Steve García's 'Perception'

I just found this piece of art by Stephen García in his pinterest 'Super Silhouettes' page. He defines many comic book characters in one word.
I think he nailed the one thing that defines Ralph as character. I love how he looks like a detective in a suit. I think spandex should only come out when is action time in his stories.

Ralph Dibny Presents: Freakazoid!

Image by Phil Crash Murphy

For the foreseeable future, Freakazoid! seems basically an extinguished property. Nobody has heard anything about a revival series (who wouldn't love to see Weird Al involved in the project, huh?), or even a comic book adaptation. So, I started daydreaming about how would it look in the solicitations articles with really cool writers and artists, I wrote down the whole thing, and now humbly present the result to you, my dear audience (yeah, I'm talking to both of you). 

In order to take the series forward and add something new, I set the fake series in the DC Universe and explored events right after "The Chip" (the origin story of Freakazoid!) and between other actual stories of the show, in order to get a taste of the early days of Freakazoid!, the origin of several villains and team-up with DC characters. There is a lot of that Spider-Man / Archie vibe (i.e., lots of high school stuff) from the early Brice Timm concepts and the first episode. Things are surreal, but not enough to keep Freakazoid apart from the DC Universe, so expect interesting guest stars...

DC PRESENTS FREAKAZOID! #1
On sale MAY 12 • Issue #2 on sale MAY 26 • 40 pg (#1), 44 pg (#2), FC, $2.99 US
Written by JOHN P. MCCANN, PAUL DINI, TOM RUEGGER and PAUL RUGG art by BRUCE TIMM and KEVIN MAGUIRE, cover by BRUCE TIMM and ALEX ROSS.

I did this image, (totally ripping of Alex Ross).

Teenager Dexter Douglas wakes up to discover that everybody in Washington is talking about the cool new hero that caused the fall of the Apex Company (Cadmus' main supplier). He wants nothing to do with him, but he changes his mind when he discovers that his biology teacher is planning to turn all the Harry Connick Jr. High School students into lobe-mutants like him.

Meanwhile, in the backup feature, Lord Bravery is trying to make a name for himself as London's new superhero protector. He captures a bank robbery; however, surrounded by inept witnesses, he has a really hard time trying to prove to the police that he captured the right thief, who shamelessly denies any involvement.

DC PRESENTS FREAKAZOID! #2
On sale MAY 26, 32 pg (#2), FC, $2.99 US
Written by JOHN P. MCCANN, PAUL DINI, TOM RUEGGER and PAUL RUGG art by KEVIN MAGUIRE.

The Lobe is planning to use his army of teenage brain-zombies to take Washington, but before stopping him, Freakazoid! must escape the thread of the disgusting Booger Beast.

Meanwhile, in the backup feature, the Huntsman has gathered all the necessary information to take down Armondo Guitierrez, the corrupt CEO of the Apex Company. So, he joins forces with the Flash, Green Arrow, Blue Beetle, Black Ca-- Nope, some new superhero already beat them to it. Darn the Luck, darn, darn, darn!

DC PRESENTS FREAKAZOID! #3
On sale JUL 18, 32 pg (#2), FC, $2.99 US
Written by JOHN P. MCCANN and PAUL RUGG art by DUSTIN NGUYEN.

Freakazoid! has saved the Harry Connick Jr. High again. This time, from Cave Guy at the "Day Time Saving Party". Even though every girl is in love with him, he can't reveal them that he's actually Dexter Douglas, the geek none of them likes. So, it's time to help Dex to fit in, and nothing is more important that... Well, maybe only saving some bank hostages from Kid Carrion, the cowboy who can't die.

Meanwhile, in the backup feature, after 3 weeks of talking to bullies into leaving obese kids alone, The Fatman and Boy Blubber get a restraining order from the Peabody Elementary School.

DC PRESENTS FREAKAZOID! #4
On sale JUN 12, 32 pg (#4), FC, $2.99 US
Written by PAUL DINI art by KEVIN MAGUIRE.

