Hulk gets a boo boo.

Just a quick sketch today featuring The Hulk. Poor Hulk. I've always wanted to see him in a more mature storyline where the bullets just don't bounce off, giving more of a sense of danger with each encounter. Watching the movie (though really good) (the second one I mean, not the first one) (that one was horrible) you never get worried that maybe he might really get torn apart, but rather it seems like the action between two rival action figures from my younger years (25). I'd slam them into each other repeatedly screaming "BOOSH", the international word for action, with the ultimate victor left standing over his defeated foe. The action never seems real, just two cg action figures rubbing their nekid bodies and whatnot with no repricussions.

Click here to see the full version.

Painting happy trees.

I am impatient. This fact should be well known to any who have spent three minutes in a car with me or witnessed me attempting to open a plastic container blister package of my latest gadget; some have witnessed both, at the same time. So if it takes longer than an hour to complete a drawing, I get antsy and usually save the project to some folder where it will rot in binary forever and go play Team Fortress. Today, a miracle happened, I spent 2 hours making this! Much thanks to Rambo 2 on Starz for keeping me entertained.

Anyhoo, this is a concept piece for a comic I'm working on con mi amigo (Spanish 1, look where ya got me). The character is a lead villain, a cannibal in the post apocolyptic future. This is a rare time in which I even try to paint, I've only done 6 so far, but something that I wish to puruse and get faster (and bopefully better) at.

Merry Christmas all...hmmm, shoulda drawn something more fitting.

No Sense...

While watching Spider-Man 3 on Starz during the late nights, I noticed a glaring omission to Spider-Man's persona. The man has no spidey sense whatsoever. If there is a Spidey 4 I hope they add this to the corrections list along with firing Dunst and Maguire.

I still I'm in the minority when I say this is the best of the Spidey series since it was the closest to replicating the true frantic comic feel and not the emo sad sack slow tempo of the first two. Of course tampering with his origins and making his father's killer the Sandman made no sense and was as stupid as the Joker killing Bruce Wayne's fam in Batman 1.

Click here for the full comic.

A moment of reflection

Sometimes you just need to slow down and look at the world which surrounds you. It really is an amazing place filled with creatures that would be labeled far fetched if created with a palette and brush. And no, this didn't actually happen, it was a bee, not a butterfly.

Click here to see the full comic.

When hell freezes over...

Just a piece I did for art Jumble for the "Snow Monster" theme.

Yes Virginia...

I hate the Macy's Christmas ads. I don't know how this even passed through the viewing. As these uncaring titans of industry recite "Yes Virginia, there is a Santa Claus" I am just struck by who they got to say it. I mean, Donald Trump? Martha Stewart? Calvin Klein? Was Gov. Rod Blagojevich busy? I thought of a new commercial they can use in case they are looking to make another one with some more caring souls.

Click here to see the comic.

When I was young...

A piece I did for the Art Jumble for the theme of Street Fighter. Young Sagat and Ryu in more peaceful times.

Click here for the uncropped pic.

Outdated

Based on a true story. Today I went into an Apple store to dress my 1st gen touch in some new clothes. An amazing spectrum awaited me of various space age technologies fit to protect my poor lil guy from the atrocities which occur in my pockets. Much to my horror, each case was for the new slimmer version. I pulled a local rep to my aid and asked him if any fit the 1st gen Touch, which produced an awkward 10 seconds as I motioned with my hands to form a 1st gen model comprised of air and he formed half words before he abandoned them in frustration. Finally I unsheathed my friend from his denim cage (my Ipod); in the pit of my stomach I felt shame like I had pulled out an Apple Newton. Silence was all he could muster as he regrouped for his exodus, he blurted in disgust "umm, you might check the racks". Smiling, I imagined his head as a spinning pinwheel and returned to my hunt. I eventually found one in the back of the rack behind some of the new cases, beat up and abused like an Atari 2600 game long forgotten by time. Check out the full comic here.

Wrong Choice.

I hate the at&t...err, ab&b commercials. Although I hate any ads where the competition is portrayed as incompetent, moronic, or evil (ahem, Apple) these go as far as calling anyone who is using a competitor's service an idiot through the words of the narrator who has been fired, horribly burned or otherwise left in a poorer condition than he would be if he had chosen their holy brand. I can't wait for the next commercials, maybe they can tie in with 9/11 and disgust me further.
Click here for the comic.

