It’s hard to believe that 10 years ago today, I first posted my Justice League of Anime artwork on DeviantArt. I still remember going through the struggle, painting it in Photoshop and trying to get the characters looking on model while keeping true to the spirit of the original artwork from the Justice League TV series. It took a long time, but the result was worth it because the response I got was incredible. Since then, I’ve seen it spread out all around the Internet and I’m happy that it has sparked so many great comments and conversations about these classic characters and what it would be like if they were all in a shared universe. I still think about it today!

Of course, along the way, there have been a few comments about the characters I picked, with some people not understanding my motivations and not recognizing all the characters or thinking that some of them are too obscure. I’ve explained many times why I chose these characters, but basically I went with the most timeless characters possible, each from a different creator, who could exist at the same time in and form a diverse team together. I didn’t just want to do a drawing of some popular characters, I wanted to create a “what if” scenario that could spark people’s imaginations. And I wanted them all to have earned their place as important parts of anime history. After all, there’s plenty of art of whatever new and popular thing kids are into these days. I wanted to give the classics a chance to shine together.

So with that in mind, I thought it would be interesting to look at what new things have been done these characters in the past 10 years to keep them around in the public eye and make their stories available to fans outside of Japan.

Goku: This should kind of go without saying, but there has been plenty of new Dragonball content. New movies, video games,  t-shirts, home video releases, video games, figures, and other merchandise. And obviously, there’s a whole new TV series that started in 2015! Looks like Dragonball is going strong and there is plenty more on the way!

Lupin: Pretty much an evergreen franchise, but things have really picked up over the past 10 years. There have 7 TV specials since 2008, a live action movie in 2014, and a wave of new movies and TV series since 2012. In the US, he’s even been on TV! Plus, more and more classic content has been made available on DVD and streaming.

Sailor Moon: All the Sailor Moon manga has been released in English starting in 2011. The original anime has gotten DVD and Blu Ray releases since 2014. A new anime series, Sailor Moon Crystal, started in 2014, and new official merchandise can be found pretty easily.

Cutie Honey: The original 70’s anime was released on DVD in 2013. There was a new live action movie in 2016. There is new manga, and the original 70’s manga is going to be published in English in July 2018! The new anime, Cutie Honey Universe, has just started recently at the time I’m writing this, and the design on Honey looks a lot like the one I drew!

Captain Harlock: The 70’s anime has been available streaming on various sites for a long time, and was released on DVD in 2013. Captain Harlock SSX was released on DVD in 2017, as was the film Arcadia of my Youth. Other related things like the Galaxy Express 999 movie and Cosmo Warrior Zero are on DVD too. There was the CG movie in 2013. And finally, the English release of the classic manga begins in May 2018!

Astro Boy: The English version of the original manga has been re-released in omnibus format. There was the CG movie in 2009. The prequel manga Atom: The Beginning got an anime version in 2017, and the famous manga Pluto is said to be getting an anime adaption as well. It seems there has been a lot of talk about other Astro Boy projects, like a reboot anime series and a live action movie, so we’ll see what else materializes.

Cyborg 009: The film 009 Re:Cyborg was released in 2012 and is on home video. Cyborg 009 VS Devilman (AWESOME) is on Netflix as of April 2016, as is the new series Cyborg 009: Call of Justice, released in 2017. And in the best news ever, the 2001 anime series is getting a complete DVD and Blu Ray release some time in the future!

Judging from all of that, I’d say that none of these characters are too obscure. They are all probably more famous around the world now than they were when I first made this artwork! I chose these characters not just because of their classic status, but because they have stood the test of time. I think they continue to do so. They are still famous, relevant, and popular in their own ways. In fact, I’d say that today, they are thriving! I never needed justification in my choices, but if I ever did, there it is.

So what’s next? Should I make some new artwork with these characters? Maybe someday. I have ideas I might like to explore. Should I add more characters to the League? I’m not taking suggestions, but I’ve thought about it. Maybe if it reaches 5000 +favs before the end of the year, I will see what I can do.

