Bizarro Year in Review: 2019

2019 Year in Review

By Bizarro

OK, who better than Bizarro to explain I have absolutely no idea what to make of 2019.  The year for me has been, well, Bizarre-Oh.  It has whipsawed back and forth between "Hey, that's good!" to be almost as quickly followed by "Oh, that's bad!"...  Like this clip from "The Simpsons", which is good!  It will probably be taken down for a DMCA Violation, which is bad...

There have been the usual retinue of personal triumphs and the high highs; only to be tripped up almost immediately with some personal disaster and low lows.  Some new, close friends I've made along the way, along with close friends I failed to keep in touch with nearly as often as I wished I had (sorry!  I'll do better this coming year, promise!).  To quote "The Simpsons", again: It was the best of times, it was the BLURST OF TIMES?  You stupid monkey!"

It was particularly strange weather-wise.  The winter was very mellow right up to February, when it decided to dump about 3 feet of snow in a month.  That was a LOT of shoveling for yours truly, as it was higher than the maw on the snowblower many days.  All that snow caused some minor flooding (it was just starting to work it's way into our house before I was able to shovel a pathway for the snow and slush and semi-frozen water away from the house...).  Also, with all the crazy snowstorms in Central Wisconsin, for the first time in my life I was snowed in at work.  Since I was there already, I helped out with some of the coordination going on for clean up and such and worked a 32 hour shift.  So, that was interesting, too, just to say I did it.  No, I don't really want to do that again.

Then, in July, there was a massive storm in Central Wisconsin which knocked out power for up to 7 days in some areas (we're talking within city limits, not way out in the middle of nowhere... well, as much of a city limit as Central Wisconsin has, of course).  Amusingly enough, I had just finished my shift at work and drove right through the middle of the storm that knocked over too many trees to count and power for almost a week.  You know it's bad when Wal-Mart had to close for two days.

Then there was an assortment of projects I did of which I was relatively proud, and a ton of other things which I had planned, but never got around to finishing, alas.  I also set a personal record with the number of posts I made this year--most of which were due to my dumb idea about the "31 Days of Hell-O-Ween": a daily posting, done mostly without a net.  Somehow, it worked and I still have no idea how.  But, here's to hoping I post even more next year.  I have plans for a few longer form posts, so we'll see about that and burn that bridge when I get to it.

Here's something strange to me: Whenever there is a video that involves the Celestials from Marvel Comics, my drawings from this Blog have a 50% of showing up in the video.  So, that's kinda cool to see my work show up in strange places.  Too bad they don't know it's from me, but oh, well.  Which reminds me... I will finally have get around to doing some cool drawings and painting involving Celestials.  I was always a fan of Kirby's "Eternals", and with them showing up on the big screen soon, I may have to jump in front of that parade.

Overall, I'm still trying to piece together what the H-E-Double Hockey Sticks this year was about.

Oh, well, here's to hoping 2020 is, well, a perfect vision.

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Done digitally with Clip Studio Paint.

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Merry Sithmas - Emperor Palpatine

Merry Sithmas

Emperor Palpatine

Hey, I managed to sneak in another Sithmas Card!  This time, it's Emperor Sheev Palpatine (yes, his first name is "Sheev".  I Sheev you not...).  Since he kinda went nuts with the Force Lightning in "Star Wars: Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker", this image popped into my head as a possible idea for a Sithmas Card.  And here we are...

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STEP ONE:  Here are the digital pencils, done in Clip Studio Paint.  It is a 1,000px x 1,400px document at 200dpi.

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STEP TWO:  And here are the digital inks, also done in Clip Studio Paint.  I left large chunks in plain black, since the Force Lightning would cover most of the area and need more contrast to better stand out.

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STEP THREE:  The color was done with a series of layers in Clip Studio Paint, with two different layers used for the lightning for the animation.  Then it was imported into Photoshop to animate two frames and exported as an animated .gif.

While I was coloring the drawing, I realized a little too late that I hadn't properly done the lighting from where the Force Lightning would be flashing.  I fudged it a little bit, and it MOSTLY works, but is not entirely correct.  Sigh...

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Done digitally in Clip Studio Paint and Photoshop.

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Merry Sithmas - Kylo Ren (Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker)

Merry Sithmas

Kylo Ren (The Rise of Skywalker)

When I saw Kylo Ren's repaired helmet in "Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker", this was the first image that appeared in my head for a new Sithmas Card.

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STEP ONE:  Here are the digital pencils, done in Clip Studio Paint.  It is a 1,000px x 1,400px document at 200dpi.

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STEP TWO:  And here are the digital inks, also done in Clip Studio Paint.