Certain doom...

The vastness of space has always amazed me. We make these words like light years to help our minds grasp the size of something so stunningly large that it would make our heads hurt to even try to think about the size. Click here for the comic.

I would forget my head...

Based on actual events. I made it through the entire sewers, broke past the sentries, killed all spies and before me laid a herd of enemies unaware of the binary doom that was cast upon them. My medic hit the Uber and the Invulnerability clock started, I had 10 seconds or so of complete invincibility to lay waste to the entire offense and make way for our troops to get in and secure the briefcase which we lusted for. I fired off a rocket which missed, hitting the wall behind them sounding the OH CRAP alarms sending them scattering for cover like frightened gazel from the lion. The crosshairs set on a still unaware engineer working on his sentry, I pressed fire only to realize that my rocket launcher was out of ammo. 8 seconds of innefective shotgun blast later and my body supplied a recoat of red for their walls. Remember kids; rocket, reload, refill, repeat.
Click here to see the comic.

Love is a long walk.

Random sketch that one day I will turn into a piece. The closer you get, the more you have to die to yourself.

Bait and switch

This one goes out to all my nerds out there. There are few things as aggravating as seeing an artist you adore advertised on the cover only to find that 2 pages in they replace him with some generic art or not even inside at all. From Travis Charest's abrupt Wildcats end to Ed Mcguinness' Batman/Superman exodus mid page it has felt like being gypped when all you are left with is a mundane artist and a boring story. It's like going to see The Dark Knight and midway through Heath Ledger is replaced with Andy Dick. Click here to see the comic.

The Massacre After Thanksgiving

This year I have decided to spend my night after Thanksgiving in my warm comfy bed instead of in line behind Circuit City waiting for deals on DVDs and low quantity door buster destined to sell out shortly after the doors open. This year had little to offer anyway, the sales seem like afterthoughts instead of the super secret treats that entice the diehards into freezing their respective genitalia in wait. Click here to see the comic.

Seeing Red Again

I have often wondered how hard it would be to be cyclops. Having to see through red tinted glasses would make life's easiest tasks more difficult. You can only see old 3D movies in 2D, you can't read the display on the alarm clock or even see Daredevil if he stood still. Pretty much the only cool thing is the ability to read those hidden picture things on the back of serial boxes...and the ability to shoot light from your eyes, that's pretty cool. Click here to see the comic.

Child's Play

Random art pulled from the art file. I just liked this sketch because of its simplistic principle and fond memories of sloshing through puddles after a storm.

Tired of this crap.

I believe there is a secret war. A war against my four wheeled coach. A war that threatens to engulf the entire bird populous, united by hate for a Civic of Honda. This extends beyond the simplistic "ooh a bird crapped on my car" and goes ounces beyond that. Crafted bombs fall like clockwork while I slumber forming a rorschach of hardened poo on my cars white exterior. I don't know who started this, but I am told peace is removed from the table. I grow weary of this battle, but I have tricks, I have weapons of my own; a car cover approaches and with it, the end of war itself.

Terminat-or-die

I feel conflicted about the new Terminator film. Like a chocolate-coated turd, it all looks pretty till you take a bite. I like Christian Bale in his post apocalyptic ventures (yes I was one of eleven people who liked Reign of Fire) and I know he is more than capable of being believable while screaming at a cgi robot in a raspy voice. The main thing that bugs me is that it clings a little too much to the past in terms of design. It’s time for a refresh of the brand, a reboot if you must, so that the story will feel new and exciting again. New slick terminators, nano bots, transformers, I’m up for anything, just not another metallic skeleton with red eyes. And hey, I would even like to see a little more ending this time around. I know, weird, but if I have to sit through a long worded To Be Continued montage again I will be extremely unpleased. It’s getting a little tiring to see no finality in series (especially the TV series) where it seems to repeat itself on a constant basis (new terminator, fight terminator, find person or tech that started this whole mess, repeat). The only good thing I have heard is that Arnold hates the new cut, which inspires hope. It’s like a colorblind man reviewing a Santa Claus film and commenting how they got the color all wrong.

Click here to see the comic.

