It's that time of the month again!  Actually, I should have posted this a few days ago, but I forgot. :)

This month's challenge features Animal-themed Characters as suggested by Revenant in the Challenge Ideas Thread.

You sign up by naming two animals (that no one has named yet).  Preferably ones that aren't too obscure as to make it a chore for the entrant.  I will randomly assign the animals to each who signed up.  Your task is to create a character, whether hero or villain, that uses one of the animals as a theme.  This is not an anthrobeast, but rather just using the animal in name and/or powers.  For example, Batman, The Tick, Spider-Man, Black Canary, Catwoman, Wolverine, etc. Use the animal as the theme, but are not half-man/half-animal mutations.  Note, you have full control over the character's powers, appearance and even name.  For example, if someone said "Spider", your character could easily be "The Recluse" if you so choose.

Start posting as soon as your image is done.  There is no due date for the actual posting, so don't panic as it approaches the challenge's "end date".

IF you want to be told a random art style to attempt, please indicate so in your signup post. (This may include but is not limited to Kirby, Timm, Anime, etc.)  This is not mandatory, but some people may be gluttons for punishment. :D

If you want to have a randomizer theme, you can also indicate that in your post.  Again, it is not mandatory to do so.

This challenge ends on December 31st.  If you want join this challenge anytime in December, post here and PM me so I don't miss your post.  You don't need to name an animal, as your assignment will be randomly generated by my wife opening up her animal book to a random page. :D  You can also sign up again if you did your first pic and want another go. After December 31st, I will not give out assignments.

Rules:
1) Virtually any style--  Drawing, painting, CG, sculpture, sprites, action figures/dioramas, etc.
2) It must be your art.  No reposting or plagerizing other people's art.  Obviously it's an honor system, but you don't wanna get called out on it and end up ruining it for others.
3) Nothing from Freedom Force or City of Heroes/Villains.  (Both have their own sections on FR.) If you make something (like a skin) that coincides with your art entry, you can link to the another thread.
4) Although technically not a work in progress thread, you can update the image in your post at any time.  You can also create a new thread featuring your work in progress and link to it.  I just don't want other artist's work buried under repeated postings of your progress.
5) Forum rules still govern subject matter.

Remember this is open to artists of all levels and all styles!

List of themes: (If you choose to receive one with your assignment.)[spoiler]
(When you are given your assignment, you will get a name from the Avatar Permissions Thread and a number that corresponds to this list.)
1) Horror: Your character has been or is transformed into a creature of darkness.
2) Western: Your character came to be during the height of the Old West.
3) Ultimate: Reimagined for a gritty modern world.  This isn't your 616 kind of hero!
4) Child: Any age from baby to teenager.  Your character started his adventures at an earlier age.
5) Pirate: Forget modern times, your character existed durring the age of pirates.
6) Post-Apocalypse:  Some sort of disaster has ruined the world.  Despite that, your character continues to survive.  Conversely, perhaps the character came into being in this harsh new world instead.
7) Alignment Swap:  Good becomes evil.  Evil becomes good.  What would your character be like if he played for an opposing team?
8) Movie: Due to the success of a related comic character's movie, you've been given the task of redesigning this character for a mainstream movie audience.
9) Medieval Fantasy: Dungeons & Dragons, Lord of the Rings, Warcraft, etc.  You know the drill.  The character exists in a medieval world of magic & monsters.
10) Space Opera: Aliens, Space-age knights, Smugglers, etc.  Your character exists in a sci-fi fantasy universe or perhaps just a galaxy far far away...
11) Old: The character is just shy from living in the home of retired superheroes.  Perhaps this is at the tail end of the character's existence, perhaps how he/she would look on his/her last mission...
12) Robot: The character was built, not born.  It's abilities are completely artificial, perhaps being a robot, cyborg, android or other construct.
13) Next Generation: A new person has taken on the mantle of the character.  Maybe the character is related, hired, or perhaps just following in the footsteps of a legend...
14) Gender Swap: Make a female version of a male character or vice versa.  Not crossdressing but rather what if your character was born of the different gender?  Or what would someone else look like if they were mimicking the style?  Think Superman/Supergirl or even Captain America/American Dream.
15) Silver/Golden Age: Totally retro.  The character existed in comic's past.  Part camp, Part innocence, all hero.
16) Pet/Furry: Lycanthrope (Captain America as Wolf), animal hero (Underdog) or perhaps just the character's faithful companion (Krypto)...
17) HEROES: This is a world where the ordinary are extraordinary and vice versa.  Just regular people who come upon powers.  What would their job be like?  What would they look like in a world where the heroes aren't musclebound beefcakes and their identity takes precedence over their abilities?
18) Evolved: The character's abilities have been increasing and adapting.  Think how over the years some comic characters gain new abilities or mutate into new forms.  Perhaps their powers are forced into overdrive making them freaks among freaks...
19) Magic/Supernatural: All heroes in this world derive their abilities from a magical or supernatural source.  Magical items, deals with demons, magical spells, etc.
20) Pro Wrestler: The world has no superpowered people.  But the luchadors are the most popular form of entertainment.  When you are a man, sometimes you wear stretchy pants in your room... It's for fun...
21) Historic: The catchall category for other historical time periods not covered in other categories.  Ancient Greece, the Rennascaince, Ancient Egypt...
22) Steampunk:  Victorian era sci-fi adventure ala Jules Verne, Alan Quartermain, League of Extraordinary Gentlemen...
23) Megalomaniac: Not just a villain, but the uberpowered bast**d that destroys the world's supers for their cause.  If you get this theme and a megalomaniac, just try and push the envelope further.
24) Fascist: Cold and imposing.  Where heroes are enforcers and villains are dictators.  Everything you'd expect for a Cold-War Soviet Union, 1984, Logan's Run, V for Vendetta, Equilibrium, etc.
25) Failed Clone: Whether the result of genetic experiments, a duplication machine or a magical bolt of energy, the character was duplicated.  Only it didn't turn out so well.  The character may be underpowered, overpowered, or just plain ugly.[/spoiler]

