Comics, from ages 3 to 30

 After almost 10 years, working in animation, I think I finally have the skills to pull off what I've always wanted to do since the age of 3...make comics! As many of you know, Axolodyssey is an animated film. Over time I've been expanding the story in my head, and when I thought " what if this was a comic book " all the stars seemed to align. So I will be updating my progress on that here, but today, I want to go into my history with comics, and why I've always been drawn to them.

Batman asking for a photo

I was born into comics. My dad was always a big fan and loved sharinf Batman comics, and Batman, and Batman with me. It was easy to find us at Cave Comics, our local comic shop, on the weekends. However, it wasn't until for christmas at the age of 3, my grandma got me a Fone Bone action figure, assuming I knew what it was. No grandma I didn't, but THANK YOU. Quickly, I raced to Cave Comics to find 'Bone' and got immersed into comics that were bold enough to not be about superheros. Pictured is my first comicbook and how I happily mangled it. 

Why did I ever think this was a good idea.

Growing up, I cut my teeth on learning Bone, Garfield ( i know ) and video game characters. Mostly making fan comics of the characters and stories, particularly Bone. Here is one of my first ever comics, a fan rendition of Bone, where Fone Bone ends his wild adventure casually fishing, that I drew at age 5.

Prity good.

Throughout my young and teenage years, I did my best to learn inking through comics, first recreating panels from Bone, and than full pages, sometimes superheros, or videogame characters. They were rudimentary in skill, but I thought they were perfect copies, and the ambition is what grew and stuck around!

I should learn to use a ruler.

Comics have always been a part of my life, and I felt a large connection to ones like Bone, living with woods around me that sprawled far and wide. Always being outside in my early summer years, I spent alot of time exploring parks and woods, enjoying giant trees towering over me, and cliff dropoffs, scattering the leaf filled wide open. Something about comic books, makes me appriciate earth even more, and I like that.

I feel I grew up spoiled with all these woods around me.

Just when I thought I was done with Jojo's story, a more expansive story that connects to my route self came through, and now im finding myself going back into his world, with a pair of fresh and excited eyes, as well as a mission to make the best Jon book I can. I had practiced my brush ink skills for 15 years to get to where im finally happy with them. A true trial by fire ( the first page I ever attempted to ink with a brush, the hairs split creating to massive strokes, ruining the page. I cried ).

Making the comic has only been a positive experience, and feels like im tapping into what im meant to do, who im meant to be. Maybe that's not all just feeling but devine pathfinding? Upon my most recent visit home, I had found out, Walt Kelly, artist behind Pogo, was raised where I was raised! Fairfield County Connecticut! Pogo even has P.T Barnem, the guy who made the circus ( and animal charcters ) as a character..... my ACTUAL ancestor! Great great great....great? Grandfather was in Pogo! But it didn't stop there. Jeff Smith, my all time hero, his family is from Fairfield County too! Huh?? And we all draw comics the same way??? It sounds like im starting to work on what i've been born to work on!

My dad still reads Batman regularly, and no I sadly dont own any of the animal cracker business. Would love to design a box for them though! C'mon! He is my something something great grandpa!