Naruto, Part 3

Gaara.

(Pronounced...like it's read-Gar ra)

This guy's got to be one of my favorite Naruto characters, but it took a while before I really liked him.

 When he was first introduced, Gaara was a heartless, ruthless, and dangerous boy from the Village of the Sand. His earlier years were ones of pain. Not physical pain, but the pain of a "wounded heart". His father the Kazekage tried to kill him 6 times, but each assassination attempt failed because of his "ultimate shield", the "living" sand that protects him. (As the host of Shukaku, Gaara possesses the ability to manipulate sand.) He came to believe that his existence was only to kill.

During the Chunin Exam Finals,however, he fought Team 7 (Sasuke, Naruto, and Sakura). Sasuke and Sakura were soon down for the count, and Naruto became enraged. The battle was long and by the end of it, each boy was wounded and completely worn out. Still, Naruto swore with the last of his strength "I won't let you hurt the people important to me...even if you try to kill them...I will stop you." Gaara realizes what makes Naruto and the others so strong, even willing to lay down their lives for each other, is love. Slowly, that realization begins to change his heart...

He becomes one of the best characters, IMHO. :)

These drawings are mostly from compilations of books 4-9, so he hasn't had a change of heart yet. Still, he's pretty cool and a lot of fun to draw!

The full page:

My Favorite Gaara quotes:

"One day I'd like to become something precious to others."

*to Naruto* "I think of you as a friend. I used to think "friend" was just another word... Nothing more, nothing less. But when I met you, I realized what was important was the word's meaning."

"This is where it all starts for me. Starting with this small bond. I too want to become someone who is needed, instead of a weapon that is feared. And as the Kazekage of the Sand."

Closer ups:

I wonder how heavy that gourd of sand is?

Gaara's "don't mess with me face"...

wait, isn't that his usual expression?

Gaara of the Sand, a quiet yet deadly ninja.

A face of fierce hurt and longing...and determination.

(This is personally my favorite view.)

I just realized that I keep forgetting to sign my work...I'll make sure to next time. 

Anyway, adios amigos!

Naruto, Part 2

It's Sasuke!!!

Sasuke Uchiha (pronounced: sauce-kay oo-CHEE-ha). Another Naruto character...and one of the most confusing too.

Sasuke is a character you both love and hate. Though his outward appearance may be cool, intelligent, and aloof, Sasuke carries a huge weight. When he was only a child, his whole clan was murdered by his brother Itachi. Itachi left only the young Sasuke alive, telling him "If you want to kill me, despise me, hate me, and live in an unsightly way...Run, and cling to life, and then some day, when you have the same eyes I do, come before me." (*shiver*) From that moment on, Sasuke's only goal in life was revenge. That thirst for revenge (and more power to achieve it) destroyed him...

I'm a little more than halfway through the manga, so I'm hoping Sasuke eventually turns good again and comes back to the Leaf Village... but now I'm wondering if he would even be able to set foot in his home town without being killed for betrayal. Oh Sasuke! Your friends still believe there is a sliver of light left in that closed heart of yours...they're searching for you!

The full sketchbook page...

And, (same as last time), my favorite Sasuke quotes:

"My name is Sasuke Uchiha. I hate a lot of things, and I don't particularly like anything. What I have is not a dream, because I will make it a reality. I'm going to restore my clan, and kill a certain somebody."

"When one loves... there's also the risk of hate..."

*To Naruto* "Just shut up for once! What the hell do you know about it?! It's not like you ever had a family in the first place! You were on your own right from the beginning, what makes you think you know anything about it?! Huh?! I'm suffering now because I had those ties, how on earth could you possibly understand, what it feels like to lose all that?!"

Profile

Such a smug expression...

(Left side) The blood trait of the Uchiha clan: Sharingan!

(Right side) The Uchiha clan crest on Sasuke's clothing.

Gaara of the Sand in the next post. Ciao for now.

Naruto, Part 1

Lately, I have a been a bit addicted to Naruto manga. But I think most all manga otakus are at some point, right? ;) Just kidding.
 Well, I've been drawing Naruto characters like crazy and am going to post each one separately. Today, it's Kakashi Hatake. He's one of my favorites. His regular expression is  bored, but he's a strong, fierce, and loyal shinobi (ninja) when those he cares about are threatened. He's relatively easy to draw too, because you don't have to draw half his face. And no one knows what is under the mask...
Ha ha! Enjoy.

The full page

My favorite Kakashi quotes:

"Oh... me? My name is Kakashi Hatake. What I like... I don't feel like telling you that. My dreams for the future..hmm... never really thought about that..as for my hobbies... well I have a lot of hobbies."

 "Those in the ninja world who break the rules are scum, that's true....but those who abandon their friends.. are lower than scum."

"Hey guys, sorry I'm late, I'm afraid I got lost on the path of life."

*To Pain* "The people from this village are different from your average village. Even if it means dying, there's not a single one of us, who would sell out a comrade."

...and the close-ups...

What a disinterested expression...

My favorite...Chidori!

Kakashi reading, like always...

The Sharingan eye.

Sasuke's next. Ciao for now!

A quick word: While Naruto is a fun and engaging series, there are some things to look out for-the most prominent definitely being the violence. Naruto is a ninja tale, and ninjas are warriors, mind you, so it can be quite bloody sometimes. I wouldn't recommend it for anyone under 13. (Also, if you are reading it online, watch out for heavy language. The paperback English version is cleaned up a lot, though.)

