"Outsider Buggy" © Mike Moore Studios 2025
So my buddy Nick asks, "Hey, will you do something for Ruby? Make her some art?" Ruby is Nick's daughter. I'm not sure I remember answering as he begins describing what he wants in the piece. "She's into Buggy the Clown ( I remembered her supremely kick ass cosplay costume (is that redundant?) of Buggy for a local Comicon) from the One Piece" anime. I'm too old to really know what that means, but luckily I'm not too old to make the Googles work.
"Oh yeah...and the movie "The Outsiders". She loves that movie." I remembered S.E. Hinton's "The Outsiders" book, and movie from my own time in public school hell. I remember the teachers acting like they were suddenly cool for teaching it, they weren't...but the book didn't suck as I remember, and the movie had everyone it should've had in it at the time...and didn't suck either.
"So, like if Buggy was in "The Outsiders""...
"Wtf? Really Nick?" I'm thinking, but I hear, "Uh sure, I'll try" or some such come out of my face hole.
Oh...I forgot...he sent a sketch too...
"Kids on Fire" © Nick Kiesling 2025
This is the actual sketch I got, but I'm not throwing Nick under the bus. The boy's got art skills. Which is why I was also wondering, "Why me?". He threw some sort of "computer graphics style" comment...good enough I guess. I said I'd do it. The usual sketches and questions bit happened. I had some imposter syndrome going in...I don't know this character and didn't want to make a hunk of cheese a fan wouldn't dig. Buggy and the One Piece anime have been around a long while and there's a ton of images to draw from...although ABSOLUTELY NONE OF THEM LOOK ANYTHING AT ALL LIKE THEY MIGHT BE FROM "THE OUTSIDERS" MOVIE!
I won't show exactly how the sausage get's made, but here's the blue line drawing that's got most everything but the Church fire in place...
As usual, I got in my head too much. Once I relaxed and let it happen...it did. Didn't even hurt much...and I hate to admit (not really) I LIKE IT! I was thinking nothing but the worse, and holy hell...it turned out pretty dang good. Lesson learned, think less, do more.
Good times!