The Most Dangerous Game

The most recent re-design challenge at the He-Man.org fan-art forums featured Huntara, a fan-favorite one-shot character from She-Ra (based on Grace Jones, incidentally). My take on Huntara was pretty direct (hardly qualifying as a re-design, in my mind), and I was short on time anyways, so I skipped the contest. You should, however, check out the entries here, and the voting threads, here, here, and here.

Here’s my non-entry, (also posted here):

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The overall result is somewhat Warcrafty and Night Elf-ish, but I don’t mind. I think it’s in large part because I added pointy ears to her, and made her armor look a bit more baroque (and therefore Warcraft-esque).

Horrible Post Title #063885: Owl or Nothing

A quick note about the posting schedule for the rest of the year… the second sketch for this week (normally scheduled for Friday) will go up on Wednesday December 24th. Friday, instead, will see a bonus post featuring something that’s a tiny bit different from my usual fare.

Next week, however the second sketch will go up a day early, in the wee hours of New Year’s Day (Thursday), as has become a tradition here.

I’m sure you’re all terribly enthralled by the ins and outs of my post scheduling. Here’s today’s subject, She-Ra’s ally Kowl, in both cartoon and toy forms:

As is my custom, I repurposed the significantly differently-colored toy version into a new character. Corujito, as best as I can figure, means “little owl” in Portuguese, which is how one of the international releases of Kowl was named (using my Sherlock Holmes-like powers of deduction, I’m going to guess it was the Portuguese and/or Brazilian version). I decided to spell it Korujito, just to give the name a bit more of a connection with Kowl. Korujito’s gem and title derive from the play feature of the toy, which I guess was some kind of color-changing gem that ‘answered your questions’ with different colors–I suspect it was a mood ring-like decal, like the old faction sigils on Transformers. But I digress.

* * *

PROFILE: Kowl’s young nephew, KORUJITO, is a “chosen one” of their people. He was born with the ability to divine possible futures through the Oracular Gem, an artifact used by seers and oracles throughout the history of Etheria. Korujito is but a child, however he is wise and serene beyond his years.

HISTORY: Korujito is part of an emerging group of young heroes who have become protectors of Etheria while She-Ra is posted in Eternia. The rulers united under the Rebellion consult Korujito’s clairvoyant powers when they are faced with grave decisions, and his serene counsel has been invaluable to the stoic and conflicted protector of Etheria, Starburst. Korujito is a frequent companion of the impulsive Princess Sorciela, and Kowl seems to spend an inordinate amount of time keeping the two of them out of trouble.

* * *

Kowl is also posted on the He-Man.org fan-art forums. My post is here, the entire thread (including some of my previous sketches) is here.

And Korujito is also posted here on my variants thread

Well Loo-Kee Here…

Its been a while since I had a chance to nerd out He-Man style, so here’s an entry for a re-design challenge at the He-Man.org fan-art forums. The thread is here, my post is here. The first round voting polls are here and here. And the final poll is here. I placed 7th out of the 8 finalists.

The subject is Loo-Kee:

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My re-design of Loo-Kee isn’t terribly drastic–I made his rainbow-colored 80’s leg warmers and wristbands into armored braces made of gold and engraved precious stones, and tied his feathered mullet back into a pony tail. I made his overall details a bit more feral and bestial, and armed him with two daggers–I figure Loo-Kee is probably able to handle himself in a fight if he’s a rebel spy in a war against the Horde.

Another Enchanting Young Lady (follow up to Tuesday’s post)

(These days, who’s got time to wait for a midnight post, huh? Posting early, as I am wont to do.)

As promised, here is a picture based on the toy version of Castaspella. Also posted here on my variants thread on the He-Man.org fan-art forum.


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First off, you will notice that I have changed her into another character. While the toy’s packaging depicts Castaspella very much like her cartoon appearance, (bouffant intact), the toy itself simply had the hair tied in a ponytail. Because of the significantly different hairstyle, coupled with the toy’s differing color scheme, I decided to make her into a new character. The name Sorciela is taken from an image I found online of international packaging for Castaspella–unless I’m mistaken, Sorciela is her French name.

I made a few minor tweaks to her costume, but for the most part, this is a pretty straight interpretation of the toy. I turned her spinning disk accessory into a magical ward–the symbols on it are nothing more than the symbols of the western zodiac. I rarely use a dark background color, but here it was necessary to accentuate the glowing magical energies. And the finishing touch; a super-nerdy bio…

* * *

PROFILE: An extraordinarily capable magic-user, SORCIELA far exceeds the limits of most of her peers, but still requires focus and experience as a result of her youth. She specializes in hypnotism, but excels in this particular area to the detriment of her other magical capabilities. Sorciela can be impatient and frivolous, but her sense of compassion and fairness is true.

