I said I would be posting the last installment of this blog series tomorrow. This is true. But that doesn't mean I can't post something today as well. So here I am. Posting.
First up we have some more Supergirl.
Yup. That sure is Supergirl. Note: These images have been slapped together kinda randomly. All of the above were drawn before the series began, with the exception of the bit with Comet the Super Horse. I think that one was drawn last fall, well after production on the series was under way.
Now, one thing that's been all over the internet lately is the issue of Supergirl's shorts. Not my Supergirl, mind you. No... I'm talking about the mainstream DC comics Supergirl currently crafted by comics creators Sterling Gates and Jamal Igle.
That Supergirl, long considered overly sexy, has recently taken to wearing bike shorts under her skirt. We first saw this with the work of Renato Guede.
And more recently with the work of Jamal Igle.
Of course, our Supergirl wears tights under her skirt, so we circumvented the controversy a bit. Just a bit, mind you. There were websites chock full of outrage over the tights (though mostly over her lack of boobs). But it wasn't as bad, mainly (I think) because our Supergirl is younger. Therefore people felt a little creepier vocalizing their outrage. Also, there is the out of continuity aspect. People were less offended as the "real" Supergirl wasn't the one wearing tights. To that I just roll my eyes. I am not a believer in slavish dedication to continuity. And I'm not willing to buy in to the notion that one execution of the character is inherently more important.
Anyway, neither Eric or my myself came up with the tights. Those were introduced by Rikki Simons during the pitch process. Rikki provided color samples and I gave him two choices. Full blue dress, or red skirt. He took creative control and went with red skirt and blue tights. We loved it immediately. It made sense. Our Supergirl is young, inexperienced, insecure and unsure. A short hand to show this lack of confidence is for her to cover herself up a bit more modestly. So with that in mind, it was a very conscious choice to have Belinda Zee fly around without tights. The choice in uniform for a character is not one of fashion. We shouldn't look around and justify our decisions based off of current trends. The uniform should reflect the psychology of the person behind the uniform. Therefore advancing the story. Writing isn't just the placement of words or even the construction of a plot. It's everything. Every nuance. Every camera angle. Every expression.
And to weigh in on the shorts controversy. I like the choice. It allows Igle to draw more fluidly, with more energy. But more importantly it suggests that the "real" Supergirl has grown up a little. So the decision works visually and subtly.
Alright, tomorrow I will post the original 3 images that landed Eric and I the Supergirl job. Be warned: they are nothing like what appears in the book.
But for now, I will leave you with what I had in mind before I concocted the concept of the Moon Gang. I have a thing for imaginary rabbits.
I'm a big Captain Carrot fan. Origially, I considered a different direction with Supergirl's imaginary world. But Eric and I (along with artist Mike Shoyket) had just explored something similar in Tron: The Ghost in the Machine. Subsequently, a different direction was required.
Enter the Moon Gang. Blatantly inspired by our brief time working with the Beagle Boy's on a re-imagining of Scrooge McDuck.
You haven't seen the last of them. Mark my words.
First up we have some more Supergirl.
Yup. That sure is Supergirl. Note: These images have been slapped together kinda randomly. All of the above were drawn before the series began, with the exception of the bit with Comet the Super Horse. I think that one was drawn last fall, well after production on the series was under way.
Now, one thing that's been all over the internet lately is the issue of Supergirl's shorts. Not my Supergirl, mind you. No... I'm talking about the mainstream DC comics Supergirl currently crafted by comics creators Sterling Gates and Jamal Igle.
That Supergirl, long considered overly sexy, has recently taken to wearing bike shorts under her skirt. We first saw this with the work of Renato Guede.
And more recently with the work of Jamal Igle.
Of course, our Supergirl wears tights under her skirt, so we circumvented the controversy a bit. Just a bit, mind you. There were websites chock full of outrage over the tights (though mostly over her lack of boobs). But it wasn't as bad, mainly (I think) because our Supergirl is younger. Therefore people felt a little creepier vocalizing their outrage. Also, there is the out of continuity aspect. People were less offended as the "real" Supergirl wasn't the one wearing tights. To that I just roll my eyes. I am not a believer in slavish dedication to continuity. And I'm not willing to buy in to the notion that one execution of the character is inherently more important.
Anyway, neither Eric or my myself came up with the tights. Those were introduced by Rikki Simons during the pitch process. Rikki provided color samples and I gave him two choices. Full blue dress, or red skirt. He took creative control and went with red skirt and blue tights. We loved it immediately. It made sense. Our Supergirl is young, inexperienced, insecure and unsure. A short hand to show this lack of confidence is for her to cover herself up a bit more modestly. So with that in mind, it was a very conscious choice to have Belinda Zee fly around without tights. The choice in uniform for a character is not one of fashion. We shouldn't look around and justify our decisions based off of current trends. The uniform should reflect the psychology of the person behind the uniform. Therefore advancing the story. Writing isn't just the placement of words or even the construction of a plot. It's everything. Every nuance. Every camera angle. Every expression.
And to weigh in on the shorts controversy. I like the choice. It allows Igle to draw more fluidly, with more energy. But more importantly it suggests that the "real" Supergirl has grown up a little. So the decision works visually and subtly.
Alright, tomorrow I will post the original 3 images that landed Eric and I the Supergirl job. Be warned: they are nothing like what appears in the book.
But for now, I will leave you with what I had in mind before I concocted the concept of the Moon Gang. I have a thing for imaginary rabbits.
I'm a big Captain Carrot fan. Origially, I considered a different direction with Supergirl's imaginary world. But Eric and I (along with artist Mike Shoyket) had just explored something similar in Tron: The Ghost in the Machine. Subsequently, a different direction was required.
Enter the Moon Gang. Blatantly inspired by our brief time working with the Beagle Boy's on a re-imagining of Scrooge McDuck.
You haven't seen the last of them. Mark my words.
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