The Penguin goes to Washington to recruit Arms Akimbo, Babyface, Ma Murder and other generic mobster stereotypes for the Crime Guild of America, and we all know what that means: Batman team-up!!

Meanwhile, in the backup feature, Dexter brags to James and Leo (those are actual characters, I swear) that he's a close friend of Freakazoid. Next day, the entire Harry Connick Jr. High knows, so, best friends Betty and Vero-- I mean, Steff and Valerie start a war with each other in order to impress Dex.

SHADOW OF THE BAT #3
On sale JUN 12, 32 pg (#4), FC, $2.99 US
Written by PAUL DINI, art by DUSTIN NGUYEN.
Crossing over from DC PRESENTS FREAKAZOID!, Freak! and Nightwing break into a Washington D.C. warehouse just in time to save Batman from a surreal gang organized in true Daffy Duck fashion: the Penguin! Arms Akimbo! The Ventriloquist and Scarface! The Lobe! Babyface! Medulla and Oblongata! Ma Murder!Ugly Manheim! Alpha Dog! The White Rabbit! Kid Carrion! Rhino! Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum! The Chick! Ben Franklinstein! Tobias Whale!

DC PRESENTS FREAKAZOID! #5
On sale AUG 13, 32 pg (#4), FC, $2.99 US
Written by JOHN P. MCCANN and PAUL RUGG art by DUSTIN NGUYEN.

After saving the White House, Freakazoid! is invited by president Obama to receive an award. At the ceremony, Freakazoid! notices that the Senate Majority Leader is a weird eyeball creature with goo instead of a body and a ridiculous haircut -- but everybody else sees him as a regular guy called Newt... what the hey is going on, and what's he got to do with the sinister looking guy turning squirrels into gold?

Meanwhile, in the backup feature, Batman has been kidnapped by the American Crime Syndicate and only The Huntsman can track him down.

DC PRESENTS FREAKAZOID! #6
On sale SEP 12, 32 pg (#4), FC, $2.99 US
Written by PAUL DINI and PAUL RUGG art by DARWYN COOKE. 

Ultimate hunter Major Danger hears about the Freakazoid! and decides to hunt him, so, suck it, Kraven the Hunter! 

Meanwhile, at the backup feature, Lord Bravery is about to bust a smuggling operation of the Pearly Prince* --but so is the Beefeater.

*From Batman & Robin.

DC PRESENTS FREAKAZOID! #7
On sale OCT 12, 32 pg (#4), FC, $2.99 US
Written by JOHN P. MCCANN and PAUL RUGG art by DUSTIN NGUYEN. 
Freakazoid! has to figure out how to teach Dexter Douglas to stand for himself against the Harry Connick Jr. High School's resident bully: Duncan Douglas (small world, eh?), but he can't really do that while being bullied himself by Alpha Dog the biggest, meanest crimelord of Washington.

Meanwhile, at the backup feature, the Lawn Gnomes have stolen the one true nose ring from a mad halfling.

DC PRESENTS FREAKAZOID! #8
On sale NOV 01, 32 pg (#4), FC, $2.99 US
Written by ALAN BURNETT art by ADAM HUGHES.
"Candle Jack's Halloween Par--"

Steff and Val organize a Halloween party and Dex thought it would be a good idea to dress as Freakazoid! to impress them, the only problem is that when some idiot shows up disguised as Candle Ja--

Meanwhile, at the backup feature, Lord Bravery and his family are invited as guests at the Stokesey Castle, where, as he asures them, there are no ghosts...

DC PRESENTS FREAKAZOID! #9
On sale DEC 12, 32 pg (#4), FC, $2.99 US
Written by JOHN P. MCCANN and PAUL RUGG art by DUSTIN NGUYEN.
"Merry Christmas, Freak!"
It's almost a year since Freakazoid! came to be, an what better present can Armondo sent him from prison than a surprise party with all his new friends: the Lobe, Candle Jack, Kid Carrion, Longhorn, Cobra Queen, Caveguy and Booger Beast!

Meanwhile, at the Backup feature, it's Christmas and the Lt. King is going to get the Huntsman the gift he deserves (although there might be some teasing before).

