Tuesday, August 31, 2010

Sculpting Red Lantern Mera

The Blog Pop Sculpture featured an interview with artist Karen Palinko, who is a sculptor and also the creator of the I-cannot-wait-to-have-it-in-my-hands upcoming Red Lantern Mera action figure. This is a snippet of her interview with Pop Sculpture regarding the creation of this piece of art:

"One of the first challenges I faced sculpting this figure was figuring out how to make her look angry and attractive at the same time. Pushed too far, angry features can become so distorted that the face becomes ugly. It’s a fine line to walk—putting in enough facial lines and distortion to convey emotion, but not so much as to make the character look grotesque. What I decided on was an ‘up and down’ directional pull to the face rather than a ‘side to side’ one. Pulling the facial muscles outward to create a wide gaping mouth works well on male figures, but for an attractive woman, I wanted more of snarl than a grimace, to make the finished product look angry-sexy, not angry-ugly ."

"I’ve sculpted a lot of female characters, and one of my favorite parts is doing what I think of as "swishy" hair. A superheroine needs good, swishy hair. Hair does more than make the figure attractive---it’s a continuation of the action; and done right, it adds energy and dynamics to the figure. I also find it very relaxing to sculpt. To me, it feels like a swirly abstract sculpture within a sculpture. But while half of my brain is relaxing and sculpting it, the other half is keeping in mind that it has to be castable. I try to be careful to work the strands so that they feed into each other, or that gates can easily be positioned from one strand to the next so the whole thing can be pulled out of the mold easily."

"Like Aquaman, Mera’s costume is composed of countless fish-like scales, which require painstaking effort to get right. Unfortunately, there’s no painless way to put all those scales in place. Each one had to sculpted on individually, using tiny dots of wax. I sculpt the figure first, laying in the musculature, and then apply the scales on top. I sculpted the Mera body underneath to be a little thinner than I would have usually, to allow for the added thickness of the scales. Sometimes this takes some trial and error to get it right, and I have on occasion had to strip the scales off a section to redo them if I thought a limb looked too thin or too heavy after applying the scales. Scales also take some planning ahead, since when applying them on a 3-D shape, the rows will have to contour around the curves of the body. I lay out etched guidelines on the figure to plan where the rows will fall."

Monday, August 30, 2010

Superman & The Hawks

Sometime last year during Cromy Month, we featured a shot of Superman and the Hawks. This great triple threat (for the villains) is actually an ongoing theme throughout these characters' histories, and we'll see more of them in the future. Here, we have Kal-El from Krypton, and Shayera Thal and Katar Hol from Thanagar in a SuperFriends adventure.

They have in common more than just their sense of justice; they also share the fact that they come from distant planets and have made of Earth their home. The advanced technologies of Krypton and Thanagar are also used in the Hall of Justice and the Justice League Satellite's equipment.

Video Game Lego Batgirl

DC Comics Originals :: T-Shirt

Now, this is an amazing piece of clothing we've got here! This is a DC Comics Original T-Shirt sold by SuperHeroStuff featuring 29 of DC's brightest stars:

Firestorm, Batman, Joker, Robin, Cheetah
Green Lantern, Superman, Hawkman, Catwoman, Dr. Fate
Aquaman, Martian Manhunter, Penguin, Flash, Mary Marvel
Harley Queen, Captain Marvel, Riddler, Darkseid, Hawkwoman
Green Arrow, Red Tornado, Batgirl, Wonder Woman, Captain Marvel Jr
Supergirl, Mera, Zatanna, Plastic Man

SuperHeroStuff description of this T-Shirt goes like this: "Made from 100% Cotton, this black t-shirt features stacked boxes filled with all your favorite DC Comic Book characters! There's Green Lantern Hal Jordan! There's Superman, Batman Hawkman, Catwoman, Flash and even Zatanna and Mera! There's Birdbrain and the Green Agitator! HUH!? Anyway, this DC t-shirt is absolutely for you, DC Comic Book fan!"

Sunday, August 22, 2010

Super Heroes Health Tips

The World's Greatest Super Heroes. This ia a DC Comics/Nutra-Child Vitamins, Inc. promotional comic book featuring Batman, Robin, Batgirl, Wonder Woman, and Aquaman, titled "Your Guide To Good Health"

The book features original art accompanied by health tips, including exercising, eating fruits and vegetables, and cleanliness. Here we see Batgirl and Wonder Woman setting the example and advising how healthy it is to go out jogging.

Printed in December 1976 to promote World's Greatest Super Heroes Chewable Vitamins, the premium booklet is 12 pages with art by Neal Adams and Dick Giordano. It is printed on heavy, slick paper 8" x 8"

Have a super day every day! We think you will, if you follow the guidelines we've set in this health care booklet for you. If you stick to the Big 3 of health care: cleanliness, exercise, and good nutrition. If you use your good will and good judgment. And if you see your doctor and your dentist regularly.

World's Greatest Super Heroes Chewable Vitamins are a mother's best friend! So say Batman, Robin, Batgirl, Wonder Woman, and Aquaman!


Saturday, August 21, 2010

These Redheads Rock!

Cliffhanger

Click on the image to see a larger version
Art by Ivan Reis

Friday, August 20, 2010

Live Action Batgirl :: Birds of Prey III

With very limited mobility, Batgirl comes to confront Shiva

Batgirl blames herself for the explosion and wants forgiveness

But Shiva is not a forgiving person, so battle ensues

Batgirl gives just as hard as she receives

But her back is broken and the strain is too much for her
This round goes to Lady Shiva, who realizes that her enemy is paralized. At the same time, Batgirl discovers this is not the Lady Shiva she fought eight years earlier, but her younger sister who survived the explosion and seeks revenge. Barbara Gordon faces off the dangerous woman one more time and defeats her, not as Batgirl, but as Oracle.

Thursday, August 19, 2010

Live Action Batgirl :: Birds of Prey II

Eight years ago, Batgirl was chasing Lady Shiva after a robbery

When the combat started, she threw her batarang at Shiva

The batarang hit a gas line. Shiva escaped inside the building

Batgirl tried to stop her, but she wouldn't listen

The abandonded building exploded while Shiva was still inside
Eight years passed and Barbara Gordon, now Oracle discovered that Lady Shiva was still alive and seeking revenge. She didn't want her enemy to find out she was bound to a wheelchair, so Oracle improvised a device that gave her temporary and limited mobility, and donned her costume one more time... Batgirl was back!