C.O.W. - #118: Boredom Killer

[Fozzybar]

http://www.conceptart.org/forums/images/cow/cow.jpg

For more infos and details about the rules go here:
http://www.conceptart.org/forums/showthread.php?t=110879


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Round #118

Topic:
Boredom Killer

Deadline (extended):
Wednesday, 22 July 2008



note: The deadline won't be EXACTLY after a week...it can last up to 24 hours more, i am human and have to work also, you know ;)
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How to post

In this thread you can post all wips, questions, comments etc
However if you are done with your entry, post the final image in the following thread.

THREAD FOR FINAL ENTRIES (http://conceptart.org/forums/showthread.php?t=131328)

READ THE INFO IN THE 1ST POST OF THE FINALS THREAD TO SEE HOW TO POST YOUR FINAL IMAGE!!!

[Fozzybar]

Thanx to Charanty for the topic idea ;)

ADDITIONAL INFO

1. The Boredom Killer is a species which conquers boredom for others. It must entertain (!) the bored person (or other creature). DO NOT add any unnatural utilities to the concept (eg: monkey with trumpet, seal with ball etc)

2. No individual/character!!! Make a concept of a species!

[ChristianWeeks]

OOh this is one is pretty wide for interpretation. Theres gonna be some real bizarre ones for this I just know it :) Getting started right away on this one!

[Tyrus]

Okay quick question, does the creature just have to entertain or can it "kill" boredom by some other means of distraction? Like make them interested in what the normally do?

[Relic]

wooh~~~Even coming out the subject "boredom killer" is a fancy thing,hope I can figure something out ...

[Fozzybar]

Tyrus
I am not sure what you mean, but i don't want the creature blowing up some nuclear bombs just to "kill" boredom you know. It should be something which is related to entertainment...

[Nubb]

Hah cool subject! I know I'll get disqualified because of multiple reasons: humanoid form, controversal way of understanding killing boredom ;) and probably some other. However I kinda got onto that concept so I've decidet to go in parallel to the battle. We won't meet in finished pieces section but we can have a lot of fun :). Enough of talking. Here's mine.

http://img134.imageshack.us/img134/2876/entertainmentcreature01sr8.jpg

[ChristianWeeks]

Man I'm havin real trouble getting a good idea and sticking to it. I'm way too undecisive / disciplined when it comes to just getting stuf like this done :(

[Michael Jaecks]

hahahaha. Nub. I like the goat lady. Very demure, she is.

I'm not sure which direction to take, but the first thing I thought of was a creature that naturally projects a light show or fireworks or something like that. Maybe something that has a bit of a mesmerizing/narcotic effect...

Entertainment is a pretty open ended concept....

[risingfromashes]

Nubb..I'm new so I'll keep it low key(not get myself in trouble)...but I see/agree 100% with where you're going..boredom? what borebom?...

-I don't know about the goat thing...aren't there laws against that..:nohope:
But then again...said person is bored...and that is one tasty goat...


-off to the lab..this one is going to take a lil head scratching...

[Relic]

I think of some creepy bird or something,it crows like human laughing,keep "laughing" untile it dislocates its jaw,but i'm not sure whether laughing is some kind of entertainment.:)

[ChristianWeeks]

hahahaha. Nub. I like the goat lady. Very demure, she is.

I'm not sure which direction to take, but the first thing I thought of was a creature that naturally projects a light show or fireworks or something like that. Maybe something that has a bit of a mesmerizing/narcotic effect...

Entertainment is a pretty open ended concept....

Yeah i was thinking something along the mesmerizing / narcotic stage, but I really couldnt think of anything to flesh out. Now I'm sort of leaning towards a holy being of light that, rather than entertains, inspires people to do things to relieve boredom, because that is usually my case. I have plenty of things to do, but Im too lazy to actually get up and do them. lol.

[Jolliday]

So, the first question I asked myself was "Why would a creature even want to be entertaining? What does it get out of it?" Okay, that's two questions. Anyway, I thought that the creature might do it for protection/food from the species it cohabits with. In my case, I came up with the idea of children.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v257/Jolliday/boingspring-copy.jpg

These little things live under kids' beds. They're constantly inventing games and new ways to keep kids interested, or the kids might neglect them, or use them for projects, or actually clean under their beds and find the baby Spring-Boings (who are more fragile than their full-grown parents, who can handle being stuffed through an over-the-door basketball hoop.)

