groovy-ruins

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Theory: Frank Miller's recent work is good, but it isn't getting the right colour treatment

Above: I recoloured that recent Wonder Woman cover Frank Miller did for DC last week. Mine on the left, the published version on the right. I did this to demonstrate a theory I have that despite the general critical consensus, there’s actually nothing wrong with Frank Miller’s recent art- it’s just that it isn’t getting the appropriate colour treatment. So- I’m a cartoonist who mostly writes and draws his own material, but in January of this year I tried out to be a colourist for Frank Miller at DC. Not because being a colourist for the comics has always been my dream, but because I kept seeing some pretty awesome drawings of his being critically savaged. People were talking as if his recent drawings were the scrawlings of a lunatic. I felt like I knew why this was, and how to fix it. I should add a disclaimer- this post isn’t a criticism of DC or the colourist who currently works on Frank’s art, who I’ve talked to, and who I learned was selected by Frank himself. The colourist who did the original work on the pieces I’m about to show you is an extremely technically accomplished person who does things I could never do. I’ve tried colouring like this guy does. It’s pretty hard! Nor is this intended as a lionisation of my own abilities. Instead, this is a personal argument championing one type of colouring over another, and a defence of Frank’s recent work. 

Below is one of the Miller covers I recoloured for DC. My colours on the top, and the published original on the bottom. Here you can see the discrepancy between the potential I saw in these drawings, and what was actually being published.

I spoke to a couple of editors at DC and the consensus seemed to be that they loved what he was turning in. So why did every blog I read think it was the worst work he’d ever done? I believed I had the answer: that the colour treatment DC’s artists were giving to his art was, while technically accomplished, not flattering to the type of work he was doing.

My friend Julian Dassai said it best: “His work is dynamic and, in some cases, verging on abstract. Trying to color his stuff with representational lighting and rendering is pointless, whereas a flat, graphic approach (or just leaving it in b&w) allows the energy to jump off the page.” My colour job, followed by what DC actually published:

Frank is an artist who is constantly evolving, and his new work seems to be somewhere between Jim Mahfood, Sergio Aragonez and Ralph Steadman. It doesn’t make sense to colour him as if he’s an Image comics artist from the 90’s, all gradients, shadows and shiny metallic finish.  

Here’s another one. Again: my work on the top, The published version on the bottom.

All these images I’ve posted so far have two things in common- they were all widely dunked on and derided when they first went online, and they all prompted responses of “WHOA, COOL!” and “I LOVE THIS!” after I recoloured them and circulated them amongst my friends. So what happened here is ol’ Frank became the butt of everyone’s joke when actually, there was nothing wrong with his drawings.

So how did this happen?

Well, check out Frank’s work in the Sin City comics. When Frank works in black and white, he’s a one-man band. But when he works in colour, he hangs back and gives the colourist a lot of space. He knows that colours and inks are two halves of a whole.

Above is a page from 1986’s The Dark Knight Returns. You can see just how much trust Frank placed in his colourist, Lynn Varley, to finish his work. As you can see, some of those panels aren’t even THERE in the original inks. Panel 6 is just an empty box. 

This approach has been proven to work very well, but the problem is it places the burden of the image’s success or failure squarely on the colourist’s shoulders. And if the colourist and Frank aren’t on the same page, we end up with covers that are the laughing stock of the whole internet.

It’s funny- even Lynn Varley could screw up colouring for Frank. Two years after their critically acclaimed work 300, they made their most widely panned book of all.

Lynn’s computer colouring on Dark Knight Strikes Again has all the invention and nuance of her colouring on Frank’s earlier work. However, to my eyes, her experimental digital art just isn’t a good fit for Frank’s traditional, brusque inkwork. The artwork in the book suffered a generally poor reception from fans and critics alike. 

I took a pass at colouring DK2, too. I include this not to throw shade on Lynn’s work, which has definite and strong merits of its own. Nor do I want to suggest that I’m a better colourist than Lynn (I’m definitely not). Rather, I just want to use a flat colouring approach to demonstrate that there’s nothing wrong with Frank’s pencils and inks in even the book that was generally regarded to be his worst. His lines have character and energy and do everything they need to do to tell the story, and with the right treatment would have looked pretty great.

We can apply the same lessons to Frank’s most recent work. I’d read a whole comic that looked like either of the recoloured images below.

DC liked my stuff, but they’re happy with the guy they already have colouring Frank’s work, and so my experiment has to run its course. Still, I want to believe that there’s something in here that we can all learn from.

It’s important to pick the right team, and to utilise a stylistic approach that’s harmonious with what the rest of the group are doing. If you don’t, you might just end up with something no-one likes even though you worked your butt off. As we’ve seen, it can even happen to an exceptional talent like Frank. That’s a scary thought.

Update: see more of my recolours here.

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I’ve shared this bit of advice before, but it’s worth sharing again.

I am almost 8 years on HRT and before I even started taking estrogen, spiro, or progesterone, my doctor looked me in the eyes and asked a very important question…

She asked: “Do you want big boobs?”

I said yes, I wanted something that matched my frame.

She immediately told me: “Then do not go on a diet, maintain your fat, because your body will be using that and whatever you’re eating to build up your breasts and other features.”

And bless her because I’m rocking an H Cup these days.

So my trans girlies who are just starting out, I offer that bit of advice to you as well.

