This was done for the This Week Jam, the subject of the week being Fray, a comic created by Joss Whedon, banking on his popular Buffy the Vampire Slayer TV series.

Malaka Fray is a future Slayer, so it’s sort of like vampiric Cyberpunk business in that book. Great art (Moline rocks,) great writer, and after the first issue, I lost interest… but that’s because I just wasn’t feeling futuristic vampire hunting. Frankly, it’s the same problem I had with the Blade films. But it looked pretty cool, and this character’s hair especially made me interested in giving this jam a whirl. I sort of out-whirled myself, however, when the piece moved beyond sketch and into the realm of Time Sucking Illustrative Nightmare.

Fun though.

You can see the full version herein the TRDL Tribute Gallery.

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Related posts:

1. This Week Jam: Malaka Fray
2. TRDL Tribute: Dawn [Buffy the Vampire Slayer]
3. TRDL Tribute – Bloodstorm

Moondragon here was done for the recent character jam on Erotic-Comic-Cartoons 2 (elistas) and was, I believe, selected by Tulio. This is a character I have indeed drawn in the past, but in her old green 70′s witchy-poo costume. I drew some Defenders stuff in Junior High, because a friend, in our Marvel RPG game, had a character who had joined the team in a particular campaign… only to be killed accidentally when Hercules dropped a tank on him. But anyway… Moondragon. I did some research on the character as she has moved forward in Marvel continuity, and discovered that, not only did I not know what she had been up to in the years since then, but I didn’t really understand the character at all. I had no idea about the Thanos, Drax, Dragon in the Moon connections, all of that. I always just thought she was sort of a rip-off of DC’s Raven from Teen Titans, but bald and lesbian. But it seems she became a bad nasty for awhile, perverted by the Dark Side, I mean, the “Dragon in the Moon” or some such business, eventually stuck with some enchanted headband that chilled her out, by Odin. Eventually, it appears, she was on Universe-guarding duty with Infinity Watch, before that fell apart, and is now tutoring the new Captain Marvel. Or something. But she got this spiffy new costume somewhere along the way that I quite liked, so I used it.

You can see this illustration herein the TRDL Tribute Gallery.

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Related posts:

1. TRDL Tribute: Sersi
2. TRDL Tribute : Moon Knight
3. TRDL Tribute: Starfire

A little while ago, our friendly Moderating bucket o bolts Ironlung requested a very interesting commission. You can see the thread here:

http://www.thirdraildesignlab.com/forum … .php?t=762

His request: Draw up a sexy, vampy villainess from Adult Swim’s nutty Venture Brothers late night toon… but the catch: he described the character, and I designed the look based on his description, never having seen the Venture Brothers version. He wanted to see what my version would look like, without pre-conceived notions from the show. Now, I still haven’t seen the real deal just yet. But this is what I came up with.

You can see the illustration here in the TRDL Tribute Gallery.

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Related posts:

1. TRDL Commission: Mototov Cocktease
2. TRDL Tribute – Dr. Girlfriend
3. TRDL Tribute: Superman [Sightblinder Concept]

A little while ago, I posted a comment about how I enjoy commissions which ask that I draw unusual, obscure or originally-designed characters far more than I do mainstream popular characters, and this was largely a true statement. There are some exceptions…ask me to draw Iron Man, and I’ll do a backflip every time. But especially the truly iconic characters give me pause, because I’ve never been able to do them very well. I had a successful Wonder Woman last year, but in her golden age garb. I’ve done a few decent Batmen. But Superman is of the worst for me. I don’t dislike drawing him, but I’m rarely pleased with the result. So when I was asked to do an illustration of the Big Blue Boy Scout for a friend’s son, I was hesistant. If I can’t draw Superman to look like Superman to MY eyes, how will I do a convincing piece for a 12 year old with that laser keen eyesight and media-saturated memory the kids today wield? So many talented artists have put their stamp on the guy, that while I’m struggling with finding the right look for Jor-El as a balance between his classic comc style and my mental image of him as an iconic figure, this young fellow has been spoiled by multiple, varying interpretations of the hero from today’s hottest, or at least most popular, artists.