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STEP THREE:  The color was done with a series of layers in Clip Studio Paint, then it was imported into Photoshop to animate two frames and exported as an animated .gif.

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Done digitally in Clip Studio Paint and Photoshop.

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Merry Sithmas - Knights of Ren: Scythe Warrior

Merry Sithmas

Knights of Ren: Scythe Warrior

Hey, it's time for a Sithmas Card!  What's that--Daft Punk is a Sith Warrior?  Actually, this time, it's one of the Knights of Ren: Scythe Warrior (also, The Rogue).  Darned if I can find a more accurate name at the moment--although, I'm sure they will officially release it just after I post this...

The Knights of Ren caught my interest in "Star Wars: Episode VII: The Force Awakens", and appeared in the trailer for "Star Wars: Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker" (which I plan on seeing this evening--just 'cuz I'm a nerd).

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STEP ONE:  Here are the digital pencils, done in Clip Studio Paint (formerly MangaStudio).  It is a 1,000px x 1,400px document at 200dpi.  Frankly, the pencils above aren't all the good, or close to the finished image.  But, I include them so people can see how much things can change, as well as the actual work involved in finishing a drawing.  They don't all come out immediately correct, but also can need some work.  Like this one.  The helmet is wide and a little short at the top of the head, for example.

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STEP TWO:  And here are the digital inks, also done in Clip Studio Paint, as I find the ink brush engine superior to all other programs I've tried.

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STEP THREE:  The color was done with a series of layers in Clip Studio Paint, then it was imported into Photoshop to animate two frames and exported as an animated .gif.

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Done digitally in Clip Studio Paint and Photoshop.

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Day 31: It Ends! - 31 Days of HELL-o-Ween 2019

31 Days of HELL-o-Ween 2019

Day 31: It Ends!

Boo!  HAPPY HELL-O-WEEN!

Well, here it is: The End.  I actually was able to post every day and made it, somehow!  No one is more surprised than yours truly about this (mostly) working out.  There were several times as to when I just wasn't sure I would make it to the end without dropping the ball a few times, but I guess that's part of why it is called a challenge.

Originally, I had planned to do it much more as quick sketchbook drawings.  Y'know, 30 to 60 minute drawings and painting to post on the blog.  But, the amount of time I spent on the drawings and paintings kept incrementing upwards--expanding to fill the remaining time.  Also, some of the first few I did turned out better than expected, so it built more of a personal expectation of quality I felt I had to keep.  It almost bit me in the arse more than once.

THE GOOD:  Shockingly, I was able to do a posting every day.  So, just that amount of work so relatively quickly was great for learning what techniques worked for me.  I also really improved my inking style, IMHO.  And, I think it also taught me to stop being so precious with my drawings; it's better to just do a bunch of drawings, no worrying how they will turn out, rather than thinking each one must be perfectly crafted before posting it.  Don't let perfection be the enemy of the good, as some have said.  Now, I just have to learn to consistently follow that for myself, too.

Also, some of the drawings and paintings actually turned out far better than I would have expected: Nosferatu, Frankenstein, Bela Lugosi, The Invisible Man, The Mummy, The Metaluna Mutant, Reagan "Possession" cartoon, Christopher Lee, Pumpkinhead, Trick 'r Treat, and Pennywise all seemed to turn out all right.

Oh, and thanks to this dumb stunt, this will be the most I've posted in a year on this Blog.  So, there's that, I guess.

THE BAD:  Some of the postings are just OK.  Minor things about the drawing/painting bug me and I wish I had fixed them before they were posted:  The Wolfman just isn't quite up to snuff; the head on the Saucer Man should have been more bulbous and rounded like a light bulb; The Man From Planet X should be a little better; while I liked the scratchboard effect for the "Night of the Living Dead" is nice, the hair on the zombie girl could be better drawn; the nose on the Brain Gremlin bothers me--the bottom of the nose is a bit too rounded and I kinda want to fix it; and the Charlie Brown ghost seemed a lot better in my head than it turned out.  Sigh...

Also, this time around, I think I stuck a little too closely to references and to the movies, rather than recreating the monsters or inventing my own.  But, once I started down that path, it was difficult to change the direction.  Mayhaps next year...

THE UGLY:  A few of these didn't turn out nearly as well as I would have wished.  For example, I really didn't care much for a couple of the "Plan 9 From Outer Space" drawings: Vampira's face is a little messed up, and Eros just doesn't look quite right.  Also, I didn't care much for my Benning posting from "The Thing"--it's OK, but just not as good as I would have liked (I think I should have thrown some watercolor over top, rather than just left it as colored pencil).  Bleh.  But, since I needed a posting, it went up anyways.  Oh, well.

