you need to be prepared for any situation

@Rim was taking requests on the NG BBS to write theme songs for people's OCs and Ninjiro was fortunate enough to get one. Be sure to check it out here, it's great!

If it's not obvious enough from my recent art posts, I've been thinking a lot about my OCs. These are characters I've always vaguely visualized, but finally having them materialized is nice. Although, one most wonder if "OC" is the right term. After all, what's original and unoriginal?

It's obvious I pull a lot of inspiration for my characters and I don't really try to hide it either. But when does inspiration end and outright theft begin? What really got me thinking about this was seeing these two images paired together.

And, I mean, c'mon, right? Hard not to think about it.

Really, Dr. Buzzsucker is one I'll admit was quite blatantly influenced by Baxter Stockman (and Doctor Octopus while we're at it). Though, if you want to go further back, '87 Baxter Stockman himself is quite similar to The Fly from 1958.

Lunaeus is a character I realized the similarities to instantly, but they were more unintentional. Derived more from their overlapping roles as leaders of malevolent ninja clans and leaning more on the samurai side when it comes to designs. As I caught the similarities, I did try to avoid make their designs TOO similar. Whether I succeeded or not, I dunno.

TMNT itself is a franchise that REALLY leaned into its inspirations, starting as a parody comic and all. It was a Frank Miller Daredevil comic mixed with the X-Men. The Hand = The Foot, Stick = Splinter, Cyclops = Leonardo, Wolverine = Raphael, mutant = mutant...I could go on.

Shredder you could argue is inspired by Darth Vader, especially in the '87 cartoon and '90s movie, and Vader was inspired by Doctor Doom. Doctor Doom was inspired by the visage of Death as a cold and inexpressive cloaked figure.

Am I saying all of this to justify myself? No, not really. Am I saying it to deride myself for being an unoriginal HACK? Again, not really. I'm more just thinking out loud about the cyclical nature of media, about where the lines are drawn when it comes to creating a character that takes inspiration, whether you meant to do it or your brain did it subliminally. It's interesting to think about.

Now reread all of that and take a drink whenever I say inspired or inspiration. Bet you're now in the hospital getting treated for kidney failure, aren't ya?

All the same, I've been having quite a lot of fun. Although, I'm a bit worried about audience retention. Not sure if the flood of original characters rather than fan art is causing things to dip, or if said lack of audience is more from me not being in the proper art portal...or just disappearing for a couple months. Maybe it's because I'm posting too much at once! Or nobody's interested, that's also likely. So many possibilities!

Still, even if nobody EVER gives a shit about these characters...well, it'd break my heart a little admittedly, but I'd carry on despite that. I really do love them, some admittedly more than others (Ninjiro and Jennifer my beloved idiots).

One day, I might even do something for them. Nothing animated (you look at my BBS Shitpost Collab submissions and tell me I could) and not a game, but maybe some comic pages spread out here or there. Show some fun interactions and maybe develop some of that sweet sweet lore only I know about right now.

Uhhhh, yeah, I guess that's it. I don't know why I wrote this. I don't know why I'm posting it. Nobody's gonna read it anyway. Guess I just had these thoughts and I needed to get them out before they make my head explode. If you actually made it this far without your kidney exploding or quitting because you can't stand this insane rambling, thanks.

The year is now 2023. Where was I during 2022? Not that I've been entirely absent, but I have been much less active these past few months. Last year was a big year for me, filled with many BIG changes in my actual life. I don't care to get into what that entails, but Newgrounds sorta fell to the wayside due to that. Not that I didn't have the time for it, it's more that I just didn't have the motivation.

My activity on the BBS definitely took a hit, I'm not sure if it's because I lost interest or the forum itself has become less interesting. Again, not wholly MIA, just quieter than I was in 2021. I do want to be more active in the community again, though. I even joined a couple NG Discords last year... then left after a period of inactivity because it's hard to keep up with an active chat and I'm more shy when in a chat like that. Maybe I should give it another go and rejoin those servers.

Let's be honest here, though. 2022 was far from a bad year for my presence on NG. I'd say it was rather good overall, even. I did get user of the day, after all! The first half was actually better than 2021, it's only the second half where I fell off the face of the site.

