Witch Slayer of Oz

OK, so I'm playing catch-up. I plan on doing a more finished version of this, but this is a sketch squad, so I thought I'd show the sketch. This is my take on the movie poster. In my movie, Dorothy stayed in Oz and developed a bit of a god complex. She feels it's her mission to rid Oz of witches, both good and evil. Her companions on this quest are the Tin Man (a haunted suit of armor), The Scarecrow (a mummy in search of the witch who has the canopic jar containing his brains) and the Lion (who shows the ultimate cowardice by becoming a traitor to his companions).

Click on the image to get to a larger version of the image.

Flying Monkey

One more Oz piece before I get to my Steampunk contribution. I had wanted to do a flying monkey but figured no one was going to do the apple tree, so I did that one first.

I had originally planned to put a simple background on this one, just some ominous clouds, but the monkey pops so well against the colored paper I'm now afraid to do anything else to this lest I screw it up.

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.)

Wicked Witch, Lion

Here's my Wicked Witch. It just kinda fell out. She used to be pretty but years of using black magic took it's toll on her body.



My Cowardly Lion. I wish I had put more time into him, but I like his worried expression.I might need to take another crack at him and do a whole body sketch.


I love this theme. I actually did something like this about nine years ago just to entertain myself. I have the old drawings in a sketchbook at my folks house in Texas. I'd kill to have them on me so I could post them...I remember the flying monkey I drew was actually pretty cool.

Wicked Witch Ink

Not sure if I will color it, but here she is. Not sure about Dorthy. Thought she might have died on her way down to this new world, or some kind of spirit. No real idea. But here is the wicked witch

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.

---

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.

---

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.

Because the Wizard of Oz is MIGHTY.

Dorothy: I've taken a more fantastical approach to my Oz designs. I went with with a younger Dorothy. It was important to me that despite being physically small and unassuming, Dorothy was full of character, courage and smarts– a girl who was the embodiment of what her friends lacked.




The Scarecrow: The Scarecrow in my mind's eye was not only mentally deficient, but was also physically inhibited because of his 'thrown together and left to rot' nature. He's an amateur–made doll whose outward appearance would not be so unsettling if he had been cared for.




The Tin Man: Past depictions of the cold and heartless Tin Woodsman never really satisfied me. None of them looked like they could topple a tree, much less be built for that purpose. I wanted my version to look functional, yet damaged and worn, from all of the heavy work. And speaking of which– if the technology in Oz is such that a walking metal man could be made... you'd think he'd have something a bit better than an axe.




The Lion: I wanted my Lion to look like a subservient, pitiful, and utterly defeated beast. One that looks to have the potential to be a king, if he could only bring himself far enough out of his phobic and depressed pit. I also thought it would be interesting if he were neither completely man nor completely lion; A misunderstood, outcast, and rejected half-breed of a thing who just wants to be accepted.




Size Comparison Model Sheet:

the eliete royal guard

oh whats this? two posts from joe in a row?!!!! wow. what a lazy sucka. an elite royal guard to the wizard, the wonderful wizard.

Ravenous Brains

If he only had a brain .. indeed, for the Scarecrow is no stranger to the taste of flesh, and when the hunger claims his whithered bones of wood and straw, he is transformed into a being so ravenous that all who live in the land of Oz shudder to the sound of his Undead howls. And the wizard? Well - he has the biggest brain of them all. Undoubtedly the most delicious, too.

Apple Tree

Hey, a tree's gotta eat.