I've got a few more Scarecrow paintings. The figure ended up being a little skinnier than I wanted.
This one is probably my favorite.
The same one with a different color effect:
And this one is the same inks at a different size and different colors:
Showing posts with label comics. Show all posts
Showing posts with label comics. Show all posts
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
More Scarecrow Paintings
I've got a few more Scarecrow paintings. The figure ended up being a little skinnier than I wanted.
Friday, June 5, 2009
General Grimm
Here's a larger version of panel 2 of today's Star Stream page. (click the thumbnail or "read more" to see the larger file)
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Review: Zuda Roundup May 2009
Cubicles
Life gets dangerous in the far future. Wally is dealing with overbearing mangers, the boss’s daughter, and corporate takeovers. Besides all that there are galactic squids, genetic mutants, and space pirates.
Interesting premise with some entertaining characters, it kinda reminds me of Office Space in outer-space. I don't really feel like it belongs in the "big leagues" on Zuda.
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Flowing Wells
An Ice-Age, Zombies, Aliens, Monsters, The Plague, suburban sprawl…Nothing seems to fazes these folks from Flowing Wells anymore.
Every so often there comes along a webcomic that's just so fucking incredibly bad I wanna beat the shit out of a bus load of Nuns. Whoever gave this son-of-a-bitch a pencil and paper should be ashamed of themselves. "Oh this town is full of zombies, monsters, a plague... some aliens, and whatever the fuck "suburban sprawl" is... but who wants to see that shit when I can give you "DONALD THE FUCKING FREAK SHOVELING SNOW IN HIS GODDAMNED BOXERS FOR EIGHT PAGES?!'"
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Freak City
Carnival freaks, including a fat man with adjustable girth and a bearded lady whose hair needs more than just conditioner to be tamed, are oppressed by a fearful government.
That's one wacky fucking webcomic you've got there, Sir!
I thought this one was a little weird at first, then the fat-man started talking with a lisp and I busted out laughing. I'd love to sit down and read about 100 pages of this webcomic.
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Gone Zombie
A religious cult seeking spiritual communion with the undead ensnares a young mother and her son in its insanity. Her brother must elude militiamen, zombies and religious fanatics to save them.
I really liked the slightly twisted nature of this comic. There are a few really funny moments in it. The characters seem pretty cool too.
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Lily of the Valley
A love story for the over and under medicated, the disenchanted, the excessively violent and the soft-spoken. Welcome to a valley of emotional turbulence!
By far the most twisted comic of the month. The art is solid and the twist was a genuine surprise. If I say I liked this comic, does that make me a bad person?
Monday, May 11, 2009
Review: Sides (Zuda)
An exploration of a new frontier. Walter Grim and Love Morely wrestle with the natural dangers of this new world, while they discover its connection to their own world.
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I loved this story, but every time the hero of the story said anything it left me with the insatiable urge to grab him by the fucking neck and say "That's a little vague Spock!"
Sides features some of the best art in webcomics, period. The character designs are awesome. The deign of the lead character (Mr. Morely) alone was enough to make me like him in spite of his vague explanations (or lack there of)
The panel where he transitions from reality to whatever realm he ends up in (could you be a little more specific about that, Mr. Morely?) felt a little strange and out of place at first, but when you see the end result of the transition it doesn't bother you.
I also liked the costume design and use of colors in the alternate dimension or realm or whatever the hell it is. The change made sense and the choice of colors worked.
The story was good despite the fact you're left with a lot of questions about what's going on... ok maybe it's not as confusing as I make it out to be, but I do it out of love. It's a really good story.
Read More......
Sunday, May 10, 2009
Review: OPSEC (Zuda)
Violent protestors clash on the streets of Britain as the EU debates granting Turkey full membership. Join Tom Carter, deniable operator for MI5, on the trail of a terrorist attack.
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OPSEC is a darker version of James Bond/Jason Bourne. I love spy thrillers and this story doesn't disappoint.
This is another good example of how to do a Zuda entry right. Establish your characters, the situation and the get on with it. At this point, action helps a lot... and like I said, OPSEC doesn't disappoint.