Anyway, I ultimately decided to do a version that captured a synthesis of his longest-term costume design, the more traditional sense of him being powerful without being overbuilt, and focus my energies on his face and expression: Superman to me has always been impossibly powerful, but an outsider yearning to fit in, and carrying an impossible optimism and youthful naivete into very messy human affairs. I don’t particularly like the grim n gritty applied to the Superman mythos. I like him to be above that stuff, not overburdened by the tragedy of humanity not living up to it’s potential, but rather intentionally presenting himself as a positive ideal, crafting his own image as a being above politics and personal motivation. Mark Waid recently wrote an essay on why Superman does what he does, which was a great thought-provoking read. And don’t get me wrong, I enjoy moments when Supes has run out of patience, where he drops the higher ground thing and gets a little bit angry. But ultimately, I like the idea that this being of such immense power might float there, confidently, and just… give you a knowing smile. Because more than anything, he wants to RELATE to the average human. So this piece became about the face for me. In the end, I quite liked it, despite it’s flaws. Because I look at him, and I feel like I’m seeing the Superman I imagine.

And, of course, getting paid for it is all the sweeter.

You can see this illustration herein the TRDL Tribute Gallery.

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Related posts:

1. TRDL Tribute: Superman [Sightblinder Concept]
2. TRDL Tribute: Superman (Super-Buffery Edition)
3. TRDL Tribute: Hellboy

This is one of my favorite original characters.

The ink, if not legible, is kinda neat: on her shoulders, the targets contain the words "lady" and "killer", which was her handle in her competition days. The script over her breast is the name of the first victim to die in the ring. She also has ink on her back and on the back of each hamstring.

You’d think I had a penchant for kickpoxing or something, but I really don’t. But given that I have tried to base the TRDL Universe in a more realistic setting, I thought fighting championships were a good rationale for female characters to have some combat training exclusive of a military background. But I do have a good friend who practices, and it’s neat!

Concept and Art: Thom Chiaramonte
Abilities and Origin: Thom Chiaramonte

:::

Pugilista

Name: Paige Lincoln
Affiliation: Bad Seeds

Melee: 50
Reflex: 30
Muscle: 30
Vigor: 50
Acumen: 10
Observation: 20
Will: 10

Life: 160
Influence: 40

Abilities:

Hardened Physiology: Pugilista wears micro-weave kinetic mesh and polymer cellular sheathing provides protection from physical attacks [30 AP], energy attacks [20 AP], and thermal attacks [30 AP]. This hardened physiology is self repairing at her normal healing rate.

Combat Acuity: Pugilista has years of experience in grueling hand-to-hand combat, and as such, takes two actions to her opponents single action. She also enjoys increased reaction time, influencing her speed of attack and response: at the beginning of each turn, all opponents roll d100 high to determine action order. Pugilista may reverse dice order to optimize percentile (ie. A roll of 3 and 7 may become 73.)

Muy Thai: Pugilsta utilizes Muy Thai kickboxing technique in hand-to-hand combat, with +2CS for determining stun/ slam (or opponent defends at -2CS) when using kick attacks. She also receives +1CS towards leg parries.

Adrenal Rage: Pugilista may voluntarily enter an adrenal rage, which allows her to ignore the effects of damage loss until the rage is over. This means that at the beginning of the rage, she rolls 1d10 to determine duration. During this period, she suffers no penalties as a result of taking physical damage, and may continue to fight, despite Life dropping below 0. Once the rage wears off, she will experience the effects of these injuries, immediately making a Vigor Action or fall unconscious from the strain. If her Life is reduced to 0 or lower, she immediately slips into a coma, and rolls a Vigor Save every 4 turns. If she saves, she remains in a coma, awaiting medical treatment. If she fails, she dies. The rage is also triggered involuntarily by suffering more than half her Life in damage in a single/combined attack.

Telescopic Sight: Pugilista can view detail at great distances [20 IV; 20 RV].