I also had several times in October when something came up and I wasn't sure if I would be able to get the drawing done, so there were some moments which went from light concern to mild panic.  Also, as mentioned above, many of the drawings took more time than I planned.

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Sincerely, if I may take a moment, thank you to all who stopped by to gawk--even those of you who were hoping to see a metaphorical car wreck.  I think I'll try this again and may actually plan things a little more, rather than flying by the seat of my pants the entire time.  I'll burn that bridge when I get to it...

This was done digitally in Art Studio Pro on an iPad Pro over top the first posting for "31 Days of Hell-o-Ween".  So, we end back where we began: with a parody of "Young Frankenstein".  And, yeah, it captures pretty much how I feel at the end of this whole, dumb idea.  Here's to the dumb idea next year, too!

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This was done digitally in Art Studio Pro on an iPad Pro.

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Day 30: It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown - 31 Days of HELL-o-Ween 2019

31 Days of HELL-o-Ween 2019

Day 30: It's the Great Pumpkin, 

Charlie Brown!

Hey, it's Charlie Brown's ghost--in this case, he's a REAL ghost!  He had trouble with scissors... and he got a rock!  Oh, darn it, I should have included some rocks around the ghost.  Oh, well.

This was supposed to be an easy one to do--a simple cheat.  Y'know, done in about 30 minutes... maybe an hour at most.  Instead, I updated to Painter 2020, so there was a lot of trying to get used to new brushes and whatnot.  I didn't even think to capture pics of the progress, so none of that for today.

Yeah, I'm a little slow sometimes... :-S

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Done with Painter 2020.

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Day 29: Pennywise - 31 Days of HELL-o-Ween 2019

31 Days of HELL-o-Ween 2019

Day 29: Pennywise

One of the creepiest parts of "It: Chapter One", is when the extra-dimensional creature going by Pennywise, splits open his face and shows the Deadlights.

This was done with watercolor/gouache on 8-1/2" x 11" toned cardstock.  The teeth were a pain in the butt and I had to paint them several times to get it near to right.  It's still not quite right, but right enough, I guess.  When it was finished, I used the airbrush in Photoshop to give it more of a glow for the Deadlights.

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This was done with watercolor/gouache on 8-1/2" x 11" toned cardstock.

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Day 28: Hellraiser Cenobite (Chatterer) - 31 Days of HELL-o-Ween 2019

31 Days of HELL-o-Ween 2019

Day 28: Hellraiser Cenobite (Chatterer)

Today's posting is a Cenobite from the "Hellraiser" series, Chatterer.  I've already done Pinhead last year (or was it the year before?), so thought I should choose one of the less well-known Cenobites.  I liked the first "Hellraiser" movie, and the sequel was generally pretty good.  I kind of fell out of the franchise after that, but found the Cenobites to be visually interesting.  Also, I was a fan of Clive Barker's writing as a teen--alternating between him and Stephen King.

Below, I quickly scribbled some pencils onto some toned cardstock, which was then sprayed with a casein fixative.  After that, I laid down a quick wash of watercolor/gouache, and then worked at it some more.  Over top, I added some pen-and-ink with a brush (I had done the opposite on previous drawings, with pen-and-ink first, then watercolor over top--this time, I did the opposite).

I did some Photoshop trickery this time around and merged the faces of Step two (with about 40% opacity) and three together, which added a warmth to the layer, and knocked down some of the harshness caused by the scanner.  I've included both so you can see the difference.

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Done with watercolor/gouache and ink on 8-1/2" x 11" toned cardstock.

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Day 27: Gremlins 2: The New Batch - 31 Days of HELL-o-Ween 2019

31 Days of HELL-o-Ween 2019

Day 27: Gremlins 2: The New Batch

OK, here's where I admit I find "Gremlins 2: The New Batch" to be vastly superior to the original.  I am a sucker for any meta-fictional take downs and satirical biting of the hand that feeds you.  "Gremlins 2: The New Batch" is a chaotic funhouse from beginning to end, featuring Leonard Maltin being strangled with film stock during a movie review of "Gremlins", Hulk Hogan yelling at the Gremlins to quit ruining the movie, and Phoebe Cates beginning to re-tell the story of why she hates Christmas as the camera pans away as if even it has heard the story a few too many times.

This is Brain Gremlin, voiced by Tony Randall.  A learned, erudite, maniac with a gun.

