The Shizen Design Sketchbook and "Nintendo Power" Studies

 I can't leave good old Artist and Craftsman Supplies without buying a Sketchbook.  You know how it is.  And my hankering for a nice, thick Watercolor paper sent me home with a very unusual one. 

 

This is the Shizen Design Rough Surface Watercolor Sketchbook and it is a beauty.  The covers are gorgeous and sturdy, I love the ribbon closure, and it's nicely crammed with thick, handmade paper.

Emphasis on the THICK.  This is thick, rough-surface watercolor paper.  I like some heft in my drawing paper and I like a little tooth but this was almost like drawing on a pile of paper towels.  

I have to say, I was struggling a bit - until I chanced upon something I wouldn't have expected to help.

Nintendo Power magazine on the Internet Archive. I found this in Autumn and read up until about the early 2000's. It was more fun than I ever would've expected and even prompted my very first Bluesky thread (and my goodness, I hope this embed works and is also in order, ha ha.  If not, have a link).  

So I’ve been reading this almost-complete archive of #Nintendo Power magazine and finding some pretty cool art and stuff. (Might fool around and start my first Bluesky exclusive thread…) archive.org/details/Nint...

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— Trish (@babbletrish.bsky.social) December 1, 2023 at 5:09 PM

As you see, I fell in love with the art.  Up until a certain point, I guess, Nintendo did not have their own in-house illustrators, and the "default" look for their many characters hadn't been nailed down yet.  They hired illustrators from around Kyoto and so we get delightful results like Shotaro Ishinomori's "Link to the Past" comic and whatever this incredibly Kid's Magazine From the Late 80's art style is.

And at some point, I decided, "I love this so much, I should draw these in my Sketchbook.  It's not great for doodling, but it's perfect for long... I'm going to call these Master Studies."  And so:

These was so much fun!  I ended up using the softest pencil I have and a double-ended permanent marker for the lines and my trustiest set of watercolor paints.  you can see how soft and toothy the paper is in these scans.

I couldn't not draw Megaman as he appears in "Captain N: the Game Master".  Look at him!  I really do think "Draw Your OC/Favorite Character/etc. In the Specifically Wrong Way DiC Would've in the 80's-90's" would make for a great drawing challenge.

Next week: A Sketchbook for a Good Cause.

"The Breach"

My thoughts on the D23 and SD Comicon fallout are coming later, and probably well after anyone could care.   For now, let's talk Sketchbooks.



A Saunders Waterford Sketchbook from St. Cuthbert's Mill.  The Lamborghini of English-made watercolor Sketchbooks.  It was gifted to me by my cousin this past Christmas.  Here is it post-cover customization, with good old Carnegie Collection Corythosaurus for scale:

As you can see, it is colossal.  Imposingly so.  And probably very expensive as the paper quality is insanely nice.

As you might imagine, I can't wait to fill this book with goofy-ass animals and crazy characters.

Because it's KaiJuly, I figured why not start with some fanart of the King of Monsters himself?



I love getting to play with scale.  I had a lot of fun looking for photo reference of whales backflipping and I'm pretty proud of that sweet sky I painted.

Additionally, it's not a bad transition, because guess what month it is?



I want to see if I can do a weekly wrap-up post of my daily dragons this month.

Inktober Day 31 - "The Pumpkin Who Couldn't Smile"

Oh goodness, this is the cutest thing ever:



So today's fanart is just a Jones-y pumpkin wearing the same expression I had during this entire show:


Happy Halloween everyone!

Inktober Day 30 - "Witch's Night Out"

So here's the thing.  I found this amazing special I only vaguely remember from my childhood on Youtube a few days ago and *just as suddenly*, it was taken down.  It's worth searching for, because it is so weird and funky in the best ways.  Halloween specials should be funky.  This fanart is accurate, trust me:

Inktober Day 29 - "The Last Halloween"

OK I'm not even sure how to introduce this one.

Did you know "Savage" Steve directed a Halloween special?  But it was really a long commercial for Mars candies, so it couldn't be as insane as "Better Off Dead", so it's... not interesting.

~*~OR~*~ 

Were you a child in the 90's with vague memories of a commercial for Mars candy with really dodgy CGI?  Did you know that was a spin-off from a Halloween special from the year before?

In either case, it's called "The Halloween That Almost Wasn't, But Then Was" "The Last Halloween" and it looks like this.  Drink for every 90's kid movie trope:



Man, those are some character designs...

Inktober Day 28 - "The Great Bear Scare"

Right, so this wasn't a Berenstain Bears special. Which, for some reason, I figured it would be. 

It's something far weirder, cheaper, and overall less good starring a character created for a weird Christmas special.  You can watch it here and boy I hope you like tweening.  Here's some Not-A-Fan Art:

Inktober Day 27 - Sludgey!

Today's Inktober is brought to you by catching up on the Sexy Armpit's Halloween Specials and the Purple Stuff Podcast.  Of course I had to draw this little fellow after he started singing Cathy Dennis...

