That’s no moon, no wait. That is a moon.

That’s no moon!  That’s a space station!  No, no, wait. That is a moon. Never mind.

-Or wait.  Awe. I never was very good at that game.

No, it’s not Photoshopped! I was really there. I can prove it. Paladin! Show them your “My carrier went to Mimas, and all I got was this lousy T-shirt” T-shirt.  EBay? .. How much? … Oh. Good for you. Well, I guess I will just have t’ show you the sides of all my adventures. So, we’ll start with Paris. This is me in front of the Eiffel Tower. … to be continued when I get more access to Photoshop, er I mean when Wal Mart develops my photos.

Charismatic Megafauna

What does the Tiger’s Claw have that no other space carrier in the history of Science Fiction can claim?  (Not even the SDF – 1)

-Charismatic Megafauna-

And why should the design NOT be updated?

Since the 1990s, the technology to make science fiction come to life has increased dramatically; while, for some reason, the quality of the total product has, perhaps, actually declined.  Is it necessary to abandon charismatic art in trade for CG animation?  Are the ships in science fiction’s future destined to look like photo-realistic boxes or “space turds?” (Alexandra coined that term, but I find it appropriate.)  No!  No more space turds!  Who’s with me?!?

Claw. Out.

POSTERS: Jalthi V. Raptor (34%)

Yeah. These are the background pages on my phone.  Poor, old, beat-up starship.

Episode 8 Up

Now Playing: WING CMDR S1E8 Catnip

Halcyon: Cassi, Catnip –  (beat) Cassi, Knight, clear that jump point.  We’re going through.

It’s been suggested that you might want to read them in reverse order (8-1) the first time through.  That way people don’t die.  It’s not a bad suggestion. Episode 7- 2nd half- is purported to be the best.  Episodes 2 and 5 the worst.  1 is good, but Ralph shouldn’t cuss.  Two things to remember: There are a lot of characters and every one in constant change.  Most characters change right before they die -it’s an irony thing- and others change because they live, but it’s important to me that the Halcyon or the Maniac you see at the beginning of the story is not the same person at the conclusion.

That’s it for season 1!  I’m off to my summer job.

If anyone plans to be in the beautiful Houghton Lake, Michigan area, and you’d like to go on a fishing charter adventure, (and/or make starships) send me an email.

Remember- No fixer spray.  That’s what killed the Salthi wings!  Yeah, I’ll fix ’em.  Or, maybe I won’t.  Wouldn’t battle damage be honor?

Your Activity: WC1

Here’s your activity.  No, it’s not for a grade.  It’s SUMMER!  Use some pictures to create your own storyboard (graphic novel scene).  You can use anything you want.  Photoshop mercilessly.  You are all better at Photoshop than I’m.  If you need something specific, email me, and I’ll see what I can do.

I took the first ones against black plastic, but I was informed this was awful for chroma-keying.

The rest are against blue.

                

A higher res of the Title Scene: 

Shows of force:

          

The Jalthi’s not done, but I’m in a hurry to get things cleaned up for summer.

The Raptor, The Jalthi, and the Hornet

The Raptor is my favorite – hands down, no contest.  It wasn’t my favorite until I put the wings on.  Then, I saw it.  It LOOKS Sci-Fi – like the next generation of something Tom Corbett or Buck Rogers would fly.  If you’ve ever played SolarQuest, you know.  (If you haven’t played SolarQuest, then you don’t know your moons of Saturn.)

I built a Hornet while I was waiting for the Jalthi paint to dry.  It’s an experiment with glitter paint.  The glitter paint cost 200X the cost of the fighter.  That is to say, the fighter cost 1c to build, and the glitter paint cost $2.00. (Not including labor.)

Addition to Episode 7.  The scenes with Guthrig can be a bit slow.  That’s because Githrig the incompetent psychologist is an awkward and boring character – UNLESS you imagine Craig Ferguson as Guthrig.  Then, it’s brilliantly funny!  BAM! BAM! BAM!  Accept your Emmy nominations.

Raptor/Jalthi Episode 8 Preview

In Production for the last week of Season 1:

Raptor and Jalthi. Going to be called: “34%? Really?”

We’re ramping up for the season 1 finale.

We’re going to Cheng Du for the last episode of the year, not for any reason but tradition calls for a BIG PRODUCTION cliff-hanger with LOTS of giant CG bugs!   Also, that way, if I don’t come back for season 2, I can always say, “I put someone in the belly of a Bugbear!”

So, one week left.  I’m glad Episode 7 was received so well.  The scenes with Guthrig can be a bit slow. That’s because Githrig the incompetent psychologist is an awkward and boring character – UNLESS you imagine Craig Ferguson as Guthrig.  Then, it’s brilliantly funny!  BAM! BAM! BAM!  Accept your Emmy nominations.

See ya Tuesday, and then NEXT YEAR!

Episode 7 Is Up

Now Playing:

WING CMDR E1S7 Kinko

*Remember to imagine Craig Ferguson as Guthrig.  The awkward pauses become hilarious.

Can you identify this bruiser?

You thought episode 5 was bad. (I’ll fix it.)

You thought episode 6 was brilliant.

You will think episode 7 is: About old people flirting?

Hey, it’s about Ralph losing his sense of humor.

It’s about Knight not seeing his own tragic flaw.

It’s about Shotglass, yeah. It’s old people flirting. But remember Motown? “See the beauty.” It’s Marshal Dillon and Miss Kitty! Fine. Know what? In the final edit, you’ll be so entranced by Felina’s dancing, you won’t even know Shotglass and Rita are there.

I argued whether to make Felina Human or Kilrathi, so i thought: What would Asimov do? What would Clarke do? Spielberg? Kurosawa? DuBois? I think they’d ALL make Felina a Kilrathi. So, she’s a cat, stirring up the boys.

Next up, Jalthi. What? Whaddaya mean, “Out of plaster?”

Salthi

Salthis!

I made them a little small to improve the weight (mass) to thrust ratio, theoretically.

Out for a patrol – with a little help.

Ooh!  An unsuspecting Drayman!

Little did they know –

Got ‘im!  Run Away!

Could this be the fabled Clown-Salthi?  (The light fighter that lands, and 54 Kilrathi troops tumble out.) *Okay, not so much fabled as I just made it up.  Do you get that kind of humor from regular military SF? -Only if you’re reading Starship Troopers.

Family Portrait.

Scene from Motown called Motown!  No!!!

Almost ready for a low-res, stop motion scene.

Still need a Raptor.  And next year, if I live so long, Live action sets with lotsa orange paint.

Episode 6

 

Now Playing:

WING CMDR S1E6 RATBERT

Whoever he/she was who wrote the backstory to Wing Commander, looks to have been a HUGE Harlan Ellison fan!!!  There are little hidden homages EVERYWHERE!!!  I mean EVERYWHERE!  Just sayin’.  I teased a lot of them out, put in a few new ones.

A preview of the Salthi in production.