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A Year of Progress

Posted on September 8, 2024 by Josh Stoodley

Hello all you happy people!

Today I wanted to share with you some more art. Specifically, I wanted to share how far I’ve come in a year of working on my art.

This is where I started:

Ooh boy that is rough.

But here’s where I am today:

Obviously, I still have a long way to go. Especially if I’m going to use my art in my video games or as a webcomic (which I’m still working on by the way!).

But. But progress has been amazing over the last year. I am getting so much better. And it’s been fun. A lot of fun. I’ve never had so much fun doing art.

When I was a kid, in elementary school, art was a chore. And I convinced myself I was bad at it because I hated doing it. Looking back at it now, I have to wonder:

How much better could I have been if I had enjoyed art at the time? If I had teachers who didn’t suck all the life and joy out of me?

I don’t know. But I do know that I’m getting better at art every day.

My arm is still buggered, so I will have to cut this short. I hope to see you guys soon!

August Sucked

Posted on September 4, 2024 by Josh Stoodley

Hello all you happy people! I’m hoping you’ve had a better month than I have.

Let’s see. Between it frequently being too hot to sleep, pinching a nerve in my elbow, and possibly having sleep apnea I haven’t gotten a lot done.

Sigh.

While I’ve been struggling, I’ve decided to work on my art. You’ll remember that, ah, my webcomic art isn’t great. So I decided to put Dragon City on hold for a bit while I practice and fix up my left arm. Fortunately, I can draw with just my right. Hold your jokes please.

So I’ll indulge you with some of my practice work!

This is my best interior yet! As you may know, I’m a huge fan of Batman: The Animated Series and of Art Deco in general. Dragon City is supposed to ape much of BTAS‘s style but alas, I’m not quite there yet.

So I started scrolling through Reddit’s Art Deco sub. I know, I know. Social media is a disease and all that. But I’m not interacting with anybody or getting into fights, I’m just looking for references. And I found some good ones! This image doesn’t quite match its reference but that’s okay too. I’m very pleased with it.

Do you ever fall in love with a piece of art because of just how bad it is? That’s how I feel with this pic. Just about everything about it is completely wrong. But I don’t know. It’s got kind of a goofy charm to it.

Just like this piece! I mean, I’m getting better. A lot better. But I clearly have some things to work on.

Like, you know, proportions.

This is much, much better. I have a long ways to go, but still. Everyday is an improvement.

Okay, my arm is hurting again so I’ll leave you there.

Hope to see you soon! Bye.

Some More Dragon Age Fanart

Posted on August 15, 2024 by Josh Stoodley

Hello all you happy people! Here I am with more Dragon Age fan art. Meet my Qunari mage, Ba’al Hadad:

Some Dragon Age Fan Art

Posted on August 15, 2024 by Josh Stoodley

In honour of the Dragon Age: The Veilguard trailer dropping today, I thought I’d post some fan art for you guys.

Here’s Lugh, my Dalish Elf Rook:

Sob. Why can’t my webcomic art be this good?

Anyways, I’ll see you guys soon.

Legends of Faerie Is Switching To Unreal!

Posted on August 14, 2024 by Josh Stoodley

Hello all you happy people! I hope you’re feeling better than I am. Dust allergies are a bitch, I tell you.

However, I have exciting news. I am switching development on Legends of Faerie from RPGMaker to Unreal Engine 5.

Why, you might ask? The answer is simple: RPGMaker can’t publish games for sale on the Nintendo Switch, and Unreal can. As you know, my goal is to become a Nintendo developer and sell my games. Unreal is the best tool for that, as it is not only easy to learn, but its also free. Completely and utterly free (at least, until you make a million dollars or more which, ha! Not going to happen), whereas with both Unity and GameMaker you need to pay extra (and considerably extra) in order to publish on consoles.

I call bullshit on that, personally. But it’s their company and their resources and they can do whatever they want with it. In the meantime, I’m going to stick with Unreal.

So! A screenshot:

Obviously, these are placeholder graphics, but I thought it would give you a good idea of what I’m trying to do here. This is another reason I like Unreal over RPGMaker: it’s much more flexible. RPGMaker more or less forces you to recreate Dragon Quest 3 unless you’re willing to break the engine. Unreal doesn’t have that problem, because you’re more or less building the game from the ground up.

