DON'T MAKE HIM ANGRY... YOU WOULDN'T LIKE THIS BIRD WHEN HE'S ANGRY!!!

And we're back!  Halfway through June and hopefully things are improving around the world.  If there's been any silver lining to all this time off, it's that it has given me a chance to really spread my wings artistically.  As of this writing, I'm working on a small clay figure, a mask and a kitbashed spaceship, in addition to the regular comics and art.  Depending on how some of these art projects go, I might be doing blog posts on them down the road!  But that's in the future, right now, we are in the present, though I'm typing this in the past!  Time paradoxes aside, let's jump into today's art, shall we?  Enjoy...

The Phoenix, the legendary fire bird.  Beautiful, powerful and immortal, this colorful creature of myth never dies.  When its time comes, this bird bursts into flames and is then born again from its own ashes, stronger than ever and ready for another lifetime.  Think of it as Groundhog Day, only an entire life keeps repeating itself even after a lesson is learned!  Another entry from Animal Alphabets, this one wasn't my most spectacular piece, as there isn't really a gag and the dialogue only hints at what might come.  Still, I loved coloring this one as it has a really cool rainbow look to it and sometimes, simple is best.

Well, that's all for now.  We'll be back next week to send June off into the sunset with a beast that is even more elusive than the fabled barking spider!  Until then, take care, stay safe and I'll catch y'all later!

MERMAID GENTICS... THEY AIN'T PRETTY!!!

Welcome back CRAZIES!!!  Hopefully y'all are staying safe and strong as we continue to recover.  Time marches on here as it does elsewhere.  If you happen to be in need of a laugh or two, just scroll down the page a bit and take a peek!  Hopefully the laughs will expand more than the subject's posterior did!  Enjoy...

Watch out Dad!  She's gonna blow!  More!  If you're gonna be half human, half fish, then you're bound to have some variety at some point!  I mean, look at how mermaids are typically portrayed:  Human top with a generic fish tail.  Surely they are more complex than that?  Well, today's art shows that yes they are!  'Course, now I'm curious as to what the rest of her family tree might look like!  This was another Animal Alphabets theme and boy was this one fun to do.  This could stand alone as a single panel comic strip in a newspaper.  When I started out, I was scared to do single-panel gags because I didn't think I could nail a story in such a short frame.  I'm not on Gary Larson's level, but I think I've gotten pretty good with the single-panel medium.  The reaction this one got was very satisfying.  Everybody got a kick out of this spoiled, swollen mermaid!

Well, that's all for now.  We'll be back next week with some colorful new art that you may find a little hot around the collar.  Until then, take care, stay safe and I'll catch y'all later!

WELCOME TO THE NEW JUNE, SORRY FOR THE LACK OF COMIC CON...

Welcome, my CRAZIES, to the month of June.  For those that don't read any of textual parts of this blog, you're no doubt noticing the lack of a Comic Con header right now.  Well, that's because there won't be a Comic Con this year.  It's old news at this point, but it still stings.  I went through pure emotional hell to get reverified for this year and beyond, only for this to happen.  I'd like to say it's not the end of the world only, it looks like it might actually be this time around.  The silver lining is that things do seem to be improving in San Diego as far as the crisis is concerned.  Numbers are going down and even some places have safely been able to open up again.  Will it last?  Will things continue to improve?  I have no definitive answers there.  But I know I'll do my best to stay safe and help my friends and family stay safe as well.  We're all in this together and we'll all come out of it at some point.

In the meantime, while I won't be doing the CRAZY COMIC CON COUNTDOWN this year, I'm still going to post my art and offer whatever amusing quips and tales that I can to help make y'all laugh.  A smile can be a powerful thing sometimes, and I'm gonna do my darnedest to make that happen for everybody.  It's a small gesture, but it's the best I can do.  Well, I think I've rambled on long enough.  I promised art and laughs, so let's get to it!  Enjoy...

Talk about being the butt of the joke?  The Kraken has been cracked by some little cracks!  Mike and Mindy were such cheeky little squirts.  Is it any wonder they were always a little behind the times!  Ive heard of bringing up the rear, but this is ridiculous!  I'd hate to see how this mythic squid reacts to a real full moon!  Okay, okay, I think that's enough butt puns for a month!  This entry, as well as the rest for this month, comes from Animal Alphabets, who at the time were doing a mythical creatures theme.  One particular week, the mighty Kraken was chosen.  A creature of Nordic mythology, the Kraken has long been depicted as an insanely large squid with many tentacles, though in Clash of the Titans, the Kraken was given a more humanoid appearance by the late, great Ray Harryhausen.  Being the immature grown man that I am, I HAD to turn this into one giant butt gag!  It's a rule of comedy that butts are funny.  Adding a second butt only doubled the laughs and indeed, this did get a pretty good reaction on Twitter that week.  I could literally come up with the most genius thing ever, and it will get nary a reaction.  I draw something involving a butt or flatulence, and it celebrated as the greatest thing of all time!  Oh to be human...

Well, I think that's good for today.  Sorry to sound so preachy at the start of today's post.  Guess it just had to be said.  We'll be back next week with some new art that I hope you will find fun and buoyant. Until then, take care, stay safe and I'll catch y'all later!

THE BIG, BILLOWING, BLOATED, BALLOONY BLOWFISH!!!

We are back!  It's the end of the month and I saved the biggest laughs for last!  I know y'all are feeling the buildup right now and the pressure's pretty strong, so I'll end the teasing and innuendos right now and give you all some relief!  And with that, enjoy...