I wanna start with the main character, Tom Carter. From the moment he's introduced we're given an ample amount of information about who he is and what he does. If I didn't like the character at this point, (which I did) the minute I saw him use stealth to subdue his target and subsequently bust into the next room, guns blazing, and take out the rest of his heathen enemies I was sold.
We don't really get a ton of details about the plot aside from the fact it's a spy story about an agent tracking down a terrorist cell. There's some side-story information thrown in early on in the story that helps set the mood for what's to come.
Despite not getting a ton of details, there is enough to build intrigue. You get a clear sense that the writer knows enough about what he's doing to give you an interesting story. I felt this way and I'm really hoping at this point that I'll get to see more of this comic.
The art is wonderful. It's realistic style meshes well with the darker, more realistic idea of what a secret agent really is (as opposed to what you might get from a James Bond movie)
The colorist does a fantastic job of selling this. In fact, it probably plays the biggest role in giving the art that realistic feel.
Overall, the dynamic action scenes and intelligent story-telling are presented here in what I can only call a phenomenal webcomic.
Saturday, May 9, 2009
Review: Clandestino (Zuda)
Clandestino has been haunted since birth, while guided by an old mysterious Gypsy legend. Will he become the next Gypsy King?
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This action-packed story about a sharp-shooting gypsy is pretty hit and miss.
Hit and miss is a constant unintentional theme running throughout the 8 pages. Weather it's the shoddy dialogue or the stylized art... it's there at every turn.
The gritty art looks great at a distance... but not as good up close. There are a few places where the anatomy looks like it takes too many creative choices for the sake of style only to fall flat. It's not so bad that you cringe and have to look away fast before your eyes bleed, but it does make the characters look unattractive for the most part.
There are a few places where it seems to fit perfectly. The design of the main villain is awesome. He kinda looks like Clint Eastwood with a samurai sword, which sounds fucking awesome right? Well it looks fucking awesome too.
On the other hand, there are some character designs that leave you underwhelmed. I can't say "hit and miss" enough about this comic.
What Clandestino does do right is get across it's point in just 8 pages. I've said a thousand times that a lot of Zuda entries don't explain enough in eight pages to let the reade know what the hell is going on and more importantly, what they can expect from the rest of the story.
Clandestino does a fantastic job of telling you pretty much everything you need to know about the story. You get the backstory in narration throughout the non-stop action for 8 pages and in the end you're left with a clear idea of where the story is gonna go while at the same time leaving you wondering how it'll turn out.
Friday, May 8, 2009
Review: Beertown B'hoys (Zuda)
Brooklyn, 1894. A group of waterfront throwaways rise through the ranks of the New York underworld lead by the man destined to become America’s first celebrity gangster.
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This is the first time I've ever seen a gangster webcomic that blended comedy, violence and character in such a well executed story.
There's a lot of over-the-top dialogue that's really funny. A store clerk being held up says "Sins of Moses!" and you can't help but laugh. The only negative is that in webcomic form - without the variations of tone and accent - the different supporting characters tend to lose their individual personalities. The two main characters, however, maintain clearly different personas. Enjoyable personas at that.
Beertown is drawn in a blocky cartoon style that's pretty damn unique. A lot of the caricatures are pretty much what you would expect for both an old school gangster story as well as the time period the story takes place in (1894) and the grayscale colors fit the story perfectly.
If you're looking for a fun, exciting old school gangster comic, look no further than Beertown. It has everything and then some.
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Review: Amber Hale, Supermodel (Zuda)
In the future, Amber Hale embodies fame and glamour. But, lurking behind the limelight, a sinister organization’s pursuit to save humanity may take her soul.
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While I wouldn't call Amber Hale a "super" model, I would call this a pretty good webcomic.
I'll start with the art, because that's what stood out the most about this comic to me. For the most part it's a pretty common art style... a cartoon, western manga or whatever the hell they call it, thats what it is. It's not a bad thing.