[Funkyskull]

The boredom is no longer a prob... wait.. CHAINSAAAAW!

http://fc07.deviantart.com/fs31/f/2008/194/f/d/Funny_by_Funkyskull.jpg

[humboldt squid]

The boredom is no longer a prob... wait.. CHAINSAAAAW!

http://fc07.deviantart.com/fs31/f/2008/194/f/d/Funny_by_Funkyskull.jpg

Clowns with chainsaws are pretty far from the guidelines in the OP, dude.

[artiphats]

ok so the first decent idea I have is a passive creature whose small body can be shaped into different things, like he is living play-doh or something. He has basic anatomy and features that dont change, but he can be manipulated to a certain degree... make sense? Kids buy them as pets, they still must be fed, kept clean, etc. Maybe they have no bones.. maybe cartlidge (spelling?) only or something like that. How does that sound so far? I'll start on some drawings this weekend :)

oh yeah and each one is a different color / pattern... so kids can collect them.... OOHH and they stick together when wet so you can build make bigger things with several of them, LOL. so thats where I am now...

[IanE]

ok so the first decent idea I have is a passive creature whose small body can be shaped into different things, like he is living play-doh or something. He has basic anatomy and features that dont change, but he can be manipulated to a certain degree... make sense? Kids buy them as pets, they still must be fed, kept clean, etc. Maybe they have no bones.. maybe cartlidge (spelling?) only or something like that. How does that sound so far? I'll start on some drawings this weekend :)

oh yeah and each one is a different color / pattern... so kids can collect them.... OOHH and they stick together when wet so you can build make bigger things with several of them, LOL. so thats where I am now...

I'm excited to see this hahaha. I wish they were real... my cat would love one!

[draconas]

I was thinking something capable of entering someone's mind and literally "killing" their boredom.

[Snarfevs]

Just getting some quick ideas down:

Name: Synæsthalcyone, aka Actinian Euterpe, Pickover's Milkdrop

Concept: A portmanteau of 'synæsthesia' (the experience of linked sensation) and 'alcyonaria' (the subclass containing the sea pens that this species bears a passing resemblance to), the Synæsthalcyone (or simply 'thalk') is seemingly a living visualisation studio - it sways and displays vivid, wildly varying patterns of bioluminescence in response to sound and light. The reason for this response is understood to be a part of a quorum sensing mechanism with which thalk nests relay complex social information and make decisions in an ambient capacity. Largely sessile, growing up to 1.5 meters in height and equally comfortable underwater or on land, thalks are often removed from their swampy habitat by poachers and sold as black market 'boredom killers' to frontier menageries, clubs and the rich and stupid. Sadly, these semi-sentient creatures are often placed under extreme stress from a constant barrage of light and sound (generally loud music and the yelling of children or adults behaving like children) and are poorly cared for. The welfare group Concerned For Creatures recently reported the death by exhaustion of 5 juvenile thalks that were brought into a rave party and worn as hats by participants. A further 2 had to be euthanised.

[ChristianWeeks]

ok so the first decent idea I have is a passive creature whose small body can be shaped into different things, like he is living play-doh or something. He has basic anatomy and features that dont change, but he can be manipulated to a certain degree... make sense? Kids buy them as pets, they still must be fed, kept clean, etc. Maybe they have no bones.. maybe cartlidge (spelling?) only or something like that. How does that sound so far? I'll start on some drawings this weekend :)

oh yeah and each one is a different color / pattern... so kids can collect them.... OOHH and they stick together when wet so you can build make bigger things with several of them, LOL. so thats where I am now...

I was thinking something like that at first, but the rules state:

1. Creature Definition
e) no bloblike masses with no shape

By having features and anatomy taht don't change, you can avoid that, but IDK it may be risky. :P

[Jolliday]

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v257/Jolliday/springboing-copy.jpg
Here's a more fleshed out version of my creature. Any thoughts on what might be missing/skewed? (Yes, I know I could do a more thought out background . . . )

[Funkyskull]

Clowns with chainsaws are pretty far from the guidelines in the OP, dude.

