I Need More Smart McCree, Because The Fandoms Just Put Him On Simmer And Reduced Him To Bumbling Cowboy

I need more smart McCree, because the fandom’s just put him on simmer and reduced him to bumbling cowboy who shoot nice. 

Give me mechanic McCree, who used to ride and repair motorcycles. Who knows the inner workings of a variety of Omnic builds and can do quick on site fixes to their Omnic/cyborg companions. He knows how to fix, and drive just about any vehicle he comes across, both due to the pressure to learn back in Deadlock, and the education he received in Blackwatch. 

Give me a McCree who’s Deadeye isn’t some supernatural ability he was born with, or just wicked stupid luck, but precisely calculated and practiced moves. Who’s so good at following his target with hand eye coordination, and taking in the wind and angle factors into firing, along with the recoil from his gun and where he needs to hold and fire, that he can take down six enemies in a second. 

Give me a McCree who knows guns inside and out. How to disassemble and reassemble them in seconds, and can use a variety of weapons with ease. Who’s not just a sharpshooter with his peacekeeper, but can rival Widow and Hanzo with a sniper rifle or bow. Who can pick up any teammate’s weapon and use it to help get them out of the pickle they found themselves in. A McCree who would hands down grab Mercy’s staff and get to fucking work helping his team while she’s down. 

Give me a McCree who used to work with horses back on his family’s ranch, and knows how to ride professionally. He has such steady footing you can find him strolling across a floating log in in a river. He knows how animals think and work, and how to take care of them.

Give me a McCree who used to work for tips at the diner down in Route 66 on his off time, who knows how to cook a damn good meal on nothing but scraps and a quarter. Who understands not everyone has the same taste as him and can adjust his recipes as needed so everyone’s happy. 

Give me a McCree who’s an actual covert ops agent, who can get through the busiest bases, and flank without a damn sound. Who, back in Blackwatch, they had to give him a pair of spurs so he’d stop sneaking up on everyone because of how silent he became during training. Who’s accuracy in taking down enemies from the inside reflects Reyes’ standards for his agents. That he’s not just a hothead who goes in howling, that he’s the top dog they trained him to be. 

This cowpoke could be so fleshed out, but people just play him as a joke. Do Jesse better. 

Character Design Tips

Some people have asked how I went about drawing the Overwatch cast, so I threw together a list of things I think about when designing characters: shapes, silhouettes, colors, and inspiration.

1. Shapes

There are three basic shapes in my toolbox: round, box, and triangle. If I follow my intuition, each shape conveys a personality. For example:

Round = charismatic, harmless, endearing

Box = reliable, uniform, traditional

Triangle = cunning, dynamic, competent (downward pointing more aggressive)

Shapes can also be combined for more complex characters

2. Silhouettes

Block in the character. If I can still recognize who it is, then it has a strong, readable silhouette.

3. Color

Sometimes less is more. Limit the palette for unity and impact. When working with three colors, keep the 60-30-10 rule in mind. Pick one color to make up about 60% of the character, a second color to make up about 30%, and the last color is about 10%.

When working with just two colors, use the 70-30 rule. One color is about 70%, the second is about 30%.

4. Inspiration

Designs come to mind easier when I’m listening to music, or when I have a mental image of something in mind. For example, I was listening to Klezmer music when drawing Reaper, and I was thinking of a chicken when I was drawing Lucio. It can take a while to warm up, so a good source of inspiration is important to stay motivated.

Beyond that, it’s up to you! 

[If you want to see the specific artists I drew influence from, click here to see my influence map.]

thedragonwoodconservancy on ig

Could you imagine what a chaotic duo Anakin and Qui gon would of been?

Qui gon would encouraged aaaallllll of Anakins reckless qualities.

He'd be like 'Master should I do the thing?' And Qui gon would be like 'What is the force telling you?' 'It' s telling me to do the thing.'' Then do the thing'

Anakin then proceeds to jump out of a 20 story building into oncoming traffic.

'Feel, dont think padawan.' Anakin then proceeds to never think again.

They actively encourage each other to disobeyed the council.

Mace Windu is DONE with these two.

"Qui gon where is your padawan?" "He's on Rancoor 5." "But the council specifically told you both..." "The living force must be listend to." "Dont give me that crap."

And it gets twelve time worse when the Clone wars hit.

Disobeying orders left right and center, never sticking to one plan, Qui gon refuses to wear armour, and when they do stick to a plan its reckless as hell.

And Obi wan is dragged along for every thing as they council teams them up in hope that he will control them.

He cant, he usally just goes with it.

And then cries into Codys shoulder about the level of stress they both put him through.

"They made me fight a pit dragon Cody. A pit dragon!" "I know sir." "They had no plan and they both nearly got eaten." "I know sir." "I cant deal with them together!" "I know sir, have some tea."

Even though Cody knows Obi wan is JUST as reckless as they are.

pokemon and such consultations

Someday I’m going to actually write out this fractured essay in my head about how important “home bases” in fiction are to me (whether that’s a literal home or an office or a secret hideout or even a vehicle in the right circumstances).  

I am very serious when I say that these places are characters to me, just as much as any of the living, breathing human (or nonhuman) characters in the story and once I get attached their loss affects me on an equally visceral level. And, in fact, a creator’s decision to destroy or abandon that “home base” can affect my interest in continuing to emotionally invest in a story just as much as when they cavalierly kill off a character for shock value. 

And someday I will figure out how to put down all my Thoughts on that.

But it is not this day, apparently.