DC PRESENTS FREAKAZOID! #10
On sale JAN 12, 32 pg (#4), FC, $2.99 US
Written by JOHN P. MCCANN and PAUL RUGG art by DUSTIN NGUYEN.
"Freakazoid Vs. -- Freakazoid?"
Eye of Newt has decided that the best way to get Freakazoid! out of his back is to frame him, so he hires Deadpan, the World's less expressive impersonator, to ruin his reputation. 

Meanwhile, at the Backup feature, the Lawn Gnomes go to Manhattan... if they can get pass the Brooklyn Bridge Troll.

DC PRESENTS FREAKAZOID! #11
On sale FEB 12, 32 pg (#4), FC, $2.99 US
Written by TOM RUEGGER and PAUL RUGG art by KEVIN MAGUIRE.
"Freakazoid, the super villain"
When Freakazoid! becomes evil Sgt. Cosgrove is forced to apprehend him. Can Roddy and Steff break Cobra Queen's hypnosis on time? Plus, we learn that Cosgrove is actually Police Chief, but he likes to be called Sgt., for some reason. 

Meanwhile, at the backup feature, it's time to give sweet and innocent Toby Danger "the talk" (if you get what I mean).


DC PRESENTS FREAKAZOID! #12
On sale MAR 12, 32 pg (#4), FC, $2.99 US
Written by JOHN P. MCCANN and PAUL RUGG art by DUSTIN NGUYEN.
"It's tough to get a date with Dex"
Dex hit the jackpot when his math teacher forced Val to study with him every afternoon, and to make things more interesting, Longhorn is going to teach him how to get hard to play as he needs to excuse himself to go save the landmarks Washington D.C. 

Meanwhile, at the Backup feature, Fatman and Boy Blubber open a fat camp, a good idea, only all the kids are healthier than both of them...

DC PRESENTS FREAKAZOID! #13
On sale APR 12, 32 pg (#4), FC, $2.99 US
Written by JOHN P. MCCANN and PAUL RUGG art by DUSTIN NGUYEN.
"Candle Jack Retur--"
Waylon Jeepers found a way to control Candle Jack withou--

Fanboy might have bitten more than he can chew when he decided to stalk the Legends who Lunch.

DC PRESENTS FREAKAZOID! #14
On sale MAY 12, 32 pg (#4), FC, $2.99 US
Written by JOHN P. MCCANN and J. M. DEMATTEIS art by DUSTIN NGUYEN.
"Mystery of the missing Freak!"
When Freakazoid! disappears, only one man can help Sgt. Cosgrove and Roddy to find him: Ralph Dibny, the Elongated Man. However, not even the World's most famous detective can make things easier when most of the witnesses and suspects are clueless weirdos. 

Meanwhile, at the Backup feature, Lord Bravery sues a comic book writer who copyrighted his name and personality to sell toys.

DC PRESENTS FREAKAZOID! #15
On sale JUL 12, 32 pg (#4), FC, $2.99 US
Written by ALAN BURNETT and TOM RUEGGER art by DUSTIN NGUYEN.
"Neutrino Man"
Mo-Ron returns. This time, he arrives at James and Leo's who try to disguise him as an exchange student. However, their fun won't last long since the Lobe wants him for his own sinister purposes. Guest starring: Pauly Shore, as the guy who dies after the credits introduce him... (I told you).

Meanwhile, at the Backup feature, after a month of undercover hard work the Huntsman is about to make his big bust (yeah, that's right, not gonna happen).

DC PRESENTS FREAKAZOID! #16
On sale JUN 12, 32 pg (#4), FC, $2.99 US
Written by TOM RUEGGER and PAUL RUGG art by DUSTIN NGUYEN.

"Franklinstain"
The Lobe and Eye-of-Newt team-up to create the worst political Frankenstein: Ben Franklinstain. 

Meanwhile, at the Backup feature, Mistress Sinistra has caught the Lawn Gnomes, but keeping them as servants might not be a good idea.