The character designs are pretty good, my favorite are the snake-eyes/clone-trooper looking guys (although a little generic) The design of Amber is good, but not my "cup of tea" I guess, while the character Kael was a complete failure to me. He looks kinda like a frontman for an 80s "hair band" and about as intimidating as one.
The story is a little difficult to understand given the lack of plot details. Kael is apparently running a secret operation doing experiments on pretty girls while the "clone army" guys are chasing them around trying to kill them.
I love that the story features a lot of action in the first eight pages, I just wish there were a few more clues to Kael's motivations or a hint as to why these guys in the tech suits are trying to kill them.
One thing about this comic that really struck me was the inverted word balloons. The bubbles are black with white letters. In most comics this would feel out of place but it seems to fit perfectly in this story.
Overall it's a "middle of the road" kind of comic that looks like a lot of fun as long as you're not expecting to read the greatest story ever written.
Sunday, April 12, 2009
Review: Zuda Roundup April '09
This shocking exposé will reveal the truth behind the celebrity penguin and his not-so-family-oriented life.
Penguin is one fucking hilarious webcomic. I especially loved the scene of the Penguin snorting coke and fucking his groupies.
The art, on the other hand, was less than spectacular.
You can think of it as a romantic comedy with a macabre twist, or a werewolf story without the werewolves.
This is a really good (and really funny) webcomic. I loved reading it... but it doesn't feel like it belongs on Zuda. It feels like a better fit for the Sunday papers.
Pirate turned detective, Smitty, PIRATE EYE, will solve any case for a HEFTY FEE. This latest case will test him, uncover an ancient mystery, and reveal his bloodline holds secrets, even from himself.
He's called a "Pirate Eye" because he's a pirate detective but all we see in the 8-page story is a detective dressed like a pirate. The Asian stereotypes turned me off too.
Galaxy Qubart is under attack by the parasitic JELLYS! But worry not my friends! CANCER TROOP 4 IS HERE TO EXTERMINATE ANY JELLYS INFECTING YOUR MOON, HARVEST WORLD OR EVEN YOUR OWN HOME!
Too many pretty colors, not enough... anything else. Maybe if this were a cartoon on Nickelodeon or something it might be different... as a webcomic I wasn't really impressed.
When Alyra Daniels’ brother gets killed in front of her, her life changed. Now she has to face the ancient powerful group of beings, known as the Sins of Chaos.
Daemon Brethren is a decent story but I didn't like the way the "good guys" were able to figure out without any reasonable explanation that the "bad guy" of the story was "just a pawn." That and the over-use of airbrushes in the art were a turn off.
Saturday, April 11, 2009
Review: Spy6teen (Zuda)
Cally Calhoon wants to be the model high school student, but that’s not easy when her after school job is with a secret government unit called The Quad! Hi-Spy espionage before the first bell rings!
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Spy6teen felt pretty average until I saw the twist at the end... It's still not the best comic of the month, but it's pretty damn good.
I love when comics blend character, action and plot and present it with some nice art. Spy6teen has all of that. The stylish art emphasizes the action almost perfectly. There's some great character designs in here as well.
The part that felt "average" (at least at first) was the writing. I was expecting a campier story, and to be honest it felt a little camp for the most part. But the solid blending of character, plot and action helped me to overlook all that.
Overall, Spy6teen is a solid webcomic with a little bit of everything. It's definitely worth checking out and I wouldn't mind reading more, should it win this month's competition.
Friday, April 10, 2009
Review: Myth (Zuda)
A tenacious orphan returns from a fallen kingdom of fantasy with a giant at his side. Together, the two set out to battle evil in both the realm of adults and the supernatural.
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What would happen if Sin City had a love child with Calvin and Hobbs? They'd have a little webcomic baby named 'Myth'
The artistic style of Myth looks like it was ripped straight from Calvin and Hobbs. On top of that, the main character is a young boy about Calvin's age. And judging by the synopsis and the last few pages, they've replaced Hobbs with a "giant."