As you can see, battles in Legends of Faerie are turn based and have four combatants on each side. Well actually, there can be up to eight combatants on each side, divided into two rows. In the back row would be your ranged or just squishy combatants. Casters, archers, those sorts of guys.

In the front row goes your melee combatants. Most of these are tougher than the back row combatants, but some, like the Lumberjack class line, are more glass cannons.

This is also a good time to talk about how classes will work in Legends of Faerie. Classes will work on a Job System. Each of the eight characters in Legends of Faerie will start in an Apprentice Class like Lumberjack or Fencer. When they reach level twenty in that class, they can promote to a Journeyman class. Promoting resets their class level to one, but they gain a huge boost in their stats. Likewise, when they reach level 20 in the Journeyman class, they can promote into a Master class. Again, promoting resets them to level one, but with an even larger boost in stats.

You don’t have to keep your characters in their starting classes, either. Every character can switch into any other class and gain all their proficiencies and stat boosts. However, in order to change into a more advanced class you need to first master the previous class.

That’s it for today. We’ll talk more about classes, how they work, and how they interact with elemental powers and familiars next time. Along with some examples of how battles actually work, hopefully.

See you guys soon!

The Stress of Her Regard

Posted on August 9, 2024 by Josh Stoodley

Dragon City is being a pain, so it’ll come out tomorrow instead.

… Not a villain cameo I was expecting

Written by Halley Gross

Directed by Matt Peters

… yep, this is definitely an adaptation of a comic book. Tickle torture indeed…

I did not realize ‘Barbie’ was short for ‘Barbara’ until this series.

Harley is an aggressive flirt. Good to see her portrayed as queer in this series.

Hiding things behind bookshelves seems to a Gotham hobby.

Funny, BTAS had Batman evade Harvey’s task force with a smoke grenade, too.

Ok look. I get that many rich people are total bastards (hi, Donald) but isn’t referring to them as chattel a little, I don’t know, on the nose?

Oh thank Godzilla she’s dressed like a harlequinn

K, some of these people have families. Wouldn’t somebody notice if they went missing?

The BTAS easter eggs here are hilarious

In real life, psychiatrists are really helpful and not evil.

Isn’t that a coincidence?

Harley has it bad for Renee Montoya.

Do villains not lock their doors? Ever?

Yeah, that could’ve gone better

Only one episode for Harley and Renee’s relationship? I call bullshit!

Really? Batman couldn’t figure out the controls, knock out William and disable the alarms in the time it took William to call Harley and get her to drive out there?

There are at least five of you plus Batman and only one of her. Why not gang up on her?

Really? No rebreather? No glass cutter? Nothing?

Why go for the bat? The control panel seems like it’d be easier

So Harley isn’t a complete sociopath

Nice save Bats

Everybody references Nighthawks

Well, that was heartbreaking.

Batman created by Bill Finger

Flass created by David Mazzucchelli and Frank Miller

Harley Quinn created by Bruce Timm and Paul Dini

Animated by Studio Grida

The Night of the Hunters

Posted on August 9, 2024 by Josh Stoodley

That’s the coolest hero ever, obviously. Besides Spider-Man

I wouldn’t go out after dark in Gotham, Batman or no.

Hey, it’s Lois Lane!

Special task forces are the cops way of saying we aren’t doing anything but we’re going to make it look we are. Like forming a committee for other branches of government.

Gee thanks?

Written by Ed Brubaker

Directed by Christina Sotta

You know, Bullock, if you and Flass were less corrupt and incompetent, maybe this wouldn’t be such an issue.

Okay, this is taken right from Batman: Year One, only with Montoya in Gordon’s shoes.

These cops are terrible actors

These kinds of traps are not very effective use of police resources

SWAT teams didn’t exist in the 40s, by the way.

Gordon’s having a bad night

Okay, this is what bugs me. Why use Firebug, but give him Firefly’s costume and motivations? What, you couldn’t get the rights? Actually, the way this show was screwed over that’s entirely possible.

Don’t taunt the pyromaniac, Flass

Flass is definitely the brains of this outfit. That said, this is a bad plan.