DC PRESENTS FREAKAZOID! #17
On sale AUG 12, 32 pg (#4), FC, $2.99 US
Written by JOHN P. MCCANN and PAUL RUGG art by DUSTIN NGUYEN.
"The Imp-ossible Dream"
Dex is tired of being targeted by bullies and things are even worse since the worst bully is his own brother, Duncan Douglas. Things are about to change now that he has Frkzd, his own interdimensional imp... Then again, who's going to save him from the imp... Duncan?

Meanwhile, at the Backup feature, the Huntsman finally arrives on time to beat criminals. There's no doubt, they are real criminals. Sure thing.

DC PRESENTS FREAKAZOID! #18
On sale SEP 12, 32 pg (#4), FC, $2.99 US
Written by JOHN P. MCCANN and PAUL RUGG art by DUSTIN NGUYEN.
"Beauty and Brains"
Nerdator is back, and this time he has a better target: hot nerds. 

Meanwhile, at the backup feature, Fanboy has a new victim: Lord Bravery.

DC PRESENTS FREAKAZOID! #19
On sale OCT 12, 32 pg (#4), FC, $2.99 US
Written by JOHN P. MCCANN and PAUL RUGG art by DUSTIN NGUYEN.
"Beauty and the Booger Beast"
Val can accept that Steff is now Freakazoid!'s girlfriend, but is she desperate enough to fall in love with her biggest admirer... the Booger Beast? 

Meanwhile, at the backup feature, Lord Bravery is finally invited to join the Justice League Europe, only one problem: he has to beat Beefeater! John Cleese's reaction: "Unbelievable!" 

DC PRESENTS FREAKAZOID! #20
On sale OCT 12, 32 pg (#4), FC, $2.99 US
Written by JOHN P. MCCANN and PAUL RUGG art by DUSTIN NGUYEN.
"Beauty and the Booger Beast"
The fate of Ben Franklinstain has the nation divided, some people want him resting in peace again, some want him in jail and others want him to be the President. 

Meanwhile, at the backup feature, the Lawn Gnomes try to kidnap Zatanna's cat to get her to break their spell.

DC PRESENTS FREAKAZOID! #21
On sale DEC 12, 32 pg (#4), FC, $2.99 US
Written by JOHN P. MCCANN and ALAN BURNETT art by DUSTIN NGUYEN.
"Beauty and the Booger Beast"
Guitierrez is back, and he has kidnapped Roddy to fix his web connection. So, Freakazoid! and the Huntsman must find him before he becomes a freakazoid! again!

Meanwhile, at the backup feature, Fatman and Boy Blubber get banned from KFC.

DC PRESENTS FREAKAZOID! #22
On sale JAN 12, 32 pg (#4), FC, $2.99 US
Written by JOHN P. MCCANN and PAUL RUGG art by KEVIN MAGUIRE.

"Freakazoid! meets the Lawn Gnomes"
Candle Ja-- is after the Lawn Gnomes and only Freakazoid! can help them. 

Meanwhile, at the backup feature, the Douglas family goes camping and Duncan finds a green fat "big foot".

DC PRESENTS FREAKAZOID! #23
On sale JAN 12, 32 pg (#4), FC, $2.99 US
Written by PAUL DINI art by DARWYN COOKE.
"See No Invisivo"
Invisivo is super-charged and he's going after president Obama, so, Freakazoid! will stop him, if he can finish Professor's Beasthead's exam on time... and rescue Val from Booger Beast... and shake off Fanboy... and get Fatman out of a manhole... and try Mike's new papaya doughnut with Cosgrove... and -- oh, just forget about it, it's never gonna happen.

Meanwhile, at the backup feature, Lord Bravery has to prove to the HMRC that he doesn't make a profit as a superhero.

DC PRESENTS FREAKAZOID! #24
On sale FEB 12, 32 pg (#4), FC, $2.99 US
Written by JOHN P. MCCANN and PAUL RUGG art by DUSTIN NGUYEN.
"And they Smell like Mothballs"
The Green Fog and the Brown Fog are back and smellier than ever, so Freakazoid! decided to reunite... THE LEGENDS!... Then again, setting octogenarians to fight might not be a smart idea.

