Close Encounters
Fitz on May 22, 2008
Late yet again! Damn, these pages take longer and longer to do. Especially since I was trying to do something artsy again. And I spent a RIDICULOUS amount of time on the skyscrapers. The rest seemed to go much faster. Although it didn't, either :P And dialogues took a WHILE to form a coherent whole. Oh well, scientists say creative thinking expands your brain :) So until mine starts leaking out through my ears, I'm good!
To make up for the late updates, I promissed you this page would be something special. And maybe this isn't VERY special - but it's still something new. It's daytime in A Bit Cheesy! Yup! I figured another chapter of night-time adventures would require re-using one of the color themes - and that would be boring. So instead, I give you… DAYLIGHT! :D
OK that's all from me for today. It's barely 10 pm (eeeaaaarlyyy!), but I'm yaaawning away, anyway. It's something about the air pressure this time of the year - as soon as I wake up, I'm tired already, and all I want is to sleep. So on some days I couldn't force myself to move a finger. That's another reason why the page is so late. Aaanyways, goodnight - and good morning! :)
Coyotejeff at 9:57AM, May 28, 2008
Looking Great buddy. My favorite panel; the interposing dogs and there owners. Great symbolism!
TheMidge28 at 6:13PM, May 26, 2008
beautiful rendering of those fall leaves. favorite time of year is autumn. the colors so vibrant and bright but then its only for a brief moment as everything washes in that dead brown before winter. did I mention I like fall?
Fitz at 1:03PM, May 26, 2008
Vickie: Erica agrees with You - and she already asked for a said t-shirt with the dogs for her birthday :) And if I ever start selling ABC merch, I could make it a regular item. I enjoyed drawing the trees. They're something new in this comic - and I like trying out new things. Regardless of how many headaches it costs me ;) Ghostrunner: Thanks! Your comments keep me motivated to work harder :) RoyceMarie: Yeah, who knows :) Maybe someone does, actually ;) But you, my readers, will have to wait and see! Abt: I think the MAJOR difference here is that Mick does almost all of the talking - whereas it's usually Ryan lecturing him on the dos and don'ts of dating. Techniques and skills. Mick's more natural. Naive, yes, but he's about genuine feeling, not games. Harry: Thanks! Thought I'd lost a faithful reader there - so I'm glad to see you back :) Loud_G: Don't expect more super-artsy pages anytimes soon, this one made me consider switching to stick figure format if I want to get my life back ;) Nepath: In my opinion, the most realistic is the one of the tree against the NY skyline, I'm really proud of the effect I used on the grass. But I do like the light effects in the last panel. As for the building - as I mentioned, it's part of the NY panorama. Erica asked about it, too, and I have no clue what it is. I also think I drew it in a weird way. LBA: I used textures only twice or thrice over the year of drawing the comic - off the top of my head: the penny and the parking ticket in "Money Doe$n't $tink. Other than that, I always simply try to re-create what I see with whatever effect I think would do the trick :) With the leaves it took a while, not so much the work itself but the background research. Had to look up photos of leaves in various stages of decay that would look INTERESTING and VARIED. Tantz: The voice of logic didn't get much "air time" this time around. But it's refreshing to let Mick do all the talking, for a change. Amy: Bingo! I was thinking about the exact same thing when I drew the buildings: the good ol' SimCity. I actually think "my" city doesn't compare to this early 90's game - but I'm glad someone caught the referrence :) Tim: Background research (photos, many photos) -> Doodles -> MS Paint -> xRes -> Photoshop -> Cursing -> Crying ->More Cursing -> MORE Cursing - VOILA! ;) D0m: Interesting! Never thought of it that way. Though it does look like we're watching the world through their eyes a lot of times. JMT: Thanks! Missed you and the Minutiae Hunt, buddy! Bocaj: Yes! Heart leaves! :) Anything wrong about them? And it IS a comic about love and I will use any and every chance to use a metaphor or a symbol for a heart! :D Trevor: Thanks! Mike: Hey there! Glad to see you back check my comic out again :)
pinkertonpark at 7:20AM, May 26, 2008
Wonderfully laid-out page.
trevoramueller at 10:04PM, May 24, 2008
Absolutely awesome and gorgeous!
Bocaj at 8:46PM, May 23, 2008
The heart leafs? Come on!? Still, great oage, as always.
jmt at 5:12PM, May 23, 2008
nice. I like all the word play.
D0m at 3:11PM, May 23, 2008
Very cool page. I love your style of dialogue- much like we're eavesdropping!
ttyler at 1:49PM, May 23, 2008
I have NO idea how you do this artwork, but I sure wish I did know!!! Great!!!
antcomics at 10:08AM, May 23, 2008
The buildings really look great (I am thinking about SimCity now--lol) Your comics are always worth the wait, Fitz :o)
Tantz_Aerine at 8:00AM, May 23, 2008
Ah, the snarky voice of logic... I love the doggies.
lba at 7:02AM, May 23, 2008
When I first looked at the leaves there, I thought you'd just done some photo manipulations. The level of texture you crammed in there is awesome.
Nepath at 4:18AM, May 23, 2008
love this page! the artwork is nothing short of outstanding. the realism in the final panel is frightning - i love it! Also there is a building on the right of the skyline that is very similar to one I work near - im curious what you based it on?
Loud_G at 4:03AM, May 23, 2008
This page is absolutely gorgeous Fitz! I'm glad you went artsy. The landscape shots are great. The silhouettes, beautiful. You are a master of your craft. :)
Abt_Nihil at 2:50AM, May 23, 2008
This is the one comic where I feel my comments may desecrate the page :-) It's just way too gorgeous! Damn! I don't even feel like pointing out what I like most... my eyes wander from one panel to the next, I just can't decide. It's nice to get back to the original flair of the comic with this dialogue too. Don't know if I can pinpoint it... maybe the past pages were more about the "how" than the "what". And if there's one thing I've learned: the color of the heart doesn't correlate with whether she'll reject you or not :-) Not that I ever actually saw one of their hearts up close...
roycemarie at 12:25AM, May 23, 2008
Forgot to rate the page. So here...
roycemarie at 12:23AM, May 23, 2008
Mouse in love is back again. As determind as this mouse is, he may yet win the lady fair.
ghostrunner at 10:32PM, May 22, 2008
belive me we apreciate the extra work XD
usedbooks at 10:15PM, May 22, 2008
I love the dog silhouettes. (Take off the leashes, and you have a t-shirt design!) I also really like the three panels in the third row. They are so lovely autumn nature-y. Fall is my favorite season. ^_^