The twisted nature of the story about a boy abandoned by his parents only to be chained to a wall in an old couple's basement like a prisoner mixed with the black and white/greyscale art also reminded me of the Sin City movie (never read the comic.)
All of this is blended flawlessly into an amazing webcomic with plenty of action and plot. The pacing is smooth (and fast) with a couple of "holy fuck!" moments thrown in for good measure.
The overall for this comic is "nearly perfect." The fact that it's not my prefered genre didn't stop me from loving every page.
Thursday, April 9, 2009
Star Stream: Characters
Some concept art for Star Stream.
This is Dishon and the little guy is his first lieutenant. They'll be around for a good part of chapter 2 and maybe longer...
One more note, the little triggers on their swords are for the blaster function :)
Review: Mecha-Simian (Zuda)
Last survivor of a war ravaged planet, last warrior of a dead race, trapped in a robotic replica of his own destroyed body, he is Mecha-Simian - cyborg monkey space-trooper!
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Mecha-Simian isn't bad for a cliche saturday morning cartoon presented in webcomic form...
I don't know what to say about the concept of this comic, except it's just silly. It's not bad and it's definitely interesting to read, but not enough to make me wanna come back to it. Again, I'm not necessarily saying the comic is bad.
The idea of a cyborg space-monkey flying around in his talking ship is kinda funny by itself. Unfortunately, the actual comic probably suffers from trying too hard to be funnier than it is. That's probably because of the approach of trying to be deliberately cliche.
The light-hearted hero battles dozens of droids, a mad scientist and a diabolical warlord, gets captured and manages to escape just in the nick of time thanks to the villain wasting time trying to give a speech...
What makes this comic a little better than others who have tried this is the art. What made me think of Saturday morning cartoons, more than anything, was the art. It's action-packed, dynamic and full of life. It's easily the best part of this comic.
Overall: I really wouldn't mind sitting down and reading through 50 or 60 pages of this comic as long as it was already there to read. But the idea of waiting for new installments doesn't sound like something I'd be interested in.
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
Review: "Intergalactic Law: Grey Squad" (Zuda)
In a galaxy where corruption doesn’t retire, Detective Janet Moore arrives at her latest assignment: Grey Squad, a sleepy, out of the way precinct where aging cops are sent to end their careers.
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What have I always wanted from a webcomic space adventure, you ask? A drug dealing Space-Granny! ...seriously, this is one wacky fucking webcomic.
Intergalactic Law is filled with some very interesting characters. The lead character, Detective Moore, May be the only normal one... (That would be the cyborg female that was apparently bred for the sole purpose of being a cop.)
The pacing of the story is a hybrid webcomic/comic strip. Each page can be read as a "gag-of-the-week" but there's also an over-arcing theme of a young hardliner detective being stationed in a precinct full of older cops nearing retirement. On top of that, every case seems to involve someone from the "retirement home" (see "drug dealing grannies")
It's not just the wild story that I like. The art is damn good. The more alien character designs go from simple near-human with blue skin to giant walking boars (or something similar)
There are only two things that bothered me. The first was the lettering. It's cluttered and a little difficult to read in a few places. Secondly, we never get to see anything outside of the precinct's office area... I would've loved to see this crazy retirement community where all of these elderly criminals come from (AGAIN, see "drug dealing grannies") Neither complaint was big enough to have any real impact on my opinion of the comic though, I still loved it.
Intergalactic Law is overall a fantastic webcomic. Period. End of story.
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Review: Earthbuilders (Zuda)
Their mission is to make barren planets hospitable for mankind... but in a frozen colony called New Sapmi lays a mysterious force that not even the resourceful Earthbuilders are ready for.
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Looks like the April competition on Zuda has a lot of SciFi Space Adventures... and that's fine with me.
The first one is Earthbuilders. This comic does almost everything right. It doesn't do it "the best" but it does do it right. At least, everything but the sphincter jokes.
After seeing the starship on the first page I was kinda hoping to see some space battles. The ship and vehicle designs are pretty good. There's a familiar feel to them, but they also manage to stay unique enough that you aren't reminded of other scifi stories.