As it stands, it’s certainly the most popular, most widely seen, most discussed thing I’ve ever made, and I’m still immensely proud of it, even after all this time. Maybe that’s not saying much, and of course I want to aim higher with my own original ideas, but for now, I’ll take it. I wanted to say thank you to everyone who liked it and who has left their comments and posted their thoughts on what it would be like if this were a real show. I still wish it was!

Sayonara.

Today I am the featured artist on Artist Connect, a blog that showcases artists and links to resources and inspiration. They found me on my Instagram and asked me to answer some questions for an interview. It was fun to think about the answers and I actually had to put some serious thought into it.

You can read my feature right here!

I want to thank Artist Connect for getting in touch and giving me this unique opportunity. And keep an eye out for more because I’ve got some interesting new pieces in the pipeline.

Sayonara.

2017 was most certainly a series of months that occurred on planet Earth in this Galaxy. That’s about the most fair and unbiased commentary I can make on the past year. But hey, it wasn’t all bad! In fact, there were a few really great things that came out of last year, and in some cases, it was hard to pick just one for each category. Let’s take a look at what was good.

Favorite Game – Super Mario Odyssey The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is an amazing masterpiece of a game, absolutely worthy of every accolade that has been bestowed upon it. But, for me, it has one flaw; It’s not Super Mario Odyssey. Surpassing all my expectations and continuing to give even after you think you’ve seen it all, Super Mario Odyssey is nothing but fun, joy, surprises, and imagination. And that ending sequence is one of the best things I’ve ever experienced in any video game, ever.
Favorite Book – The Art of Splatoon I don’t think I got any new books for my collection last year. I’ve taken a look through this one and I’m sure that I’ll add it to my collection. I love playing Splatoon and Splatoon 2. Even though I hate when I’m losing, I always go back to play more, thanks in part to the amazing visual style captured by the artists who worked on this game. I’m very glad that this fantastic art book got an English language release.
Favorite Toy – Transformers Titans Return Sky Shadow This might be an unorthodox pick, as I feel this figure has been overlooked in some ways. But for me, the imposing stature, foreboding color scheme, creative transformation, and general complete feeling make Sky Shadow awesome. There is very little about this figure that could be better, and that’s saying something these days. I know it was retooled into Overlord, who is a more sought-after character, and someday I am sure I’ll get an Overlord. Even still, Sky Shadow has the edge.
Favorite TV Series – Samurai Jack Season 5 16 years ago, Samurai Jack became one of my all time favorite TV series. But after 4 seasons, it ended without resolution. After so long, it seemed that it would never have a proper ending, and we all just had to accept that as part of the series’ appeal. But at last, a final season was bestowed upon us, with artistry that was just as good, if not better than, the original run, and a conclusion that suits the honor and dignity of a Samurai story.
Favorite Anime – Attack on Titan Season 2 This was the only anime series that I did my best to watch week-to-week as episodes were released. Honestly, it was hard to watch at times! Seeing characters getting crunched, one after the other, was not always enjoyable. But the twists and turns of the story line kept me intrigued, as did the great animation and use of color. I was going to pick “Your Name“, which is an amazing movie, but technically that is a 2016 release, so AoT it is!
Favorite Movie – Spider-man Homecoming There were a lot of great movies in 2017. Logan, Kong, Baby Driver, Thor, Wonder Woman, Star Wars, and more. Even still, it was not a hard choice to pick Spidey as my number one for the year. Yeah, this was not the first time Spider-man has been rebooted for the movies, but for me, “Homecoming” was Spider-man the way he was meant to be. If Spider-man was a real person, it would be like this movie. It was so good, and I knew as soon as it was over that it would be my favorite movie of the year. Even after all the other great films, that’s still true.

That finally concludes 2017, and not a moment to soon. Time to think ahead to what’s happening this year, because I certainly spent way too long thinking about what things to put on this list and what else to say about them besides “it’s really good”, especially since it’s hard to get to everything I want to experience.

