tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-169761412024-03-07T10:32:58.621-08:00Battle OnBatallahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12372209941349167606noreply@blogger.comBlogger124125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16976141.post-60758561143550073782010-04-03T11:04:00.000-07:002010-04-03T11:21:37.144-07:00Clash of the TitansI always love crossover titles because it allows some of my favorite characters to go against each other. Captain America vs. Batman? I’m all over it! Chun-Li vs. Mai Shiranui? Everybody wins! Now two of my favorite people are “clashing.” These two happen to be Adam Carolla and Manny Pacquiao.<br /><br />I love Adam Carolla! I love Manny Pacquiao! This is gonna be awesome! Are they gonna do a movie together? Is Pacquiao gonna be a guest on Carolla’s podcast? Oh wait, it’s just another case of people blowing something completely out of proportion. This nonevent that’s going around is a result of people getting offended at the typical Adam Carolla rant we’ve all come to know, and in my case, love. Of course, we all know that Filipinos are a proud race, me being one of them, that EASILY gets offended at the slightest bit of negative commentary, let alone one directed at the national hero.<br /><br />Examiner.com reports:<br /><br /><blockquote>Adam Carolla starts off his vulgar tirade by bashing Manny for not giving blood before a fight. He then proceeds to say that Manny is off “praying to chicken bones” and that you don’t have to respect him because he’s a “fu**ing idiot”. “Someone has to tell him that it doesn’t make a difference.”<br /><br />“Here’s how you know when your country doesn’t have a lot going for it: When everything is about Manny Pacquiao.” <br /><br />“Get a fu**in life as a country” <br /><br />“All you fu**in got is just an illiterate guy who happens to smash other guys in the head better than other people” <br /><br />“Really, you want some guy with brain damage running your country? Why don’t you get your sh*t together?” <br /><br />“All they have over there is Manny Pacquiao and sex stores.”<br /><br />“What happens when Floyd Mayweather beats him? Does your country go into depression?”</blockquote><br /><br />That’s the excerpt from <em>The Adam Carolla Podcast</em> used by many talking about this topic. I spent a brief amount of time within the journalism field as both a reporter and an opinion columnist. And the one thing that always, ALWAYS causes some type of conflict is misrepresentation of quotes. It’s unacceptable in new stories because it drops any sense of objectivity.<br /><br />Notice the line breaks between each of those quotes? It means that there is missing dialogue. They are excerpts of an excerpt. I listened to that specific podcast. Where’s the part where Carolla justifies his view on why Pacquiao should give blood? He argues if Pacquiao isn’t juicing, then it raises up some suspicion as to why Pacquiao isn’t so willing to do it.<br /><br />In this case, there’s a little misrepresentation going on and a lot of taking offense at a rant that isn’t that big of a deal in the first place. I like how “racist” immediately comes to mind in many of these headlines and news stories. If this objective news reporting can then be considered as a subjective opinion, is it just as valid? Sure, but let’s get some things straight.<br /><br />Is somebody a racist for thinking a boxer, a man that makes a living by hitting and getting hit, is illiterate and/or a bad choice to be voted as a politician? Is somebody a racist for telling a country to not be so invested in living vicariously through the exploits of a single individual who just so happens to hail from said country?<br /><br />I’ve listened to Adam Carolla when he was on <em>Loveline</em>, I watched him on <em>The Man Show</em>, and now I follow him on his own podcast. Carolla isn’t racist specifically against Filipinos. He’s quite possibly made fun of every type of people grouping on Earth, from Germans, to Muslims, to the state of Florida, to the city of Burbank. If you can think of a single person or group of people that Adam Carolla hasn’t made fun of, then call him up and I GUARANTEE you that he’s got something to say on the matter. Anybody that actually listens to Adam Carolla knows that angry ranting is his thing, just like Denis Leary, Lewis Black, Sam Kinison, and many other comedians. And just like these other comedians, if you can listen past the vulgar language, you can understand the underlying points of their rants.<br /><br />Despite the accusations of racism, I think the most volatile part of this issue for Filipinos are those last questions that Carolla asks: What happens when Manny Pacquiao loses? What happens to a nation when their infallible national hero is defeated in the ring? And considering what happened to icons like Kobe Bryant, Michael Phelps, and Tiger Woods, I’d also like to ask one more question that’s buried deep within the minds of Pacquiao fans: What happens when that defeat occurs outside of the ring and the infallible hero ends up being human like the rest of us?Batallahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12372209941349167606noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16976141.post-24282822261624519532010-03-31T19:04:00.001-07:002010-03-31T19:06:07.788-07:00Choose Your TeamProbably the toughest part of this project was figuring out how to arrange the cast of characters. My original plan many years ago was to have specific character match ups from Capcom characters versus SNK characters (i.e. Ryu vs. Kyo or M. Bison vs. Geese Howard). Even back then, the SNK characters easily outnumbered Capcom. Taken strictly from fighting games, SNK still outnumbers Capcom to this day. I also didn’t want to make one side look stronger. That logistical issue quickly put a halt to my first attempt at the illustration.<br /><br />When I decided to retry the project, I realized that including other game franchises from both companies would create some interesting juxtapositions. It won’t seem so strange considering that the various crossover games like <em>Marvel vs. Capcom</em> and <em>Tatsunoko vs. Capcom</em> set the standard of including characters outside of the fighting game genre. And so I added more characters to the roster. After doing a headcount of both sides, their numbers are now closer to even.<br /><br />The next factor to consider was the size range of characters. Mega Man is shorter than the average person while Geon is the size of a skyscraper. That size disparity can make the perspective angles problematic. I decided to keep things simple by having the larger characters located towards the back and the shorter characters closer to the front.<br /><br />So then how will the characters be arranged? Will the Capcom side be one half and the SNK side on the other? Do I group characters together based on the game franchise they came from? Should the heroes fight the villains?<br /><br />The idea came to me one night to just create some type of systemic arrangement similar to a Venn diagram. I realized that plenty of characters would be unknown to the casual observer and I wanted them to be identifiable. Characters would be grouped in such a way that analyzing the juxtaposition across various directions would form some type of pattern. For example, the characters from feudal Japan would be in one area while modern soldier types would be in another. Boss characters, like Orochi, would be surrounded by subordinates, like Goenitz and Vice. After that, things started to fall into place. I feel that the categorizations I came up with will make for an interesting image for both casual viewers and hardcore game aficionados. Here’s an early draft of the character groupings I created. The final illustration should make things much more clear.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT3n0Pj6-ATXzVe10olFSeTVXKdTJrFtGWswnb69B8VUHdejIabDWN4SRNFCr6j54YWu5PodEIgAKIwJLkKkJjyI7PuOcAUFsjcmbA_0G6BDwGsWK9hhIXL2-7DZwz1RTQoC7Z/s1600/composition.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT3n0Pj6-ATXzVe10olFSeTVXKdTJrFtGWswnb69B8VUHdejIabDWN4SRNFCr6j54YWu5PodEIgAKIwJLkKkJjyI7PuOcAUFsjcmbA_0G6BDwGsWK9hhIXL2-7DZwz1RTQoC7Z/s400/composition.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5454984333363859874" /></a>Batallahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12372209941349167606noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16976141.post-67232141448577389422010-03-21T22:14:00.000-07:002010-03-21T22:17:18.767-07:00Select Game TypeI spent the day going around various businesses to get some price estimates for how much this project is going to cost me. Despite my poker face in front of the clerks, I was kicking myself at each price announcement. Mind you, this is on top of the expenses I already spent on art supplies and research material. As much as I want to maximize the dimensions of the illustration I’m working on (approximately 5 feet long and 4 feet high), it might be better to scale it down to a more modest size (40 inches long and 30 inches high). The picture just needs to be big enough so that viewers can potentially identify any character they see on it.<br /><br />I was originally going to color the characters with markers. However, after seeing the price tag on the set I would need and considering my intermediate skills with markers, I decided that Photoshop would be a better option. I’ve almost finalized the layout of the illustration on thumbnails. I’m trying to be mindful of similarly colored characters overlapping with each other. Initial sketching should begin tomorrow.