Oddworld: The Promised Neverland Homage (pt.1)

Oddworld: The Promised Neverland homage (pt.1)

‘Kay, so I’ve fallen down the rabbit hole that is Oddworld lore…and I was *already* a big fan of the whole concept thanks to “The Promised Neverland.”

Surely this has been done before, but I couldn’t help paying some homages to the series—especially because it fits so damn well for obvious reasons!

And honestly…this is the most fun that I’ve had with my art for a long, long time. It’s like I remembered what I love about creating, and even *how* to do it. I remember loving symbolism and the significance of imagery…like here? I loved having the plates act as a kind of sick, ironic commodity: like the Glukkons absolutely would sell off “authentic” style dish wares with which to serve their workforce up on.

And even though I’ve only been able to play both the New n’ Tasty re-release and Soulstorm, I had a lot of fun trying to kind of reconcile the designs some for Abe and Alf? Alf especially; I liked the idea of him wearing his overalls down 90’s-ish style because it kind of acts reminiscent of his old loincloth, but still keeps him as visually distinct as Abe or Toby.

Originally Posted To My Waterfall!

So let’s have a context-copy-paste from there! 

(Done pre-Wacom tablet upgrade.)

Copy and Paste for Context:

Originally, Batgirl as an identity wasn't meant to be a side-kick (that was a 1990's post-zero hour retcon! And a messy one at that!)

Batgirl was basically meant to stand on equal footing with Batman; she was an ally, not a copy. Inspired by but not working for nor under. That was pretty much established in her debut episode, in fact! She loved what he stood for, but had her own way; a much more empathetic, working-with-the-people approach!

That carries on to the current run today! So, wheras Bruce nowadays is happy to inspire fear and act as a semi-urban-legend, Barbara wants to be right on the street with the people--using a combo of criminal psychology with the most updated tech!

It's fascinating really!

--End Flashback

Ok, so, my last post? About accepting how I draw? Yeah; this is where I really started to take my own advice.

Or, more specifically, I started to have fun again in my work and actually work on the backgrounds! But although those doneed work, that wasn't the point of this little series;

See, when you design super-hero costumes, you have to take into consideration why they are the way they are.

So; the trunks on the outside? The bright colours and capes? Those are all influenced by the 1930's strongman acts! Early circus performers and gymnasts; the tight spandex was meant to really accentuate the body and show the daringnessbehind those feats!

That translated really, really well in the old Bronze Age Batgirl comics! ...But since, let's be honest, most artists have sort of 'forgotten' showing off the daring-ness of the pose and...well.

But that's why the Batgirl of Burnside design was so refreshing! It went 100% against the grain without sacrificing any of those early influences! In fact, it used it for the better; Babs Tarr and Brenden Fletcher utilised character design 101, aka, "What does this say about this character?"

So the wide eyes in the mask: designed so people might better meet her eye and empathise, gain her trust essentially,

The bold purple: a colour that carries connotations of independance as well as royalty!

But the design itself? All practical. The perfect marriage of old and new, essentially!

So I wanted to learn from that...so I decided to have a go at imagining what I'd do if I ever got the chance to design a Batgirl outfit.

Obviously, I'd keep Tarr's influence of practical-theatrical; but I think one of my favourite things about Batgirl is her love of her motorcycle. Hence; motorcycle-gear! I actually really loved getting creative with where I'd place the black contrast panels--supportive, but as a visual nod to the fact that, yeah, she has been paralysed and she has recovered mobility--which further translated to the contrast underside of the glove!

I think, also, using the stark blue for the cowl gave me a chance to play with really identifying that it's a helmeted piece...or, ok, that was the goal. I still need practice!

This is Baby Money Yoda, reblog in the next 60 seconds to receive a blessing from our green bean prince.

Originally Posted to my Waterfall!

So let’s have a context-copy-paste from there: 

The old-ish stuff! (part 2) Classic Batgirl!

Now we get to the good stuff, AKA, Batgirl!

(Done pre-Wacom tablet upgrade.)

Now if you were to ask me what my favourite incarnation of Barbara Gordon is, honestly, I'd be torn between two:

--Batgirl of Burnside

and

--1966 Batman

Interestingly enough; Batgirl of Burnside draws incredibly heavy on Yvonne Craig's influence on Batgirl, and it's not hard to see why.

See, originally, Batgirl as an identity wasn't meant to be a side-kick (that was a 1990's post-zero hour retcon! And a messy one at that!)

Batgirl was basically meant to stand on equal footing with Batman; she was an ally, not a copy. Inspired by but not working for nor under. That was pretty much established in her debut episode, in fact! She loved what he stood for, but had her own way; a much more empathetic, working-with-the-people approach!

That carries on to the current run today! So, wheras Bruce nowadays is happy to inspire fear and act as a semi-urban-legend, Barbara wants to be right on the street with the people--using a combo of criminal psychology with the most updated tech!

It's fascinating really!

But I digress.

While Burnside put emphasis on the practical design, the 1960's were all about stage presence! Something I wanted to capture here, using Yvonne Craig's history as a champion Ballerina!

It's actually a lot of fun to see how or if you can truly meld fight-coreography with the grace of dance...and ya know, I think it can be done. But I wanna explore and push it more!

An old Arrowette redesign I had a lot of fun with back in 2018! Pre-Wacom tablet upgrade, though, so the sensitivity on the line-art is a bit...blocky. 

Linking from my waterfall.social account; feel free to have a click for the LONG wall of text that follows this! Trust me, I can ramble for hours!!

Gosh this moment is so adorable