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I've been looking at some posts from people who claim that asexuality is not a spectrum, or that there is a spectrum and asexuality is the "absolute zero" right at the far end of it, and I'd like to propose a phrase to counter that argument:

There are infinitely more ways to fall outside of the norm than inside it.

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TRANS WOMEN: HERE'S SOME SHIT YOUR DOCTOR WONT TELL YOU ABOUT HRT

1. Progesterone: not for everyone, but for many people it may increase sex drive and WILL make your boobs bigger. Also effects mood in ways that many find positive (but some find negative). Most doctors won’t prescribe this to you unless you ask. Most trans girls I know swear by it.

2. Injectible estrogen: is more effective than pill or patch form. Get on it if you can bear needles bc you will see more effects more quickly.

3. Estradiol Cypionate: There is currently a shortage of injectible estradiol valerate. There is no shortage of estradiol cypionate. Functionally they do the same shit.

4. Bicalutamide: This is an anti-androgen that has almost none of the side-effects of spironolactone or finasteride. The girls I know who are on it are evangelical about it.

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hey in case you didn't know trans inclusive terminology in healthcare is not about protecting peoples feelings, it's to stop insurance companies from going "well it says here that hysterectomies are a procedure performed on WOMEN and you keep insisting that you're a MAN so we do not in fact have to cover that have a nice day and eat shit"

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my gf is saying sufjan stevens is mid as fuck

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"Yeah, no, you do need high testosterone for geneseed implantation to take, but the geneseed doesn't care where the T comes from. Actually, loyalist chapters tend to preferentially select candidates with XX karotypes because the redundant X chromosome confers greater resistance to Chaos mutations, so statistically most Space Marines are transmasc. What? Of course it's canon – would I lie to you?"

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comprehensive list of disorders in the DSM-7:

generalized deficiency

phlegmatic (only surviving humour)

woman

whale ate your parents

whale didn't eat your parents

put a little hot sauce on that bad boy

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My 90yr old Irish Catholic grandpa doesn’t miss with my gender. He’s never gotten my name wrong, or my pronouns, never even faltered over it.

It’s all so natural too: son, big man, young man…

We’ve never talked about it. He’s the only one who hasn’t pushed for details. He just accepted it and carried on because it’s not a huge deal.

It’s so comforting.

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FLESH SIMULATOR is possibly my favorite person on the internet. If you havent already, you should follow (Flesh Simulator) on tiktok or youtube. think of him as Evil Vsauce (complimentary), he’s got great short tips for how to definitely not be an chaotic anarchist goblin *wink*, and some video essays about true crime, conspiracy, his favorite media, photography, and synthesizers. He even cooked a hot dog with a guitar amp once.

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URGENT: SLOWING FUNDRAISER!

Recently in an update, Siraj ( @siraj2024 ) has talked of the dearth of space in Gaza. He has described how the occupation has caged Gazans into a narrow strip of land; there is no humanitarian zone that has not been bombed or invaded. Deir al balah was considered one of the last safe zones in gaza- and now that illusion has been destroyed too.

Just a few days ago, Siraj had told us that the violence of the IOF had been only a street away from where he and his family were encamped, and that his extended family were displaced in the aftermath.

It is a claustrophobic, uncertain existence many of us will likely never have to experience.

I will try to keep this as brief as possible. Since Siraj's parents and siblings got displaced and have now become fully dependent on Siraj for funds, his family has been seeing some dire circumstances.

First of all, I need you to understand the kind of pressure Siraj is under right now:

His own family which consists of 5 members

His father’s family also of 5 members

His younger brother’s family of 3

His older sister’s family of 6- she is a doting mother to four children

His younger sister and her own family of 4.

I need you to understand that there are 23 people in total for whom Siraj is the sole provider for at the moment.

Currently all 23 members of Siraj's family forced to share two tents. While the funds did go into procuring a second tent, there is STILL not nearly enough space. The women are suffering from a lack of privacy, and it is dangerous for the children as epidemics are spreading in the camp- Amir, Siraj’s son is already suffering from a severe skin infection. Living in such close quarters with no option of quarantine only puts everyone else (including all Amir's cousins) at risk of infection, at a time where they quite literally cannot afford it with the way medical infrastructure in Gaza is in shambles atm.

With your help, Siraj has successfully raised 50K, but the fundraiser is slowing once again.

Currently Siraj is at 50.8k / 82k

To help his family, He needs to raise 55K by monday i.e the next 2 DAYS.

Vetted and appears #219 on @/el-shab-hussein and @/nabulsi's list of vetted fundraisers

If you need further incentive to donate:

Art raffle - 24th aug is the last day of the raffle so PLEASE participate!!!

Enamel pin raffle

People offering digital commissions here and here

In case you wish to donate to his gfm with paypal, or are having any trouble donating in general, PLEASE DM @malcriada who is a trusted friend of siraj and will make sure to donate to the fundraiser on your behalf and send you proof of donation.

Please share and donate anything you can spare!

Siraj has a heavy burden on his shoulders at the moment, the least we can do is try to ease it as much as we can.

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This used to haunt me so I'm so glad I know this now

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Just trying to find out how much of a freak I am. rb for sample size, etc.

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dykes read Fucking Trans Women challenge

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this guy's beef got old enough to have geology

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welcome to my weird little place