Drawing fire is hard.

Firebug is genuinely creepy.

The cops are lousy shots, too.

Look up, morons

Not only are they lousy shots, but they have terrible trigger discipline. Shooting at Batman when there’s civilians in the line of fire is a bad idea.

Plastic Man is a bit of a wild card in this show.

The text on the paper is just straight up latin gibberish

Batman created by Bill Finger

Firebug created by Len Wein

Flass created by David Mazzucchelli and Frank Miller

Harley Quinn created by Bruce Timm and Paul Dini

Animated by Studio IAM

Kiss of the Catwoman

Posted on August 9, 2024 by Josh Stoodley

You know what’s bullshit? Human anatomy. You know what else is bullshit? Sleep apnea.

Next page for Dragon City will be up later today, promise.

Hey, it’s… Plastic Man?

Yep, it still looks like Archer to me. I don’t know, are all digital cartoons this flat? I don’t remember Batman Beyond or Justice League looking this flat.

Bruce, you old smoothie you.

You should always be worried about Selina Bruce. More than anyone.

I’m not sure I like the idea of Selina having a record before she becomes Catwoman

On the one hand, I’m glad they ditched Selina’s modern backstory. On the other hand, she’s… brattier than usual in this.

Yeah, sock it to ’em Bruce.

Story by Ed Brubaker and Bruce Timm. Which is interesting, because Brubaker is one of the architects of modern Selina and this version bares absolutely no resemblance to her.

Teleplay by Adamma and Adanne Ebo.

Directed by Christopher Berkeley

Oh hey, it’s Harley! It’s kind of nice seeing her as a psychiatrist.

Yes. All the time. You might even say its his job.

Therapy is only effective if you want it to be.

You’d know, Harley.

A competent Harley isn’t something we see often.

This isn’t my favourite take on Selina, but Greta is my new favourite character

Not my favourite Catwoman costume either, but I do like it better than the all black one.

Gotham cops just plain suck.

Yep. But not those kinds of toys.

I am very much not a fan of the idea of Selina getting caught

Don’t talk to the cops without a lawyer, Selina.

It’s kind of weird to me that such a comedic episode is intercut with scenes from the death of Bruce’s parents.

You’ve never touched a drop of booze in your life Bruce.

You mean like dressing up like a bat and beating up criminals?

Bwahahahahaha!

Little bit, Bruce

C’mon Alfred. Even you don’t believe that.

Selina, stop hoarding cats.

That’s what you get for performing gymnastics in high heels.

It’s the Cat-illac!

Selina, pay yourself first, then your employees. Then worry about rent.

Bruce is not a believer in therapy, clearly. Though given what we know about Harley, maybe that’s wise?

Where’d you get the panther?

Guns are a bit much guys.

Flass, you’re a psycho.

It’s good to see Batman’s compassion

Ha.

Batman created by Bill Finger

Arnold Flass created by David Mazzuchelli and Frank Miller

Harley Quinn created by Bruce Timm and Paul Dini

Animated by Studio Grida

…And Be A Villain

Posted on August 5, 2024 by Josh Stoodley

It’s been too hot to sleep for the last three days. Last night was the first night I got any actual sleep. You know, I used to enjoy summer?

For as simple as Bruce Timm’s style is, it’s a headache to try and copy. The chins, especially. But also the eyes.

You know, for as prominent as Jerk-Jerk Abrams’s name is here, it’s pretty clear he has nothing to do with the series.

Written by Greg Rucka. And starring Renee Montoya. There’s a surprise. I’m going to have a heart attack from all the surprise here.

Directed by Matt Peters

Bruce is much more of a jerk in this one than normal. Also does this cartoon look like Archer to anybody else?

Montoya is a lot thicker here than usual. I wonder if that’s a response to criticisms of Timm’s usual art style? I mean, he does draw women ala Dan DeCarlo.

Hey, it’s Lucius Fox!

Lucius is in the right here. It’s unethical for a cop to interview a person if they’ve asked for their lawyer without that lawyer present.

Police commissioners are not that involved in cases in real life.

Bruce is thinking long term here, and he’s right. Montoya is a valuable asset. But its good for Alfred to remind Bruce of the people involved in his cases, too.