Inktober Day 26 - "Over the Garden Wall"

If you missed "Over the Garden Wall" last year, you'll get to catch it again all this week.  There's been a lot of great fanart for the series over the past year and here's my entry:

"Get in the Damn Ball Already" Progress Pictures!

Last weekend, I worked hard on a piece for a contest held at the Pokemon Daily group in DeviantArt. The rules were simply, "have your team of six Pokemon battle a Legendary in it's lair."

Now, I briefly considered making a Big Damn Painting of a Big Damn Epic Battle. Then I remembered that I tend to stink at battle scenes, especially if they involve more than two characters/figures (one-on-one fights are more dramatically interesting anyway).

But more importantly, I remembered what actual in-game encounters with Legendaries are really like...





So I whipped up the sketches you see here. With an end-of-the-month deadline, a big painting was out of the question, but I didn't really want to do yet another digital painting either. Watercolor felt right. I just didn't want this piece to look "too neat", it wouldn't fit the tone I was going for.



Get In The Damn Ball Already by ~babbletrish on deviantART ---- Feederwatch Thursday! Downy Woodpecker 1 White-breasted Nuthatch 1 Carolina Wren 1 European Starling 16 Northern Cardinal 1 House Sparrow 15 ---- And speaking of Nuthatches, I added these cards to the Zazzle store just in time for Valentine's Day!

In which Trish tries to avoid "Pokemon Black/White" spoilers and Fails. Spectacularly.

So for those of you who dislike "Pokémon" and/or have no interest in it, this is going to be a long-ass post.

For the rest of us, I like Pokémon, you like Pokémon, the fifth generation games are confidently expected to arrive in America sometime this coming late winter/early spring. They are already out in Japan, so, naturally, there are now several small craters where the Pokémon-centric areas of the internet once stood. This is because some fans could not wait a few months and imported copies of "Pokémon Black/White" to play. We're not going to make fun of them, however, (a) because that kind of peculiar glass-houses-and-stones nerd behavior is reprehensible and (b) because these crazy obsessed fans have been nice enough to dole out game information for the rest of us.

Since Nintendo is being a big meanie about screenshots and other graphics, sadly I will not be posting pictures. But here are some of the more intriguing spoilers:

The Plot is NOT "Vision of Escapoké" or whatever.
There was a hilarious-in-hindsight rumor that popped up a few weeks before the game was released that "Black/White" was going to be the "Darker and Edgier" Pokémon game that a vocal chunk of the fandom has desired for years. (For some damn reason, some fans want a "mature" version of "Pokémon". Which is a game series in which a ten year old child is put in charge of beings with phenomenal elemental powers. And where this one guy wanted to reboot the entire universe and got banished to the realm of a cosmic horror dragon thing as punishment.) The plot was said to involve a character that was "a half-Angel", or a cross between a human and a Pokémon, or something else that's terribly... well, the word that's coming to my mind is "fanfiction-y". Seems this isn't the case, thank Arceus.

The Plot is, However, Marginally Different in "Black" and "White".
Somewhat similar to "Ruby/Sapphire", the Not-Team-Rocket you battle depends on the game. In "Black", it's smelly hippies. In "White", it's corrupt corporate executives. There is also a unique area in each game; Back has a city and White has a forest. Furthermore, certain characters will only appear in one game or the other. The identity of the final gym leader, for example, depends on what game you play. I doubt the plot will be all that different in practice, really.

There is an Online Area Called the "Dream World", and in it, it is Possible to Find Pokémon with Alternate Abilities.
This is the most interesting because we know so little about it. The reason is that the Dream World servers have been down for weeks after the release of "Black/White". Yes, the "Dream World" finally takes "Pokémon" out of the Nintendo and onto the Internet. About the only thing I know about it is that you are able to find Pokémon with different Abilities.
(Aside: This is about where I wonder if anyone not familiar with the games got this far.)
Some of these new abilities have the potential to make certain older Pokémon completely broken. Vulpix, for example, gets Drought. Yes, Groudon's Drought, the permanent Sunny Day weather effect. And little Polywag gets the permanent Rainy Day effect Drizzle, which used to be exclusive to Kyogre. Daaaaaamn...

We Finally Have a Maniraptor Pokémon.
OK, so Aaken and Aakeosu are Microraptors, which leaves the pre-teen kid in me a little disappointed. And it boggles the mind that it took five generations. But still, honest-to-goodness 'raptor Pokémon!
Other Pokémon include an electric unicorn, a giant psychic amoeba, a fiery Daruma doll, a cross between a bison and Mr. T, a big badass eagle, a hydra, and a dark/fighting Markie Mark.

My Theory About Mijumaru has Been Jossed.
But at least it was Jossed in the craziest way possible. The little water starter whose character design was criticized as the dumbest thing ever turns into a water unicorn thing with an amazing mustache.
Zubat, Geodude, and Tentacool are Not Appearing in this Game.
Their roles will be taken by three entirely new Pokémon, which is a first. And, in my mind, huge.
That said, I am under good authority that we will be cursing whoever thought of the Electric/Flying squirrel...

Three-on-three battles.
You knew it was coming, I knew it was coming, and here it is.