The Dark Knight PG version storyboard -EXLUSIVE!!!- (PIC)

I have often wondered while watching a movie how great it would be if they made a version that is suitable for all ages. Even going as far as making alternate scenes to specifically gory or profane scenes. They could then release a PG version alongside their useless "UNRATED" editions and tap into a whole new market. Then I got to thinking maybe that isn't such a good idea...

Click here to see the comic.

Left 2 Die should be the prequel.

I often wonder what I would do if I was in a real zombie situation. All my instincts would be to horde all food and weapons and stay in a confined area until the problem goes away. None of these instincts include going outside to shoot up every last one of them. These feelings of self preservation come alive in the Left 4 Dead demo in which you are a choice jerky walking around with a group of equally tasty morsels for zombie kind shooting every last undead mutant to escape the city. Playing co-op online is fun, until people grow impatient with my constant trips to the safe room to restock after every shot fired. I mean, there's ammo and rations in there, why don't we just stay for a lil' while till this whole mess blows over? Click here to see the comic.

Orkward

Stray thought no. 234,293 of the week. If I was a giant eye fixed to a mountain waiting for a midget to throw my jewelery into a volcano, I'd probably be bored too.

Click to see the full comic.

Press any button...

After watching (and subsequently cringing) at the Clone Wars show on CN, I realized that the entire station has to be built by Fisher price or that in the future (or past?), buttons are designated by archaic color schemes and not once have I seen a label. Either the illiteracy rate must be 98% or they did it to comply with the Imperial Union language laws; I'd just feel bad for the poor colorblind guy.

Transformers 2 Concept Art: Enter Nascon

Since the movie industry is hard hit for money because of all those youtube 30 second clips of movies, which are bankrupting the poor lil movie industry, I thought man what could make this movie a success before it even hits theaters? Then I got it, NasCon! Equipped with over 300 logos NasCon can make around 700 million dollars alone! He's a Nascar (100 mill. right there) robot with an attitude. There is a catch though, he has to be in every screen, even the previews and credits. Aaaand, get this, his language device got scrambled and he can only say tag lines from his various stickers. Imagine him beating up Megatron while screaming "I'M LOVIN' IT!" or "THIS IS CNN!"

Zombie NFL players?

Found this at a ToysR Us and it's gotta be the most frightening nfl figurine ever sold. Although mislabeled as NFL Legends figurine, Zombie Jack Lambert comes with a detached arm, a pose of rigamortis and a face that practically screams "BRAAAAAAIIIINNNNSSS".

The Announcer

It's funny when you hear a character voice, you get this mental image of what you think they would look like. After seeing this article about what the announcer in Team Fortress 2 might look like I decided to share my vision and disclose how much thought I put into trial matters.

So anyhoo, I figure she has goggles with video feeds of each team in each lens, watches the action in some sort of sky box thing like the Truman Show, chain smokes, screams constantly and I like to think she controls all the events in the game like opening gates and disabling weapons for the losing team. Yup, all this and more goes through my head on a daily basis, scary huh?

Switching gears.

I am really getting sick of games that have no clue what they are. I guess playing Resistance 2 has reminded my of what a game should be like in that it sticks to what it does best. But still there are games, which feel the need to throw in gimmicky stages that remove you from the sense of adventure and throw in a button specific DDR action sequence that makes you really annoyed (I'm lookin at you Force Unleashed). It's this crap that I hate and it's this crap that usually ends a game for me being that a) I hate mini games and b) I have the reflexes of a stump, so don't switch it up a bit and have me hold a flashlight on a group of killer bat-things or escort a moronic ai character, I just wanna blow crap up. Simple right? Now this is the last time I want to tell you this.

BOX ART REVIEW: RESISTANCE 2

I ofter wonder what would happen if game companies would put the truth on their box covers to let people know what they are getting themselves into. Now I have the chance. I've been playing a lot of Resistance 2 and I have never played a game that was so equally awesome as it was annoying.

Gameplay: Playing Resistance 2 is like so: fight, cheap death, learn to avoid cheap death, repeat every minute. This game is cheap to no end, they have sat around and discussed the various ways to kill you in this game and with each death you sit stunned that this passed the game testers. The atmosphere of the game goes from scary to annoying relatively fast. It should be noted that I have managed to freeze the game twice.

