It's been awhile since my last drawing. Sometimes I have trouble mustering up the motivation to get right down to business. My subject this is the most lovable of all losers, George Costanza. Seinfeld's "slow-witted bald man" is suprisingly nimble as you can see in the drawing.
Overall I'm satisfied with how it turned out, although I couldn't quite capture the whimsical look displayed in the original photo (seen below). I wish they'd chosen a less colorful shirt for the shoot as it's virtually impossible to make out where the more subtle shadows lie.
So last night I met up with the geek group I mentioned before. This night would be packed with video games, card games, and junk food, so it was my kind of event. First off, we watched a nice Japanese anime. The tale centered around a tribe of innocent raccoons facing troubled times as urban expansion destroys their land. Look at them, carefree, having fun partying, running on two legs with their animated balls bouncing between their legs.
Wait, what?
Yes, Pompoko's protagonists have very visible (and large) testicles. Apparently this is part of an old Japanese fairy tale. In the film raccoons have magical abilities that allow them to transform into statues, foxes, and even humans. The testicles inexplicably play a large role in transformations with the males. About the thirty minutes into the film an elder raccoon informs his fellow men of their crucial advantage and then reveals the large red blanket the others are sitting on is actually his naughty bits.
The sometimes-casual manner in which family jewels are displayed is unsettling. During an intense debate the militant raccoon Gonta insists on attacking humans to stop urban development, losing his temper and later apologizing. Not one person points out that his junk can be seen the whole time.
Perhaps the most disturbingly hilarious scene comes near the end as Gonta and his goons take on the humans. Here's a youtube clip of the entire affair.
In this scene we witness their nads becoming huge, dropping, flattening out, and being used as a parachute. Next we observe the horrible massacre of Japanese cops being crushed by gigantic flesh balloons. Those not killed by the initial assault undoubtedly suffocated under the intense stench of animal ball sweat. Unfortunately no one ever transforms their balls into steel. I guess that's something to look for in the sequel. Finally, an old raccoon elder, feeling he's had enough of this life, invites the tribe to stretch out his sack to enormous proportions and forms it into a ship. Many of the less talented raccoons sail away on the ship to some holy land, joyousing dancing and cheering along the way. The overwhelming smell of crotch did not seem to lessen their celebration.
In the end some of the raccoons decide to join the human world, walking amongst regular people while society at large is oblivious. However, they still get together occasionally and party hard as raccoons. Because sometimes you got to let it all hang out.
