May the Fourth be With You 2026

May the Fourth be With You 2026

OK, I'm only 6 hours late to the official "May the Fourth"--based on a pun so obvious and terrible I am disappointed I didn't think of it myself.  It's also using Jaxxon T. Tumperakki as part of a running joke I've been using for... 11 years now?  What the--what happened to all that time?  Well, let it never be said that I will not commit to the bit.  This time it's Jaxxon wistfully staring off at the Twin Suns of Tatooine as they begin to drop down below the horizon.

To re-explain everything about Jaxxon (and to copy-and-paste part of this from last year's Blog), he's part of my continuing--although not as Quixotic as it used to be--quest to make Jaxxon, the "Star Wars" version of a green Bugs Bunny, into something vaguely popular.  Jaxxon started in the Marvel Comics "Star Wars" #8 (1977), taking place after "A New Hope", in a pastiche of "Seven Samurai"/"Magnificent Seven" and...  And it's a long story.  He's a 6' tall, green rabbit which was loosely based on Bugs Bunny that was in "Star Wars" comics and he caught my attention as a kid.

Since I've started this crazy quest, he's now he's appeared in comics (sure, it's the "Star Wars: Adventures" line, but I'll take it as a win and say he's officially canon, now), and apparently even has a Black Series action figure.  He also is the star of the "Star Wars: Hyperspace Stories" one-shot with Dark Horse Comics a couple years ago (with an awesome Mike Mignola cover).  And he is in the non-canon "Lego Star Wars: Rebuild the Galaxy - Pieces of the Past", voice by Ben Schwartz.  So, shall I declare myself the winner and say I'm done?  Oh, I'll probably beat that dead horse a little more, still!

BONUS for "May the Fourth": Here's an unrelated link to a hauntingly beautiful song by Jeremy Messersmith's "Tatooine", delightfully animated with paper cutouts from the original trilogy.

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STEP ONE:  Here are the quickly scrawled digital pencils on a 3,000px x 2,000px canvas in Rebelle 8 Pro.

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STEP TWO:  And here's the finished digital painting

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Done digitally in Rebelle 8 Pro.

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May the Fourth be With You 2025 (Belated)

May the Fourth be With You 2025
(Belated)

Hey, hey!  Sure, I'm just a smidge late to the whole "May the Fourth" thing... What's that?  SIXTEEN days?  Great googly moogly, that **IS** late!  Oh, well, I'm sure I'll be on top of it next year for sure...

This time it is in reference to the alleged and apocryphal story of George Lucas himself wanting Jaxxon removed from the Marvel "Star Wars" comics series, mixed up with the "Somehow, Palpatine has returned" meme.

To re-explain everything about Jaxxon (and to copy-and-paste this part from last year's Blog), he's part of my continuing--although not as Quixotic as it used to be--quest to make Jaxxon, the "Star Wars" version of a green Bugs Bunny, into something vaguely popular.  Jaxxon started in the Marvel Comics "Star Wars" #8, taking place after "A New Hope", in a pastiche of "Seven Samurai"/"Magnificent Seven" and...  And it's a long story.  He's a 6' tall, green rabbit which was loosely based on Bugs Bunny, that was in "Star Wars" comics.  Now he's appeared in comics (sure, the "Star Wars: Adventures" line, but I'll take it as a win and say he's officially canon, now), and apparently even has a Black Series action figure.  He also is the star of the "Star Wars: Hyperspace Stories" one-shot with Dark Horse Comics last year (with an awesome Mike Mignola cover).  So, shall I declare myself the winner and say I'm done?  Oh, I'll probably beat that dead horse a little more!

I just did the picture on a single Layer and completely forgot to show the progress until it was too late.  Yeah, I'm sure I'll be on top of that, too, someday...

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Done digitally in Clip Studio Paint.

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May the Fourth be With You 2024 (Belated)

May the Fourth be With You 2024
(Belated)

Greetings!  It's my (belated) "May the Fourth Be With You"/"Revenge of the Fifth"/"Revenge of the Sixth" post featuring Darth Jaxxon.

Once again I must point out "May the Fourth Be With You" is such a bad pun I'm disappointed in myself for not doing it first.  Also, there seems to have been a shift this year to saying "Revenge of the Fifth", rather than using "Revenge of the Sixth".  Either one works well, and I also swing back-and-forth between which one I prefer.