<br /><br />As for framing, I’m going to the <a href="http://www.customframestore.com/">Frame Store</a> near my house. They had the best options and time table out of all the places I visited. The Frame Store clerk there certainly knew what she was talking about. I probably kept the conversation going longer than it should, but I was entranced with what she had to say. I’m probably going to come back there several more times just to chat. I’d certainly like to hear her opinion on types of glass. And frame color. And frame design. And anything else I could possibly come up with off the top of my head.<br /><br />Anyways, with the recent announcement of <em>King of Fighters XIII</em>, I realize there might be additional new SNK characters. If pictures of them don’t surface within the next week, then I won’t include them. I’ll save it for a future version of this project many years from now. I already have 800 other characters to worry about.Batallahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12372209941349167606noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16976141.post-50852160060372493722010-03-19T14:51:00.000-07:002010-03-19T15:04:19.502-07:00Character SelectSo I’ve been doing a lot of research this past week and I managed to “narrow” down the roster of characters I plan to include in the illustration.<br /><br />The Capcom side will include characters from the <em>Street Fighter</em>, <em>Darkstalkers</em>, <em>Rival Schools</em>, <em>Saturday Night Slam Masters</em>, <em>Red Earth</em>, <em>Onimusha</em>, <em>Star Gladiator</em>, <em>Power Stone</em>, <em>Final Fight</em>, <em>Tech Romancer</em>, <em>Cyberbots</em>, and <em>Sengoku Basara</em> franchises. Capcom characters that appeared in games like <em>Marvel vs. Capcom</em> and <em>Tatsunoko vs. Capcom</em> will be included. I won’t be including characters from Capcom games based on existing properties like <em>JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure</em> and <em>Kenichi: The Mightiest Disciple</em>. Those characters, along with ones coming from <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marvel_comics">Marvel</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tatsunoko">Tatsunoko</a> were clearly not created or commissioned by Capcom. There are some gray areas such as the characters <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arika">Arika</a> created for the <em>Street Fighter EX</em> series. Theses characters will be included.<br /><br />The SNK side will include characters from the <em>King of Fighters</em>, <em>Fatal Fury</em>, <em>Art of Fighting</em>, <em>Last Blade</em>, <em>Samurai Shodown</em>, <em>Ninja Master’s</em>, <em>Aggressors of Dark Kombat</em>, <em>Savage Reign</em>, <em>World Heroes</em>, <em>King of the Monsters</em>, <em>3 Count Bout</em>, <em>Buriki One</em>, <em>Rage of the Dragons</em>, and <em>Fighter’s History</em> franchises. The criteria for characters owned by SNK are even murkier than Capcom’s. This is due to SNK’s rocky financial and licensing history with other companies. Years ago, I wasn’t sure whether to include <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ADK_(company)">ADK</a> properties like <em>World Heroes</em>. Since that time, SNK bought ADK’s intellectual properties, solving that problem. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UPL">UPL</a> created <em>3 Count Bout</em> but the company is no longer in business. I feel those characters make a nice counterpoint to Capcom’s <em>Saturday Night Slam Masters</em> characters. I’m including <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Noise_Factory">Noise Factory’s</a> <em>Rage of the Dragons</em> as a counterpoint to Capcom’s <em>Final Fight</em> characters. I won’t be including the <em>Power Instinct</em> characters since that franchise began and still has strong connections with <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlus">Atlus</a>.<br /><br />Over thinking which characters properly belong to which companies was one of the reasons that I originally quit working on this project. I’ve decided to include the characters I feel properly represent both companies. Plus, I’m the one that’s drawing this. I include who I want to include. The important thing is that all selectable characters from each of these games will be represented in the illustration. They will be accompanied by other characters that have important associations with the selectable characters. That roster alone amounts to over 650 characters! I’ll also be including non-fighting game characters from both companies just to add some more flavor and spice to this jam-packed soup. Now I just have to decide what versions of these characters to use.Batallahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12372209941349167606noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16976141.post-85722246647648328902010-03-15T17:21:00.000-07:002010-03-15T17:24:26.469-07:00Insert CreditIt’s been way too long since I’ve committed to creating some artwork. Now that several of my friends are organizing the <a href="http://www.theugtl.com/pixeldrip/">PIXELDRIP</a> gallery for the <a href="http://www.theugtl.com/">Underground Tournament League</a>, it seems like a good chance to get back into the groove. The piece that I plan on submitting is a project that I’ve had on the backburner for quite some time: an illustration of all the Capcom fighting game characters going against all the SNK fighting game characters.<br /><br />It’s a straightforward concept that I originally planned on doing during freshman year at UCSB. I was practicing for a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capcom_vs._SNK_2">Capcom vs. SNK 2</a> tournament when I started wishing that certain characters from both companies had made the cut into the game. I figured I would create a drawing so that dream matches between characters could take place in some form.<br /><br />I compiled a list of the characters and started doing some research on their designs and personalities. That’s when the logistical issues started to hit me. There were hundreds of characters and attempting to fit them all in one scene would be a nightmare. How would they be interacting? How would they match up with other characters? How would the picture be composed? More and more schoolwork started to catch up with me and I quickly forgot about the project. That was 2003.<br /><br />It’s now seven years later and I feel I have it in me to actually complete this project. I’ve gotten better as an artist. I’ve studied more examples of densely packed group shots, specifically those drawn by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Perez">George Perez</a>. I have a better understanding and appreciation for the characters that would be appearing in the illustration. Of course, dozens of characters have been added to the Capcom and SNK rosters as well.<br /><br />I’m choosing to document this process over the next month because it’s one of the bigger projects, figuratively and literally, I’ve worked on to this point in time. Also, it should keep me on some type of schedule if I plan to submit by the April 15th deadline. I have about a month to finish this.<br /><br />This entire week will be dedicated to character studies, sketching and preliminary layouts. The next week will focus on sketching. The week after that will be inking and cleanup. The week after will be coloring. The final week will be submission and framing. I’ll be updating this blog pretty frequently with sketches, snapshots, and even video.Batallahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12372209941349167606noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16976141.post-30156753517303671752009-02-02T00:13:00.000-08:002009-02-02T00:18:12.711-08:00Syllabus: Lesson 1 pg. 4<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPe_TxMa6JQ2DspXp2RZOAmIBaf67eHDIaAvfuR10E5g7EhdeRbxfEKPkVAImoBWQqP9EKKVvmUI8nHyg2O63sWMHO30OMjruastOK8_2J72qVs_Dy9s3AeWrWT4k-X9B-vQ43/s1600-h/syll_1p4.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 277px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPe_TxMa6JQ2DspXp2RZOAmIBaf67eHDIaAvfuR10E5g7EhdeRbxfEKPkVAImoBWQqP9EKKVvmUI8nHyg2O63sWMHO30OMjruastOK8_2J72qVs_Dy9s3AeWrWT4k-X9B-vQ43/s400/syll_1p4.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5298110460992118818" /></a><br />I just installed ComicPress on <a href="http://leadbattle.com/">Lead Battle</a>, so you can read the comic that way with a better flow. If you want to access any other parts of the site, just click on the navigation tab at the top of the page and it'll take you to the old layout. I'll resume tweaking it when I have the time but at least it's functioning.Batallahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12372209941349167606noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16976141.post-42921012001543851742009-01-22T19:54:00.000-08:002009-01-22T19:57:05.235-08:00Syllabus: Lesson 1 pg. 3<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFD1TzH4rPS3y2fTC3rY9ufs2eJbvWiHLDCeYqbwBsL2rPX2nJEehdluy9U8xRu02gpHXjuv3IAEtrh8rLLcnqSGvBABQ1XCQlHBLdH-M0OgIxCuqbgaQFoTXosEYZ6iZKUceO/s1600-h/syll_1p3.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 277px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFD1TzH4rPS3y2fTC3rY9ufs2eJbvWiHLDCeYqbwBsL2rPX2nJEehdluy9U8xRu02gpHXjuv3IAEtrh8rLLcnqSGvBABQ1XCQlHBLdH-M0OgIxCuqbgaQFoTXosEYZ6iZKUceO/s400/syll_1p3.