Neophyte-Ronin's art Reviews on Newgrounds

[Beta class remnant/Hive maiden]

This is impressive work. The details can't be seen since the picture is so small. But that doesn't mean you can't appreciate the intricacy of it all. It appears you not only have a keenness towards crafting figurines, but that you have a story behind each and every drawing, as if they are woven into a personal mythology.

It's a hard sell, but I would try and repeat this process multiple times for a variety of characters, and you don't always need to put them into a dramatic pose, either. The more often this is worked at, the cooler the effects are possible with each model. In other words, keep practicing--you clearly got a knack!

[night elf]

Possible Lighting Issue?

I only assume there is additional lighting from out of sight, because that moon would reflect a colder, bluer light upon the figure. But since I might not make that assumption, I would say the light-casting is way off in general. With the moon behind the figure, a unique silhouette effect would occur, of which none is present.

The nude is well detailed, and by the lighting we can safely say is the emphasis and pull of the piece. Holding a bow without a quiver or arrow nearby seems superfluous (why would a warrior be completely naked, anyway?), and the flowers are all similar designs but different colors. They don't look quite right, in other words.

So this isn't a perfect piece. However, the photo-realism of the figure is spot-on and the effects on the moon itself are haunting. Nice work overall.

[Saber Battle Ready]

Little Rough, but Get the Message Across

I can see your schwartz is as big as mine.

[Babies Hate Ugly People]

Insightful & Charming, but Images are Overused

You only got that because the kid was in a fuckin' shopping center, okay?

No, I'm quite serious. What happens when you drag your kid into a shopping center? I don't know... but they aren't doing a whole lot; you're shopping around, getting stuff, moving around, but they're stuck in the cart. And on top of that, they have fluorescent lights and other people to look at, or weird things they're unaccustomed to seeing regularly. Who's going to get crankier first? The added attention from a second person who wanted to be looked at constantly... well, that was the boiling point. Pair that with the fact that a shopping center has its own brand of commotion that drains the kid's reserves, and you can bet that those squeals are a protest to feeling hungry and ignored by mama. It's not a knock on you.

I encounter a similar problem while tip-toeing past one neighbor's apartment door because there is a loud little dog on the other side. Part of the reason it doesn't like me (or anyone else walking past there) is because the thing never gets to go outside or is forbidden from going outside. Eventually, the dog will start to think that everybody "out there" or foreign in general is some kind of threat. It's not that either one of us are ugly... we're just "foreign", and that's enough to make a baby or a dog wary.

Good layout, by the way. It sets out what it wants to show, although there could have been a witticism near the end for added effect. Like most digital comics, however, this bears the ugly stain of looking like frames were copied and pasted onto other frames. If given some time, you can spot the similarities, and that can really detract from a piece.

With a little more dives into the comic format, you should be able to clean house with the other artists around here. Just remember that there is a charm to hand-drawn frames that are not merely copies of previous images, akin to the debate between CDs and vinyl records. One has clarity and polish, but the other has warmth and richness of sound that afforded the format a reawakening in music stores. Play around with both hand-drawn images and digital media--bridge the gaps between with a reliable scanner--and you can further yourself beyond the range of other artists here.

[Bless You - CoV Commission]

Very Cool; the Background Just Seems "There"

The sneezer's expression and posture is golden, one of embarrassment and massive guilt. Her companion should be wincing or have narrower eyes than that, although she might be surprised. Far be it from me to nail someone for anything, but the background appears fully digital and, therefore, fully plain. T'would be far better to integrate images that were originally hand-drawn onto a background that started out hand-drawn to some degree.

Then again, this does look like the single frame of a well-polished television cartoon from the early '90s, or even the sort of Looney Tunes/Merrie Melodies fare before Chuck Jones' Spartan Abstract style debuted (particularly with Road Runner/Wile E. Coyote). In other words, the look and feel of the piece brought me back, and in a good way, as if it was "Rabbit Season" once again!

P.S. City of Villains sounds cool. My mother, it so happens, plays City of Heroes. One of her characters' names is Scarlet Knightingale (I think).

Sabtastic responds:

As usual, thanks!
I really enjoy your reviews, man. Very insightful stuff!

I'm sorta confused about the 'fully digital' comment, though. I did, in fact, draw it all by hand. :P Sure, there were a lot of shape tools and gradient/texture tricks utilized, but the image itself is still 100% hand-drawn. :P

P.S: Your mom is officially the coolest mom in the world. Holy crap.

[Myra In Her Study]

Solid Piece; Only Issues are Simplicity & Lighting

A great deal of attention was placed upon the character, and

The picture's lighting effects indicate to me that the creature should be reflecting (if not emanating) plenty of light to illuminate the front of her face. Instead, only the cheeks and back of her hair are lit up, due to sunlight that manages to get through the blinds' cracks. Even if it doesn't emanate light, a white sheet of paper, angled with a lamp, can light up the front end of a black stereo system knob. In other words, you can reflect some light off of you if you're not composed of colors that absorb it (like this bright white dragon). Hence, the front of the face should be illuminated at least a little. It's another light source. You got one correct... but the other should be a little more pronounced.