Design: It was the series' WWII era style that I loved about the first one; a strange juxtaposition of history and sci fi and the enemies were fun enough. Now it seems the developers played too much Halo and Half Life 2 during their break, because this time around it feels like their ugly lovechild full of iconic references to each. The enemies are lifted from Halo and the design is par for Half Life 2 leaving the first game's individualism in the corner to make way for cloaked elites, brutes, sentinels, Gravemind and zombie headcrabs. Hopefully next time the designers will veer back on the WWII track.

Graphics: The graphics are amazing for the most part except for a few strange oddities like twitching objects or a texture map areal view that looks like a blurry google earth pic with the photoshop sandstone texturizer effect.

The Weapons: The weapons are really fun when said weapons aren't the Bullseye or the Carbine which you will be forced to use 98% of the time, you'll likely spend a magazine trying to kill one enemy. And if you hate the flood from Halo, you sir are in for a trip through flood hell. And there is nothing like bugs, so far I've been frozen twice and had to restart the machine. The Magnum is the most satisfying weapon ever in a game for me, the HL2 saw blade launcher comes in 2nd.

Conclusion: As much as this game smacks me around like an abused puppy sending me into fits of rage, I keep coming back for more. It is a fun game that is worthy of any player's attention and co-op online play is fantastic and is the only way it should be played since the single player run through is an exercise in patience and sadomasochism.

Thumbs *crap I died*
Thumbs up.

Hungry Eyes

It's official, I am addicted to Team Fortress 2. My day without someone exploding like a meat filled pinata is like a day without sunshine. That is why I spent an hour making a Steam avatar for my character, Das Chupa (The Suck, in German and Spanish and roots in my love for the Chupacabra). I hate when you get the inks done and realize you want to paint it instead.

War, what it is good for.

I think I have an addiction to Team Fortress 2. Everything I draw as of late seems to be military based. This is one of said drawings, Eagle Eye and Tred surveying the wreckage. Perhaps I'll get around to coloring it, perhaps it will just stay this way, I dunno. I decided to give the largest character the smallest gun, but it does shoot 30 ft. arches of magma (pfft, fire was too weak). Linked to flickr, since Google's compression on pics is atrocious with reds making it look like it was painted with strawberry jam and with more artifacts than an Indiana Jones flick.

Change.

We have a new president! I just found 25 cents on my floorboard! The sky is blue!

These three things have the equal amount of emotional pull in my world. Choosing my candidate was like having only two shows on tv for the next four years, Knight Rider 2000 and The Magic Johnson Show. Perhaps I have started to realize that the presidency is last on a long list of things which affect my life. Still, I have to wonder about how things will change and by wonder I mean haphazardly throwing together this crappy lil comic.

A sticker for the rest of us.

So did you vote today? Did you? When are you? Are you going to vote? Why didn't you vote yet? Don't you care about America? Repeat.

I hate movie trends.

I really hate trends in movies lately, whether it be crappy movies in 3D or mindless sequels to movies no one cares about yet Serenity continues to go sequeless! Y'know what, let's just make a top ten list about what I hate about new movies and for all of them, put "It's not a sequel to Serenity". But seriously, Nick Cage must die. Click on the image or here for the full comic.

Coincidence?

I'm just saying, was watching this today and it just hit me.

The many faces of Mario

Today I thought I'd upload a few bits of drawing exercises. Subject: Mario The Plumber.











Pondering the Addiction







The Dilemma
I hate when I'm big Mario, yet I find another mushroom.









Conquest
Yes, you can shoot him with fireballs, but resist the temptation and you will be rewarded with an amazing feeling of triumph.









On A Journey
Even Mario uses guide books.

Batman vs. The Zombie King!

Halloween is nearly over and the dead will again be forced to their crypts in congress. It is a sad time for me, no more Ghost Hunters marathons, no reason to buy bags of candy other than being gluttonous, no more fun decorations. So, as I sit and watch Ghost hunters Live, which is as exciting as watching zombie blood dry, my only consolation is drawing a zombie or two...and Batman.

Cakenstein

To celebrate this All Hallows Eve, I present this tale of horror. Enter the cake who rips his own fondant and exposes his baked organs!

This is when my wife peers over my tablet and sighs in wonder...or disgust.

What aint broke needs fixin!

