RatCreature's Journal

I made a new TechnoMagic!RatCreature icon to use for posting/commenting about computer troubles, technology frustration and (hopefully) fixing those things.

The icon that I've previously used for that was based on "waving a dead chicken over it" with my avatar doing a kind of pop culture version of a voodoo ritual over a computer to fix it. I've been using it less and less, because an associated cringe feeling has grown over the years. I've now made one with a generic dark ritual, and updated the computer too (not even I have still a CRT monitor...)

It's not that I didn't realize back in 2005 that it was playing with, or plain using, racist imaginary, I even posted it with an (also kind of cringe) disclaimer that I didn't mean any offense to actual voodoo as religion, but thought it was funny anyway. However, I'm now more inclined to the view that if I feel the need to disclaim that my art doesn't mean to be racist, that's a sign that the art fails on its own.

I'm not deleting the old one, because I don't like pulling my art, even stuff that I'd do differently now, but I wanted to have a less-cringey icon to use, and it's not like I'm short on slots. I had really forgotten how hard it is to make a bunch of stuff remain legible in just 100x100px when it's more than just a head. Not sure I quite succeeded.

( larger pencils and inks behind the cut, where you can actually make out stuff )

Well, no progress on yuletart yet, but I did manage to draw the Iron Man icon. (In the end I simply ignored the nose/faceplate issue, just coloring it like the faceplate -- just assume that if Tony had a nose like that he'd be able to invent armor seamlessly covering it or something.)

( larger pencils and inks behind the cut )

A Methos!RatCreature, and for once my icon's hair does not look worse or more unnatural than the canon version. I decided to show the skull facemask as the obvious prop, even though such a mask would not fit my avatar. Just pretend it would sit above the nose somehow, or something...

( larger pencils and inks behind the cut )

Magneto!RatCreature has been slightly trending ahead of Erik!RatCreature in my earlier poll so I finished that one first. But I'll probably finish the other too.

( pencils and inks behind the cut )

I was looking to distract myself with something that takes concentration, because I'm worried so much about Linus but can't do anything to help him. So I decided to draw something, but felt too frazzled for anything complicated, so the only thing I could think of was making myself a new icon. And because sholio has been posting about Highlander a lot, and to comment I only had my ninja icon, the first thing I could think of was making myself a Highlander icon. Hence I give you Duncan!RatCreature.

( larger pencils and inks behind the cut )

I've been trying to draw this one for a while, but always abandoned it, because it turns out that noses of this size are quite inconvenient when drawing a mindmeld position. Well, I guess in the RatCreature!Trekverse there's nose-nose contact on top of the hand-head contact with mindmelds and they transmit not just thoughts but also the flu...

( larger pencils and inks behind the cut )

I was a bit unsure what kind of motif to choose for a "Fail!" icon. I decided to go for this one, because my avatar is a toon, and the classic toon failure is to run forward without realizing that it lost the firm ground, while the audience sees the calamity coming way earlier.

Then while drawing this, I realized that this is actually not unlike the typical "fail!" you run into (or commit yourself sometimes) in internet discussions. Also, the cliff motif is consistent with my "flail!" icon which shows a RatCreature teetering on the edge of a cliff, flailing its arms wildly, and which for some reason (probably the similar texts) got mistaken for a "fail!" icon several times. So I thought I'd make both a set.

( pencils and inks behind the cut )

I made a Merlin and an Arthur icon, because I'm full of squee from the season finale, and thrilled that Merlin will get a second season:


( pencils and inks behind the cut )

popfantastic's recent post reminded me of my B5 love, so I drew a Minbari!RatCreature.

( larger pencils and inks behind the cut )

I present you with a Steampunk!RatCreature. It lost a bit in the tiny icon size, but I hope the steam powered ray gun still comes across.

( larger inks and pencils behind the cut )