Meanwhile, at the backup feature, the The Huntsman has received his first call from the Justice League Unlimited. Nope, wrong person. They meant to call the Huntress.

DC PRESENTS FREAKAZOID! #25
On sale MAR 12, 32 pg (#4), FC, $2.99 US
Written by PAUL DINI and TOM RUEGGER art by BRUCE TIMM.
"Witch Girl, the Teenage Witch"

Witch Girl is back at the Harry Connick Jr. High School, the only problem is that nobody remembers her being an evil sorcerer from the 5th dimension. Nobody but Val. So it's up to her to prove it to the gang.

Meanwhile, at the Backup Feature, Professor Jones thinks the Old Whispering Lady stole his collection of pez dispensers, despite Officers Dan and Muhammad-Abdul knowing better, so it's up to Cosgrove to get to the bottom of this goofy dispute.

DC PRESENTS FREAKAZOID! #26
On sale APR 12, 32 pg (#4), FC, $2.99 US
Written by PAUL DINI and JOHN P. MCCANN art by ADAM HUGHES.
"Freakazette"

With all the boys letting Bombshell go whenever she commits a crime, Washington needs a new type of hero: Freakazette. Wait... is she Steff... or Val? Special appearance by Foamy and Professor Heiney.

Meanwhile, at the Backup Feature, when Sandra Danger gets possesed by Vorn, the Unspeakable by mistake, the Vatican assigns its toughest agents to the case: the Nunchucks .
DC PRESENTS FREAKAZOID! #27
On sale MAY 12, 32 pg (#4), FC, $2.99 US
Written by JOHN P. MCCANN and PAUL RUGG art by HOWARD PORTER.
"Expendable People"

Art and characters created by lazymills1986.

Candle Jack... Deadpan... Kid Carrion... Ben Franklinstain... The superhero job is way too much for Freak. It's time to get a sidekick. So, Ingmar prepares trials for the most skilled people in sidekick biz: Fanboy, Deadpan, Arrowette, and Expendable Kid must compete with each other to apprehend the Spamming Baby Gang-man. 

Meanwhile, at the backup feature, the Lawn Gnomes team-up with Etrigan to bully Klarion the Witch Boy, if they can get past Teekl. 

More Elongated art!

This image by Mark Stutzman deserves its own post I have to know the history behind it. I guess the trinity had to go for the Best next thing after Batman in whatever that adventure was (apparently a commission for a Fusion Toys puzzle series). Oddly enough, Ralph was a lot closer with Batman and only teamed-up once with Wonder Woman.

Hawkman and the Atom #46, art by Ryan Sook.

I believe this one was done by Willis Bulliner. And I guess that's Ralph saluting TPTB for his fabulous role in the New 52.

The Curious Case of the Nate Bellegarde Challenge!

Nate Bellegarde is -- well, I have to confess, I didn't know who Nate Bellegarde is up until yesterday, when I ran into his Elongated Man request. A little googling showed me that he's a really talented artist with a mix of superhero style with and indie vibe (or at least that's my take). He's a pro since he was 16, which means he is also a natural with uncanny talent.

The best thing about him is that for $5.00 USD, he'll take requests at his... "Sketchblog". No. Wait... That's "Bletchskog" (nice trick!). I'm already negotiating a challenge for him (and so should you).

His Ralph is one of the best I've ever seen, he really looks like a rubber man and his insightful expression is spot-on.

Battle of the stretchers: Elongated Man vs. Mr. Fantastic vs. Plastic Man

Googling Elongated Man pics I run into a very interesting one pitting Platic Man and him agains Mr. fantastic. It turns out that some people from the Comic Vine have made a battle contest for artists in which they should portray the two stretchers and the shapeshifter in a 3-way fight. The idea was conceived by J_Evan:

"So, I really wanted to do a battle contest between two rubbery characters but I couldn't limit it to one or the other DC characters, so I'm giving you guys some flexibility (pun intended) with this one. Draw a battle scene between at least two of the following three characters: Mr. Fantastic, Plastic Man and the Elongated Man."