If it were me, I'd ditch the sunlight and make it an evening session in her study. When I think study I think nighttime, after the daily grind has been squared away. The character looks to me like a night owl, anyway. In doing so, the illumination would instead come from the dragon, and the front of her face would be brightened up. It would also make for a dimmer, far more mysterious picture.

Some of the textures on the floor is okay, but the light source and lack of shadows for the little legs of that chair further diminish the level of immersion one can feel from the piece. And perhaps out of a desire not to mingle too much with perspective (although a few painful lessons there never hurt one's technique), the bookshelf is conveniently barren. This poses two problems: one, we assume a magician would have all manner of treatises, ledgers, and scrolls lining a shelf, not all properly organized, either (rather haphazard in fact). The second issue is that some technical geek will call you on potential laziness for leaving it bare. We rarely assume a wizard is illiterate. At least there are books in the bottom shelf, behind the small table and chair, out of sight for the most part. Lining the shelves might have felt like bull work and perhaps you were rushed, but keep these suggestions in mind for later pieces.

Having her face in profile is not just for ease of drawing, because the subject matter--the piercing examination of the creature perched upon her outstretched hand--is the crux of this piece, where everyone's eye will rest upon. The Victorian-esque chair, the repose for an apprentice in the arcane, is well-fashioned despite the flaws in light effects. The character is also in correct proportion from what I can tell, and the minor effects like candles and oriental rugs help this picture stand out even more.

Though some elements appear simple and the lighting could have had a makeover, Myra in Her Study is still a solid piece. I suggest you outline and begin formatting the boxes for a comic book featuring your characters, because they won't be worth much if you don't draw them on a consistent basis.

Sabtastic responds:

Wow, man. Thanks! The least I can do is reply to your comment! Sorry it took so long.

First off, thankyou for such an in-depth look at this piece. If you don't write professional artistic reviews, you really should look into it! It's so refreshing to actually get a helpful review that has a lot of time and effort put into it, as opposed to some ... 'less useful' opinions I've gotten in the past.

Very rarely will someone's review inspire me to open up the artwork again on Photoshop and fix whatever errors were mentioned. Needless to say, your critique really makes me want to do that!

Cheers!!
I'll be sure to look you up if I get around to fixing up this submission. c:

[How's It Taste, Mother Fucker?]

Thanks

You've given me a new catchphrase. I'm going to SPAM this statement all over the place in random events until it becomes a pathological meme that wipes out the entire Internet community with silly profanity.

This is a good mild cartoon-like lion. Reminds me of a Rakshasa from D&D (or FF if you're looking carefully enough), though those guys are tiger-headed. Still, this dude's got a wonderful attitude, akin to the Rakshasa.

Watch out about anyone claiming to make a tattoo based on this piece, because they'll stick it someplace totally nasty. You sure you want this as a butt tattoo, for example?

But you gave me my first big laugh for the day, and for that, I thank you. It tastes just as good as women's tongue on a hot summer night. And NO, don't counter with a stupid 'yo' momma' joke or something--you know what I intended. Some jokes are totally outdated, unfunny, or perfectly nonsensical. Ever hear someone say "Yo Mama's a dead baby?" before?

BiggCaZv2 responds:

Yeah, I have. And I wonder to myself "Who would find calling someone's mom a dead baby funny?"

[My Wacom]

Like a Van Gogh Self-Portrait

This is quite cute. It's also color-coordinated in terms of picture composition, so you get a bonus there. I still don't know about the black shirt with the fluorescent stars though. On the other hand, I recall many of Van Gogh's paintings had an orange/green emphasis for contrast purposes. Manga cartoon style aside, reminding me of a classic painting gets you a few extra points as well.

If you're feeling ambitious (or bored), why not post several pictures--three to go--so you can be scouted by a fellow artist?

xxxrifrafxxx responds:

I actually own that shirt lol. And i was wearing it when i drew this.

[Angel Orb]

Stylized but With Iffy Proportions

While anorexia is troublesome, I find proper proportions between legs and body to be far more difficult to contend with. You and me both. This one looks as if the legs are too short. Chock it up to foreshortening, which I could understand, but they just don't look right next to the torso. Nobody's perfect, I suppose. The hair and wings, on the other hand, reflect an artist who gives great attention and display to detail. Ignore CRF's assertion about it being non-porn; nudity is far detached from such a medium and has greater artistic merit.

[Shiny Shiny]

Not too bad, but loudly GREEEEEN....

Monochromatic is never a good thing; it is excessively green in this picture, not to mention bright (although the light source could account for this).

This is reminiscent of Gau from Final Fantasy VI, the wild child of the Veldt who repeatedly screamed "Shiny Treasure! Shiny, Shiny, Shiny!" in reference to a diving gear helmet he snatched from a scholar at the village of Mobliz. Though the ears might be different, the primal exuberance and fascination--sheer curiosity--is exhibited in the image, which sparked the memory.