2022 is also when I noticed how much of a following I've gained, one which I am still thankful for. If you told the me of 12 years ago I would eventually reach 128 fans and counting on THE Newgrounds dot com, I wouldn't believe you. It's still so crazy to think about.

I've said it before, but I'm not an artist. I'm not trained classically, I'm not trained contemporaneously (sucka!), I'm just a dumbass with a free photo editing program and a mouse. That being said, I'd be lying if I said I wasn't happy with what I put out in 2022. I didn't draw as much as 2021, but I'd say the "quality" of what I posted was higher. So many pieces I'm actually proud of for coming out exactly how I pictured them in my head.

Perhaps my greatest achievement art-wise was FINALLY putting some of the OCs I've had in my head for years out there in the world. Long have I wanted to, but I was too afraid. Afraid nobody would care or that my doodles just weren't good enough. Newgrounds and its community is what gave me that motivation to finally do it. More than anything else, for 2023 I really want to post more of the little cast of characters I've been developing. In fact, keep an eye out for a piece of art that'll be going up shortly after I post this.

All in all, I'm definitely not going anywhere. Even when I'm less active in the community or my postings slow down, I am always browsing Newgrounds. I love this place so much. So, here's to many more years spent here!

peak derangement

So, this is what REAL power feels like...

Really, I don't even know what to say. Truth be told, I didn't even think I qualified. Here I am, though! I'd like to thank Newgrounds for shining a spotlight on shmucks like me for a day.

More content soon? It's possible.

For the first time in a couple years, I decided to sit down and watch the Sonic OVA. I watched the hell out of the VHS tape I had when I was a kid, I just couldn't get enough of it. It's a very formative piece of media for me. How so? Just look at my username and my profile pic. This movie right here is why I came to love Metal Sonic. It's literally the perfect introduction to the character. Metal Sonic is so cool, you guys.

Looking back it at the overall movie now, I think it holds up quite well. It's not perfect, but man if I don't care. Visually? It's brilliant. The aesthetic might just be the best Sonic has ever had. The animation, while inconsistent, is gorgeous when it comes to the fight scenes. I even like the voice acting in the English dub. It's oozing with that '90s dub cheese, but I absolutely wouldn't have it any other way.

I could go on, but more than anything I just wish we got to see more of the world this anime offered. I adore the quiet subtext of Robotropolis and the overall Land of Darkness. A seemingly new fictional world actually being a post-apocalyptic Earth has almost become a cliché at this point, but the way it's handled in this movie works so well for me.

Every time I watch that scene in the beginning of the movie where we see all the high-tech and futuristic cities the Land of the Sky has to offer, I just want to explore them. This feeling is helped by that catchy and upbeat music. Man, the music! I can't even describe how much I enjoy the music for this movie, it pisses me off SO MUCH that we never got an official release of the OST because the OVAs didn't sell well in Japan.

It's a shame this wasn't picked up for a full series because of that either. We were robbed, honestly. Fucking sucks that the Sonic anime we ended up with was Sonic X. To think what could have been, what SHOULD have been. Damn Sonic's unpopularity in Japan.

Even if I wish we got more, I can't deny that I'm still deeply satisfied with what we ended up with. If you asked me what my favorite piece of Sonic media EVER is, there's a strong chance I'd say the OVA. It's at least up there with Sonic 3 & Knuckles and Sonic Adventure for me. If you haven't seen it? It's literally on Youtube, so just watch it.

Finished replaying the first Ape Escape yesterday and it still rocks. Proooobably my favorite of the trilogy, but all three of them are really good. Might just be my favorite 3D platformer series.

ima likea da monkes heeheehee

wow! more of this!

If that last one looks familiar, it's because I had to remove it from the last part. Why? It wouldn't let me update the post with a rating unless I kept it to 10 images.

Wondering if I'm at the point of no return when it comes to drawing with a mouse. Could I ever go back to doodling with a pencil at this point? Kinda fucked up to think about.

The deranged drawings will continue to come either way, I've just about finished something up that'll be posted on 4/20.