ASSIGNMENTS POSTED!

PS: Have an additional theme idea you want added to the list?  Have a non-randomizer idea you'd want considered?  Just head over to the Challenge Ideas Thread.

I'll start it off with...

Sloth & Pillbug

Orangutang and Manatee! :D

-CM

I'm in, I'll have a think about what animals i'll call then edit my post.
uhhhh....
i'll pick blue-tongued lizard and the kangaroo

Shrimp and sheepdog.

And... I usually get fairly bad dice on random style but I'll take it again anyhow. Just, please, if I get '90s comic again, can you change it? I'm sick of that.

I´m in!!!

I nominate Puma & Butterfly

I am so excited, its been ages since i last participatedi n this challenges!!!

Weasel and Caterpillar

Just to clarify, we will recieve two animals and we need to draw one of the two of our choice?

That's right, BWPS

I'm in :)

Blowfish and Badger.

Pillbug... doesn't anoyone call them Rolly-Pollys anymore?

Anyway, my animals are Opossum and Bandicoot.

I've actually built a super-hero based on 'Possums, so it can be done. Look at their teeth sometime...
And I just like the name Bandicoot.

Bill, who has a pair of ex-masked wrestler supervillains named Bewilderbeest and Blunderbus in his Champions campaign.

Just waiting on Carravaggio to name his animals so I can give out the assignments.
If anyone wants to sign up, best do it before he edits his post. ;)

Sounds fun i'm in :blink:

Manatee & Sloth

Quote from: electro on December 02, 2007, 05:44:51 PM
Sounds fun i'm in :blink:

Manatee & Sloth

You need to name two animals NOT named by others.

Remember:
1) You only need to draw one character using one of your randomly assigned animals.
2) Your character is not an animal hybrid.  He/she only uses the animal as the theme. Think the difference between Batman & Man-bat.
3) Powers and origin are NOT necessary.  However, you are more than welcome to add "flavor" to your character.  The character's powers do not have to necessarily mimic the animal either.  Notice how Batman doesn't have any "bat" powers.
4) If you want another go after you are done with your picture, either use your second assignment or post asking for a new animal to choose from.  Either works fine.

Now here are the assignments!
Pyroclasm chooses between Orangutan & Badger
Cardmaster chooses between Weasel & Bandicoot
Carravaggio chooses between Blowfish & Pillbug
Unkoman chooses between Opossum & Manatee and has to attempt "The Animated Series" or "Timm" style
Juancho chooses between Blue-tongue Lizard & Caterpillar
BWPS chooses between Sloth & Butterfly
Rick Battlemage chooses between Shrimp & Kangaroo
Daglob chooses between Puma & Sheepdog

Electro, if you still want in, just say so and I will give you a random assignment.

I've already got my characters in mind (yeah I'm doing both of them). And what a good style I got this time!

Man, these animals are mostly hilarious. This is going to be great.