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5294332914436102018" /></a>Batallahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12372209941349167606noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16976141.post-41827764992180898402009-01-12T00:43:00.000-08:002009-01-12T00:53:08.965-08:00Syllabus: Lesson 1 pg. 2<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiei-oLWFemufKnxXjAHsskJ25_fsxcLaeHDK5KfDgDGWAQ_oMUsruuO4yiSXBt8_eLAgdecpi31c4NSMtjVZsz2RTedEIgADT0HRCADLZrUIDf2sPGDvtkf-EI_SUooDXiXbtl/s1600-h/syll_1p2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 277px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiei-oLWFemufKnxXjAHsskJ25_fsxcLaeHDK5KfDgDGWAQ_oMUsruuO4yiSXBt8_eLAgdecpi31c4NSMtjVZsz2RTedEIgADT0HRCADLZrUIDf2sPGDvtkf-EI_SUooDXiXbtl/s400/syll_1p2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5290325444569856018" /></a><br />I think one of the biggest limitations of comics is the lack of sound. The fairy's scream is supposed to sound like that stock scream (not the Wilhelm) you've probably heard a thousand times by now. As much as I hate explaining a gag, I feel this is necessary. Plus, it gives me another excuse to post this video:<br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/L_818rcC0DA&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/L_818rcC0DA&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>Batallahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12372209941349167606noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16976141.post-75172256143513407732009-01-11T11:11:00.000-08:002009-01-11T11:24:14.462-08:00Theoretical Internet DollarsOver the weekend I helped Ted and Sydney film their as yet unnamed Internet program. I had a blast working on it and hope the two of them keep coming up with more ideas.<br />part 1:<br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/0NTnIbdrah4&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/0NTnIbdrah4&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br />part 2:<br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/wLUJrBrGO4E&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/wLUJrBrGO4E&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />and of course, I can't forget <a href="http://gamesand.me/">Games and Me</a>. Aside from contributing game reviews and industry commentary, I'm currently working on a short that will document next week's California Regionals fighting game tournament at Denjin Arcade in Simi Valley. Stay tuned for that.Batallahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12372209941349167606noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16976141.post-9914387656352789722009-01-02T02:37:00.000-08:002009-01-02T02:47:15.705-08:00Syllabus: Lesson 1 pg. 1<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgo1F_QxPuYjt8tD5Y2iatBcgPu9tNQnP76KmjYRHfanN9clyZM3R9Fd4XpO8sqqFiGgzFY3QkQJZtjrRPDONRjUmKldKvoRSF9UNESIkBGYFh0Bx1-vvjQC6aYop4xjimgww0O/s1600-h/syll_1p1.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 286px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgo1F_QxPuYjt8tD5Y2iatBcgPu9tNQnP76KmjYRHfanN9clyZM3R9Fd4XpO8sqqFiGgzFY3QkQJZtjrRPDONRjUmKldKvoRSF9UNESIkBGYFh0Bx1-vvjQC6aYop4xjimgww0O/s400/syll_1p1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5286643983054781650" /></a><br />There isn't much to say about the comic without spoiling things. I'm just glad that I was able to design the premise of <span style="font-style:italic;">Syllabus</span> in such a way that it will continually force me to experiment with new artistic and narrative techniques. It will be an ongoing story and I'll post new pages at least once a week.Batallahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12372209941349167606noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16976141.post-72532060058752616352008-12-17T21:32:00.000-08:002008-12-17T21:35:09.511-08:0015 More Days<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJsaGtvadlXVz6QHwclai5PPkA0VcyFIW4Oxgntqo7O1FHpDNXhmIjKPPHlK5VyUHUFIIIkieuRh6VIi5Sk-Ummi3qYtBO773gyVYREEAPwX9ahc8WXkZxOfc6KcegEfIDJ9Tr/s1600-h/syllabus_logo1.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 126px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJsaGtvadlXVz6QHwclai5PPkA0VcyFIW4Oxgntqo7O1FHpDNXhmIjKPPHlK5VyUHUFIIIkieuRh6VIi5Sk-Ummi3qYtBO773gyVYREEAPwX9ahc8WXkZxOfc6KcegEfIDJ9Tr/s400/syllabus_logo1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5280999027652683090" /></a><br /><br />And there you have the name of my upcoming comic project. <span style="font-style:italic;">Syllabus</span> will be a serial narrative that will keep going until the day that I tire of creating comics. It’s a story that has been building in my head for years and the underlying concept of the narrative will allow it to continue indefinitely. The first post will appear on New Year’s and will be followed up, at minimum, on a weekly basis. Just keep checking back to this blog for the latest installments. I’m currently redesigning <a href="http://leadbattle.com/">Lead Battle</a> into a more comic-focused layout. I’m hoping to make it the one stop place to go as opposed to this blog. You’ll be able to find all my past work with a simple link instead of manually searching through this blog’s archives.<br /><br />As much as I enjoyed working on <span style="font-style:italic;">Hullabaloo</span>, it was too grounded in reality. I’ll be getting back to Honey, Austin and Tress at some point. The great thing about <span style="font-style:italic;">Hullabaloo</span> is its slice-of-life simplicity. I can continue making new strips alongside <span style="font-style:italic;">Syllabus</span> whenever the need arises.<br /><br />To the nearly a dozen individuals that I’ve enlisted as my research advisors, I hope that this does not disappoint. I’ve chosen each and every one of you because I value your opinions and trust in your knowledge. Even though I’m heavily backlogged with material to read and watch, it will all be worth it in the long run. Thanks again for the help because I certainly can’t tackle a massive project like <span style="font-style:italic;">Syllabus</span> on my own.Batallahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12372209941349167606noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16976141.post-88443765709243381782008-12-05T23:50:00.000-08:002008-12-06T08:30:46.515-08:00Bringing a Theme to a MemeI could've sworn I've done <a href="http://hullabatalla.blogspot.com/2007/06/between-meme-and-you.html">this</a> before, <a href="http://theleavesarelikecrunchy.blogspot.com/">Anna</a>. Since I'm on a creativity kick, I'm deciding on that as my theme. So here, in chronological order, are six things you may or may not know about me:<br /><br />1 - I wrote a book in the first grade about a lion, a tiger, and a bear. Oh my! It seemed that Ms. Mayer (or was it Meyer?) noticed me drawing animals in class one day and thought it would be a good idea to encourage such creativity by having me develop an entire narrative out of the scribbles. Not having anything better to do (I didn't get a video game console until the second grade), I chose to take her up on that offer. After a couple days, I turned in about 12 pages worth to her. After class the next day, my teacher gave me a surprise present. She had the pages laminated and bound. I still have it somewhere with the rest of my junk. I changed schools after first grade so I never knew whatever happened to my teacher. I remember looking out the car window several years later and seeing an old woman with dark glasses and a white cane being led around by another woman. She had the same hairstyle and clothing as my teacher.<br /><br />2 - I performed an improvised stage play in third grade about the X-Men. It was talent show day or something and me and several of my friends had no idea what to do. We watched one of the girls play a song she wrote on the piano. After a couple minutes of mindless noise, we looked at each other and almost telepathically knew what we were gonna do. We all got up on the auditorium stage and pronounced our intention to perform a short scene with our favorite comic book characters at the time, the X-Men. It started with us in the cockpit of the blackbird jet talking about our plan to take down Mr. Sinister. It ended with all of us jumping "out of the jet" and off the stage to attack the imaginary supervillain. Keep in mind this is just a bunch of over active third graders in regular clothes with folding chairs as their only props. Jeez, how the hell did we get away with that one? That's magnet school for ya.<br /><br />3 - I co-wrote a book in fifth grade about Aliens versus Predator. My friend, Aaron, and I chose to do our creative writing assignment on that subject after reading the "Aliens vs Predator" comics. Basing on what little was known at the time on the two species, we came up with a narrative from the Predator's point of view during an Alien hunt. We theorized what the Predators' home planet was like, what their different job classes were and tried to analyze the technology they used. Although Aaron probably did the bulk of the writing, I supplied all the artwork that accompanied the text, which was about one drawing for every four pages of text.<br /><br />4 - I came up with an idea for a superhero comic in middle school. Drawing (ha!) inspiration from the X-Men, Power Rangers, Ronin Warriors and Gargoyles, I had planned on creating a superhero team comic. I was able to come up with a very thought out back story to the characters powers, even writing down a classification chart attempting to explain them. It never got past the character design stage for whatever reason. I guess it was because I was becoming more interested in girls. Still, it's not too late to dust off these ideas and make something out of them.