Patrol Girl COLOR

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Original Lines - [link]
By =reiq


"You wouldn't erase me, baby. You're too hungry for what I got."

Wouldn't hold it against you if you didn't see Ralph Bakshi's admittedly disastrous final foray into animating for the big screen. But anybody who knows the slick-witted Holly Would from the film "Cool World" would attest that a rotoscoped Kim Basinger makes for one of the hottest, most hormone-energizing characters to ever strut off an animator's fingertips.

I was 8 when Cool World came out, and this movie was a milestone for me because it was my first discovery that amidst a world of Looney Tunes, Bobby's World, Eek the Cat, and Ren and Stimpy, there were cartoons out there made strictly not for children. It was a bit of a revelation at the time for me, and I'll admit, my young pup mindset adopted a hefty curiosity towards the film that has carried over for years. The iconic visage of Holly, just from whatever trailers sneaked onto TV, seemed enough to kick me between the legs and dislodge the pituitary.

It's a strange day in a young boy's life the first time he gets the hots for a doodle.

When =reiq first posted these lines, I was at a time where I had fulfilled all my color requests, and was just looking for something to do that was...above my usual sensibility. His timing was perfect. But upon first glance at =reiq's lines, I felt an inclination, a sort of remembrance - and as if on cue, something clicked. It all came rushing back, those old memories of that old boyhood crush. I finally watched the entirety of Cool World, and while it was admittedly to fulfill a prolonged curiosity glittering unregarded at the back of my mind, I found myself on the front of a completely new movie-watching experience.

Dare I say...Cool World actually seems ahead of its time. Way ahead. Maybe it's because we've spoiled ourselves with this 3d CG movie-making revolution fronted by Pixar and Dreamworks, but it's sobering to see just what kind of aesthetic magic could be conjured with a mere pen and paints. Cool World, hollow storyline and caddywompus third act aside, is absolutely BEAUTIFUL throughout. The movie is an absolute cinematic mess, pure garbage on the storytelling, character, and consistency aspects. Yet strangely enough, I've watched it multiple times in the last few days, perpetually fascinated by the bold colors and fluid surreal environment throughout.

For years, I've been seeking something to aspire to, something that I can compare my color style to in order to push it to its furthest potential. Something to guide me, that is the final product of what I want to achieve in my own mind. And Ralph Bakshi is it.

So I make a rendition of =reiq's lines...making my first guided steps towards that which I will clamor towards in the future.

"Since it's only a dream...indulge your fantasy, Jack."

They just don't make animated movies like they used to.

Photoshop CS2
Wacom Tablet
CGTextures.com for texture reference

Comments appreciated. Criticism honored.