odd man wearing a green frock coat, they instantly strike a friendship, and for this story Harriet becomes the Doctor's companion!

You'll meet the rest of Harriet's family soon!

If anyone hasn't yet read the Impossible Crossing prologue you can do so right here: 

Please feel free to comment and share! :)

Mad Apple Circus, Animated music video - Character designs

Hey there Music fans!

I'm finally going to post up a bit of the initial character design regarding the Animated Music Video project I'm working on, amongst other things!!

First though I'll fill you in on all the background stuff.

Mad Apple circus is an original Big-band/Reggae/Ska-punk group from the deepest darkest suburbs of Bristol. You can usually find them making regular performances at The Prom and The Blue Lagoon along Gloucester Road (for any readers local and looking to hear them!)

Through a series of meetings with Luke Wilson-Tancock (Vocals, Guitar and Trumpet) and Josh Chapman (Guitar) we've discussed an animation to accompany one track titled "Let the Jury Sing". The track itself is 2 mins, 49 seconds long and is pretty damn fast paced! A LOT is planned to happen in those 2 mins, 49 seconds, so I shall have my work cut out for me!

Everything that happens in this animation will happen to one specific character, who'll be pulled through a variety of situations. This character is the Band's mascot, a Clown by the name of Bastardo! And so without further a-do I'll get on with the drawing bit!

Here are some initial character sketches for Bastardo the Clown!

These character sketches were based on your typical 50's Disney style, which the whole animation is to emulate, and various clowns and things from Dumbo and other animations I researched. However the largest factor to Bastardo's appearance is this lovely bit of artwork done by Luke's Dad!

You can find out more about Mad Apple Circus and the the other band members on their Facebook Page

The next thing to do on this project is to draw up storyboards and then fit those to the track with a rough animatic!!

Stay tuned!! :)

Hairy Heroes - more Smooth Jason studies

Hey there Hairies!!

Here's another batch of Jason character studies for you!

I've covered every possible angle of this character so that there'll be plenty of reference for Laura and I to animate from, especially for Laura who'll have to animate another person's drawing! Always tricky, so I'm giving her as much to draw from as possible!

Doctor Who Comic - A couple colour studies!

Hey there Who fans, and Happy New Year!!!

I hope you all had a fantastic festive season, but the time has come to pack away those Christmas decorations, make and break New Years resolutions and wonder how on earth to shift all the extra holiday weight!

So while we're saying goodbye to 2011, lets say hello to 2012 with some colour studies of the 8th and 10th Doctors!