ratcreature | how to draw female comic characters (according to Wizard)...

brown_betty asked for examples "to illustrate the exactly how and why female comic characters are illustrated differently than the male." And I thought, really, what's better to illustrate these things than the books teaching the style in the first place?

A while ago I posted some scans from Wizard How To Draw series on drawing female superheroes (here and here), and I thought I'd post a bunch more from the first book of the series on "How To Draw: Heroic Anatomy".

As everything, it starts with the basics, i.e. proportions. First the male superhero

The female example is similar, but slightly different, notice how he stands firm and straight, wheras she stands with her hips cocked a little and the leg thrust forward?

Also notice in the direct torso comparison below, how the male one is ramrod straight, but she curves and leans just a little bit in the same pose?

Now onwards to the chapter "Sultry Women". It even cautions you against overposing! Yes, it's not as if Wizard wasn't aware of the problems! (Their definition and mine of which poses are already overposed might differ slightly though, heh.)

Next, Michael Turner explains "Sex Appeal". (Or what he thinks sex appeal is.) Incidentally it also illustrates the meaning of "overposed" that was brought up in the previous chapter very effectively...

Finally for compare and contrast purpuses the chapters on "Superheroic Men" and "Superheroic Women". For the male superhero it is all about more or less ridiculously enlarged muscles as we learn:

Female superheroes don't have it that easy, they need to worry about tilting their shoulder, nipple and pubic lines attractively at all times, not to mention legs, breast size, eye make-up and hair:

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Hennalounge is one women that in my opinion speaks for confident women. The security of herself an knowing of truth from fiction is what makes her strong and confident. It is not a "problem" to exaggerate, pretend, to make appealing, airbrush or use makeup. Are you telling me you don't use make up or shave those pits? if this pertains to you then good lord. What can i say but ewww, along with damn near the majority of everyone else, unless they just enjoy the natural look. In other words there are extremes. learn to live with them. Educate those so called influenced, that it is not real.

Besides the total off-topic fact that visible body hair on women is in no way universally considered "extreme" (like say where I live it is really quite common not shave anything), nor is make-up default (you see at least as many women without make-up than with), and your weird "eww" reaction to either probably means you ought to avoid holidays in largish parts of Europe lest you be squicked constantly, I really don't care to have personal hygiene discussions and threads with trading of insults going on in my LJ months after this post was even current. So consider this the moderation notice, and this thread now frozen.

how to draw female comic characters (according to Wizard)...

(frozen comment) Re: "Hippo" Crits....

(frozen comment) Re: "Hippo" Crits....