After shooting a fellow Gremlin with a pistol:

“Now, was that civilized? No, clearly not; fun, but in no sense civilized”

- The Brain Gremlin

Below are the quick, digital scribble, the digital inks, and the colors done on a Multiply layer.  Done digitally in Clip Studio Paint on the iPad Pro.

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Done digitally in Clip Studio Pain on the iPad Pro.

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Day 26: They Live - 31 Days of HELL-o-Ween 2019

31 Days of HELL-o-Ween 2019

Day 26: They Live

This one is for another pal of mine, Joel.  He wanted to be one of the aliens in "They Live"... and, vaguely, that's what he gets to be in this drawing!  Very, very vaguely.  I put him in a business suit, so he may not be completely recognizable (Kidding!).  :-P

"They Live" is right up there with "The Thing" as one of my favorite John Carpenter horror/sci-fi movies.  Fun sci-fi action, sending up Consumerism and Capitalism gone amok with subliminal advertising and aliens buying and selling us.

Done using Clip Studio Paint on the iPad Pro.

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This was done with Clip Studio Paint on the iPad Pro.

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Day 25: Trick 'r Treat - 31 Days of HELL-o-Ween 2019

31 Days of HELL-o-Ween 2019

Day 25: Trick 'r Treat

This posting is a Pumpkinhead of a different sort (heh heh)--it's from Trick 'r Treat, a darkly fun, twisted movie with a series of interconnected vignettes about Halloween and the rules thereof.  Sort of like "Creepshow, but without the interstitial animations featuring The Creep.

This time around, I didn't bother scanning the pencils, as the cardstock was dark enough to make them difficult to see.  So, just a scan of the inks done with a #10 round brush and watercolor over top.

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Done with pen and ink/watercolor/gouache on 8-1/2" x 11" toned cardstock.

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Day 24: Pumpkinhead - 31 Days of HELL-o-Ween 2019

31 Days of HELL-o-Ween 2019

Day 24: Pumpkinhead

This one is by special request from a pal of mine, Todd G.  So, heeeeeere's Pumpkinhead!  I liked the movie--it was a fun monster movie--and it was directed by special effects pioneer, Stan Winston.

This was done with pen and ink, then a little bit of watercolor/gouache for highlights and such on 8-1/2" x 11" toned cardstock.

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Done with pen and ink/watercolor/gouache on 8-1/2" x 11" toned cardstock.

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Day 23: Creepshow - 31 Days of HELL-o-Ween 2019

31 Days of HELL-o-Ween 2019

Day 23: Creepshow

Today's post is The Creep from "Creepshow", the horror anthology from George Romero and Stephen King.  It was a pastiche/homage to "Tale From the Crypt" and the EC Comics of yore--well, before "Tales From the Crypt" got its own show, of course.  I generally found it to be a fun movie, with my favorite being Stephen King as Jordy Verrill in "Lonesome Death of Jordy Verrill" (based on his short story, "Weeds").

For this drawing, I started with colored pencil and pen and ink, but then thought I'd do some watercolor/gouache over top... but then the watercolor/gouache kind overtook everything.

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Done with pen and ink/watercolor/gouache on 8-1/2" x 11" toned cardstock.

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Day 22: Horrors of Dracula - 31 Days of HELL-o-Ween 2019

31 Days of HELL-o-Ween 2019

Day 22: Horrors of Dracula

Hey, it's another vampire!  This one is Christopher Lee from "Horrors of Dracula".  I'm not sure why Hammer horror movies seemed to disturb me as a kid when I watched them on weekend TV, but they did give me a sense of dread--giving me the sense that maybe Dracula will win this time.  Maybe it's just because there were so many vampire movies pumped out by the Hammer Horror company.  Or, maybe it's just that they were in color and therefore a bit more "real" to my childish mind (well, the childish mind of back then, as compared to the childish mind that I have now). 

As for the painting, itself, it loses a lot of the subtlety in the scan (like all the previous traditional/non-digital drawings/painting), but I kept having to check to see if it was Christopher Lee from "Horrors of Dracula", or Nicolas Cage from "Vampire's Kiss".  Maybe a little from column "A", and a little from column "B"...

This was done with watercolor/gouache Canson Montval (#185) Acrylic paper.  Originally, it was a 12" x 16" sheet of paper, which I cut it in half--with the other half being used yesterday for "The Exorcist" painting.  Again, the paper itself is kinda strange in the way it absorbs the watercolor--probably something with the internal sizing of the paper.  It worked pretty well, but was just different enough to give me pause and make me wonder if it was different "good", or different "bad".  I'm still not entirely sure...

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This was done with watercolor on 8" x 12" Canson Montval (#185) Acrylic paper.

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