Really, you think?

[artiphats]

By having features and anatomy taht don't change, you can avoid that, but IDK it may be risky.

Yeah I agree that the features will be key in makinmg it successful. I think as long as I dont enter a pile of dough with eyes I will be ok.

[Akeley]

One word: POKEMON!

[Mr_S_14]

Which Pokemon ?

[ImRazil]

http://img187.imageshack.us/img187/8529/wrrrr3copytq0.jpg

Well here's my entry, any thoughts on correction?

'The 'Boredom Killer', the top notch bio-design on Tell Sell! Are you bored? Are you feeling lonely, this cute creature will keep you company and keep you entertained, just squeeze it and it will produce a soothing sound, don't worry about the creature, just think: 'I will relax with this creature and I will enjoy myself squeezing the creature.' Take one, take two, give a set to your kids and squeeze, it's very entertaining! Also a very good stress-reliever. No exchanges, substitutions or refunds.'

Disclaimer: I do not own Tell Sell and I thank the world that I don't!

It's a creature that kinda feeds on boredom :), I hope this falls within the qualifications?

My other idea was a jojo-like creature :), perhaps an idea for someone else?

[ImRazil]

Nubb, your creature is amazing :)! Would love to see some of the sketches of that :).

[Rist]

Here is my first WIP. I think the fundamentals hurt my least entry, so this entry i am going to try and avoid turning values/saturation to the extremes. I will just gradually build the numbers up and down.

The idea behind this is that a yoyo is a toy that can distract any age group, curing them of their boredom. So I though why not have a creature that has the same characteristics. This creatures natural yoyo'ness is because of how it lives. It lives by hanging from the tree and 'yoyo's' down to catch its prey with its tail. This is only a clean sketch. I will change parts in PS.

[Kaizer]

I think I'll work on this 'un.

BTW, The 22nd is a Tuesday.

[Jolliday]

Snarfevs: I like your ideas for a creature that is a boredom-killer against its will. Great ideas.

[Lenorekitty]

Snarfevs I love the concept! I was thinking about a creature that could be treated ill for entertainment reasons as well...although along the lines of aggression more so..but yours is so tragic...it reminds me of goldfish sold to kids for pennies...they have no say and have no chance of defending themselves either...this is a great start and I hope you carry on with this concept....I love the raver bit in the description too. Great Work!! :)

[HFix]

-wip-

http://i155.photobucket.com/albums/s286/HFix/snails-bord-finalpost2.jpg

"Boredom killer" is a hallucinogenic drug of the 31st century. The boredom killer drug is an excretion from the shell of a rare snail located in the polar ice caps. This snail is a prehistoric specimen that was trapped in the ice caps long before the 18th century. The pollution of the 21st century and the melting of the ice caps released them into the water system and it wasnt long before there hallucinogentic propertys were discovered and they there placed on the black market as the latest addictional high. At first the high was a spiritual experience and an addiction as with any other drug until it mutated in the early 30th century and started killing its users within a matter of days. Its all the rave with the younger generations and the leading cause of death in the world...

[Lenorekitty]

EDIT:

Good luck everyone!

[MJ_Alcazar]

http://i279.photobucket.com/albums/kk153/Seloh_Eft/scan0009.jpg

I probably won't get it finished in time. But, it was dancing around in my head, so I just had to draw it. Ok, a little backstory. This Boredom Killer has been around from the beginning of time, constantly seeking out the boredom in people. It first must use its horn to jab a small hole into the person, the qualities of the horn make the hole heal fast so the creature must act quickly. The start to dance, it large tail and wide eyes mesmerizing the person. As the boredom starts to dissipate, the creature uses its large eyes to see it, its ears to hear the boredom to realease and its large tongue sucks up the boredom as it continues to dance. I guess it sounds sort of silly, but anyway, there's my idea. :)

[ImRazil]

Very nice concepts here :),

Snarfevs: true: a very sad concept but great thought out, your description of your creature is amazing as is the creature itself (though I'm still hoping for a background :)). The upper 'torso' of your creature is sublime, though the lower half could need a bit more work as it doesn't look finished to me (imagining it lives underwater perhaps draw some crabs or something near the feet? or some seeweed covering it? Anyway, I think the feet are just a bit too smooth). Great work though, looks very good already :).