So far, maxicere posted this, which I my favorite:

KEROGA's post reminded me of the Three Stoonges (which are getting a new movie with a great cast, btw):

And finally, Payno decided to leave it between the two stretchers:

Fun to see how in two of those pics Ralph's uniform is the one from Justice League Unlimited and the other, KEROGA's, has the original version (the one from the 80s). Maybe it's because the other one is too similar to Plasti Man's.

KEROGA and Payno took some free license with the stretchers, since they cant really shapeshift (although Ralph became a bit of a molder in the 90s).

Here is the link to the original thread in Comic Vine, The contest started three weeks ago ans is still going on, so you might want to check it out now and then.

Justice League International: The Movie

Justice League International by Daniel Morpheus.

Brazilian Deviantartist, Daniel "Morpheus", created this Justice League International picture to see what a movie with his ideal cast would look like. Here is his pitch:

"This is a poster that I've made with my cast for a Justice League International Movie.

The cast is:

     Damien Lewis as Elongated Man
     Zooey Deschanel as Sue Dibny
     Zachary Levi as Blue Beetle
     Tom Cruise as Maxwell Lord
     Garrett Hedlund as Booster Gold
     Mary Elizabeth Winstead as Fire
     James Caviezel as Captain Atom
     Hannah Sperritt as Ice

To direct the movie no one better than Edgar Wright (Shaun of the Dead). I always imagine this movie as a British comedy, with the perfect balance between comedy, drama and action.

I think the cast couldn't be better (how about that Mary Elizabeth Winstead?!! huminahuminahubba!!). I'm really sold on this idea. Very few actreses are charismatic and cute enough to play Sue, but only Zooey has what it takes. Lewis, on the other hand, has an odd face for Ralph, who should rather look like a young Dick van Dike; however, he has the built, the red hair and he can really pull clever. Winstead definitively has the body type (tall, curvy, great shoulders), but I'm not sure she can play a sassy, loud and spicy girl from Brazil. Tom Cruise as Maxwell Lord takes the prize. It's just brilliant; between his "show me the money" and this, Max definitively falls between Cruise's range.

I love how the picture integrates the most memorable members and elevates them as pop cult icons portrayed by contemporary celebrities. I just love that colorful reticule. Not to mention the impressive portrayals and their rendering.

That is a movie I'd like to see. I can even imagine the plot: The entire JLA but the Elongated Man gets lost in a battle against Despero and, after months of absence, Maxwell Lord recruits him for the new JLI, a project in which nobody has faith. Despite their limited competence, after accidentally saving Paris from a Bialyan attack (after the French had a misunderstanding with the Gadaffi-esque Rumaan Harjavti) little by little they gain the public trust. After gaining other battles (which will serve as opportunities for cameos by the Injustice League, Manga Khan, Starro and Mr. Nebula) and, with them, more popularity, they run into an a surviving Batman and the Martian Manhunter, who assign them a mission to rescue the rest of the real League. They accomplish their mission, but end up about to be blasted by Despero. However, the real JLA pulls a last minute deux ex machina. Finally, both leagues are restored, with Batman and the Martian as liaisons. How about that?

Anyway, there's more art where that came from. Daniel is a very gifted artist and is blessing us with a lot of samples of his art at his Deviantart page.

Enjoy!

Jon Morris' DC Fifty-TOO and "PLASTIC MAN #1"

"PLASTIC MAN #1" by Jon Morris and Stephen DeStefano.

Blogger Jon Morris got 52 independent artists to pick their favorite DC properties to do an alternative version of the DC's new #1 issues. In his words, this is the premise of the project:

"Once DC started releasing the cover images of what the New DC Universe would look like, it got me wondering what the New DC Universe would look like ... if it were out of DC's hands.

"I contacted a plethora of very talented - and very different - cartoonists with a simple challenge: If DC approached you and offered you any DC property - past or present - of your choice to be your own new ongoing part of the DC Universe, what would the cover to the first issue look like?