HISTORY: Sorciela is the younger sister of Castaspella, Mage-Queen of Mystacor. When Castaspella ascended to the throne, Sorciela was sent away to a hidden location. There were two motives behind this–first, so that Sorciela could continue her education in the use of magic, and second, so that the next in line for the throne would be protected in case any harm should ever fall upon Castaspella. With the Horde’s presence growing ever more oppressive and She-Ra’s departure to Eternia, Castaspella has summoned her sister back to Mystacor to aid in the defense of the country, and the planet.

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A Shocking Event: I have drawn a character from an 80’s cartoon.

(Well, I’m running off of no sleep, so I’m posting early rather than risking a loss of consciousness and a late post. Enjoy.)

An entry for a re-design challenge at the He-Man.org fan-art forum. The subject is Castaspella, ruler of the magical land of Mystacor and an ally of She-Ra. I didn’t have much to express about Castaspella (in terms of a real re-design) but I did want to draw her, so I posted my drawing but abstained from entering the contest. My version is really a minor tweak rather than a true re-design. The thread is here, my post is here. Check out the other entries in the voting threads here and here. The final voting thread is here.

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This picture is based on Castaspella’s cartoon incarnation, as opposed to her toy incarnation (a pic based on the toy version is in the works). The toy was billed as an “Enchantress who Hypnotizes”; I have instead billed her as “Heroic Mage-Queen of Mystacor” because A) she never hypnotized anyone in the cartoon, and B) she was the heroic mage-queen of the country Mystacor.

The main tweak in my take is that I merged her top and skirt into a dress (and juggled some colors around accordingly), in an attempt to accentuate the ‘go go girl’ look that Castaspella sported in the cartoon. Her posture is meant to have a bit of a haughty aristocratic feel. If I could change one thing, I would make her hair more curly.

Clever Titles Are Overrated

After a brief hiatus, the re-design challenges at the He-Man.org fan-art forums have returned! The thread is here, my post is here.

(Voting thread is here and I placed 2nd–the winning design was an awesome piece by my pal Jazyl.)

First up is Light Hope, a mystical column of light who is guardian of She-Ra’s headquarters (the Crystal Castle) and acts as her advisor. My version depicts a human avatar of Light Hope:


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The design of his helmet is based on the toy version of the Crystal Castle, while his staff is a depiction of the cartoon version. The double crests on his robe are loosely patterned off of the upper windows of the Crystal Castle toy, and the colors of the robe are based on the toy’s flag. His breastplate, belt, and boots are based on the Bow action figure–not because he has any connection with Bow directly, but because if there had been a Light Hope action figure, it’s likely that Bow’s token male sculpt would have been harvested for parts. The symbol on his chest is the same sun-symbol motif found on She-Ra’s, and his wings of light echo the double wings of the cartoon version of the Crystal Castle. His sword of light is based on a She-Ra role play set which differs from other depictions of She-Ra’s sword.

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PROFILE: LIGHT HOPE is a master sorcerer and expert warrior. He wields a sword of light and the staff of the Crystal Castle. His wings of light provide him with flight as well as a defensive barrier. Light Hope’s even-handed wisdom is reknowned throughout the cosmos.

HISTORY: The power embodied by the Crystal Castle of Etheria is ancient, and, like Castle Grayskull on Eternia, predates recorded history. Light Hope–a powerful warrior-mage rumored to be allies with He-Ro the Wizard and King Grayskull–sacrificed his mortal body to become the caretaker of the mysteries of the Crystal Castle. It is foretold that Light Hope will take on his human form once more in Etheria’s greatest hour of need.

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Not the Candy…

(Posting a little bit early for the usual reasons.)

Re-design challenge at the He-Man.org fan-art forums for the second half of March–my post is here and the original thread is here. The voting thread is here. I managed to land first place!

The subject is Starburst She-Ra, an action figure variation of He-Man’s twin sister She-Ra. However, my version has a bit of a twist to it:


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As you can see, rather than drawing a variation on She-Ra, I tweaked the design so that she’s a different character entirely. I’m happy with how the sword and star field turned out, but other than that I feel pretty lukwarm about this one. Only one thing can save this–an elaborate and nerdy background for the character, written by yours truly!

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PROFILE: Stoic and pragmatic, STARBURST is a woman of few words, as a result of her extended isolation in deep space. In spite of her reticent manner and her reluctance to trust others, Starburst is nonetheless a powerful ally to the heroes of both Etheria and Eternia. Her mystical cloak endows her with a number of powers, including super-natural strength and stamina (in the same league as He-Man and She-Ra), as well as flight, and the ability to traverse the cosmos freely. Her sword has a blade cut from a rare type of Etherian gem, and is charged with cosmic energy. The powers of the cloak have also slowed her aging.