Jolliday: you've got a very cute creature, though I'd like to see something of an height comparison or something, just to see how large it is and perhaps remove some of the blue edges on the creature itself and suplement them with more hair or another darker color (You probably already thought of this though ;)). The last thing is something you already mentioned: a background would be nice.

HFix: a nice creature with a good description (personally I'm not a fan of the last killing part, seeming it's a bit in contrast with the description as a rather innocent creature in the first part of the description, but that may be me). The turn in the head is also a nice feature, it makes the creature look a bit more alive, less static (the tail looks a little static, like it's not moving, while the front of the body does). Very curious to the results of the shell, you could get a lot out of that. Perhaps look for some flora from the prehistoric times, and then base your shell on them? This would keep with your description.

Lenorekitty: rough sketches look simple, yet good. Inside would be good, but an image or something to show how it drives/kills boredom, because that isn't entirely obvious to me. Perhaps a bit more turns in the body (only the tentacles perhaps?) would be nice, to make it a bit more 3d (and not a pure left to right 2d image).

MJ_Alcazar: it's a different approach to it than the rest of the people here, it looks interesting as you're looking at boredom as an essence. The creature itself isn't sparkling my imagination yet, but perhaps the final will. I'd suggest you look at some images of real life animals to make proportions and such things a bit better.

ImRazil: A blob with eyes! You won't even get through the qualifications!
*worries a bit about it, because thinks that the creature may be a bit too blobby after all..*

Yeah I agree that the features will be key in makinmg it successful. I think as long as I dont enter a pile of dough with eyes I will be ok.

:wtf: ... sigh...

[Rist]

Rist: Great concept you have there. You may need some extra details to explain your idea a little better.

[ImRazil]

Sorry Rist :(, you wasn't in the post-overview, your thumb wasn't showing there. Anyway, here goes:

Rist: Looks good already, still work in progress. I do say that you should spend a bit less time on the hand and more time on the creature itself (the hand seems to have gotten a fair amount of attention compared to some aspects of the creature), remember: this is about the creature. About the creature itself: the jojo aspect isn't very obvious yet, it's now a hanging something, perhaps show with a simplified image next to it how the jojo-ing goes? Also some details on the creature in rest would be nice. Still very much WIP so can't say much, though I'm curious about one thing: in the description is says 'tail' while in the image I see some kind of extended mouth / tongue, is it really a tail?

[Rist]

Sorry Rist :(, you wasn't in the post-overview, your thumb wasn't showing there. Anyway, here goes:

Rist: Looks good already, still work in progress. I do say that you should spend a bit less time on the hand and more time on the creature itself (the hand seems to have gotten a fair amount of attention compared to some aspects of the creature), remember: this is about the creature. About the creature itself: the jojo aspect isn't very obvious yet, it's now a hanging something, perhaps show with a simplified image next to it how the jojo-ing goes? Also some details on the creature in rest would be nice. Still very much WIP so can't say much, though I'm curious about one thing: in the description is says 'tail' while in the image I see some kind of extended mouth / tongue, is it really a tail?


Thanks Razil. What I mean by tail is that the creature, when extended, looks more like a slug without the shell. So the what happens is the creature clings to a branch with its tongue/mouth, and extends downwards catching the insect/bat in flight. The reason it is called the 'Boredom Killer' is because humans tend to catch these little creatures and yoyo them.

It is a WIP, I might go back into pencils and pens and redraw this. The basic idea is there though.

[eraserfoot]

The Boredom Killer entertains its prey with hypnotic lights on its tendrils and the euphoria enducing gas that surrounds it.

http://eraserfoot.blogspot.com/

[Arteater]

Eraserfoot:great work, looks like some Tim Burton stuff:)

[angel2342]

The Boredom Killer, as it is known among Lehnadrads, is often used by young Lehnadrads on particularly uneventful days spent as children. The children make use of the boredom killer by either frightening it, or simply picking it up and squeezing its rather soft abdomen, forcing it to excrete a cloud of spores which induces a hallucinogenic reaction in Lehnadrads. The spores of the creature are actually gametophytes. Only the male produces the hallucinogenic spores. The female attracts males by emitting a constant pheromone. The spores are then used to fertilize the eggs of the female.