The other aspects of the art are just as good. There were a few places where the facial expressions bugged me, but other than that the comic looks really good.
The story itself does a great job of drawing you into the world (or in this case worlds?) these characters live in and a few of the characters even get a little backstory thrown in. You walk away with a good feel for what's going on. The fact that there's a little action thrown in is a plus.
The only complaint I had (aside from the completely unnecessary sphincter jokes) was the dialogue. It wasn't that it was over-the-top cliche, it's more that it just felt a little flat. It's fine when the characters say what they have to say to advance the story, but the "personality through dialogue" aspects felt a little forces.
Overall it's a fun story to read. It's deffinetly different for a space adventure, and not in a bad way.
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Clinical Assassin Print On Sale Now!
I just got the notification from ComiXpress about the print version of Clinical Assassin. It's now available to order from their online store!
To order a copy just CLICK HERE!
The story is written and created by Shan Lee Cook (that's me) with art by J.C. Grande and letters by Ben Rollman
Saturday, November 22, 2008
The Infamous Reset Button...
Starting tomorrow (technically tonight at 1:00 AM) the Clinical Assassin story will relaunch from the beginning! This time it'll follow a daily schedule and run straight through all 28 pages of the first story non-stop.
To read the webcomic version, just click the Clinical Assassin button in the left column.
Sunday, May 11, 2008
Off and Running
I'm just 3 days in now and Untelevised is off to a great start. Of the four webcomics I've done, 'Untelevised' has had the best 1st and 2nd day and the 3rd looks like it could be even better (it's 4:00am as I'm writing this)
It was my second highest comic yesterday (based on page views) which is pretty impressive considering the comic consists of one page and a title page. It even gave Clinical Assassin a run for it's money. (Just to put that in perspective, 'Clinical Assassin' is by far my highest ranking comic - It nearly doubles the total page hits for my other two comics on Saturdays, the day I update it)
Let's hope this holds. Like I said in this article yesterday, I've already got the first 10 strips ready to be uploaded so I've got a good head start. By the time I reach that 10th strip I should have a good idea of how well the comic is gonna be recieved.
I'll be sure to update again around that time.
Monday, March 17, 2008
The Alien Review
This is a new series I'm about to launch tomorrow called 'The Alien Review'!! If you haven't figured it out already, it's about a bunch of aliens that review stuff. :) The first two aliens are Jintuan and Bob. I'm starting with them because they're my favorite two so far. I'll be adding more aliens as the series progresses.
Some of the stuff I'll be reviewing are movies, comics, TV shows, etc. The first installment is a review of Stargate - The Ark of Truth. I haven't made my mind up about what will be next but I'll probably talk about some comics or something.
THERE WILL BE NO SPOILERS AT ALL!
The point of the strip isn't to actually review anything. It's really just to make jokes about stuff. I'm not gonna post an installment that says "...but the most shocking part of 'The Empire Strikes Back' is when we learn that Darth Vader is in fact Luke's father!!"
There'll be none of that.
And I am in no way affiliated with any of the shows, comics, movies, companies, producers, creators or ANYBODY that is IN ANY WAY involved with ANYTHING I talk about.
Read More......Saturday, March 15, 2008
Short Story
This is a short story I'm working on. Feedback would be awesome.
A constant stream of giant fire balls leave a thousand trails of light. They slowly fade and dissipate into a dark black canvas painted sparsely with tiny specks of light. The bow pans left and tips forward. Kel-Boran fills the viewport of the small transport.
The planet wears a dusty sand belt with lush green forests covering the polar caps. It’s few citizens mostly work in the mines while machines build ships from the resources they collect. At night the locals gather in gritty pubs where they mostly sit quietly and drink. The cargo ships they build will sometimes return to bring fresh supplies. The family transports they build in Kel-Faidus usually leave to never be seen again. The battle ships they build in orbit play no part in their general way of life.
They stir up little dust if any as their transport lands. The facility’s Foreman walks swiftly towards the possible commission. He scratches his beard as he examines the small ship. He’ll make more from the spare parts than he would trying to resale it he thinks. The pilot pulls a latch. The canopy opens.
