The Legend of Zelda - R rated edition

[Xavi]

Originally a weekly entry for an Eatpoo challenge, but I took my time and made a full illustration out of it.

Kinda wanted to re-imagine the Zelda concept as if it was a more mature genre, with keeping in mind the implications of letting one teenager fight a horde of monsters all by himself (I imagine hell use a fairy after this fight and be just fine, or something like that ... )

In any case, hope you like it!

[davekang]

Arr gruesome-!
I like your title better than the art work, r-rated indeed!
Fun concept! And those details are certainly enjoyable!
I just wish for a little more dramatic lighting contrast.

[Kilbourne]

the only thing i dont like is that i get the feeling that he has a pot belly. oh, and you forgot something...



hey, link! listen! hey link! Link! hey, link! Listen! link, hey link! hey, link! listen! hey link! Link! hey, link! Listen! link, hey link! hey, link! listen! hey link! Link! hey, link! Listen! link, hey link! hey, link! listen! hey link! Link! hey, link! Listen! link, hey link!


and then make her looking horrified or sumthin... maybe dead (stoopid annoying fairy)

[Sleep_Eden_sleep]

This piece has to be 5/10 in my opinion. It'd be better if you stuck with the original art work, making it Rated-R, but still the same Link.

[Coinpurse]

oh ya, Link's been packing a couple too many beers lately. His stomach and overall look make him look extremely healthy.

digging the style, reminds me of that Korgoth of Barbaria that aired CN for a bit. Nice :)

[j a k e]

This piece has to be 5/10 in my opinion.

Not a very helpful and wise comment.

I think the smoke is very well done dude. It is a strong image overall, I agree with most of the crits given. Simple yet effective, although I think there might be a bit too much going on in terms of detail etc in the foreground.

[Carnifex]

my gripes with it are that he's looking like he might fall over any moment(maybe intentional),and that he doesn't look very teenager-ish. rather like 30.
otherwise nice concept,maybe throw in some more classic baddies?
(heh,and to quote gta: "rated R for retarded" ;))

[vigostar]

wow, I really like the way you handled the smoke as well.. I agree with the comments concerning the details.. Although, i think the confusion comes into play more with the coloring.. I dont think that the style of coloring or your choice of colors fit this image... It needs more harmonizing.. Either way cool work.. keep at it

[Haxxxor]

hey dude i love this pic, very cool.
I really like the smoke and zelda himself, nice details on his arms and not that kind of "godmode" you know?

the foreground is a bit overloaded but this is unimportant.

greez

[cheeks-74]

great, illo, and the composition has a nice classic feel.

[Kan Muftić]

Oh great. Being a huge fan of Zelda, this is something for my collection.
Cheers,

[Mike Dutton]

I thought the last Zelda game was a lot more "mature" in terms of content vs. Windwaker (I liked Windwaker more though), which goes to show that "mature" doesn't mean having to render every intestine and severed finger. Maybe I'm just getting too old, but I think there are far better ways of making something darker or more brooding without having to be so explicit.... I wish Mel Gibson would read this and take note. And speaking of celebrities.... I don't know why, but this Link resembles Andy Dick.
All that aside, I like the way you've handled the framing of the composition, using the smoke effectively, and the arrow and stake in the ground on the right side to balance the movement some on the left. I like how he's slumped over a bit, but there should be some fold marks and shadows in his torso so you don't get any more of the beer belly remarks.

[Carnifex]

I thought the last Zelda game was a lot more "mature" in terms of content vs. Windwaker ,which goes to show that "mature" doesn't mean having to render every intestine and severed finger.
agree with you there,and i gotta say the latest zelda was fckin amazing. some of it was just more mature because it seemed like a film for teenagers atleast. the sequence where link is nearly being corrupted by power is awesome in that hindsight.

[Sleep_Eden_sleep]

Not a very helpful and wise comment.

I think the smoke is very well done dude. It is a strong image overall, I agree with most of the crits given. Simple yet effective, although I think there might be a bit too much going on in terms of detail etc in the foreground.
I did write stuff after that..

[Xavi]

Damn wow, I think I might have gotten more comments about the topic title than the art itself, hahaha.

Anyways thanks a lot for the comments! I agree that the Zelda franchise doesn't need to be a gorefest, but I just wanted to visualize how I would think it'd look if that was the case. I agree that the contrast should have been handled better, I'm very much struggling with that aspect of coloring and I'll try to make my next illo more dramatic.

I totally didn't notice the beer belly till it was pointed out. Probably has something to do with the way the belt curves around the hips ... but in any case it makes his composure and pose more worn out and tired, so I'm not too concerned honestly.

So yeah, thanks for the suggestions, its all very helpful!

[j a k e]

Sleep_Eden_sleep; that's because you edited it :)

If you edit something within a few minutes of posting it doesn't come up with a sign that it was edited.

[Melis...]

I really love the style and all the detail you put into this, but I'm inclined to agree with Carnifex. He does look like he is in his 30s. Aside from that it is very impressive :)

[Beastie]

One thing that struck me as weird, the second i saw, is that his hat is somehow suction-cupped to the back of his head. How would that stay on? ; ) Interesting take on link!

[WinterIsComing]

Very cool! Love all the details in it. :teeth:

[sevencrows]

I don't know if I like the cartoon look but it's pretty good for an anime type. alot of detail

[StealthNachos]

The anatomy issues on link would be ignorable (since they're relatively small) if the colors were any good. I hate to say it like that because I sound like a dick when I read it back, but I really, really don't like the color. Everything seems jumbled and unfinished. There's no light source either. There are normally light sources in things that have light. All of this sounds bad, but it's really not. I like the clouds in the back, and the inks I'm sure were really detailed, but after the inks were colored the detail was removed. I think the main problem (besides the light source thing) is the contrast between and lack of detail in the colors.

Also, what Beastie said.

[Adam Hunter Peck]

Yes, the linework is gorgeous, especially in the clouds... although, some parts of the clouds kind of look like milk splashing... or something else.

I agree that there's not enough light and that the colors are a bit too saturated/vibrant, which makes it very busy for the eyes. Also in my opinion the vibrancy takes away from the typical idea of "r-rated" maturity; usually, less saturation means more serious and adult, while bright colors means childish and fun. Maybe you wanted childish, but here's my 3min quick edit, not at all meant to replace yours or be any kind of final version, but just to demonstrate the toned down color for seriousness and more clear light to make it a bit more 3d and a bit more dramatic.

http://img511.imageshack.us/img511/8079/zelda2ea3.jpg

[Adam Hunter Peck]

P.S. I looked at your site, and I love your rendition of Squall ... he looks thicker and older.

[rickrude]

i liked it; i don't agree with all the comments though. i thought his beer belly was his armour...was i wrong?