Origin:

Pugilista is skilled hand to hand combatant with an appetite for combat and willingness to fight dirty. A pit fighter who rose in the ranks of female kick-boxing and Muy Thai before being banned for wrongful death grievances on behalf of the families of two of her opponents who didn’t survive the matches, she was taken in by the Bad Seeds and, through the work of an off-shore bio-lab in the Cayman Islands, enhanced with a combination of nanotechnology and bone sheath grafts to increase her strength, endurance, and resistance to injury. Her natural inclination for uncontrolled ‘berzerker’ rage in violent encounters was tapped and refined through glandular enhancements, to allow greater control and precision of attacks when overcome with adrenal imbalance. Her function, and usefulness, is in her moral ambiguity and lack of restraint, though she is not a loose cannon, but merely unconcerned with consequences. She is kept in check in the Bad Seeds by personal motivation, a relationship with a teammate who secretly disapproves of her unchecked violence and is attempting to teach her to hold back, understanding that restraint yields power.

Pugilista harbors a secret guilt over the death of her first fatal match opponent, considering it the unforgivable act that pushed her over the edge, though she won’t admit it. Her second victim in the ring, however, is actually still alive, having barely survived, though suffering severe spinal injury. She was rehabilitated and acquired powered gauntlets, taking the mantle of the Boxer. The two have never met, and Pugilista is not aware of the Boxer’s existence… yet. But her former victim is biding time, using team resources to seek out her nemesis, gunning for retribution. And as a member of the Liberty Group, the highest-profile U.S. posthuman team, it’s only a matter of time before Pugilista sees Boxer’s image in the media, and realizes the truth.

:::

You can see this illustration herein the TRDL Universe Gallery.

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Related posts:

1. TRDL Character Factory, No. 126: Boxer
2. TRDL Character Factory, No. 107: Draconia
3. TRDL Character Factory, No. 124: Fria

This was done for the This Week Jam, the subject of the week being Viper, formerly Lady Hydra, and at one point in the late 90′s, the surprise wife of nemesis, Wolverine. I didn’t read those issues, being part of the unsettling dynamic between Chris Claremont and Lenil Francis Yu, which didn’t give Yu enough to do. But it’s an interesting premise, mimicking the classic plot device of the hero being imprisoned/ stranded/chained to/ etc. their enemy. Plus, Viper is one of the better female foils for Logan: tough, skilled and lethal. And, presumably, intended to be Asian.

For this piece, ostensibly about the Viper character, I decided to show her doing what SHE does best: being a pain in Logan’s side. I used her most current costume, from a recent, abysmal throw-away Claremont arc in Uncanny X-Men (featuring a reformed Hellfire Club led by the new black king…Sunspot… I kid you not) which I thought was pretty cool, being all leathery and cool with the spiraling snake motif and the exposed belly region for no reason. For Wolverine, I used his old brown costume, even though this is an incongruous continuity-violating pairing…let’s just say it’s from some unseen Exiles scenario or whatever. Anyway, I told someone in the R3 forum that I would be doing the brown costume soon, and so I did. He was wearing this in those #170′s issues that I was first reading as a youngin’ so it has special significance for me.

You can see the full version here in the TRDL Tribute Gallery.

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Related posts:

1. This Week Jam: Viper
2. TRDL Tribute: X23
3. TRDL Tribute: Wolverine 2

This is Queen Bee of the Injustice League. In my research on the character, I discovered that she has a fair amount of history in the DC universe. I however, was only familiar with her in Morrison and Porter’s JLA arc on the revamped Injustice League. I thought her design was pretty awesome. Frankly, she’s a tidy fusion between Alice Krige running things as the Borg Queen, and some classic Yellowjacket imagery, but I found her costume compelling. The goal, on this one, was to do a JLA villain.

You can see this illustration herein the TRDL Tribute Gallery.

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Related posts:

1. TRDL Tribute: Queen Amidala
2. TRDL Tribute: Dream Queen [TRDL Redesign]
3. TRDL Tribute: Goblyn Queen [Madelyn Pryor]