To re-explain everything about Jaxxon (and to copy-and-paste this part from last year's Blog), he's part of my continuing--although not as Quixotic as it used to be--quest to make Jaxxon, the "Star Wars" version of a green Bugs Bunny, into something vaguely popular.  Jaxxon started in the Marvel Comics "Star Wars" #8, taking place after "A New Hope", in a pastiche of "7 Samurai"/"Magnificent 7" and...  And it's a long story.  He's a 6' tall, green rabbit which was loosely based on Bugs Bunny, that was in "Star Wars" comics.  Now he's appeared in comics (sure, the "Star Wars: Adventures" line, but I'll take it as a win and say he's officially canon, now), and apparently even has a Black Series action figure.  He also is the star of the "Star Wars: Hyperspace Stories" one-shot with Dark Horse Comics this year (with an awesome Mike Mignola cover).  So, shall I declare myself the winner and say I'm done?  Heck no, time to double down and keep this train going!

Happy (belated) May the Fourth/Revenge of the Fifth/Revenge of the Sixth!

STEP ONE:  Here is the quickly scribbled, digital pencils and the color flat laid down.

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STEP TWO:  Jaxxon's face is mostly finished and the armor is more fully sketched out.

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STEP THREE:  And here's the finished picture of Darth Jaxxon.  I added red highlights for the lightsaber, finished the armor, some tattoos, and other bits and bobs.

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Done digitally with Rebelle 7

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May the Fourth be With You 2023 (Belated)

 May the Fourth be With You 2023
(Belated)

Greetings!  It's a (belated) "May the Fourth Be With You" post, featuring my continuing--although not as Quixotic as it used to be--quest to make Jaxxon, the "Star Wars" version of a green Bugs Bunny, into something vaguely popular.  Jaxxon started in the Marvel Comics "Star Wars" #8, taking place after "A New Hope", in a pastiche of "7 Samurai"/"Magnificent 7" and...  And it's a long story.  He's a 6' tall, green rabbit which was loosely based on Bugs Bunny, that was in "Star Wars" comics.

When I first started posting Jaxxon on May the 4th back in... 2015?  Wait, that can't be right?  YIKES!  Anyhoo, I thought it would be neat if he ever made it into canon.  Now he's appeared in comics (sure, the "Star Wars: Adventures" line, but I'll take it as a win and say he's officially canon, now), and apparently even has a Black Series action figure.  He also is the star of the "Star Wars: Hyperspace Stories" one-shot with Dark Horse Comics this year (with an awesome Mike Mignola cover).  So, shall I declare myself the winner and say I'm done?  Heck no, time to double down and keep this train going!

Happy (belated) May the Fourth!

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Done with Rebelle 6 (with an assist from Clip Studio Paint for the lettering and line work).

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May the Fourth Be With You (belated)...

 May the Fourth Be With You

It's my (belated) "May the Fourth Be With You" post starring Jaxxon, everyone's favorite giant, green space-rabbit based on Bugs Bunny who first appeared in the Marvel Comics "Star Wars" run.  Better late than never, I always say!  Once again, I will engage in my Quixotic quest to bring Jaxxon to the masses!  OK, sure, he's already making a comeback, appearing in "Star Wars Adventures", but that's besides the point.

Like Jaxxon, I'm sure I should get some sort of medal for that happening... 😉

Holy cow, I just realized I've been beating this joke into the ground for the past 8 years already.  Well, here's to 8 more years, I guess?

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STEP ONE:  Here are the loosely scrawled digital pencils, done on a 2,000px x 3,000px canvas @ 300dpi.  I was still trying to figure out what to call this Two-Page comic when I pencilled it, as well as the writing in the last panel.  I knew it would involve him stealing... er "borrowing" the medal from some dumb Wookie.

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STEP TWO:  And the digital inks and lettering.  I did do some minor cheating with tracing rendered models of Tie Fighters/X-Wing/Millennium Falcon.  Obviously, I just freehanded Jaxxon's ship, given the shoddy nature of that drawing. 😁

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STEP THREE:  Finally, all the color on top.

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Done digitally in Clip Studio Paint.

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May the Fourth of July Be With You...

 May the Fourth (of July) Be With You!

OK, this is really, REALLY late for May the Fourth, but just in time (barely) for the Fourth of July!  So... yeah, it still kinda works.  Kinda, sorta.

And, of course, apparently my Quixotic Quest of seeing Jaxxon become Star Wars canon has sorta happened, with him appearing in the "Star Wars Adventure" comics aimed at all-ages.  So, I guess that's cool.  Anyhoo, I shall continue to flog this dead equine of a joke next year, and the year after, as well, I'm sure.  Onward to the next project!

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STEP ONE: Here are the digital pencils, scribbled onto a 5,000px x 7,500px canvas @ 300dpi.  Why such a large canvas?  I have no idea what I was thinking...  That's probably why it took so long... 😀

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STEP TWO: And here are the digital inks.