This is the first COW I've ever posted on, so if I'm forgetting anything as far as guidelines go, please let me know. Thanks.

[HFix]

angel2342- lol we have the same idea hallucinogenic! lol' funny.

[Jolliday]

Imrazil Thanks for the suggestions--they really helped me to tweak the final picture.

[bestow]

The Funflea!!

This flea has existed for centuries, rivaling only the cockroach in its love for life, and perseverance to exist. Perhaps one trait that has helped this species survive so long is its love of fun, and wherever its lacking, (in humans or other mammals) its right there to fix everything.

The Funflea focuses on larger groups of boredom, it cannot truly entertain just one person. The Funflea, like other fleas requires blood to sustain itself, but rather than just a simple pain-free numming solution for biting, the funflea creates an aura of itching-burning inferno (through the use of time activated fecal deposits (allowing it to watch from a safe distance)), although not funny on its own, when targeted at a victims ass, or junk, hilarity always ensues.

Ex. kegger party, the keg has not yet arrived, group a of immature young men is sufficiently bored. Enter Funflea, one of the young men begins to furiously scrub his genitalia, this is very entertaining, and fortunately, absent of any longterm effects, other than the memory of the embarrassing event itself.

[indus]

http://in2thepaper.cdn2.cafe24.com/cow/118.jpg

Hi~ long time no see here.
ok, I have uploaded boredome killer in the 'FINAL IMAGES ONLY' but now I understand
that I will not be able to see any comments on my pic in that thread. so I linked my
image here again to hear your ideas and critiques.

And I got a question, I'm not sure about the background piano-what I found in Google,
and just paste into) whether gonna be ok or not... because of the rule - NOT UNNATU-
RAL UTILITY. so tell me what are you thinking about this.

Have a nice day~:cheerleader:

[BadGeometry]

This is my idea so far. Description coming when I get home.

[TimM]

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v313/Timmah_45/BoredomKiller-1.jpg

I might've strayed a bit from the original idea with this one. But one could say maybe the boredom killer won't kill the bored guy, rather dispense a rain of candy and nintendo DS handheld gaming consoles.

[Lenorekitty]

Dont think I can finish this one...have too much going...but I think I'll use the concept for something else....good luck everyone! Great work so far!

[ImRazil]

Eraserfoot, where does the Boredom part of the C.O.W. of this week come into play? I can't really find it, the killer part is obvious though the Boredom part isn't.

Great work TimM, I like your concept :).

[Zeitwolf]

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v320/odinsregen/sketches/cow118.jpg

Nervoregnox perlucs

N. perlucs is a worm-like, translucent creature from about 2mm length (females). It enters the body in form of eggs of homoiotherm organisms through contaminated water, develops within a week in the small intestine, then the larva enters the bloodstream, where unnoticed it grows to its final length, finally finding a way to settle in the host's basal forebrain. (Note; this is a rather conincidental process; larvae not reaching the forebrain but in other body regions cause no harm to the host as long as there aren't to many.) N. perlucs is now constantly setting free neurotransmitters directly into the synaptic cleft. The sensitive basal brain is easily disturbed and the host will no longer be able to feel instinctive fear and caution. Infected persons are known to be very adventurous and doing extreme sports like cliff diving or rafting - thus the adult N. perlucs finally gets back into water to lay its million eggs, if the host dies. N. perlucs is also used to cure depressions, then commonly known as boredom killer.



well, pretty complicated and not very original... but it was fun to draw something again...

[TheFlyingWalnut]

A buddy just showed me this site, ended up doing some sketches

http://bp2.blogger.com/_wd8Vax2ukMU/SIfNuj9nk1I/AAAAAAAAACw/COaNxYX0GDc/s1600/01Sketches.jpg
Details on my blog (http://twitchsketch.blogspot.com/2008/07/cow-118-boredom-killers.html)

Wont be cleaning up anything for this week, but I'll be looking forward to the next one. There's a lot of cool ideas to be found on here, great work guys(girls?)