<br /><br />5 - I made a film in high school called "Quentin Tarantino's Hamlet." This was one of the funnest projects I ever did. It's what would've happened if the story was set in modern times and Quentin Tarantino had written the dialogue. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern as Vincent and Jules. Hamlet cutting Polonius's ear off while dancing to "Stuck in the Middle with You." Ophelia as a cokehead. Hamlet, Laertes and Claudius in a threeway gunfight. So much subtext to go along with the outright ripping off of "Pulp Fiction" and "Reservoir Dogs." "The Lion King" was playing in the background of one scene. Horatio was in love with Hamlet. He was the mastermind behind all of the story's events. Everyone died because he wanted Hamlet to himself.<br /><br />6 - I made another film in high school called "T.A.'s." This one spoofed Kevin Smith's "Clerks" but changed the characters to high school students. It was my final project and it was the perfect send up of my four years at Birmingham High School. The movie made fun of so many people, even the ones that were going to be in the audience watching. There were over two dozen cast members, half of them replaced just so the movie could be completed on time. Shooting wrapped up weeks before it was due and before any other group had even come close to finishing their film. I left the rest to my partner, Alex. How long could it take to edit? Two days? All of a sudden, it was time to turn in our finals and the only thing we had to show was the final draft of our screenplay. What. The. Hell. Then came graduation day and Alex somehow found it in him to show up with a copy of the movie on tape. We watched it with Ms. Rhew and some other loiterers in her classroom. It was ten minutes of rough footage. What happened to the other 2/3rds of the film?! Luckily, Ms. Rhew knew that the movie was complete. She was a cast member and even saw us film most of the it. I don't think I've ever forgiven Alex for dropping the ball. It's not like I ever saw him again. I think he moved to Chicago after graduating. It's hard to describe how robbed I felt, not just for me, but also for everyone else that participated in the movie. The least I could do was make a comic using the same characters that takes place where the movie ended. I worked on the stand alone story/sequel for six straight days during freshman year at UCSB. I made copies of the comic and the soundtrack used in the film and personally delivered them to as many cast members as I could. Because of that experience, I find it very hard to share my works in progress with other people. I want it to be done before anyone can see it. But I'm slowly trying to get over that way of thinking. I have to trust that people will be able to help me and thereby make my work easier to accomplish.<br /><br />That went on longer than I expected, but I feel it needed to be said as well. Anyways, I choose to tag <a href="http://megarde03.blogspot.com/">Meg</a>, <a href="http://spam--robot.livejournal.com/">C.K.</a> and <a href="http://www.kidicarus222.blogspot.com/">Drew</a>.Batallahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12372209941349167606noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16976141.post-33954682036064861012008-12-04T00:54:00.000-08:002008-12-04T01:11:31.591-08:00Fantasy Star ResumesDecided to finally finish off Fantasy Star, my 12-part comparison between <span style="font-style:italic;">Final Fantasy XII</span> and <span style="font-style:italic;">Star Wars</span> over on <a href="http://gogglebloggle.blogspot.com/">The Bloggles Do Nothing</a>. What was initially supposed to be a 12-day ordeal, is looking like a project that's been a year in the making. At least once it's done, I can move on to other topics on that blog in hopes of further validating its existence in conjunction with this one.<br /><br />So here's what I've got so far:<br /><a href="http://gogglebloggle.blogspot.com/2008/08/fantasy-star-v-diversity-of-race.html">Fantasy Star V</a><br /><a href="http://gogglebloggle.blogspot.com/2008/01/fantasy-star-iv-actions-of-others.html">Fantasy Star IV</a><br /><a href="http://gogglebloggle.blogspot.com/2007/12/fantasy-star-iii-villains-unleashed.html">Fantasy Star III</a><br /><a href="http://gogglebloggle.blogspot.com/2007/12/fantasy-star-ii-emergence-of-heroes.html">Fantasy Star II</a><br /><a href="http://gogglebloggle.blogspot.com/2007/12/fantasy-star-i-brief-history.html">Fantasy Star I</a>Batallahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12372209941349167606noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16976141.post-696748973083877952008-12-01T00:11:00.000-08:002008-12-01T00:25:19.721-08:00Blast From the Past<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTN714LMG3k99iNA45XjuScwPD2mnYpBTkx6WMSFj_jumUpzM1eZSLeaKIOciV-PrKfhU4SW-GcDwNghKov4WtuWhBu8soE5KdyGo3lFHFsD6XKH2lX88GEbnrsImySmpKa8Zc/s1600-h/p3.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 292px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTN714LMG3k99iNA45XjuScwPD2mnYpBTkx6WMSFj_jumUpzM1eZSLeaKIOciV-PrKfhU4SW-GcDwNghKov4WtuWhBu8soE5KdyGo3lFHFsD6XKH2lX88GEbnrsImySmpKa8Zc/s400/p3.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5274731698462030594" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN6UejYCMHOvn_yoOTKKxxB64BfHiMJ5y6nQ_5BTu6y36QGjyAet7z9n5BfN9pTklFEP40MyIl7_5wqtnlN1bf7lFLxbkwo4dMEi03R82n_O1RDS8j8F60U3SF_Yd_VsABBTsG/s1600-h/p2.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 212px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN6UejYCMHOvn_yoOTKKxxB64BfHiMJ5y6nQ_5BTu6y36QGjyAet7z9n5BfN9pTklFEP40MyIl7_5wqtnlN1bf7lFLxbkwo4dMEi03R82n_O1RDS8j8F60U3SF_Yd_VsABBTsG/s400/p2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5274731699307461618" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWBTcPvhHZEOq4tChjXoiRVtrWBRme_se2j3OAOGnwbifRGSd3W5SkZPUjXz3voNQTGjSzGblSdR3EbiWvRpYx0EEDsLzjKA7mrnKU3EVdsAEoJBKe32inCpUjLEepz_279-31/s1600-h/p1.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 281px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWBTcPvhHZEOq4tChjXoiRVtrWBRme_se2j3OAOGnwbifRGSd3W5SkZPUjXz3voNQTGjSzGblSdR3EbiWvRpYx0EEDsLzjKA7mrnKU3EVdsAEoJBKe32inCpUjLEepz_279-31/s400/p1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5274731690463498242" /></a><br /><br />Good lord. I nearly suffocated from the dust after digging up these ancient drawings, not to mention from my laughter after rediscovering my amateurish illustration skills. I can name off dozens of things wrong with the linework, coloring, proportions, etc. These characters were created many, many, many, many, many years ago while I was still in high school. The reason I'm digging them up is because they will be the main characters of my latest comic project. I've had ideas brewing for quite a while and I feel it's time to get started on them. In the coming weeks ahead, I'll post revised designs as it gets closer to the project's planned start date of January 1, 2009.Batallahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12372209941349167606noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16976141.post-37228580579746591272008-11-29T21:50:00.000-08:002008-11-29T23:00:23.932-08:00Fortune Favors the BoldThanksgiving break has given me the invaluable time I needed to reassess my current situation. As well as things have been going, it still feels like I’ve merely been coasting. I’m content, but I haven’t really accomplished anything of note.<br /><br />I need to start over someplace else. I’ve lived in the San Fernando Valley for far too long. I remember that I promised myself in high school that I would move out of there. The Valley is literally and figuratively too sheltered. As much as I like to trash Los Angeles proper for being Hell on Earth (there’s a reason why it’s the setting of numerous noir films), it’s also the hub of activities and jobs. It’s time that I left suburbia and toughed it out in the big city.<br /><br />As for work, I need to start thinking in the long term. At the moment, I’m just focusing on paying the bills. But I have to start structuring myself towards an actual goal. I’m not quite at the point where I know which career I want, but I do have an idea of the general direction that I need to proceed. I also need to free myself up to work on personal projects relating to comics.<br /><br />After participating in the 24 Hour Comics challenge several weeks ago, I realized something. The ideas I’ve been sitting on are actually quite ready to be transferred into a tangible product. I had been waiting to get better at drawing and writing but at the rate I’m progressing, it would be years before I got started. I don’t need to be perfect; I just need to get better as time progresses. And the longer I wait, the more likely it is that someone else will accomplish what I’m trying to do before I get a chance to. I'm going to start posting new material up shortly.<br /><br />As is usually the case with these things, the only thing holding me back is myself. There’s really no reason why things should continue on like this. This coming month and onwards should be pretty interesting as I get my act together. I’m by no means fooling myself into thinking that what I am about to do is easy. It just feels like now is the time to do something, anything. It’s about time I stopped getting by and started doing something great.Batallahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12372209941349167606noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16976141.post-44456154636103612012008-10-23T04:32:00.000-07:002008-10-23T10:36:07.750-07:00When the Hills of Los Angeles Are BurningHeading north on the 405 freeway, there’s a really great view of the San Fernando Valley from the Sepulveda Pass. This is in the area past the Getty Center and Mulholland Drive. It looks especially beautiful at night with all the lights slowly being revealed as the dark pass opens up into the Valley. I look forward to this view each time I drive home to the Valley from work in Santa Monica.