A tough one....

As the title says, a tough one...this panel gave me a ton of trouble as far as the layout is concerned and also it proved my arthritis is getting to me more than I thought. This is the top panel of a page. And I just tried and tried but couldn't get the layout started right. So other than wearing out a piece of board, or comic paper, I drew the pieces one at a time, then lightboxed them together onto a new page. I discovered I don't have any control over my hand movements, well limited control when my arm is extended to the top of a page. In other words the more I reach the less control I have. This is making things tougher to work. But there are work arounds like the lightbox and other things. Getting old is not fun kids. Ha. 

Also I hope viewers of any of the Commando Cody/Rocketman films don't think I am just ripping off one of the cool scenes in the movies. As most of you know I am heavily influenced by those great Republic cliffhangers. This scene is a tip of the hat to the first serial with Tris Coffin as Rocketman. But after alot of thought, there truly isn't alot of ways to land on a moving truck with your jetpack. So it actually helped using the lightbox. I drew the truck and all, then drew Captain Spectre at this angle, then lightboxed the truck and then placed Captain Spectre and lightboxed him. (The lightbox is a small box with frosted plexiglass as a drawing surface with a light source underneath. That way you can place a drawing on it and transfer, or trace the drawing onto a clean piece of paper.) 

Isn't the internet a wonder. A place of unlimited reference for artists. I can't count how many times I use it to look up what something looks like. Especially like drawing the Captain Spectre strip. If I need a 1936 police cruiser, then I just type it in and wham there it is. Amazing to this day. And it sure saves alot of time in research and reference. It also yields great gems, like this photo of Kong on the mountain. Being a poor man's collector, I don't have many film books or things like that. I mostly buy comic collection books and things like artist collections, so I had never seen this photo before. And being a King Kong film fan, as I still consider it the greatest adventure movie made, when I saw this photo I just had to reach for the DVD and view it again. I can honestly say that I don't know how many times I have viewed this film. Hundreds for sure. It never fails to make me feel like a kid again. 

Then of course the big news, and this is what I think one of the better cartoons of the event. Most had political sides taken but this one was more American so I liked it better. Of course it is copyright by the artist, I am just reposting because I liked it. As some of you know I have a personal stake. One of my sons served in the War on Terror in Iraq for almost two years, and made it back home from the frontlines.

Also some things stay the same as in enemies can only hide so long, either from Seal Team Six or Captain Spectre. As shown in one of the first Captain Spectre shirt designs I did when the strip started.

I wanted to get this update posted as I will be spending some time with the northern branch of the Floyd family today. They are coming out to the secret HQ for a cookout. So happy Mothers day to all the mothers out there. And to my mom, long gone, Thanks Mom.

The unstoppable Kong!

Well, I didn't think I was going to get around to inking this yet....but, Kong proved once again to be unstoppable. Mainly I think since - to put it mildly, I felt like hell sunday. A total sinus attack for some reason, maybe because tomorrow is the beginning of fall. And it seems today isn't starting off any better. I just wanted to post this before leaving for work this morning. If I didn't have a deadline at work today, I would probably take a sick day. But, work goes on, the rent must be paid.....hell I have to pay for those gliders too. And yet this is another piece for the Fallcon charity auction. Irony, maybe, but more the call of duty. Plus I try each year to out do myself, and what I feel is a bit of competition at the auction. Or maybe I just feel there should be competition at it. Each year I almost feel like not letting the pieces go. But then I like seeing people bid on them and hope it helps in some small way.

And as I said, I felt like hell yesterday. So I would ink for a couple of minutes, then blow my nose for ten minutes or so trying to breathe. When that happens I can't really do much brain work, so this is just raw inking from me. Trying to follow the lines, balance some blacks and whites, and do a bit of drybrushing, and some of that fantastic split brush that Mark Schultz has mastered as a technical skill. I do feel this was rushed a bit, just trying to get one more thing off my plate because ... we are all living on borrowed time .... just like the Challengers of the Unknown.

Also wanted to throw in....there isn't a quill mark on this.....only brush, except I signed it with a marker. I love the brush.

Progress on KONG...

Well I had some time to get around to the pencils for the Kong piece. Not much has changed since the full sized layout drawing in the last post. It was torture to get this thing scanned, I installed a update to my operating system the other night, and tonight - or rather early this morning found out it took out my scanner. I would be lost without a scanner. So about three or four hours of messin' with it all - looking on forums and trying to find someone with the same problems with the scanner model I have....anyway it all ended up costing about 80 bucks, I had to go to the only software known that works with this scanner and operating system. And now it is 4:30 in the morning, and I haven't been to sleep yet.....I am going to try to head that direction now. So hope you enjoy the pencils to Kong. I probably won't get to the inks just yet, I need to do some other work tomorrow....or later today.

Kong!!!

Ok I realize this was a suggestion by Martin Powell for me to try for the auction at the coming Fallcon show. But since he suggested it I couldn't get it out of my mind. Of course between Martin and I, I would hate to think of the number of viewings of Kong that we have. I probably put it in about once a week or two as I work. I watch alot of serials, horror, adventure, and of course Kong as I work. It helps with the snappy patter (the language), the background images, the sounds and all.

I rarely ever do full size roughs, and I should do them all the time....another suggestion make by a super artist that I met. I know there are some problems with placement on this one, but I do think the dinos tail, spine and all lead up to the action and Kong. The Fay Wray gal is just eye candy and fun, as she hides behind the rock ducking the dinos' tail. Although not an actual exact scene from the film, I was more after the spirit of the fight and I didn't want to draw the tree that traps Fay.

So anyway thanks to my good friend Martin....here is the first ever drawing of Kong I ever did. Hopefully I will have time to flesh it out and lightbox it for a finished drawing in time for Fallcon.