Uncle Pennywhite's Verticopter

"Reggie what do you reckon is under that tarp?"

Well, I knew what was under the tarp. It was the verticopter. I pulled off the tarp and showed her.

"Smashing!" she said, "Let's try it!"

I told her that's exactly the sort of thing we should not try. The first thing her uncle told me after inventing anything, he would set down his wrench or whatever and say, "Reginald. See this? Don't ever touch this."

Abby didn't care what her uncle said, "He's my mother's baby brother, and who listens to babies?"

It was at that moment I knew I was going to like this girl a lot. I mean, if you could like a girl and all.

the thumbnail:


to see more detail: click here.

to read the expanded story go here.

the boys

party man

"say, C.S., what do you like to do for fun on a friday night?"

"i like to watch a movie and then stay up into the morning drawing OZ stuff!"

(this should be my last Wizard of OZ post. no promises though.)

Monkey Napped

VERSION B : 4.20.07

see a side-by-side comparison of the original and new versions.

the monkeys fly in. the monkeys beat the stuffing out of the scarecrow and the other guys. the monkeys carry dorothy off. long shot of dorothy being carried off.

i wanted to pull the camera in. follow her up from the ground and into the sky. originally i planned to show her high above, but the drama of being lower, with the tree line, and just being nabbed, is a little more visceral.

(technically, the left wing should prolly be in front of the tail, but i wanted the visual element, so, you know, whatever.)

to be absolutely frank, while these are the explanation of my rationale for this piece, from the very moment i suggested this topic, this is the image i saw in my head. i toyed with making her shoes silver as they are in the book, not ruby, but i thought that element would stop the viewer at a point where i didn't want him thinking about the small details.

i know. this is a sketchblog. i had to go to finish on this one.

so, here's a sketch or two.

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this is a sketch i did for the monkey, kind of working out the elements. i knew i wanted aviator scarf, goggles and (i thought) hat, but the sweater had to go. monkeys are vest wearers, and a vest wearer mine shall be. i am making a real effort to develop my backgrounds, so there's a little witch's castle in there.

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this is a quick sketch, a test to see what "traditional" versions of the characters might look like in my style.

this topic is addicting. i do want to tighten these guys up, apply some ideas i have for them.

Get your Oz on

Warner Bros called. Someone in the pre-production department of a new movie franchise they're working on saw our blog. They want us to do some development/concept drawings. Sets. Characters. Scenes. Those sorts of thing. They're relaunching the "Wizard of Oz" for this generation. They're planning to do all the books, so any of the characters are open season. It will be live action, but of course, there will be CGI elements. They're looking for things to inspire the creative process, so kick it in your style.

This, is, of course, only hypothetical. It is, however, the topic for the week.

Batter UP!

When your baseball bat turns into an actual bat it forces one to evaluate one's life. Billy thought it might be time to be nicer to Esmerelda, the girl in the lunch room who dressed all in black. She'd said she'd get him, and while he wasn't for sure this was her doing, it seemed like the sort of thing she would do to him if she could. Regardless, he determined next time he saw her he wouldn't call her "EsmerSMELLda."

The Unforeseen Disadvantage of Cranial LCD Replacement

it seemed like a good idea, but then it was ice cream time, and the luster of the new head wore off.

Shao Fang. Underworld Crime Boss.

They came to him for favors. They came to beg for the lives of loved ones, of those who'd crossed his path. They came to ask his blessing on their children. But no matter why they came, they all came to him the same way--in fear.

You can see the big one here.

Fur Collar or Sharp Dressed Mane

from the handbook Tips in Coiffure for Today's Lupine Dandy--"for the discerning werewolf, the key to looking dapper in a suit is trimming that unsightly neck fur."

*a problem sarah's wolf has bested with great aplomb.
**this was just gonna be a sketch. but i had ta' finish it out. seems i likes drawing me some monsters.

experiments in canine propulsion

Sir Cut

And who, pray tell, kept the Knights of the Round Table neatly coiffed? Why none other than Sir Cut, the barber knight!

*Shout out to Kennon.

broken circuit

Dos Mustachios!

I did this one.



Then I did this one, which I don't like as much. I DO like the gun
though.

Brains! It's what's for breakfast!

i like a woman with brains.

(believe it or not. this was actually a rough for a client this week. children's mag. they passed on this one, so now i get to share it here.)

kinda a fish

my first post on the blog!



and while not a fish, it does live in the ocean and it is my christmas card this year so, merry christmas everybody.

enjoy!

also, me getting interviewed on amateurillustrator.com. thanks joe for the great questions!