Tuesday, September 27, 2016

The Legend of Zelda: NES Link Painting

This is a big year for Zelda fans because Nintendo finally announced that Breath of the Wild is releasing next year.  In order to celebrate my love for the franchise I wanted to do a painting that I’ve had on my mind to do for a long time; the animated character version of Link from the original NES Zelda game.  This version of Link can be found on the map that was included with the game.
I started this painting off by practicing how to draw Link multiple times on paper.  One of the difficulties I encountered at first was the lack of colour and shades within my drawing.  But then I decided to just keep going and worry about the shades later.  I then drew a basic sketch on a 5 x 7 canvas, which is my current size preference.  I went with a white background because it looks cleaner, and because animated colours tend to pop out more.  I then painted all of Link’s colours and shades in one swoop.
Thankfully, rushing like this made it easier to overcome my worries of the painting not looking good.  I then used a thin brush to do the lines which gave it a cel shading look, that worked perfectly.  I did make mistakes along the way, but the size of the painting made it easy to correct any imperfections.  Now that I am done I am very happy with the end result, and I hope to one day do another Link painting.
Link (The Legend of Zelda) Wiki:
YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iN89H6B3NIU

Tuesday, September 20, 2016

Nintendo MediCom Toy Ultra Detail Figures

A few years ago there was this huge vinyl toy crazy that everyone was into.  With brands such as Medicom Toy and Kidrobot releasing limited edition artist designed toys.  Unfortunately just like beanie babies, trading card games and pogs; it was a craze I just didn’t understand.  I especially didn’t understand the price tag of vinyl toys, considering the fact that some sold for hundreds of dollars.  While I did buy some figures throughout the years, it was still something I had no interest in.
Earlier this year I found out that Medicom Toy would be releasing a line of retro Nintendo figures.  I wasn’t excited about them, but when I happened to see them in a local store one day I decided to get them.  I bought a Super Mario, and a Link figure.  Both figures are inspired by the Famicom version of those games.
Both figures are vinyl, are made in China, and are beautifully packaged in plastic clam shell that displays retro cards on the back.  Both figures also include a black base that pegs the figures in place.  I was disappointed by the paint job considering the price of these figures, and Medicom Toy describing them as “ultra detailed figures”.  Despite that I still love the figures and I’m happy to finally add vinyl figures to my collection that I actually understand.
Medicom Toy:
YouTube: