My Futurama Cartoon(s)

[Reply #120 on:]

@jeepdavetj>Well...you'll just have to wait and see

I decided to delay the Nibbler based cartoon (the next one), and rather do a "Pirate-Cartoon prequel"




(After all...Emperor Grog died in "Godfellas"... I should somehow justify his presence in my last cartoon )

(Quick reminder: In case someone did not enter this thread from the beginning...the collected cartoons are also shown in the first post. No need for someone to search the whole thread...)

[Reply #121 on:]

He did appear in Mobius Dick on the barrel of Space Grog too.

Anyway, nice use of the reset button, awesome!

[Reply #122 on:]

Oh my god. I thought your previous uses of the reset button were clever and funny, but this... ahaha I love it so much.

[Reply #123 on:]

Thanks for the positive feedback:)

He did appear in Mobius Dick on the barrel of Space Grog too.

Yep...but just a drawing, not a living version, therefore...

Oh my god. I thought your previous uses of the reset button were clever and funny, but this... ahaha I love it so much.

You THOUGHT they were clever and funny: Means: Now you do not think they were clever and funny anymore....oh thank you very much
No, kidding aside, thanks for the positive feedback again:) (I do have one Reset Button Gag left right now, but I will take my time before I draw that one....)

I hope to have the Nibbler cartoon up by tomorrow, and the Scruffy cartoon sometimes during next week. (It will by far not be as detailed as the pirate cartoon one, but still four pages to go).

Anyway, I have two cartoon ideas which will feature images about the detail level of that space battle (probably slightly more detailed):
One will be with Zapp Brannigan, and the other one will play on planet Amazonia.

[Reply #124 on:]

No, I meant you proved just how far clever and funny can go. But fine, take it that way. :P

SCRUFFY. omg. want.

[Reply #125 on:]

No, I meant you proved just how far clever and funny can go

Hm...I think I'll take it that way. That's the interpretation I like most...

About the Scruffy cartoon: It will also feature other minor characters. Scruffy, Bender, Leela, Fry, and three other characters I will not tell right now...

[Reply #126 on:]

For some reason, I hope to see a cartoon with Nudar in it.

[Reply #127 on:]

SCRUFFY. omg. want.

Okay...if you insist, I will post the Scruffy cartoon first



I first wanted Fry to be the male protagonist. But -except for Leela giving an angry glance- it could not have added much absurdity to the situation.
When (in another forum) someone asked for a Scruffy cartoon, I thought about Scruffy sitting there complete unimpressed, which looked much more absurd.
(The only thing he might appreciate is someone holding his magazines for him, but he keeps quiet even about that...)

[Reply #128 on:]

Awesome...

And the Amazonians.... *Grabs Tissues* Nah just kidding, AWESOME WORK, the last panel made me LOL.

[Reply #129 on:]

Oh man, that is really excellent. Perfect characterization of Scruffy. My favorite bit is the Amazonians' expressions in the last panel.

And so much detail! I mean, look at the left wall in the first panel! Most people would just keep that wall blank, but you took the time to draw in all those pipes and dials and it just adds to the richness of the whole strip. Not to mention all the detail everywhere else... the textures on the ropes and the monster in the second panel, the folds in Scruffy's clothing, the background in the third...

[Reply #130 on:]

Dude you are amazing!

[Reply #131 on:]

I like how Fry is looking up with his tongue out at the Amazonians in the second panel, even though it's in Leela's imagination.

[Reply #132 on:]

Dude you are amazing!

[Reply #133 on:]

I like how Fry is looking up with his tongue out at the Amazonians in the second panel, even though it's in Leela's imagination.

I think it's Fry's imagination

[Reply #134 on:]

I think it's Fry's imagination

Quite possible. We live long and are celebrated poopers.

Uh, I mean...

Possible, but it doesn't show the thought bubble coming out of Fry or Leela's head, we'll just have to assume it's Fry cause he's looking at it.

[Reply #135 on:]

Love the details in your cartoons,  Hein. The attention to little details is what makes them truly impressive.

[Reply #136 on:]

Heheh. Big tough Amazons scared of spiders...

Great detail work as always, Herr Hein.

[Reply #137 on:]

Haha, brilliant! Perfect 3-panel joke.

[Reply #138 on:]

Oh man, that is really excellent. Perfect characterization of Scruffy. My favorite bit is the Amazonians' expressions in the last panel.

And so much detail! I mean, look at the left wall in the first panel! Most people would just keep that wall blank, but you took the time to draw in all those pipes and dials and it just adds to the richness of the whole strip. Not to mention all the detail everywhere else... the textures on the ropes and the monster in the second panel, the folds in Scruffy's clothing, the background in the third...

