Cut Out And Keep Halo

If you have checked out the free online copy of Vanguard 2, you will have seen this page, which I drew to homage the sort of cut out pages that you used to see in 2000ad annuals.

This is the full colour version. I was going to give it different text to justify this internet doubling up, but decided instead to stick with what I originally submitted. This is largely so we can all have a little laugh at my first attempts at mastering Redbat's voice. Dirk Van Dom* changed the first line in the completed edition, probably because "Bat greetings, batlings!" sounded a little too Adam West.

*Oh wow, I have only just realised the full brilliance of the blog title "Van Domain", and the reason for that photo of a van. Jeez, I'm slow!

Halo And The Gryphon And The Salmon of Wisdom

Continuing this month's theme of shouting out for Vanguard, we'll be talking about the free gifts! Everyone loves a postcard right? You might think you are not fussed about postcards, I know, I thought the same about the 2000ad ones. But then you get them in your hands and you think "Oooooh, this is quite nice." Must be something about the high quality gloss finish to the art. Let's all pause a moment to consider high quality gloss finishes on art. Hmmm, sexy!

So now we are probably all really excited for the postcards that accompany the Real Paper Copies of Vanguard issue two! Every story in the comic is represented by a full colour piece of art, and you get the complete set just by buying the one comic! None of that needing to buy lots to complete your collection nonsense! Here is my contribution, and I was pleasantly surprised to find it looks even better in the flesh. Must be the high quality gloss finish.

The next piece was drawn as a birthday present for a friend of mine. I have found that people who have seen it have are compelled to create a story around the picture. Personally, I think young Zephyr is about to eat himself some lunch, but others have been much more imaginative. What do you think is going on?

Lizard People!

Right, let's turn April into Halo and the Gryphon Month. That link takes you to the second issue, all ready and up on the internet for your reading pleasure. If you need to catch up on the fantastic issue 1, that can be found here for the paltry price of a single pound!

The newest episode introduces Lizzah and her Halo. Let's go meet them both!

Oooh, on second thoughts, they look pretty busy. Maybe we should come back when they aren't being attacked by shape-shifting smoke-monsters.

Next we have a few sketches exploring intra-species variation among Lizzah's people. I'm not even sure when we'll be meeting any more of her kind, but I'll be ready for them when they turn up!

I've just recieved the script for episode three, and that has a whole load of new stuff I need to design. Monsters, species, scenery, Halo and the Gryphon likes to mix it up a fair bit, and so do I! That's why next week I'll be giving you a sneak peak at my first venture into colour with these characters. See you then!

Time-And-Space-Rupturing-Super-Violence

This week I am finishing off my work for the next episode of Rise Of The Mekkosapiens. For this first panel I was aiming for a John Blanche vibe; a few heroes fighting off impossible odds, continually missing missiles exploding behind them in such a way as to never obscure the action.

Maybe that's why villains never hit the goodies in these stories. Perhaps they would have more luck if they used hitiles rather than missiles.   

Vanguard 2 Is Here!

The previously promised preview of the next Mekkosapiens...

Will not be seen this week, because Vanguard 2 has erupted onto the net!

Demonic editor Redbats is back, bringing with him the fruits of many months of torturing creators in a dark room without food or light, and with music, too loud music, and big buckets of water, and...

*Ahem,* anyway, as has already been reported on Down The Tubes, Vanguard issue two not only continues the exciting adventures of all your favourite Vanguard characters, but also cuts a violent swathe into the land of digital distribution!

Yes, you can read Vanguard 2 right now, just by clicking on this biased link! Did I mention it's absolutely free? You can buy a physical copy here should you like it, and buying a copy will get you free gifts!

I'll be pimping this a few more times over the next few weeks, but first of all it's back to Rise Of The Mekkosapiens, more on that next week!

Melting Robots And Other Such Delights

Things are going from bad to worse for G-127! Anyone paying close attention will be able to see how this is a bit of a cheat as far as artistic captions go, but to find out the full story, you'll have to check out the forthcoming 10th issue of Paragon. More details on that soon!

In other news, I have recently received the contributor's copy of Dr WTF?! 2012. This will be going on sale at the Inverness comic and sci-fi convention  Hi-Ex, which takes place at the end of this very month! If you can't make it to such far flung Arctic tundra, I'm sure editor Owen Watts would love to help get a copy into your grasping hands, so hop over to his blog and drop him a line. The price will be around the £4.50 mark.

'Tis the season for chronologically confused celebration, for fresh on the heals of Christmas wishes comes a whole heap of Halloween! Indie horror comic Hallowscream has now been released in tree-terrorising printed glory! Don't worry if you still find your soul wracked with existential uncertainty though; you can still download all three issues, absolutely free!

That's all the signal boosting for this week. I must now return to finishing my work for Paragon; tune in next week for more previews of what I've been drawing!

Billy And His Bike

This is Billy. If he looks like he's not having a good time of it, then you should see the other guy.

You can find out what's troubling Billy in the forthcoming anthology from Disconnected Press. You may remember I worked with Lizzie Boyle on a strip for the last Hallowscream. This one is even better! More news to come...