Argg i really wanted that Manatee -  :blink:

Ardvark & random

Quote from: electro on December 02, 2007, 10:21:04 PM
Argg i really wanted that Manatee -  :blink:

Ardvark & random

You are so not understanding.  You don't pick your assignment.  You will be given two random animals and you choose ONE to for your character's theme.  I will post your assignment this evening, when I can get my wife to pick them.

...weasel and bandicoot?

hmm...

-CM

Electro must choose between Snake or Anteater.

Quote from: Pyroclasm on December 02, 2007, 09:10:40 PM
Remember:
1) You only need to draw one character using one of your randomly assigned animals.
2) Your character is not an animal hybrid.  He/she only uses the animal as the theme. Think the difference between Batman & Man-bat.
3) Powers and origin are NOT necessary.  However, you are more than welcome to add "flavor" to your character.  The character's powers do not have to necessarily mimic the animal either.  Notice how Batman doesn't have any "bat" powers.

Booyah! I managed to be first to post my image. :)

The reference image used for a "badger":
[spoiler]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Badger_delete1.jpg[/spoiler]

Maybe I'll come back to him at some point to add color.  For now, he's done.

C'mon, Larry, he doesn't look a bit like The Badger.

Is that a reference to the giant death badger story? The one that the british army categorically denies?

Quote from: Sword on December 05, 2007, 08:21:24 PM
Is that a reference to the giant death badger story? The one that the british army categorically denies?

[spoiler]Yeah, but that badger looks nothing like the one I preferred for its markings.  The Death Badger, commonly known as the Honey Badger, is native to the area the British were accused of introducing it to.  It's just that it was more common in a nearby area but reintroduction of water to the area it was occupying has forced the population to migrate.  It's funny how one village freaked out and threw out accusations while a nearby village call them "Ratel" and have always known of them.  The honey badger looks more like a skunk without the cool head markings of the Eurasian Badger.  The Guiness Book of World Records lists the honey badger as the most fearless animal, so it's probably a mean SOB and it just freaked out the villagers not used to the critter. Hehe.  I put this in spoilers so this thread doesn't become a discussion on the merits of the Death Badger story. ;)[/spoiler]

The Badger sooooo needs a skoped mesh!
great stuff Pyro! It'd be cool to see some colour if you feel like coming back to it later...just out of curiosity, what colours did you have in mind?

Quote from: daglob on December 05, 2007, 06:13:51 PM
C'mon, Larry, he doesn't look a bit like The Badger.

Norbert, it isn't nice to insult the artists!

Quote from: Uncle Yuan on December 06, 2007, 04:44:01 AM

Quote from: daglob on December 05, 2007, 06:13:51 PM
C'mon, Larry, he doesn't look a bit like The Badger.

Norbert, it isn't nice to insult the artists!

so...uhm...you're saying, stop badgering him?

pyroclasm, that is an awesome costume styling!

I agree. Great look! I especially like the toenail things on the boots. Work of genius!

Thanks guys.  Planned on having colors similar to the badger picture I referenced, only more comic-booky.  i.e. rich brown, black & white instead of a grey-brown, somewhat black & dirty white.  ;)  That helmet would definitely be pure black and white, though.  Still not sure if I "over-teched" the gloves or if they're too grungy.

Quote from: Pyroclasm on December 06, 2007, 11:24:56 AM
Thanks guys.  Planned on having colors similar to the badger picture I referenced, only more comic-booky.  i.e. rich brown, black & white instead of a grey-brown, somewhat black & dirty white.  ;)  That helmet would definitely be pure black and white, though.  Still not sure if I "over-teched" the gloves or if they're too grungy.

No, I don't think so at all. They've got enough detail to be interesting as the focus of the design, but not so much as to be overly teched. It's a great design man, don't worry about it.

Quote from: Tomato on December 06, 2007, 11:42:56 AM

Quote from: Pyroclasm on December 06, 2007, 11:24:56 AM
Thanks guys.  Planned on having colors similar to the badger picture I referenced, only more comic-booky.  i.e. rich brown, black & white instead of a grey-brown, somewhat black & dirty white.  ;)  That helmet would definitely be pure black and white, though.  Still not sure if I "over-teched" the gloves or if they're too grungy.

No, I don't think so at all. They've got enough detail to be interesting as the focus of the design, but not so much as to be overly teched. It's a great design man, don't worry about it.

I aggree with Tomato-this is a fine design, and a great drawing. Gonna be hard to equal, never mind beating it.