Glad you liked it
About the details: I have to admit that they were not there for their own sake, but were rather needed to "balance" the picture out.
In fact, the panel layout regarding the Scruffy/Amazonian cartoon was the most difficult by now (longer explanations will follow..you have been warned )

A little background regarding this strip:

Panel layout with the amazonians was tricky. They brought two problems with them:

a) Being roughly double-human sized, it was a balance act. If the Amazonians were not tall enough, the other characters might end up too small. Especially Scruffy -as the protagnonist- would require a minimum size for the joke to work. With the amazonians beeing too tall, they'd also cover too much of the image's background.

b) Wearing very little clothing, most of these Amazonians consist of blank spaces.
(Thog the best example: Just a few lines, and she's basically all white. The bones in her hair,  the fang-made-bra...all white objects). Big, blank, bright spaces work well in the foreground, but -as a contrast- the background will need more details. Also, a more detailed background will look darker/greyer, adding to the foreground/background hierarchie.
This constellation works well with Thog and Tug (the Punk), but Ornik's dark skin colour was not too suitable for that. That's why I usually put her rather in the background/to the side. (And I do not wish to hear anything about "political incorrectness".. )

Especially in the first two pictures these problems had to be solved:

1st Picture: Scruffy had to be seen half lying/half sitting. With the Amazonians standing around  him (being even much taller in comparison than usual) they would have dwarfed Scruffy beyond all acceptability for a protagonist. Therefore, I decided to have the Amazonians "frame" Scruffy, to put him in the center. (Also, the Amazonians would have to leave enough background to show the opened door and Leela in still acceptable, recognisable size).

2nd Picutre: The most difficult one. Again, as the "hero to the rescue", Scruffy may not be
to small. But...with a big Scruffy and therefore the Amazonians reaching a certain size, there would not have been enough room for the monster. I wanted this bugger to look like someone who could easily overpower the Amazonians with one hand...not like someone just a little bit taller than they are.
If you look closely, the monster with it's short legs will not be as tall as an upright Amazonian, but just more than three times as broad.  By tying the Amazonians up, I could draw them in a rather compact, sitting stance (with them still being rather big in this picture), with the monster still towering far over them.  Also, the rope strcutures would  interupt the already mentioned big, blank  spaces, adding more detail to them.
(In fact, with their arms tied to their backs, the rope round the waist does not make any sense at all. But an unaltered Amazonian Torso would again have been to bright/white and "outshone" the rather dark Scruffy. That rope's purpose was to divide the torso in two smaller white areas, reducing the Amazonians "center of the image" role).

3rd Picture:
The spider: It is dwarfed by EVERYONE, no matter how big/small I would draw Scruffy or the Amazonians. So, I decided to draw a background everywhere, just not around the spider.
So, I ended up with a white space and a black spot in the middle, putting the spider
sufficienty in the centre.

To cut a long story short: Yep, even cartoons with a rather flat punchline ("Women are afraid of spiders"...YAAAAAWN!) can require a decent amount of thought

I like how Fry is looking up with his tongue out at the Amazonians in the second panel, even though it's in Leela's imagination.

I think it's Fry's imagination

Quite possible. We live long and are celebrated poopers.

Uh, I mean...

Possible, but it doesn't show the thought bubble coming out of Fry or Leela's head, we'll just have to assume it's Fry cause he's looking at it.

Hehe..the explanation is rather simple. The setup would not have worked with Fry and Leela having independent thought bubbles. So I just drew one thought bubble, and drew it without showing who of these two is exactly thinking it.
Hm..when I look at it now, it seems to be a team effort. Leela imagining Scruffy and the monster, and Fry imagining the Amazonians ...

[Reply #139 on:]

Thank you.  That was a very helpful explanation as to the choices you made whilst in the designing process of your comic.  You're very talented, and I'm glad to see a glimpse into the thoughts behind the very deliberate choices you've made toward the presentation of your cartoons.  You seem to have a very keen mind toward the setup and execution of a paneled joke as well.

[Reply #140 on:]

Hey dude, I'm pretty damned terrified of spiders myself.  Scruffy would be my big hero if he killed one for me.

Great comic.

[Reply #141 on:]

How long does it take to draw comics like that? If it was me it would take about five years 

[Reply #142 on:]

Wow, thank you for posting that thought process! I could tell obviously that a lot of work went into this, but it is almost mind-blowing to think of all the little details you considered. Really, really nice work.

[Reply #143 on:]

Spiders make great conversationalists.

