Bayonetta and Jeanne COLOR

So I took the whole weekend to myself, just unwinding and blowing off some steam, spending some catch-up time with family and friends. However, I hit it hard last night and jumped on this image, getting it started. I decided to tackle this one all at once, instead of the original plan. Plan A was to do each image separately, but I then came up with a background concept for this image, and had to do it all together to get the composition just right.

Witch Walk ftw. Try to wrap your mind around that one.

*windriderx23 and I have adopted a habit where in every commission batch, we fit in a gift piece for eachother. This month, I got to make a lineart request, and originally, I was going to call a spot for Bayonetta. But when the commission listing was posted, and I saw that ~integralsmatic already placed an order for one, I switched my request to Jeanne to make a joint commission alongside ~integralsmatic's. It was a tough call, actually, I wanted to do something with Rodin. Make it a male/female non-romantic pairing. Plus, Rodin was my favorite character. But I then considered just what would make a better overall image, and make something more interesting, and I decided that a better image would be made using Jeanne instead. Bright catchy reds, and the ability to put them in a position that specifically references their witch abilities.

Jeanne was in close second place in my favorite characters listing. Her costume is spot-on brilliant. The only skin being shown is from the face up, and there isn't any kind of design or 'peeks' integrated into her outfit. But it flows so elegantly and still expresses great amounts of feminine grace, Jeanne proves that you can have a character that is seductively intriguing while wearing a full body suit you can survive re-entry in. I'm glad I went with her as my choice for this piece.

Even the background was a toss-up, and the original idea was to make the Golem (that golden ball thing) with a fuzzy pink leash around it which would then be put into Jeanne's hand. I then decided upon a street scene, and the background would be a shish kabob of angels impaled with a lamp post. Buuuut, those ideas also sounded like huge time investments, which wasn't a necessity for the commission, and they both sounded like compositions that would take precedence away from Bayonetta and Jeanne. So I decided upon an homage to the box art, a huge full moon, and the ritzy evil island skyline behind it. A subtle hint is the sphere where the endgame commences at the top of the skyscraper.

I need to set aside a moment here and give huge applause to Jamie when he did these lines. Every single imaginable detail has been nailed with pristine perfection. It is clear he went beyond screen captures of the game, and did his homework by digging deep into the concept work done for Bayonetta to get every single part right. The rose design in the costume tubing? The little abstract cat designs for earrings? All perfect. Heck, he probably counted every single golden loop in the costume, and replicated it in proper scale, that's how well he did on the lines.

And it wasn't until well into the coloring process that I realized how pristine every bit was.