<br /><br />The view was different several weeks ago. The Porter Ranch fires were still burning at the time. They were a magnificent but deadly sight to behold on the hilltops at the Valley’s northern edge. There were three distinct entities separated by several dozen miles from each other. They had to have been quite large, considering how clearly I could see the flames from the Sepulveda Pass. Those fires were contained or burned out shortly afterwards because I didn’t see them on the following night. I thought nothing else of the matter because for me, the Valley has this aura of protection around it. Even having experienced the Northridge earthquake in 1994, I feel safe from disaster when I’m there.<br /><br />Just a couple hours ago, I was once again driving home from work at 2 in the morning. I wasn’t in a hurry since the road was foggy. As I started up the hill towards the Getty Center, I started to notice the smell of smoke. At first, I thought that I was somehow overheating my engine during the climb. As I continued up, little flakes began falling onto my windshield. That’s when I realized the fog on the road ahead wasn’t fog at all. It was smoke. And the flakes on my windshield were ash. I closed the vents and switched to recirculated air since the smoke was starting to become unbearable.<br /><br />Since it’s still fire season, I reasonably assumed there was a fire nearby. It had to have been small or burnt out because the freeway around me was as dim as ever. Despite that optimistic assessment, I knew there was still something wrong. Every fifteen seconds, a police car would drive by at top speed with its sirens blazing on the opposite side of the freeway. I could see several helicopters buzzing overhead, with their spotlights focusing on various points of interest.<br /><br />I finished rounding the curve past the Getty Center and saw the source of the smoke and ash. The fire was neither small nor anywhere near being burnt out. It was huge. The entire hillside on my left was burning. Much of the brush was already blackened but the flames continued to persist. The area all around me was lit with an orange and yellow tint. I have never been that close to a still raging fire. I rolled down the window and felt the heat radiating into my car. I quickly rolled the windows back up to keep the smoke from filling the interior. I snapped out of that distraction and noticed that I was drifting over to the next lane. Luckily, no cars were near me. I straightened myself and fought the urge to pull over to the shoulder and watch fire.<br /><br />The size of the fire and emergency vehicle activity made me pause to think about how far the flames were reaching. I was nearing the view of the Valley and half expected to see fires there as well. I reached the top of the hill and saw the familiar artificial lights and breathed a sigh of relief. The only flames I could see were in my rearview mirrors.<br /><br />As I continued driving, I could see that all the southbound ramps and exits on the 405 within the vicinity were being closed off with flares and traffic cones. A convoy of fire trucks was heading to the area I had just exited. The drive past the fire took a little over a minute. Unfortunately, I knew it would take the firefighters far, far longer than a minute to get it under control. They have a long night ahead of them. Hopefully, the morning will bring news of minimal casualties and damage.<br /><br />Update: The morning brought news of zero casualties and structural damage from the 100 acre fire. All thanks to 500 firefighters and 10 water-dropping helicopters.Batallahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12372209941349167606noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16976141.post-75646394394872103412008-10-12T23:14:00.000-07:002008-10-13T00:15:49.752-07:00The 24 Hour Comics ChallengeIn preparation of my participation in next weekend's 24 Hour Comics Challenge, I'm reposting a feature I wrote on my first event several years ago. This story was originally published on April 28, 2004 and refers to the time period from April 24-25:<br /><br />It’s Sunday morning and I can only think of one thing. It’s cold, so very cold. My hand is shaking and I don’t know how much longer I can go. Just three hours left before time is up.<br /><br />Over a dozen people participated in 24 Hour Comics Day at <a href="http://www.earth2comics.com/">Earth-2 Comics</a> in the San Fernando Valley. Participants had various artistic backgrounds: <a href="http://www.archangel-studios.com/comics/redstar/frame.htm">Christian Gossett</a>, the creator of <span style="font-style:italic;">The Red Star</span>, and <a href="http://www.tonerod.com/">Tone Rodriguez</a>, creator of <span style="font-style:italic;">Violent Messiahs</span>, participated, as did storyboard artists Benton Jew, Anson Jew and Todd Harris. <a href="http://radfordsechrist.blogspot.com/">Rad Sechrist</a>, contributor of <span style="font-style:italic;">Flight Anthology Volume One</span> and <span style="font-style:italic;">Daily Nexus</span> art director, along with UCSB art studio student Mike Nicolayeff and I, attended as well. The monotony of the event was broken by the sporadic flow of spectators and surprises including unexpected guest appearances – including the event founder and a drunk – as well as the singing of TV songs.<br /><br />The San Fernando Valley group was sponsored by <a href="http://www.comicbookresources.com/?id=29&page=column">Jud Meyers</a> and Carr D’Angelo in their store, Earth-2 Comics, which provided a comfortable workspace given the amount of people participating and watching.<br /><br />The event was created by <a href="http://www.scottmccloud.com/">Scott McCloud</a>, author of <span style="font-style:italic;">Understanding Comics</span>, who completed the <a href="http://www.scottmccloud.com/inventions/24hr/first/00-cover.html">first 24-hour comic</a> in 1990, and participation has snowballed since then. April 24 marked the first time the challenge had been organized en masse with 26 locations in the United States and 52 countries worldwide. About 500 people signed up at event locations and several other people participated individually.<br /><br />The object of the event is to create a 24-page comic in 24 consecutive hours. It is designed to be a challenge, not a competition, and no prizes are given to the participants. Creating an entire comic within the short time span is a testament to the creativity and determination of the artist. Few people can complete a 24-hour comic, and it isn’t a race, but rather a way to see what level of quality an artist can cram into a limited space within an equally limited period of time.<br /><br />Regular comics usually take about a month to complete, and that’s with a team of artists working together. The plot, pencils, inks, and all other elements of the comic must be done by the end of the 24-hour period. If the comic isn’t done, the artist can either continue to work on it that day until it’s finished – which Kevin Eastman set the precedent for in the early years of the event – or he or she can leave it as is – as Neil Gaiman was the first to do. All participants are encouraged to send their comics to Scott to possibly have it posted on his website or even be included in a future compilation of works created at the event.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">And in the Beginning …</span><br /><br />We started at noon and worked continuously for the next two hours. Everyone had a different strategy for completing their pages.<br /><br />I laid out my entire story in blue pencil, then added ink, and finally I added dialogue. Sechrist penciled and inked one page at a time. The Jew brothers planned to finish theirs quickly so they could scan the pages into their laptop and modify them from there, while Gossett abandoned his customarily polished art style for stick figures and musical numbers.<br /><br />We all claimed our respective comics were awful, only to get “oohs” and “aahs” from everybody else.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Surprise at 7</span><br /><br />Around 7 p.m., we got a great surprise when Scott McCloud, the creator of the challenge, dropped by the store with a gift of Krispy Kreme doughnuts. He and his family were trying to drive to as many event locations as possible.<br /><br />I got a quick autograph and some moral support from Scott McCloud, and had a quick conversation with his wife, Ivy McCloud. She said her husband was looking forward to the upcoming release of <span style="font-style:italic;">Flight Anthology</span>, which includes work by Sechrist and former <span style="font-style:italic;">Nexus</span> art director <a href="http://www.boltcity.com/">Kazu Kibuishi</a>.<br /><br />The McCloud kids, Sky and Winter – 11 and 9 years old, respectively – were making a film documentary about all the comic locations they visited. It was humorous to see the two small children juxtaposed with the imposing figure of Rodriguez, known for his grim and gritty work on <span style="font-style:italic;">Violent Messiahs</span>, as they asked him about his progress on his comic. Equally humorous was Rodriguez commenting on how adorable the kids were.