Aw, the blowfish, or pufferfish to those that think they're cute.  Living balloons that are always there to cheer us up.  These breathing cartoon gags are the clowns of the oceans, though the real trick is on any predator that tries to eat one, because if their spines aren't a good enough deterrent, their highly toxic flesh definitely is!  Though fugu is a delicacy in many sushi restaurants, it takes a very skilled hand to prepare it.  I do loves me some sushi, especially a rainbow roll, but I don't want "Killed by a balloon" to be in my obituary someday, so I'll stick with the less harmful fish!  Pinch Punch Post put out this theme yet again, and I'll tell ya, there was some very well-rounded art on Twitter that day.  It wasn't a stretch to say we all expanded our horizons!

And that's a wrap for the month of May.  As of this writing, things haven't been all that merry, but every day is a new day.  I hope in some small way, these art posts have offered some relief and that June will give us all some good news to look forward to.  Until next time CRAZIES, take care, stay safe and I'll catch y'all later.

CAREFUL!!! THEY SPIT!!!

Well, here we are, screen to screen.  What?  Did ya think I was gonna bust into the Silver Spoons theme?  I barely even remember what the plot was!  Wanna know what plot I do remember?  Jurassic Park!  Now THAT was a movie!  Hard to believe we are almost coming up on 30 years since it came out!  Seeing that on the big screen was pure movie magic.  My nine-year-old mind was totally blown and just wanted to keep watching it!  Damn near wore out my VHS copy even!  We all had our favorite dinosaurs in it, but which one was my favorite?  Scroll down dear reader and you shall see the answer!  Enjoy...

The Dilophosaurus.  Small, colorful and not particularly screen accurate!  They were bird-like and did have the ridges on their heads, but that's where the accuracies more or less end.  In reality, these dinosaurs were considerably bigger than the relatively small one that Wayne Knight encounters.  It's also highly doubtful they could spit slime.  Whether they had neck frills or not isn't really known.  Skin impressions for dinosaurs are fairly rare, so that one might be true.  Guess we'll never know.  Still, it looked great on screen and was a lot of fun to draw.  Much like the previous two entries, along with next week's, this came from the wonderful minds at Pinch Punch Post.  I think they just had a dinosaur theme, and I chose the Dilophosaurus to try and stand out.  It worked, as this one got a lotta looks on Twitter!

And that's all for this week!  Be sure to come back next time as we give May 2020 a sendoff so big, it's literally bursting!  The pressure may get to you even, so try and keep calm.  Until then, take care, stay safe and I'll catch y'all later!

THE SWIFT SEA TURTLE!!!

Welcome back CRAZIES!!!  Think we could all use a bit of the beach right now.  The sand, the sun, the sea gulls swapping food and crapping on everything...  Okay, maybe not that last part, but sand, sun and surf always puts me in a good mood as do those wonderful shelled critters known as sea turtles!  These guys aren't as slow as you'd think!  Don't believe me?  Scroll down and see for yourself!  Enjoy...

See?  These reptiles are quite swift under the waves.  That blowfish certainly thinks so!  Turtles have always held a special place in my heart.  Kind and gentle, you'd have to be made of stone not to love these creatures.  When Pinch Punch Post made them their monthly subject some time ago, I jumped at the chance to draw one.  This particular sea turtle is a leatherback, though in hindsight, I don't think they have ridges along where the upper and lower shells meet.  Hey, an artist is allowed a little creative license, right?

That's all for today dear CRAZIES.  We got some prehistoric fun coming next week that'll hopefully spew forth in laughs, so be sure to come back and give it a look.  Until then, take care, stay safe and I'll catch y'all later!

THE RAMBLIN' RHINO!!!

Hey CRAZIES!!!  We're back with a new month!  I'd like to say there's some good news to report, but, sadly, we're all under quarantine still.  Has some progress been made?  Some, yes, but not enough to salvage a few a few things.  Comic Con and the Del Mar/Sand Diego County Fair have been canceled, as has WonderCon, formally abandoning its postponement.  This news hurts a lot folks, but it is what it is.  Hopefully, happier days are on the way and we can all return to some form of normalcy.  I shall try my best to offer y'all some relief, or as much relief as my goofy art can muster.  Having said that, let's dive in, shall we?  Enjoy...

Here we have a Rhino!  Not just any rhino, but a southern white rhino, given its grayish color and more come-like horns.  Northern white rhinos have rather odd shaped horns that look more like rock shards while black rhinos more closely resemble their southern white cousins, only with darker skin.  All three share a bond though: They are all endangered, critically in some cases, and need our help!  With any luck, recent breeding success at the San Diego Zoo could hold the key for bringing these magnificent creatures back from the brink!  Sorry to get preachy there.  I just love rhinos and don't wanna see them vanish.  This piece was done for Pinch Punch Post quite some time ago as the signature suggests.  Where does time go exactly?

And that's all for today.  I guess I'll go ahead and get this bit of bad news out of the way now: No CRAZY COMIC CON COUNTDOWN this year.  I'm torn to put it off for a year, but it just hurts too much having lost it this year.  I went through a lot to get reverified for pro status, and now to have nothing, well, it just seems like posting pics would be like rubbing salt in the wound.  I'm trying to take the "out of sight, out of mind" approach, but so far it's not working very well.  In time, I think we'll all be able to move on.  Sorry again folks and I hope you will all come back and see what's swimming by next week.  Until then, take care, stay safe and I'll catchy y'all later!