[Reply #144 on:]

I did not have time to draw another cartoon yet...
Okay...I admit I rather wanted to finish the first wave of my Warhammer 40K Dark Eldar Models:)

Thinking of Warhammer, I was reminded of an old WK40 Cartoon I made, in which I drew a Futurama Character for the very first time (this time, I had to do a recognisable Groening style for the jokes to work...my other cartoon charaters by that time were already done in the style you've seen in this thread).

So, as some kind of personal "Retro-Trip", I just wanted to show this old cartoon I made:



I was a very specific inside-joke: Games Workshop once produced a miniature range called "Fimir", that was cancelled one day. These Fimir were lizard-like, cyclopen creatures, and many fans wanted to have them back.

Well..it's probably not the best joke for a Futurama forum, but I put it here for the "old times sake", for the first Futurama Character I ever drew...
(Btw..."Games Day" is the official Warhammer convention)

[Reply #145 on:]

Ah, I like how you've increased the size of your women's breasts over time.

[Reply #146 on:]

Awesome, love that pic since I'm also a warhammer fan/player (most just paint these days though).

Leela wouldn't want Fimir back if she knew a little more about their, uh, fertility rituals. >_>

[Reply #147 on:]

Ah, I like how you've increased the size of your women's breasts over time.

Gravity and pregnancy.

[Reply #148 on:]

Pregnivity. An unstoppable force.

[Reply #149 on:]

First Preview Panel for the next (2 panel) cartoon:
Will be Bender centred...



(Dialogs hinting at the punchline have be whitened out)

[Reply #150 on:]

Haha, I love the fragile box falling off Fry's pile. Priceless. Also, nice drawing of the ship's innards (or underneath by the stairs or whatever) - as always, love the detail.

[Reply #151 on:]

@Beanoz4>Sorry, forgot to answer your question. How long does it take? I am afraid that depends from person to person, but some years of experience are definitely needed.

It strongly does depend where your problems lie: For me, I could always do detailed pictures very well (with many details, you can distract from certain flaws). But having to draw just one line (without any details to distract, or correct), it took quite a while for me to learn that . (That's why I drew Thog ALWAYS first in the Amazonian cartoon, for that was the character with the highest probability to be messed up by me. She didn't take long to draw, but it took years of experience until I sufficiently learned that "one line that does work and that does not forgive any mistakes").

So, finished another cartoon (the Nibbler one to be delayed again...I don't even know why I drew this first, the Nibbler cartoon is a rather quick, easy one...)

Anyway, here it is:



Okay, with the "Iron Sky" cartoon, I coverd "The series has landed", The "Scruffy vs. Amazonians" covers "Amazon Women in the Mood", and this one here goes for "Rebirth".
Three episodes are down cartoonwise, and...erm..well...a few more to go.

[Reply #152 on:]

Sorta makes sense that Fry-bot and Leela-bot would go back to the delivery industry.

And Sal, you're flying low.

[Reply #153 on:]

I've just caught up on all the strips I hadn't seen before and they are all truly amazing. I love the detail, the page layouts which always flow nicely and naturally, and the punch lines are always funny and satisfying. The detail is amazing; you bring your own style to the table but keep the essence Futurama-y...

I particulalry enjoyed seeing Emperor Grog, you captured some great facial expressions, and I also loved the whole Amazonian Women with Scruffy strip, you drew them so well. I don't know how you manage to draw these so quickly but keep the quality so high!...

[Reply #154 on:]

Thanks for the comments/feedback:)

I don't know how you manage to draw these so quickly but keep the quality so high!...

The answer is easy A comics quality is often decided by the artist's experience, and not the time he/she does invest. Comic artists that are much better than me often do not have more details, their lines are just more precise. But...as a line is a line..their works will usually take the same amount of time to be drawn.

I mentioned her before, but I would like to get back to "Thog" in the Amazonian cartoon as the probably most fitting example:
That character consists of very few lines. So,  she was the fastest character to be drawn, but also the most unforviging one (with just a few lines, every grave mistake would be extremely obvious). My experience ("Draw one line that works") allowed me to draw her. If I were not able to pencil/ink such simple lines efficiently,  I could have spent hours trying to get her properly on paper, and still would have failed.

[Reply #155 on:]

A little crossover joke:

[Reply #156 on:]

Very nice, here come the men in black! Poor Nibbler...

[Reply #157 on:]

Haha, nice one. I love the √5 hours ago.

[Reply #158 on:]

That reminds me Men in Black is on Tv next week...
Thanks Inquisitor Hein!!

[Reply #159 on:]

That also reminds me that MIB 3 is out next year.