<br /><br />Sky McCloud completed her first 24-hour comic when she was 9 years old and did another a year later. She’s already way ahead of me when it comes to comics; good thing I got her autograph.<br /><br />Later in the evening, I headed to the back room to feed on the various snacks and leftover Chinese food from lunch. I opened the door slowly so as not to hit anyone in the tiny room. I was startled to find someone standing in the shadows under the staircase. This was a common experience.<br /><br />“Oh, sorry to bother you, bro, but I was wondering if there were anymore doughnuts left?” I said to my mysterious new friend. “Wait, sorry I didn’t recognize you before. How’s it going, Spider-Man? You’ve been standing there all day.”<br /><br />The shadowy figure turns out to be the store’s life-size Spider-Man statue the storeowners relocated to the back room to make space for the artists working next to the window. When you’re deprived of sleep and a full meal, you start to do irrational things like talk to a Spider-Man statue. It isn’t just me talking to Spider-Man either; by the end of the event everyone has an encounter with our friendly neighborhood wall-crawler.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">At the Halfway Point</span><br /><br />A little past the halfway point, Sechrist finished inking his twelfth page and, unfortunately, decided to stop at that point – a pretty impressive feat in itself. He said he had personal matters to take care of in the morning, so he chose to fade quietly into the night. What he didn’t realize was how much in awe the rest of us were of his work.<br /><br />When I asked Sechrist about how he faired he was, like the rest of us, overly modest.<br /><br />“They were awful, and there was no way I would have lasted [24 hours],” Sechrist said about his comic.<br /><br />Rodriguez, Gossett, Meyers and D’Angelo said it was a shame Sechrist wouldn’t go the full allotted time.<br /><br />It was a couple hours past midnight and everyone was diligently working on their pages. The remaining spectators read comics quietly on the other side of the store when a loud bang rattled the front window and everyone turned their heads to find out what just happened. Rodriguez removed one of the finished pages he taped to the window and found a man staring directly at him.<br /><br />“Don’t be afraid! There’s nothing to fear,” a bald man with tattoos on his head yelled.<br /><br />Losing interest, the drunk stumbled off to wander the rest of Ventura Boulevard.<br /><br />As surprising as some of these interruptions were, they sure helped to fight off the drowsiness many of us were feeling. That’s why none of us complained when some of Gossett’s friends came by to shout up a storm in support of their comrade. In the silence, while switching music CDs, someone mentioned watching the 1980s television show “The Greatest American Hero,” and we all spontaneously began singing the lyrics: “Believe it or not, / I’m walking on air / I never thought I could feel so free. / Flying away on a wing and a prayer / Who could it be? / Believe it or not it’s just me.”<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">The Home Stretch</span><br /><br />The last stretch on Sunday morning is the most brutal part of the event. By then I was on autopilot, inking over my pencils. When I regained consciousness, twenty minutes had passed and two pages were done. And I realized how much harder I made the task by saving the dialogue for the end; I’m having problems coming up with coherent quotes that match the actions and expressions already drawn on the page. I make a mental note not to do this next time.<br /><br />In the end, I accomplished my goal of creating an entire 24-page comic. It’s not my sharpest looking work, but it’s a complete story. Most of the others finished as well.<br /><br />Sechrist seemed to have been the real winner out of this entire experience.<br /><br />“I was wondering if I could ever draw comics as a pro and that experience helped me realize I have some chance in the industry,” Sechrist said.<br /><br />That could easily be a possibility, given all the excitement everyone in the store had for Sechrist’s work, plus the added anticipation for the release of <span style="font-style:italic;">Flight Anthology Volume One</span>. Despite not staying for 24 hours, he was able to amaze two seasoned artists and receive praise from Scott McCloud.<br /><br />For more information on the 24-hour comic event, go to <a href="http://www.24hourcomicsday.com/">24hourcomics.com</a>.Batallahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12372209941349167606noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16976141.post-10219784020345315632008-08-31T11:55:00.000-07:002008-08-31T14:34:38.157-07:00Apprehensions of a Graphic DesignerBefore I got into doing graphic design I tried asking around what it was like. After all, graphic design is a blanket term that could apply to any number of tasks involving visuals. Despite the ambiguity, a lot of the answers I got included "repetitive" and "thankless" in their descriptions. Now that I've been doing it for about a year in various forms, I can see what those people were talking about.<br /><br />Repetition comes from having to modify the same project over and over again. Sometimes it's because of the disconnect between what a supervisor has in mind and what the artist ends up making. Sometimes it's simply to be able to choose from multiple versions of a design.<br /><br />The thankless part comes from supervisors not fully understanding the process of creating the visuals. Some are unaware of a task's difficulty level. Others know about the difficulty and just want something despite how long it would realistically take to accomplish.<br /><br />Another neccessity is to be working towards a clear objective. In graphic design it's important because of the repetive tasks of re-editing past and present projects. What's the point of reworking a composition if you don't even know what it's supposed to be accomplishing?<br /><br />Now that I think about it, much of what I just mentioned could be applied to many other jobs. What's really worrying me is that I'm becoming more focused on very specific aspects such as measuring units, angles and fonts... and liking it. There's nothing wrong with taking pleasure in these things, in fact I know some people that do *cough* <a href="http://cloudsdescending.blogspot.com/">Dianne</a> *cough*. I just feel this is somehow affecting my creativity. If I were to use an analogy, I'd say I'm used to being a Photoshop person and now I'm increasingly becoming an Illustrator/InDesign person. The point being is that I don't want to end up like <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qoIvd3zzu4Y">this</a>:<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/qoIvd3zzu4Y&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/qoIvd3zzu4Y&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />I guess what's preventing that from happening is the source material I get to play around with. If you want a mere taste, just check out these sites <a href="http://www.christianaudigier.com/">here</a>, <a href="http://www.edhardyshop.com/">here</a>, <a href="http://www.smetshop.com/">here</a>, <a href="http://www.pacochicano.com/">here</a> and <a href="http://www.shopcrystalrock.com/">here</a>. Seriously, I can just stare at some of the artwork I have in front of me and get inspired to create something new and original. The competive nature that's been driving me all my life gets a boost of motivation. Unfortunately, working two jobs limits the amount of time I have for creative endeavors. That's probably why I'm getting my creative kicks from character creation modes in video games, like I mentioned in a previous <a href="http://hullabatalla.blogspot.com/2008/08/joy-of-character-creation-modes-in.html">post</a>. Going back to my Adobe analogy, there's no reason why Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign should be mutually exclusive. Just look at how the Adobe Creative Suite series has improved compatibility between those programs. Where I work, I have access to use every single Adobe program. The possibilities are endless and completely up to me. There are worse things I could be complaining about.Batallahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12372209941349167606noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16976141.post-30501260858354639012008-08-19T00:22:00.000-07:002008-08-19T01:05:44.561-07:00Youraagh!<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/L_818rcC0DA&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/L_818rcC0DA&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />That scream is hands down the funniest sound I have ever come across. When I first heard it, it didn't register much. It was just some guy screaming. Then I started to hear it more and more, each time in more ridiculous contexts. Now whenever I hear the scream, I can't help but break out in a hysterical giggle fit. It has to be the real deal though. Unless you can mimic the scream to perfection, don't think you now have the power to make me laugh on a whim.