The pilot studies the facility beside him with blatant apathy as the Foreman examines him. He’s young. Slightly shorter than average. Wavy blonde hair on a thin frame. He carries himself with a forced nature. He’s just a pretty boy. He’s an easy mark.
The co-passenger is a few years younger. Long straight black hair. She’s a beautiful girl. She’s used to living in luxury. The Foreman recognizes this. He’ll play it to his advantage. He’ll show them the more expensive family yachts and convince the boy that he’s gotta treat his girlfriend good. He hides his glee and introduces himself.
“No thank you. We’re here to meet a friend and join his crew.” The boy is smarter than he looks. “And I have no intention of being conned out of my ship.”
A feeble old man, wretched and devoid of hope, stands like a crumbling statue in the ruins of an empty future. He took a gamble and failed. He gives them a moment to leave before he turns to face his fate. A dilapidated building that feels no shame in it’s disgusting appearance.
Hours pass but nothing changes here. The few gusts of wind that pass them by barely cause a stir in the dusty sands. They sit on a stone step watching a setting sun that takes forever to hide behind the blank horizon. She wraps her arms around his and rests her head against his shoulder. The Universe whispers prophecies in the stars. You’ll never see each other again. Everything is ending. If she heard it she ignores it.
“Cole?”
“Raila?” His wit is subtle.
“Are you sure you want to live on a starship for the rest of our lives?”
“It’s not forever.” He makes the lie sound convincing. “In a few years we’ll have enough credits to settle on a nice tropical planet. Grow our own fruit, set up a stand in the market. Live by the sea.”
“Mmm. Daughter of the Ocean.” She pauses for a moment.
The secrets we keep destroy us. They hide in the shadows lurking like a twisted predator. The longer we keep them, the longer they stay hidden, the more the balance of power changes. Eventually the scales tip and you find that you’re no longer hiding secrets. You’re hiding from them. Eventually they’ll catch up to you. They’ll claw you to death and let the vultures circle.
She struggles to hide her emotions. She knows he’s lying. She saw the transmission before he had a chance to delete it. They’ll never settle down. They’ll live the rest of their short lives running.
After five years of service in the Bellian War, Second Commander Cole Allara left the Arishian Fleet with less than he took with him when he joined. Holo-banners along the city streets promoted the nobility of standing up in defense of Arishia and it’s allies. The chance to explore the Galaxy only fueled his ambitions. He hadn’t considered the affects of being stranded in space under constant threat of attack along a frontline that bordered a sector of the galaxy he’d only read about as a child with nothing protecting him from the vacuum of space but a layer of metal and an energy shield that was depleted more and more with each blast wave it absorbed. Five years was enough. He’d done his part. They can’t re-call what they can’t find.
He watches from orbit as the sun swings around Kel-Boran. He’d arrived shortly after his nephew Cole but chose to watch the sunrise first before going planet side. The contrast between a vast horizon and a giant marble always reminds him just how small the world really is. He’ll spend most of his life in the darkness of the universe. Moments like this are few and far between.
He can barely remember the last time he saw a star peak out from behind a planet. He’d been serving twice as long as Cole before his nephew even considered joining the Fleet. After nearly twenty years of sitting in a cockpit feeling helpless as he watched his fellow pilots blasted into oblivion he’d had enough. A few fingers on his right hand could be replaced. His left arm from the elbow down could be replaced. The missed opportunities, numbered in the thousands, to watch a morning star were lost forever.
Rebirth is a constant theme in every corner of the galaxy. In some systems they believe in reincarnation. The belief that a dying soul floats up into the sun where it’s refined and transformed into a new being and sent to live on another world. On Caju-Bin they believe the orange rivers produce a water that purifies the soul and makes it new again.
He came to buy a ship. Within the hour, he’ll have a new ship and a new title. A new crew to follow him. And with any luck, by this time tomorrow, he’ll be on his way to a new day on a new world with another beautiful morning star. Read More......
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