"Fifty-two artists (and then some) responded, and that brings us here - DC FIFTY-TOO, The New DC Universe as imagined by fifty-two independent cartoonists. Starting on August 15th and running up through August 31st - the day the New DC Universe launches - this blog will unveil four new covers every weekday for DC Comics that never were but probably ought to have been!"

The result is a showcase of talent and refreshing ideas that, in most cases, seem more inspired and original than the actual 52 deal. I strongly recomend to follow it.
For obvious reasons, the Plastic Man one is my favorite (Diabolu discovered it). The art and humor are flawless!

The blog is called DC Fifty-TOO. Here's the link: DC Fifty-TOO: PLASTIC MAN #1



New Dibnys pics by Busterella and Perpetual Insomniac

My favorite Dibny fan artist just made another picture.

Ralph and Sue by Busterella

Well, actually, I don't know if it's recent (I can't believe I wasn't notified, I'm beginning to suspect that the World doesn't revolve around me... naaaah). Those are definitively Busterella's curves (no pun intended); however she changed a bit her character design, specially the faces, I'm assuming that has to do with the image name being titles "Tiny Dibnys".


I always go nuts trying to design a uniform for Ralph. The white and purple one from JLU is my favorite, but it still doesn't cnvince me. This option is definitivaly interesting. Stripes would look really cool on a stretcher.


Perpetual Insomniac has also produced more Dibny art since I made the post about fan art of this blog. Check it out:

Sue's fashion sense is spot on!

See more Busterella and Perpetual Insmniac art in:

• Top 20 Elongated Man Deviantart - The best portaits of Ralph and Sue that Deviantartists have to offer.

Top 20 Elongated Man Deviantart

Here is my favorite Dibny material from Deviantart.

Honorable mention: ME! Rafa Rivas' "Dibny Roll"

I became a fan with the Super Buddies-Identity Crisis-52 era, and this drawing was made around those times. Back then, I had just learned how to color with Photoshop and thought Ralph hugging Sue would be original (ha, ha, how naive). To me, this is one unsatisfying drawing. The feathering is weird, the "shining lights" in Sue's hair looks like gay hair, she has freakishly tiny feet, Ralph's legs are too weird. 

20. Reepicheep-Chan's "Baseball and Metahumans"

I like that this girl included Professor Impossible (The Venture Bros.) and Rubberband Man (Static Shock).

19. Jenny Park's "Ralphina is a Classy Name"

I decided to include this one because the characterization is pretty good. I love how fans always ignore what happened with Max and portray him at his best.

18. Matt Moylan's "Lil formers - Stretchy Guys"

Ralph looks a bit old with those eyebrows. Hard to believe he's not smelling a mystery in that scene.

17. Jack's ("Perpetual Insomniac") "Blanket" 

As grouse as cute, which is often the case with a lot of stuff that Ralph does.

16. "Spider Guile's" "Elongated Man Preliml"

The pose kinda reminds me of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Like many of the people that made it to this humble gallery, I think Guile is almost a pro. It's interesting to see that out of all the artists here, he's the one with the most conventional comic book artist style. A lot of the others seem to have more animation or Japanese influences. Guile lives in France and accepts commissions; here's a link to his Comic Art Gallery @ ComicArtFans.

15. Diego Gallegos' "Ralph Dibny"

Diego loves the Dibnys and is into japanimation, consequently, the result had t be a mix. I found a lot of Japanese influence among the Elongated Man's fans. 

14. Jack's ("Perpetual Insomniac") "Practical Problems"

This is the kind of fun thing I could definitively see Ralph doing in order to spy on someone. Sherlock used to pull stuff like that too.

13. Kyle Latino's "A Ralph and Sue Dibny Romantic Mystery"

Based on a Blackshirt cover, this image has the Dibnys following closer than ever the tradition of The Thin Man. Just for reference, the Elongated Man is a character from the 60s, and his lifestyle reflected so; however, his adventures were clearly inspired by the golden age of detective fiction.