So Clayface’s big schtick here is that he’s too ugly to get a leading role and, um, no? He’s not any uglier than Peter Cushing who had lots of leading roles. Granted, mostly in horror movies but still.

That said, I can understand frustration at getting typecast

I love Montoya in a trench coat and fedora

The animation is a little stiff in this show.

Don’t worry Montoya. Karlo is still a suspect.

Dent is really sleazy in this show. In the comics, Dent had a one-sided crush on Montoya which didn’t end well on account of her being, you know, a lesbian.

I sympathize with the producer, honestly. Having your two stars disappear like that and the creditors coming after you would stress me out too.

Ah, good old Alfred. Still showing absolutely no fear to his boss

I’m not going to lie, I’m rather tired of the ‘man gets turned down, becomes a psycho killer’ plot. I get it happens in real life, but it’s kind of a cliche at this point. Give your killers other motivations, please.

Just in time, Bats

Yeah, the animation in this scene was definitely sped up. It’s a shame; lack of budget maybe?

Flass, you suck.

I feel like that’s something the coroner should have noticed?

Hard

Ah, the classic villain whine. This too has gotten cliche

Haven’t seen a classic death trap in a while

That looks like a Simpsons face.

Batman created by Bill Finger

Animated by Studio IAM

In Treacherous Waters

Posted on August 1, 2024 by Josh Stoodley

Hello all you happy people! It’s one o’clock in the morning and plus 25 degrees Celsius! Have I mentioned I hate global warming?

But that’s okay, because we’re going live blog us some Batman! That’s right folks Batman: Caped Crusader airs today, produced by the legendary Bruce Timm and James Tucker of Batman: The Animated Series fame. Another Batman legend, Ed Brubaker is the showrunner and head writer. This should be good.

Ah, so Rupert Thorne is back in this show. I wondered.

At least they didn’t have the bullet pass right through him, this time.

Love the black and white intro.

Story by Jase Ricci and Bruce Timm

Teleplay by Jase Ricci

Directed by Christina Sotta

Whoever Alfred’s actor is, they sound a lot like Efrem Zimbalist Jr.

Batman calling Alfred ‘Pennyworth’ is just plain weird

Wait, Barbara is a defense attorney? Based on the previews, I thought she was a cop. This could be interesting.

Also, I’m glad that the producers remembered black people can be redheads too.

Wow, Dent is crooked in this one. Unusual.

Yeah, like openly corrupt. Weird.

In the 70s, I think, Batman would sometimes pretend to be a police janitor to get at files

Okay, so apparently Penguin is a femme Ratigan in this? Like, she is literally wearing Ratigan from The Great Mouse Detective‘s outfit. And singing. This is officially the weirdest take on Pengers yet.

Also, let’s just be honest here, ‘Oswalda’ is lazy as shit.

At least she’s chunky. If I saw another skinny Penguin, I’d have to hurt somebody.

And flirtatious. Okay then.

Just a reminder: Barbara’s one and only father figure is Jim Gordon. Nobody else.

Honestly I just tried to read Batgirl: Year One and I had to put it down after the first few pages because of how badly they screwed up the Barbara-Jim relationship. Jim is, was, and always will be completely supportive of Barbara in everything she does.

Harvey is really, really sleazy in this show.

Barbara is clearly cursed to deal with sleazy men in this show.

Bruce, always making an entrance.

And there’s Rupert. He looks the most different from BTAS, much more generic looking.

Putting the Iceberg Lounge on a ship was a nice touch

Penguin, you have some ugly kids. One of them looks like Beavis (or is it Butthead? I never watched the show)

Please tell me the junior Penguins will be dead by the end of this episode

Aren’t you just a peach, Penguin

Interesting that junior Penguin didn’t go to Harvey, but to Barbara

Welp, they’re dead

No seriously. Batman just straight up ran over three dudes.

Artillery? Seriously? I get this is a superhero show, but come on guys!

Lot of coffins in Gotham Bay

Bullock, that’s a jerk move even for you

You know it wasn’t

Yes, yes he does.

It’s good to know somethings never change.

Batman created by Bill Finger.