It seems the rebranding bug has caught on to a couple of brands like a zombie infestation and with each design there is the overarching problem with all redesigns, everyone will hate it. And in these cases, they deserve said hatred. So it got me thinking on this day of gore and gloom, how would I redesign a popular logo to make it look like crap? The results may vary.

The New Coke
The pitch: You see, kids these days don't care for words that use normal spelling. That's why we've replaced Coke it Koke. Also, kids love backwards k's, they're always walking around with backward letters saying, "Mommy, this man won't stop staring at my shirt!"



Heath Ledger's Batman: The Dark Nite
The pitch: Let's face it, this isn't Batman, this it Heath Ledger's Batman so we rebranded it for better market tie ins and we used a nice comic font we found that drives home the point that he is the Joker. We also place the title of the movie in its correct location seeing as we felt it too hard to know what movie we were watching, Batman or The Dark Knight? So we made the word Batman significantly larger and we felt it needed a harsher edge, maybe bright red and an impacting font that really says Batman and even some cool eyes! Now people can see the title from across the room! Plus, no one gets that whole knight thing and it's a cheap play on words, we felt it needed an extra punch with "Nite". Also, given the nature of the sequel, it needed to really say reboot and nothing says that better than 2.0, not a 1.1 or a 1.0.0.1a, those are cliché. There, now isn't that a movie you want to see?

Apple
The pitch: Okay, when we started we asked ourselves, how can we improve a logo so deeply ingrained in people's minds and needs no further tweaking? The answer; easy! First thing's first, we removed the bite in the apple. Controversial yes, but ask yourself, when's the last time you wanted a half eaten apple? Exactly. Also, we got rid of that bland gray and white color scheme and made it a brilliant green. This lets people know apple is committed to the earth and making this planet a better place to live while have a little fun doing it!



Fed Ex
The pitch: Man, Fed Ex, if ever there was a brand needing a reboot. Listen the whole hidden arrow thing was cool, but it was way too hard for Billy, my son, to see it. So we made it look like, get this, a van! I know! We also removed that garish color combination and made it a fiery red and yellow like the Flash! And if you are still missing that whole arrow thing, look at the new EX and tell me what you see between the e and the x. That's right, a sideways house and what does Fed Ex mainly deliver to? That's right, businesses.

Nike
The pitch: Listen, we get it, you people love the swoosh, so we aren't going to even mess with it. However, people don't even know what it is, so we thought outside the box and added three swooshes! Now it could be like a track from tack and field or a claw or like a wave, anything you want! Also, that old font? Booooring, now this font we found on a free font site says it all. If you can say this isn't an improvement, you sir are Hitler.


Target
The pitch: C'mon, did you even look at the new logo? Go ahead, just look at it and drool buddy! We thought the old logo was too boooooring, so we made it in 3D; that's like 3 times the amazing! And we added an arrow so people know, this is a target and the arrow is going right in, it's the place to be! We also added more rings because a target with two rings is pathetically easy to hit, I mean this ups the ante to the extreme! Listen, we could go on, but what's the point, you're happy, we're happy, and the world just gave birth to a beautiful new baby logo!

NM Condition.

When I was just a wee lad, I used to make my own versions of comics. The art then was a mix of Garfield and Superman maturing to my teens with a terrible combination of Rob Liefield and Jim Lee...so many random lines. Much time has passed since Lil' Monsters #1 (my first comic), but I still randomly make a comic book just for fun. Only now that time is more constrained than the daily ritual of school and Disney's calvacade of addictions, namely Ducktales and Talespin, I only have time to do random covers. Still, it's a good exercise and a waste of an hour while the wife watches her various cake shows.

Birthday for a friend Pt. 2

Being a graphic artist is a lot like being a walking Hallmark, except instead spitting out a 6 dollar card that plays La Bamba, you spit out a more personal card...oh and it takes about 2 hours instead of 30 seconds.

Oh and speaking of birthdays, I got Lou this book from Andy Suriano. This guy is amazing and his art is equally such. And as a bonus to a 120 page hardcover book of pure eye candy, he did this impromptu sketch of Brock Samson and Plastic Man with such ease that it makes me want to drop my tablet and go back to ink and paper.

Seriously, the man is a machine!

The election's getting hot...and heavy.

Sometimes I wonder if people proof banners on websites. Such is the case for this one on nbc's website. They could have probably placed more room between the candidates to make it appear more like a debate and less like a make out session.