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STEP THREE: Finally, the colors and letters!  I output them as "Normal" sized 1,000px x 1,500px pictures.

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Done digitally with Clip Studio Paint.

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May the Fourth Be With You - 2020

May the Fourth Be With You!

OK, sure, it's really a day late, but I won't tell anyone if you don't!  And, once again--against all common sense--I have decided to hitch my wagon to Jaxxon, the 6' tall green rabbit who is now... semi-canon (he has made appearances recently in various comics within the past couple years, so "Mission Accomplished" on my mad quest to make him canon?).

Anyhoo, 'cuz I am nothing if not a one-trick pony, for the past several years I've used Jaxxon as part of "May the Fourth Be With You"/"Star Wars Day"/"Revenge of the Sixth".  Of course, it is also one of those things where you kinda begin to regret starting something, then feeling like you must keep it going.  So, I guess my one-trick pony died and I will keep flogging it.

That said, I'm not entirely displeased with this cartoon, and will no doubt use use Jaxxon again in the future.  For better or worse, I remember reading about him wayyyyyy back in "Star Wars" #8 (1977/1978), when anything related to "Star Wars" was eagerly consumed by myself.  I remember him fondly enough to keep bringing him up on this Blog at least one a year; I'm not entirely sure what that says about Jaxxon, or myself for the matter. 

In this case, I managed to merge a cartoon of one of the least popular Star Wars characters (Jaxxon) with one of the most popular Star Wars characters (Baby Yoda).  And you assume Jaxxon is just trying to jump on that bandwagon?  YOU'RE the one trying to get popular copying Baby Yoda!  And how dare you suggest he is just projecting?  Tsk!  Have you no shame?

See?  Totally and completely different!  I guess you must feel pretty foolish, now!

Speaking of foolish... Below is the work in progress that absolutely no one has been clamoring for.

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STEP ONE:  Here are the digital pencils, done in Clip Studio Paint on a 1,500px x 2,250px canvas at 600dpi.  Sure, it's complete overkill as far as resolution goes, but better too much than too little, I guess. 

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STEP TWO:  And the digital inks, done mostly with their standard ink brush.  Although, I have begun to play around with their brush creation tools, so that may be fun in the future.

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STEP THREE:  And finally, the coloring, done over a series of layers.  I had the inks on the top layer, then did each color on it's own layer.  So, the backgrounds on one, Jaxxon's skin/fur tone on another, and the robes on their own layer.  Each layer was a color flat, then alpha locked so only the areas in which I colored would be able to be painted.  Basically, I do it as a quick and dirty mask area.  It works for me.

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Done digitally in Clip Studio Paint.

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Revenge of the Fifth/Sixth - 2019

Revenge of the Fifth 2019 /

Revenge of the Sixth - 2019

Hey, I made it just under the wire of being only one week late!  Um, nevermind trying to diagram the meaning of that sentence... It boils down to I was busy--mostly out of town--during "May the Fourth" and "Revenge of the Fifth"/"Revenge of the Sixth", so it messed up my schedule quite a bit.  But, excuses are like E. coli... everyone has about a trillion of 'em.

For some dumb reason, "Revenge of the Fifth" seems more popular than "Revenge of the Sixth", even though "Sixth" is a better pun of "Sith", IMHO--although "Fifth" has the singular advantage of being the next day to "May the Fourth".

Anyhoo, once again, my lone, Quixotic vision of having Jaxxon the Rabbit being returned to "Star Wars" canon has motivated another cartoon/comic strip this year.  Why do I keep doing this to myself and others each year?  What part of "Quixotic" don't you understand?  :-P

This time around, Jaxxon is Quantum Leaping into Darth Vader having a heart-to-heart with his son, Luke (if you'll forgive the reference to the 90's TV Series, "Quantum Leap").

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STEP ONE:  It's the quickly scribbled blue line pencils, done in Clip Studio Paint EX.  The canvas is 1,500px x 2,250px at 600dpi.

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STEP TWO:  The inks were done in Clip Studio Paint EX, with a standard inking brush. 

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STEP THREE:  Finally, the coloring was done on a series of Multiply Layers.  When it was done, I imported the image into Photoshop to reduce the resolution and output it as a .jpg for the Blog you are indifferently starting at right now... as... you... read... these... words...  :-P

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Done digitally in Clip Studio Paint EX.

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May the Fourth Be With You - 2018

May the Fourth Be With You!

OK, so it isn't technically "May the Fourth" anymore, but let's pretend it is!

