Pavlov Blueline

The next Incompatibles is shaping up. This is the preliminary blueline from a few days ago. I've made some changes since then: I cropped the action a little tighter to bring more emphasis to the notepad, scaled back the log/table and added an horizon line beneath the table to give a sense of the far wall. One major overhaul was the architecture of the log harness table. As you can see, the perspective is totally wonky in this posting. It's like I was schizo on the vanishing points. That's what happens when I sketch when I'm drowsy. Stay tuned for the finished cartoon on Wednesday.

Sketching

Tonight's sketching.

POV

The camera's point-of-view can have such an impact on the delivery of a joke. I was really mentally sold on the head on angle (above) of this cartoon before I even laid pencil to paper. But then I found I could streamline the cartoon (and actually make it a lot clearer) if I deleted the caption and incorporated it into the cartoon itself. Nope, it's not "Quiet Reading." It's the title of the book that will be overturned on the table beneath his head. I'm also deleting the death bubble; it felt extra. I wanted his body pose and facial expression to accomplish that. The overhead camera angle really kills quite a few birds with one stone in this instance.

Pavlov Background

Here are some early sketches on an upcoming Incompatibles. This gag's fairly obvious, so no cloak and dagger on its future caption. "Pavlov's Logs" is one panel that I wanted to be sure I nailed historically. Ivan Petrovich Pavlov is such an iconic figure in the science world, I wanted to be sure I didn't get called on the rendering of his likeness. Boy, he really did have that 1900s Russian scientist look, huh? Not sure if I'm going to go to the extent of having the log restrained similar to the dog. That kind of faithful detail might take away from the focus on the notepad.

Sheephoarder Done

Here's the finished colored cartoon. Note how I added in a background for more context. I really think the perspective adds to the sense of a house bulging with livestock. I debated between red and blueish gray for the gal's hair color. A younger version of the hoarder won out.

Wool-In-Progress

An upcoming Incompatibles installment. You'll note in the previous rough sketch I posted of this that I was conflicted between using a shepherd versus a woman. I split the difference and put a crook in the lady's hand. I think it works with the planned caption well. I took the original sketch and outputted it in blueline, then I went over it with a blue lead pencil and rendered it out further. Once I was happy with it, I inked it in quickly.

I scanned the previous image and blasted out the blue, leaving the ink behind. I then converted the remaining image into a refined, faint blueline for final penciling. I actually have cut out inking from my process—at least for my Incompatibles work—and use my pencils as my final art. I simply scan it into p-shop and adjust levels to arrive at my finished piece. Here's the resulting drawing. From here I go to digital cleanup and coloring. I used a different pencil/paper combo this time around and I really enjoyed the feel of it—even the roughness of it. Strange how the feel of the drawing implement and paper can enhance the making process—not in just the appearance of the art, but also in the enjoyment of making it. You may notice that I adjusted the woman's mouth. She looked a little too happy in the previous version. 

Final Batman Cartoon

Here's the final colored version, complete with caption. This was kind of tricky color-wise and in the framing. I ended up zooming up and cropping out some of the bat cave and computer console. It just helped the focus of the composition in relation to the joke.

Dent Found

Wow, I totally thought this image was lost to the ages. I recently resurrected my old Powerbook and while rummaging through the drive, I found a small folder of Peck images. This drawing just really captures the atmosphere of a fictitious Sactown and the coolness of Dent.

Movie Review: Brave

Okay, I live in a world where I take it for granted that Disney/Pixar are hands-down THE most formidable entertainment tag team in the world. Their effects, animation/cinematography, character development, and stories are just so head and shoulders above the rest. And they've hit so many home runs in a row, you get to the point where your expectations are just so high. I think, however, I've finally experienced my first let down in their latest installment, Brave. Now, let me be clear, I give the movie an enthusiastic thumbs up. In fact I was so amazed at the animation (i.e., the bear playing in the stream)—it's just so stunning seeing where the technology has gone—but past that, the rubber meets the road at that pesky stretch of highway known as Story.
     Brave is your typical "girl-doesn't-to-want-conform-to-society's/family's-expectations" vehicle. And that packaging has worked so many times over, from Cinderella all the way to the more recent Tangled. I mean, think about how many times the premise has been used in the last 60+ years for Disney. But this time it just felt forced. Now, I don't think the vehicle is flawed, but I do think the story has to be exceptionally bullet-proof in order withstand the scrutiny of discerning movie fans these days. Let's face it, we sort of expect everything to be well-made. We're spoiled that way. And a weak story can't be frosted with slap-stick and special effects—not that those are bad things, but in this case it just really felt like a diversion from the less-than-sterling narrative. To Pixar's credit, they built an incredible world—lush and vivid with incredible detail. I'd watch it again, just to freeze frame it and study the backgrounds. But it all comes back to story. Story. Story. Story. "B+"

Bat B&W Final

Here's the final for the next Incompatibles installment. This was fun doing visual research on stalactites. Batman's eyes look like two pieces of coal right now, but I'll fix that digitally. I will also take care of the image on the big screen when I go to color in p-shop.