My Big Project

I shall now show you what I was (and still am) working on that took all my time for the past few weeks...

Taa daa!!!

I wrote a book. *cough* Well, I'm almost done writing a book. There's still a couple chapters left...it's at 114 pages right now and I've only got a bit to go. Anyway. About the book.

Basic information:

Fiction (Historical/Sci-fi)

Synopsis: 

         Darcy has just started her freshman year at a new high school. All she wants is to live a normal life, but there’s one problem—her inventor father mysteriously disappeared three years ago. Darcy, with the help of her new friend Jack, decide to set out to discover the cause of her father’s disappearance…and their search throws them back through time! As the two race through America’s early history, the clues leading to Darcy’s father force them to rethink the things they believed were fact…

This was for a school project. A "40 hour project". (Required 40 hours minimum.) I am telling you, a book will take waaaay more than forty hours! Though, I had a lot of fun writing this even though it took a lot of time. ^_^ 

Two more pictures:

For my presentation power point, I also drew my own clip art! 

Me, thinking of the story...

What would happen when I would try to write to late at night...

To create a book, you need support. This is my "team".

My Mom proofread and offered corrections, and my editor (a.k.a. sister) did all the formatting and cover design. They are life savers!

I will post when I complete the book. Maybe I'll sell it somewhere? ;)

Ciao!

Happy Easter!

Happy Easter to the World!!!

^^....My Easter drawing....^^

Yeah, yeah, they're cute and all, but those bunnies and eggs and candy are not the real reasons behind the celebration of Easter. You want to know the true meaning of Easter? Keep reading...

"For all [we humans] have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." (Romans 3:23)

God wants us to be in Heaven with Him, but that can't happen when we are bound by sin. So...

"For God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son,[to die for us], so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life." (John 3:16)

God's son, Jesus Christ, died for us. His death, the death of one who is sinless, is the price of salvation. He was crucified on a cross and was buried in a tomb. A huge stone was rolled across the tomb's entrance.

"Now, what good is a dead man?" I hear some asking.

The answer: no good! But Jesus Christ didn't stay dead...HE ROSE AGAIN!

    Click Here for the story...it's unbelievable!

That's the reason we have to celebrate!

Artist:  Dale R. Molnar 
© South Light Studio, Inc., 2008

Have a joyous Easter! 

Code Geass Fan Art

Hello everyone!

"Life is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated."
~Confucius

Whew! Talk about a complicated/busy/non-stop life lately... -_- ... I would love it if the world would stop spinning so fast, just for a day. I need more time to draw! 

Anyway, I have been drawing some stuff. These are from the anime (and manga), Code Geass. It's ok, (the anime, I mean) though I think it's mostly aimed at a more mature audience (violence, and mild language...). I like some of the characters, and decided I wanted to draw them, so here are my attempts at:

"Arthur"  --meow!

"Suzaku"

--This is his soldier's uniform; that's why he's so rigid.

"Lelouch" 

--He's fine from the waste up...waste down: too small, IMHO...

"Shirley"

 --She's my favorite! I love how her hair turned out.

I still want to draw some more CG characters, and will post them when I get the time.

...

Just for fun, I'd thought I'd add two Pikachu doodles I made for a friend.

Cuteness speaks for itself...awwww!

Nerdy Pikachu.

Well, that's all for now. Have a joyous Easter!

Adios Amigos!

Manga Shakespeare: Hamlet

Some more digital art...

I'm trying to get used to drawing on a tablet, so I've been drawing character's from one of my favorite manga novels: 

Emma Vieceli's Manga Shakespeare: Hamlet!!!

I love her style. It's clean, simple, and beautiful to look at. Plus, Vieceli was creative: she set the manga in a future setting. Makes the book even more interesting. ;)

The story/dialogue follows very close to Shakespeare's actual play (which I've read for fun to see how close it really was). As you can probably gather from the drawings, Hamlet, is a Tragedy. I would definitely recommend both the manga novel and the play for good literature.

It doesn't get better than the classics!

...Hamlet...

My Favorite Hamlet quotes:

Hamlet: "To be or not to be, that is the question..."

"Hamlet: Do you see yonder cloud that’s almost in shape of a camel?
Polonius: By the mass, and ‘tis like a camel, indeed.
Hamlet: Methinks it is like a weasel.
Polonius: It is backed like a weasel.
Hamlet: Or like a whale?

Polonius: Very like a whale.” 

"Polonius [to Laertes]: Give every man thy ear, but few thy voice; 
    Take each man's censure, but reserve thy judgment. 
    Costly thy habit as thy purse can buy, 
    But not express'd in fancy; rich, not gaudy; 
    For the apparel oft proclaims the man, 
    And they in France of the best rank and station 
    Are of a most select and generous chief in that. 
    Neither a borrower nor a lender be; 
    For loan oft loses both itself and friend, 
    And borrowing dulls the edge of husbandry. 
    This above all: to thine ownself be true, 
    And it must follow, as the night the day, 
    Thou canst not then be false to any man."

“Hamlet [to Ophelia]: Doubt thou the stars are fire;
Doubt that the sun doth move;
Doubt truth to be a liar;
But never doubt I love.”

...Ophelia...

Emma Vieceli's manga