Let’s look ahead to what 2018 brings. On my radar already are movies like Black Panther, Infinity War, Pacific Rim, and Ready Player One, classic manga releases like Captain Harlock, and toys like Predaking and Optimus Primal. There is a lot to look forward to, and I’m going to do my best to check out as much of it as I can.

Sayonara.

Last month I decided to participate in Inktober, where artists all over the world do a drawing using ink every day for the month of October. I had never tried it before (last year having done Skeletober instead) and I had not really done much inking by hand in a long time. I had piles of barely used pens and a huge bottle of ink that I had not touched in years. That fact alone, was a good enough reason to bust them out and give Inktober a try. I was also l feeling kind of stuck in a rut artistically and felt like I should do something new and get some of this weird stuff out of my brain.

I did not follow any of the provided prompts or plan anything out. I just freely drew whatever came to mind at any point, mainly focusing on robots, aliens, cyborgs, monsters, and the kinds of things that I like to draw. Some of the drawings wound up being kind of dumb or just not that great, and some were done during times when I did not feel well enough to draw anything major, but I managed to get through every day without being late, which is an accomplishment.

So, here’s what I came up with.

I posted each entry individually on my Twitter and on Tumblr. I also put them up on Instagram, which I just started using when I began Inktober. You can check them out there for a better look and more info on each drawing, although for some of them I clearly had no idea what these things are or why I even drew them.

It was a fun project and I think I gained something out of it. But after a month of drawing without the benefit of an ‘UNDO‘ command, I’m looking forward to making art using a computer again.

Sayonara.

This summer was a very busy time. I had a job working at a summer day camp for kids, leading an art program on weekdays during July and August. The job certainly had its ups and downs, with some kids being better behaved than others, but was a good experience overall and I was lucky to have the opportunity. I met some great people and did a lot of fun drawings and silly doodles, which I’ll be posting on my Tumblr from time to time.

Thanks in part to having this job, I was finally able to get my hands on the elusive Nintendo Switch system. I had actually already purchased two games for it during a sale a few weeks earlier, and the wait to obtain the console to play them on was becoming unbearable. I quickly snagged an order through Amazon, early in the morning on the day Splatoon 2 was released. I was lucky that job came around when it did, because without it, not only would I have a hard time affording to buy the Switch, but I also would not have been awake early enough to have bought it before it sold out again!

Even though it was a challenge to get a hold of a unit, even after having money in hand, it’s so great so see that the Switch is successful and that people are enjoying the games. I loved the Wii U, and still love it, and will gladly defend its fantastic game library against any detractors, but it’s clear that Nintendo had lost some momentum during that time. Things are definitely going their way now, thanks to the innovative hardware and great games that the Switch provides.

Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is every bit the amazing experience that the reviews have said, and it’s the perfect game to showcase what the Switch is all about. It is so captivating that you don’t want to stop playing, and since the Switch is portable, you don’t have to stop! There is so much to see and do in this game, and having this great adventure to lose myself in after a hard day of dealing with noisy kids was the best way to unwind. Besides Zelda, I’ve also got Mario Kart 8 Deluxe and Splatoon 2, both great games that I haven’t spent as much time with because I’m still busy with Zelda. Looking forward, I’m so totally hyped for Super Mario Odyssey next month, and whatever other classic franchises and cool surprises show up after that.

It might seem silly to say it like this, but now that I have a Nintendo Switch, I feel like I am a part of modern society! Before I got one, it was like I was missing out on something. Now, I’m where the action is, and it feels good. It was only due to persistence, good luck, and circumstance that I was able to get a Switch, so if anyone is having trouble getting their hands on one, keep trying. It’ll be worth it.

Alas, summer is over and the job came to end with it, so we’ll have to see what the next thing is. I didn’t really do any full color illustrations this summer, so I’m getting that itch again to stretch my creative muscles and beef up my portfolio. I’ll be switching to art mode real soon.

Sayonara.