Once again, I am on my mad quest to make Jaxxon the Rabbit somewhat cool and bringing him up every year.  Someday, it may result in... well, something or other.  Who knows?  I'm sure it involves Underpants Gnomes version of Monetary Theory (Phase 1: Collect Underpants; Phase 2: ???; Phase 3: Profit!).  In your face, 200th Birthday of Karl Marx!  :-P

The secondary title, "Jaxxon/Jaxxoff", is intended as a pun from "Karate Kid" with "Wax-on!  Wax-off!", with the same vague, masturbation joke in both.  So, it has that going for it.  :-D

I decided not to do a step-by-step this time around.  They seem to take up a lot of space and I'm not sure if they really say much of anything.  I'll leave it to y'all if you're interested in the Work in Progress portions, or save them for times when it may actually be neat, or I have something in particular to say (we'll leave aside the whole "Hey, Dummy, you should have been doing that the entire time..." argument).  I'm ambivalent about it at the moment.  Also, the half-finished drawings turn up in Google Searches, so it really looks like a less-than-ideal representation of my work.

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Done digitally in Clip Studio Paint EX and colored in Photoshop.

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May the Fourth Be With You - 2017

May the Fourth Be With You!

Well, to quote Groundskeeper Willie from "The Simpsons": "I warned ya!  Dinna I warn ya?"  Yes, last year I threatened to keep the train going with Jaxxon the rabbit in a Slave Leia outfit and, by gum, that's exactly what I did!

So, continuing my insane quest to reform Jaxxon into a cool character in Star Wars, here he is for the third "May the Fourth" in a row.  If you're interested in the previous cartoons featuring Jaxxon, hit the link on the bottom of this post, or the Label on the side of the Blog.  

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STEP ONE:  Here are the scribbled, digital pencils, which were done in Sketchbook Pro--a new program I am playing with.

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STEP TWO:  And here are the digital inks which, again, were mostly done in Sketchbook Pro.

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STEP THREE:  I am just too used to Photoshop, so I imported the file into Photoshop to finish off the picture's coloration.  Mostly, I did a grayscale painting of Jaxxon, then threw some color over top of a MULTIPLY Layer, followed with lighter colors over a Normal Layer.

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Done digitally in Sketchbook Pro and Photoshop.

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May the Fourth Be With You - 2016

May the Fourth Be With You!

I thought I should take a break from painting the Bounty Hunters from "Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back" to do something quick for the Nerd Holiday of "May the Fouth Be With You".  Um, wait, I think there may be something wrong with the logical construction of the previous sentence.  Oh, well, no time to look back, now!

Once again, I decided to do something with the giant, green rabbit introduced in the "Star Wars # 8", published by Marvel Comics in 1977, Jaxxon!  That's right, I am continuing my single-handed quest to make Jaxxon a cool character!  Even though the odds are greatly against me, I shall carry on, regardless--mostly because I don't know the meaning of the word "Quixotic".

Quix·ot·ic - /kwikˈsädik/

adjective: Quixotic - exceedingly idealistic; unrealistic and impractical.

Oh!  Well, I guess that's pretty spot on, then.  Anyhoo, LAST YEAR'S "May the Fouth" entry had Jaxxon standing in for Han Solo; this year's had him standing in for Luke Skywalker.  I'll give you three guesses who will be wearing a metal bikini next year for "May the Fourth Be With You"...

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STEP ONE:  Here are the digital pencils on a new document 900px x 1,350px.  When they were finished, I dropped the opacity to 20% and did the inks overtop on a NEW Layer.  Speaking of which...

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STEP TWO:  The digital inks were done mostly with a 5pt hard round brush.  The background was done with a texture brush in grayscale.

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STEP THREE:  Lastly, I added in the color on a new MULTIPLY Layer and the lettering.

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This was done digitally in Photoshop.

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May the Fourth Be With You!

May the 4th Be With You!

"May the Fourth Be With You" is a pun so bad and obvious, I'm ashamed I didn't come up with it first...

No, it isn't Bucky O'Hare.  It's Jaxxon, the giant, green rabbit which was part of Marvel Comics "Star Wars" series.  

Yes, when I was a kid I actually bought the issues that introduced Jaxxon and, as you can guess, I have a soft spot in my heart (and probably head) for the character. 

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PART ONE:  Here are the digital pencils.  They were originally done on a 1,000 x 1,500 pixel canvas, but I shrunk it down to 900 pixels to keep the file size within reason on the site.

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PART TWO:  And here are the digital inks.  They were done mostly with a 5 pt. Hard Brush, and a patterned brush for the stippled background of the Cantina walls.  

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PART THREE:  Here is the color plate.  I created a New Layer and set it to Multiply to color the page but keep all the linework.  I finished the whole thing off by adding the lettering, above.

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Done digitally in Photoshop

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