The Hackman

This picture represents me trying out loads of different ideas.

First off I wanted to test my inking skills.  This was an interesting experiment and I think I learned some stuff - or perhaps just became aware that I'm better at than I thought.  In the end I think next time I try to to inks in this manner I may take a different route.  I think adding a bit more detail to the artwork and then having simpler colouring might something cool to tryout.  I just have the feeling that this particular piece has ended up with a somewhat generic comic book feel.  That's kind of cool because I didn't know I could do generic comic book stuff.

The next thing I wanted to try out with this picture was the colouring.  I had a little go at something different when I was painting Uncouth Company.  Adding a greyscale layer over a colour layer and then using a mask to give a washed out colour effect.  It worked well for the background in Uncouth Company and it worked OK for all the colours in this picture, but I'm not entirely happy with it.  I think I'm going to return to exploring my colouring method from days gone past.  It's good to know that I can achieve certain effects with a masked greyscale layer.

Lastly I was using this artwork to have a go at recording and making a time lapse video for a YouTube channel.  I really liked my progress gif of Uncouth Company and Peril, but there is so much missing from them.  It can be really helpful to look back and see what I did if I want to try and achieve a similar effect in the future.  Plus I like time lapse videos of people making artwork.  Although editing the videos is proving to be a pain so I haven't uploaded it and might not bother if no one is particularly fussed.

So onto the content.  I have finally reached a point in my re-reading of my 2000AD comic collection where I picked the comic up after a five year hiatus back at the end of 2006.  One of the stand-out strips from that seasonal special was Kingdom.  Created by Dan Abnett and Richard Elson this story saw the introduction to genetically engineered canines protecting a land they call Anarchticy.  Abnett and Elson have paired up before for the wonderful Atavar series and return to form with Kingdom.  It is a shame that over the last six years there have only been three Kingdom stories.  I think I read that a forth is on its way and is long over due.  This has to be my favourite strip written by Dan Abnett who is more famous for is work on the never ending Sinister Dexter and what I consider a less than stellar run on Durham Red.  I think that even the much maligned Sancho Panza was better than those.  Kingdom and Atavar seem to demonstrate Abnett's strengths and Richard Elson's artwork is compelling and consistently enjoyable to look at.

Pictured is the character Gene the Hackman.

Kingdom is owned by Rebellion and 2000AD


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