<br /><br />Anyways, while the Wilhelm Scream is probably more well known, considering it has an actual name and backstory, this stock scream blows it away with its range of usage. The scream's aural qualities are what make it so special. The way that it's screamed by the original individual is so over the top, that it becomes immediately recognizable whenever it is heard. It's context also isn't limited to one of fearful pain, like the Wilhelm. This scream can be used for surprise, rage and/or anguish. It barely even sounds like a human scream. For the longest time, I described the scream by comparing it to the sound a TIE Fighter makes when it flies. The exact origin of this scream is still pretty murky and one of the reasons why it is so difficult to find information, let alone describe. Going through the comments on Youtube, I've learned that the scream is supposedly found in the Hollywood Edge sound library as "Hollywood Edge - PE 13 - Human Sounds 1 - 44 - Man Screams #3- Gut-Wrenching With Fall." Someone also wrote that it's earliest appearance was in a 1950's zombie movie, yelled by soldier as he was being eaten. I honestly don't care. The mysterious origin is part of the scream's appeal for me.<br /><br />Here are some other examples:<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/IzS_EbRvAzM&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/IzS_EbRvAzM&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/wutUusQ14Tw&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/wutUusQ14Tw&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />I leave you now with a new game you can try the next time you go driving. Whenever you see a car switch two or more lanes in rapid succession or switch lanes at the very last second (as in capable of causing an accident), you scream "youraagh" to the best of your abilities. It works wonders in preventing road rage, especially down here with all the psycho drivers in Los Angeles.Batallahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12372209941349167606noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16976141.post-3672471706960944722008-08-18T00:11:00.000-07:002008-08-19T19:09:41.215-07:00The Joy of Character Creation Modes in GamingWhenever I see a truly robust character creation mode in a game, I usually end up fiddling around with it more than the actual game itself. The best one I've used to date is in WWE's Smackdown vs. Raw series. There are plenty of ways to manipulate clothing, physical attributes and most importantly, the characters' movesets/animations. There's certain puzzle element to these modes as well because they never have the exact parts you need. You have to get a little creative with the existing ones at your disposal. As much as I like coming up with original creations when writing or drawing, I'd rather try to recreate existing characters/people in these game modes. I think it comes back to the puzzle element because I know they have to look a certain way. There's an actual objective and criteria to match against. The best part comes from watching the created characters exist in the game engine. If they transition seamlessly into it, then I know I've succeeded. Not only does a character have to look like whatever it's supposed to be, but it should also possess the same behaviors.<br /><br />The latest one I've been using can be found in Soul Calibur IV. It's relatively new, so not that many instructions have been made online. There's still a sense of discovery when creating characters. The pictures below are ones I made using Soul Calibur IV's Create-a-Soul mode. I'm proud to say I made them without looking at any existing instructions online, only reference pictures from the source material:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1in6eHA2gzVBFa3XVzv4BOIdiZqnyyb8KvKkGQuyjzQRxECGcZ8PtOGayASa4zEuzAf1T01hadXwMJfN4Y02ahZRTgDNUid8REGN2xCuF-orRcHK-Go9zWhH30ttRhd9SjzTp/s1600-h/IMG_1259.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1in6eHA2gzVBFa3XVzv4BOIdiZqnyyb8KvKkGQuyjzQRxECGcZ8PtOGayASa4zEuzAf1T01hadXwMJfN4Y02ahZRTgDNUid8REGN2xCuF-orRcHK-Go9zWhH30ttRhd9SjzTp/s400/IMG_1259.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5235754465971718978" /></a><br />Xena vs. Gabrielle<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI6SwYC5ocYV-cTUvDZBD5vqcB7SnKv7kG_0s-yKlv_XaBlu80wpK2zYi90rEWiPKRklEx2Fz-Uet_Cn3muv49yy682bib-3IgA3iUwV2HapMmFL9qnC7kt_IV4_INm_aJGFaw/s1600-h/IMG_1262.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiI6SwYC5ocYV-cTUvDZBD5vqcB7SnKv7kG_0s-yKlv_XaBlu80wpK2zYi90rEWiPKRklEx2Fz-Uet_Cn3muv49yy682bib-3IgA3iUwV2HapMmFL9qnC7kt_IV4_INm_aJGFaw/s400/IMG_1262.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5235754469119403026" /></a><br />Mugen vs. Jin<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOVF17y-zIUAU8o4QItSg2zcdza61KzuarRga71olC2Eku91XcducPsMDhmWBvHwSsfHSSF4aD4trsY64cjthMztJy9XUHTyWmySglJ2kUwbJ8D2k37Mq8m0_UN0ZFyoBoMwpF/s1600-h/IMG_1267.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOVF17y-zIUAU8o4QItSg2zcdza61KzuarRga71olC2Eku91XcducPsMDhmWBvHwSsfHSSF4aD4trsY64cjthMztJy9XUHTyWmySglJ2kUwbJ8D2k37Mq8m0_UN0ZFyoBoMwpF/s400/IMG_1267.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5235754471814322594" /></a><br />Kim Wu vs. Zealot<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUm71YD91VnPA7SMWeAfPWKNrrUOop4Tquxrbm1IMpGJwCGQl514rL9vzXgTqM4ULm1as4wR0rpwsm6Yn3AFZRRTJrzPvEa84zXUQq9_Md1EyPtbwha8B5GEuLy46jQLO_dvhR/s1600-h/IMG_1268.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUm71YD91VnPA7SMWeAfPWKNrrUOop4Tquxrbm1IMpGJwCGQl514rL9vzXgTqM4ULm1as4wR0rpwsm6Yn3AFZRRTJrzPvEa84zXUQq9_Md1EyPtbwha8B5GEuLy46jQLO_dvhR/s400/IMG_1268.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5235754477171842370" /></a><br />Tusk vs. Maya<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbVxlBAFloRYuAU-bP2tx1X0aE6JMmd4h3wom_lJ_fFm9YxF2RjmOVU_glof0dTlaHm0tPbEtrbANuaYQOViK12vktmk3w0-cpUN2jB3XFOf6_35p_SvkH3GE1IfY7Ho8DgH7U/s1600-h/IMG_1263.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbVxlBAFloRYuAU-bP2tx1X0aE6JMmd4h3wom_lJ_fFm9YxF2RjmOVU_glof0dTlaHm0tPbEtrbANuaYQOViK12vktmk3w0-cpUN2jB3XFOf6_35p_SvkH3GE1IfY7Ho8DgH7U/s400/IMG_1263.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5235754478334036898" /></a><br />Jago vs. Fulgore<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisdLUxDGGFHsvBIXpkpYsH9xCIyXUZYFKK_Uh0PDKV1RhSkpZroVz51OQ2K0BJWpJa2xlXLS3X3VXfqiWJ6W0F1iYnDsOFb3N_3qngQwbflQ27bCLC0BnG62qIgeHx-goKsiTd/s1600-h/IMG_1264.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisdLUxDGGFHsvBIXpkpYsH9xCIyXUZYFKK_Uh0PDKV1RhSkpZroVz51OQ2K0BJWpJa2xlXLS3X3VXfqiWJ6W0F1iYnDsOFb3N_3qngQwbflQ27bCLC0BnG62qIgeHx-goKsiTd/s400/IMG_1264.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5235755002598363602" /></a><br />Orchid vs. Combo<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijv2Al1q2p-iDfAPv0AqTbGZikc2SeWe5FgllFpXkjs73jvb2gjYx-x_MUOXZDBnia6fGox-KWtg9Sy-llU86MF6qOsmAsIsvAvnYBijbTkfwy_lVQAixTPDE4-Ge-Ih530r3x/s1600-h/IMG_1265.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijv2Al1q2p-iDfAPv0AqTbGZikc2SeWe5FgllFpXkjs73jvb2gjYx-x_MUOXZDBnia6fGox-KWtg9Sy-llU86MF6qOsmAsIsvAvnYBijbTkfwy_lVQAixTPDE4-Ge-Ih530r3x/s400/IMG_1265.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5235755013403639010" /></a><br />Riptor vs. Sabrewulf<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhrl404Ino1sUhOiZg5kFzjJcOkYww8HwvK3yz4KvO4_1MqlMawoDpawZoVo4ZsqTVQgrcPAWVCeEXK0bZruMNa7qbaX9MlaAJInlywf9DwN8n3D1l2QnSZO_8OjlrvXDrPNVu/s1600-h/IMG_1266.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhrl404Ino1sUhOiZg5kFzjJcOkYww8HwvK3yz4KvO4_1MqlMawoDpawZoVo4ZsqTVQgrcPAWVCeEXK0bZruMNa7qbaX9MlaAJInlywf9DwN8n3D1l2QnSZO_8OjlrvXDrPNVu/s400/IMG_1266.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5235755015419191810" /></a><br />Thunder vs. Spinal<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6JFS2mWiX163Nz565R_Zo2tWuEjSBSWNK9XviOgXzwiyNZydzZRJaAHRkFTmPZ3YxChzn70wTuK2M6jGpShOIlJTj5oBmYzaMZvWswxBAKk-tLCBfptljjbg4jiwrhNLWdSH4/s1600-h/IMG_1269.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6JFS2mWiX163Nz565R_Zo2tWuEjSBSWNK9XviOgXzwiyNZydzZRJaAHRkFTmPZ3YxChzn70wTuK2M6jGpShOIlJTj5oBmYzaMZvWswxBAKk-tLCBfptljjbg4jiwrhNLWdSH4/s400/IMG_1269.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5235755019393585474" /></a><br />Glacius vs. Cinder<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSJt9gzUdz8ajAFV7xLM5ZeJKUyZUWj6RX4hiQLeentrZEBk9wYJbMWBeiqfpO7-0Y-ZNEv7VkU33EoK8av-unZxGPzRCHTb6Dst2oq-CM5DOR7KEGTbFo2cKCZ-q2BzhUVPxU/s1600-h/IMG_1274.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSJt9gzUdz8ajAFV7xLM5ZeJKUyZUWj6RX4hiQLeentrZEBk9wYJbMWBeiqfpO7-0Y-ZNEv7VkU33EoK8av-unZxGPzRCHTb6Dst2oq-CM5DOR7KEGTbFo2cKCZ-q2BzhUVPxU/s400/IMG_1274.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5235755708857057938" /></a><br />Ryo vs. Lady Kayura<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfkqQhSzW8fLTQ8ZHCS2iFnrM1nWBdGOTXJ5FIxs0ecl9vRdKFmRg9A8m0Q4HECT28dCVjsgFLS-HiV7VNIsU6gAB0jBC7MjEP3oQnrCslVwMAJJFREw1h1mgc8dEwuQNtDaqR/s1600-h/IMG_1273.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfkqQhSzW8fLTQ8ZHCS2iFnrM1nWBdGOTXJ5FIxs0ecl9vRdKFmRg9A8m0Q4HECT28dCVjsgFLS-HiV7VNIsU6gAB0jBC7MjEP3oQnrCslVwMAJJFREw1h1mgc8dEwuQNtDaqR/s400/IMG_1273.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5235755705996194066" /></a><br />Rowen vs. Anubis<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi20T3q5kp1fVawaEsdTjjwexs6rFp6Ks27p6A0nbIGU7gy-Iz450z5XftmQgtNqiRrylujTM9wxUstGTLGsmNg1SsC_g9pfz9QDDmGod_DBkq0mIPNZKHVJUKZkPpyUQe88g8e/s1600-h/IMG_1275.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi20T3q5kp1fVawaEsdTjjwexs6rFp6Ks27p6A0nbIGU7gy-Iz450z5XftmQgtNqiRrylujTM9wxUstGTLGsmNg1SsC_g9pfz9QDDmGod_DBkq0mIPNZKHVJUKZkPpyUQe88g8e/s400/IMG_1275.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5235755711650113538" /></a><br />Sage vs. Cale<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCEd-9J3wruz3lEf2HQbXCjBDSeri8-SsfNK2TJ8d9JfWjPlBcGYLgsTT-AOKbrFnhTe0N5oFySuPULkveJMUlF7O01QXKjSGd3S_-MWkzAZHHfQk3YatQQOAAOg7oAhYufSvJ/s1600-h/IMG_1271.