The Classy Fatale

If I had to claim a specialty as a character designer, I’d  admit that it’d be the ‘classy fatale,’ the alluring – but not skanky – heartbreaker-with-a-gun. A cliche since forever, I know, but I love retro-pulp, and this type of character, and their style, is one of my favorites.

The above image was something I just whipped up this afternoon for R6:8. I’ve got the look of my male lead character down, and am now delving into the supporting cast. Not surprisingly, my first stop was a female. Admittedly, they’re the easiest for me to draw. Women were the first thing I perfected in high school, after trying to copy Michael Turner’s (R.I.P.) pencils – and let’s face it, if you’re trying to learn to draw comics by mimicking Turner, you’re going to be drawing a lot of women.

Granted, as a straight guy, women are fun to draw – but it’s mostly because I feel the most confident and comfortable doing it than male characters. Humorously, I worry sometimes that my wife or my family think I have some kind of pornographic addiction, but it’s as simple as doing what I’m best at. If I’m at a point where I’m not happy with my art, drawing one of my female characters usually makes me feel better, and ready to challenge myself again.

Still, it’s a kind of crutch I gotta force myself to get past. I can draw almost anything, I just shy away from it often so I don’t frustrate myself. R6:8 is my first comic without a major supporting heroine. Blaque is a vaillainess, and thus won’t get that much panel-time. This is an intentional challenge for myself, and I’m actually excited about it.