HISTORY: Over a century ago, Etheria existed in an age of peace, and Starburst was Light Hope’s champion, watching over the planet, and maintaining the delicate blance of justice. A Cosmic Enforcer came to the planet, seeking Starburst’s aide in battling a marauding space fleet known only as “The Horde.” At Starburst’s request, Light Hope permitted her to leave Etheria, hoping that with her aid, the Horde fleet could be stopped before they reached Etheria.

However, the Cosmic Enforcer was in a fact a rogue who had betrayed his order, and he teleported Starburst lightyears away, behind enemy lines. Without Starburst to lead the forces of Etheria, the Horde was able to invade and gain a significant foothold. Light Hope was greatly weakened (a large portion of his power still imbued in Starburst) and could do little to help.

For one hundred years, Starburst has been fighting her way through Horde forces with little or no help, trying to get back to her home planet. In her journeys she has clashed with the legitimate Cosmic Enforcers, and later allied with them, after it was revealed that the Enforcer who betrayed her was a rogue.

Finally, she has returned, and none too soon–with the disappearance of He-Man, and the Horde invasion of Eternia, She-Ra has been desperately needed by Eternia and the Sorceress of Grayskull. With Starburst holding the Etherian front against the Horde, She-Ra has returned to Eternia for the time being. Accustomed to working alone, Starburst is finding it somewhat difficult to adapt to her position as one of the leaders of the Etherian Rebels. Her dedication however, is unquestionable.

* * *

Starburst is just the first in a series of “original” fan-characters based on existing He-Man/She-Ra toys. Look for more in the coming weeks.

BONUS POST: Double Bonus + Extra Bonus!!!

This illustration was for the second re-design challenge that I entered at the He-Man.org fan-art forums, during the second half of December. My post is here, the whole thread is here, and the voting thread is here. After the results were tallied, I tied for first!

Double Trouble is a character from the She-Ra toyline that never appeared in the cartoon. She-Ra and her allies in the Rebellion were at constant war with the evil Horde, a totalitarian regime that dominated most of the planet Etheria. Double Trouble’s action figure was billed as a “Glamorous Double Agent,” and her action feature was switching her face from good (smiling) to evil (grimacing). And really, I think that’s all kids need to know about morality:

smiling = good

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Inspiration struck when I was looking at pictures of the Double Trouble toy–I noticed that the crest on her helmet, and the symbol on her chest, both had vaguely the same silhouette as the emblem of the Horde (a skull with bat wings). So, rather than having the “evil” version of Double Trouble just grimacing, I designed a complete Horde disguise for her.

The Horde version (left) of Double Trouble is armed with a gargoyle-crossbow thingee, which I assume is standard issue for high ranking Horde officers, because almost all of the Horde action figures came with one. I darkened the green on her uniform so it would be a bit more “military” and added in some red and black to emphasize the Horde theme (for those who do not know, red and black are more or less the colors of the Horde). The end result is sort of christmas-looking, but that was just a coincidence!

The Rebellion version (right) has just has a few tweaks from the original–I added some green on the shoulder pads, and made her bracers and choker silver to match her boots and the accents on her helmet. I’ve never been a fan of the sheer tutus that many of the She-Ra figures had, so instead I made the “skirt” part of a tunic.

BUUUT, that’s not all

click above to view Super-Munkyboy’s Deviant Art post


Mad props to forum member Super-Munkyboy, who drew a chibi version of my Double Trouble re-design–he even modernized the costume to match up to the more intricate character designs of the 200x He-Man cartoon! (The character on the right-hand side is a Horde villain named Vultak) Super-Munkyboy’s post on He-Man.org is HERE, and his deviant art page is HERE–check it out, he’s taken “chibi” to a whole new level!

This Post Needs A Funny Title

Yet another illustration entered into a re-design challenge at He-Man.org. My post on the fan-art forums is here, and the entire thread can be found here. The voting thread is here–I managed to snag third place again.
The subject this time is a character named Sea Hawk from the She-Ra cartoon. He appeared in a handful of episodes, and was the love interest of She-Ra (lucky bastard!). Sea Hawk was a swashbuckling pirate modelled after Errol Flynn, and named after one of Flynn’s movies.

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This interpretation is based on a later appearance of the character where he inherits a few special artifacts and temporarily takes on a masked identity to fight evil, like the Scarlet Pimpernel. I just made some minor tweaks on the costume to push the superhero aspect of Sea Hawk’s masked persona. Actually, if you ignore the color scheme, this looks sort of like a cross between Green Arrow and Robin (Tim Drake’s original costume).

It just occurred to me that this post is uncharacteristically humorless. I think lack of sleep has finally caught up to me… LOOK AT THE MONKEY!!!

*runs*