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCEd-9J3wruz3lEf2HQbXCjBDSeri8-SsfNK2TJ8d9JfWjPlBcGYLgsTT-AOKbrFnhTe0N5oFySuPULkveJMUlF7O01QXKjSGd3S_-MWkzAZHHfQk3YatQQOAAOg7oAhYufSvJ/s400/IMG_1271.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5235755717081560386" /></a><br />Kento vs. Dais<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTgVQgcgsqgdeE_zQo4A3Ai_k3ZRGsahIhqJN0KHH0R94WXvYP_sFEhlXTrzn5LPnBNdBLdxPYeCuZz_T7BlVrmv4yZILL_eXhCtHKkRbyA3ewsTdt9oYvbTvTH5ee5_MhHPiS/s1600-h/IMG_1272.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTgVQgcgsqgdeE_zQo4A3Ai_k3ZRGsahIhqJN0KHH0R94WXvYP_sFEhlXTrzn5LPnBNdBLdxPYeCuZz_T7BlVrmv4yZILL_eXhCtHKkRbyA3ewsTdt9oYvbTvTH5ee5_MhHPiS/s400/IMG_1272.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5235755720568873154" /></a><br />Cye vs. CaleBatallahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12372209941349167606noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16976141.post-76613473029623521922008-07-09T19:42:00.000-07:002008-07-09T20:14:34.772-07:00Traffic LightsThere's an intersection near my house with traffic cameras that capture images of vehicles running past the yellow light. As I approached the intersection this morning, the crossing signal turned into a solid red hand. I decided to play it safe by not trying to beat the yellow light. Once I stopped behind the crosswalk line, the black SUV on the opposite side of the street began to make a left turn. My gaze continued to follow its turning radius when I noticed a turquoise SUV from the lane to my right attempt to cross the intersection to beat the yellow. It didn't even occur to me that the two vehicles would collide. There was no sound of screeching brakes or of a revving engine. The light turned red and the turquoise SUV simply slammed into the passenger side of the turning vehicle. The impact caused the black SUV to roll over onto the driver side. The turquoise SUV had smoke heavily pouring out of its windows. I looked at the other vehicles around the intersection and none of them were moving. One of them happened to be a police cruiser a mere ten feet from the crash. The two officers got out of their vehicle and walked towards the crash. Finally a vehicle began moving. It was the turquoise SUV slowly pulling over to the nearest curb. I noticed another moving vehicle. It was an ambulance that also happened to be near the scene. It parked at the same curb as the turquoise SUV. After what seemed like an eternity, the traffic light I was facing changed back to green. I blinked and hoped to myself that everyone involved would be fine before I continued driving to work.Batallahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12372209941349167606noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16976141.post-22762563869959993112008-05-08T12:27:00.000-07:002008-05-10T16:20:22.169-07:00Speed Racer Alongside the SubwaySo I found one of the coolest marketing ploys I've seen in a while during one of my <a href="http://www.westworld.com/~elson/larail/red.html">Metro Red Line</a> trips back from work. I usually kill time aboard the Los Angeles subway train by looking aimlessly out the window. I was doing just that the other day when all of a sudden the image of the Emile Hirsch as the Wachowski's <span style="font-style:italic;">Speed Racer</span> popped up on the glass. I jerked back in surprise but I didn't dare look away. I knew WHAT I was looking at but not HOW it was occurring. Then I realized the image was actually moving. Like a motion picture. Then I realized the image wasn't being holographically projected onto the window but was instead a series of images, most likely LCD screens, attached to the concrete tunnel wall. I looked at the other windows on my side and noticed the same thing. What was happening was the illusion of movement much like the way a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zoetrope">zoetrope</a> works. A rapid succession of images moves in a horizontal direction while the viewer looks through a viewing hole, in this case the window, and only sees one image at a time.<br /><br />Now here's a math problem for you: The <span style="font-style:italic;">Speed Racer</span> advertisement is located between the Universal City and Hollywood/Highland stops and lasts for about 10 seconds. That distance takes about three to four minutes to cover by the train while it's traveling at about 60 to 70 miles per hour. Each screen is about two feet wide and attached next to another screen. The illusion of movement occurs with viewing 24 frames per second. How many screens are attached to the wall and how long do they collectively span in the tunnel? Most importanly, how much would this marketing trick cost?<br /><br />Here's another modern example of a zoetrope:<br /><object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/YqfpOg9qAEc&hl=en"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/YqfpOg9qAEc&hl=en" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object>Batallahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12372209941349167606noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16976141.post-55374068162317809382008-04-06T22:47:00.000-07:002008-04-06T22:51:25.061-07:00Lead is a Battlefield<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7rs5TTccMMj_1q2mJhOT5ohh587Vn3Ur23txj3sT2SOiuxjdbUPKlXAYb543BkaUkMPEHYwMuPh4APakqNAV5dai_dHPa5jnqVRSj71y1Pw6pi93C9EGnCi4W3aB5cMHhbLOa/s1600-h/banner.gif"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7rs5TTccMMj_1q2mJhOT5ohh587Vn3Ur23txj3sT2SOiuxjdbUPKlXAYb543BkaUkMPEHYwMuPh4APakqNAV5dai_dHPa5jnqVRSj71y1Pw6pi93C9EGnCi4W3aB5cMHhbLOa/s400/banner.gif" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5186375891519417026" /></a><br />So my website, <a href="http://leadbattle.com/index.html">Lead Battle</a>, has gone up today. Check it out. It isn't much at the moment but it should start to shape into something cool over the next month as I continue working on it. Due to the relatively slower rate that I will be updating Lead Battle, this blog will continue to be where I post my latest illustrations and comics.Batallahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12372209941349167606noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16976141.post-5904822095791101422008-04-04T23:19:00.000-07:002008-04-04T23:47:46.311-07:00April Already?<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsbzHFCKYgu7Gm4woiX3iEa1M3JPUYZguBOFw5Ly3YkMLP3gT4bhONlLTLD4eItMR0W5g4o9PxmyKUCDkID_dyuKA3qnbaIJ6-GznHhuUXpce7w2t92LlEbM0ogw_Us3e8aQxC/s1600-h/placeholder.gif"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsbzHFCKYgu7Gm4woiX3iEa1M3JPUYZguBOFw5Ly3YkMLP3gT4bhONlLTLD4eItMR0W5g4o9PxmyKUCDkID_dyuKA3qnbaIJ6-GznHhuUXpce7w2t92LlEbM0ogw_Us3e8aQxC/s400/placeholder.gif" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5185642298220358322" /></a><br />So first thing's first. I've been defeated in the webcomic contest between myself and Megan. I called her up last Saturday and conceded because I knew I wouldn't be able to finish on time. I probably could have put another placeholder comic up, but it felt sort of cheap last week when I did it to prolong the competition. As for the final installment of the Hullabaloo story arc, it should be posted in the coming week once I get some more free time.<br /><br />Now one of the reasons why I've been so busy lately is because I've been working on my personal website that I plan on launching on Sunday. Once that's over and done with, I'll be able to focus on drawing again. I only ask that you overlook the incredibly primitive nature of the site. I'm more concerned with having it up and running than aesthetics. Plus, I'm still learning CSS so hopefully it'll be upgraded to more efficient coding over the next month. I'll give the link on Sunday when it's ready.Batallahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12372209941349167606noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16976141.post-74077090782877065342008-03-23T16:40:00.000-07:002008-03-23T17:06:02.970-07:00Mark Draws Line Between Drew Doodles<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5Rp_iF2UKfcFisGKYr7ISsvQk72GMdQXWWK6TmrZOZko1K_KWkvBZ6vGFrUWESgdYkhiwt6OFVbnaPeghD9tX_1os0z4E97mHEddSLal8Ztj0U7iTXE3uNaW1C0DdE6wfKw_g/s1600-h/mrpants.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5Rp_iF2UKfcFisGKYr7ISsvQk72GMdQXWWK6TmrZOZko1K_KWkvBZ6vGFrUWESgdYkhiwt6OFVbnaPeghD9tX_1os0z4E97mHEddSLal8Ztj0U7iTXE3uNaW1C0DdE6wfKw_g/s400/mrpants.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5181086407366159010" /></a><br />In a recent post, Drew uploaded some of his <a href="http://kidicarus222.blogspot.com/2008/03/wrath-of-whacka.html">doodles</a>. He remarked that his rendition of a cat was a subconscious remembering of Alexandre from <span style="font-style:italic;">Home Movies</span>. Coincidentally, I'm currently poring over archives of my past work for the <a href="http://www.dailynexus.com/">Daily Nexus</a> in order to find material worthy of uploading on my website that's currently under construction. That's how I noticed a little comic called "Mr. Pants" that Drew did draw many years ago and its resemblance to the recent doodle he done did days ago. Notice the similarities with the curled tail, the circular patch of belly fur, the triangular nose and the mustache-like snout. I think he was subconsciously remembering Mr. Pants rather than Alexandre.Batallahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12372209941349167606noreply@blogger.com4