10 - 12. Jack's ("Perpetual Insomniac") "Morning", "A Very Dibny Christmas" and "I Love This Life".

 

I put three drawings in the same section because the same comments apply to the three, which were all done by Jack. If there's something he is brilliant at is color range. This has to be the best rendering of an elongated man drawing I've ever seen. 

Honorable Mention: "SailorBetch's" "Elongated Vase"

Ok, I just added this one because I found the Justice League Unlimited reference quite funny.

9. "DarkNailbunny's" "Elongated Man Amigurumi"

I do not know what an amigurumi is, but that's a nice stuffed doll. Yeah, it's not a drawing, but it's great fan art, so it deserves a spot here. "DarkNailbunny" went minimal with this one, but she has some impressive stuff in her portfolio. Make sure you check it out.

8. Hannah's (Busterella) "Superbuddies: TAS"

The middle row is my favorite. Just spot on for me. However, that's the best Fire costume I've ever seen and I love how Ice's boots simulate cold air flowing. This is Busterella's ideal line-up, but I can't help but notice how a lot of people include Barda in JLI crowds (she was never a member). This version of Ralph's uniform has to be one of the best. She really made the JLU collar work. Sue looks perfect. One defect of Maguire's Sue is that she looks like a soccer mom instead of the cute fashionista she's supposed to be.

7. Laura Truxillo's "Li'l League"

Cute, aren't they?

I think this girl might be a professional cartoonist. She's spot on wit her characterizations. And again, there's the Barda thing. Wally and PG were some of the longest lasting members and she's not even a member, but she certainly caught the attention of JLI fans.

6. Craig Cermak's (inks by Carli Ihde) Elongated Man

Well, that's Ralph in a nutshell: A detective stretcher.

5. Kevin A. Voith's Ryan Styles as the Elongated Man

  

Is there any doubt about the model for this portrait? If somebody was crazy enough to produce a Super Buddies sitcom or movie, Ryan Styles should play Ralph. Oddly enough, some of Rags Morales' art for Identity Crisis, Ralph does look like Ryan. 

The costume is a combination of the JLI era costume and the one from Justice League Unlimited. 

4. Jason Brown's "The Super Buddies"

This is not Ralph-centric, but it's one hell of a pic. I love the way the shading was done; kind of like an animated series. I wish comics used that style more often.

3. Jack's ("Perpetual Insomniac") "Old-Time Classy Detectives"

I find this colored sketch very interesting. It has some fairly obvious mistakes, like Ralph's hand being out of proportion (then again, he might be stretching it) or Sue's arm being too thick (then again, women were chubbier back then); but the concept is just too good, and the coloring and shading too nice (and fit for the early Victorian era). 

Tying the Elongated Man to the early years of western detective fiction is a nice idea. He's normally associated with Holmes (mostly thanks to Mike W. Barr), but he's also a big Edgar Allan Poe fan and an expert in the entire genre so this is a smart tribute.  

2. Kyle Latino's "The Phantom of the Stage"

This other image by Kyle has the same golden age of detective fiction spirit; however, I can't help but feel that there's a Scooby Doo nod.

1. Hannah's (Busterella) "Dibnys Doodledump-1"

 

Yeah, this girl got it right. Sue's fashion sense, Ralph's stretching, even the face expressions. The Elongated Woman  tribute indicates that she's even familiar with classic stories. This art tyle definitively works for the Dibnys.

Oh, one more thing. Does anybody know the author of this image?:

Mysterious image.

It's funny how Sue pops up more often in fan art than in official stuff.

See also:

• New Dibnys pics by Busterella and Perpetual Insomniac .

UPDATE 09-16-12

Wunderchio and Almond077's Elongated Lass

It's Ralphina!! All grown up! I stll have to dig, but the Elongated Lass apparently appeared in an issue of Superboy, which inspired the creation of this piace. Link.

TheJason10's Elongated Man character design for Justice League

DiDio should take notes from this guy. Or better, just hire him.

Link.

BeeBoyNYCs Sue Dibny

I think it's his best work! She looks so Sue!

Link.

Steven García's 'Perception'