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Sketch of the Day!

I couldn't resist the pun, but who could?

Ways "Lost" Could End, as Predicted by Anime!

Well, three Anime series and a movie based on one of said series. Here be SPOILERS GALORE! (But no fanart. None. I am not going to draw Jack as a wolf or Locke with an automail arm. No. Just, no.)
We all know this is a series that's not going to end with the old "main character looks into an empty room with a sad smile and closes the door" option. I will make two real predictions here:
1) A lot of fans are going to be really, really upset. May want to give them a break that Monday morning.
2) This series finale will inspire essays. Long, long essays.
Now, the three best complete Anime series I've seen (thank you, Netflix) had exactly those kinds of endings, so let's try to use them to predict how "Lost" will end.
Important terminology note before we begin: Borrowing from "Futurama", the "still stuck on Craphole Island" continuity will be known as Universe A, while the "815 landed safely" continuity will be Universe 1.
"Wolf's Rain": Similar in (very) broad strokes to Watership Down, this series ended it's televised run by wrapping up a major conflict, but it didn't conclude the story. This was "fixed" with four episodes that went straight to video, essentially a four-part series finale. The "W.R."-ish Last Episode of "Lost": Every conflict in Universe A is resolved -- but not before everybody dies violently. Jack is the only character left alive, and even then he lies bleeding to death in the bamboo grove. As he slowly passes on (and a ridiculously sad song gradually builds), he gets to watch Craphole Island return to it's pre-crash, pre-Dharma, pre-Jacob and Not-Locke state.
But before the credits role, we get a brief look at Universe 1. All the Universe 1 versions of the Candidates, no matter where they are, suddenly sense something. And then Jack starts running...
Notes: Change a few of the details and I think this is the most likely ending of all. We are in for a bittersweet as hell ending.
"Fullmetal Alchemist": Great series. Probably my overall favorite out of this bunch. Note that we're going with the series ending, and will be ignoring the "Conqueror of Shamballa" movie. Most people do anyway. (Seriously, Fritz Lang is somehow involved. WTF?). The "F.M.A"-ish Last Episode of "Lost": Sawyer is able to destroy NotLocke after that creepy kid (the one who looks like a possibly older Aaron) shows him NotLocke's weakness. Meanwhile, Jack is killed and somehow "wakes up" as Universe 1 Jack. Desmond is conveniently there to explain what's up. In the end, all the Losties in Universe A mentally merge with their Universe 1 counterparts -- and, as Desmond comments, none of them remember a thing about their Craphole Island experiences. And Jack? He's stuck in Universe A, and starts on the search for a way to cross over... Notes: This may be the best integration of the two Universes. And I'd be surprised if Jack gets off the Island.
"Neon Genesis Evangelion": For the two or three of you who have never heard of this series, it is essentially to the original English-language dub of "Power Rangers" what "Lost" is to "Gilligan's Island".The "N.G.E."-ish Last Episode of "Lost": Forget the various mysteries of the Island, anything about Universe 1, who or what Jacob and NotLocke are, which characters end up on what side, or anything like that. None of that gets resolved. Instead, Jack gets to talk through his daddy issues with some other people. The end.
Notes: You KNOW we're going to hear something about Jack's father one more time for the road. Why not base the whole finale on that and really get it overwith?
The main case against this ending: Carlton and Damon probably enjoy breathing.
"End of Evangelion": After the uproar over "N.G.E."'s... underwhelming series finale, the producers got together again and made this movie. (It was originally how they had intended to end the series, but time and money were uncooperative.) This new ending was.... ye gods, it was somethin'...The "E.o.E."-ish Last Episode of "Lost": The main conflicts of the show are, thankfully, resolved... and then some angelic beings in the form of Sayid come and hug everyone in both Universes, causing them all to dissolve into Slusho. In the end, Universe A Jack finds himself on a desolate shoreline somewhere doing... something inappropriate... to Universe 1 Locke. Locke compares this situation to getting his period.
Notes: Yeah...

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Sketch of the day!
Arrrrrrgh. I was just curious. :(
This will be a Blogger exclusive, as I don't want to stain either online portfolio with this. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Sadbeard McJackwolf:


And since I am the kind of person who thinks that any horrible art thing worth doing is worth doing all the way (and Jackwolf needed some friends), here is The Worst Thing Ever:



This is essentially an amalgamation of all the worst kinds of fanart I've ever seen.
Disclaimer: No, I do not for a second regret joining Deviant Art; I've met lots of cool people there and made some great new contacts. But every so often you run into something like this and...
The thing about DA is this: Think about all the art you did in junior high that you loved at the time, then went back to look at it and said, quote, 😭 . OK? Now consider: back when you and I (presuming we're around the same age, dear reader) were just starting out as artists, our embarrassing-in-hindsight artwork was safely hidden in our Sketchbooks, journals, math notebooks, and so on, where nobody else could see them. These kids have their old shames on display for the whole wide web to see. Dang.
So, anyway, "Lost"!

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I am afraid my brain has turned into mush lately. Therefore, I completely forgot to post this lovely Mother's Day song: