#dinosaur!tom

She finally arrived! Tommy’s newest friend finally arrived!

Presenting Joetta - a vintage Dankin plush JP velociraptor I bought on eBay. She’s just like the one I had (and then sadly lost) as a child.

Personality-wise she’s a Cancer (based on her unboxing day) who comes to us from NYC. She’s a little confused and anxious, but my custom made raptor, Tom (a European Gemini) has been tasked with being her adoptive big brother and helping her acclimate to her new home. Even though he looks a little more scientifically accurate, he’s overjoyed at the idea of getting to spend time with Jo, as am I.

Okay so here’s a quick pen sketch of dinosaur!Tom I did out of frustration.

He (as a muse) was being a bit temperamental today (I think it’s because I’ve been semi-ignoring him lately) and was trying to teach me a lesson by muddling up my creative feelings and then giving me both an excess of creative energy as well as a terrible case of mental/physical exhaustion.

Sometimes he’s lovely and sweet and inspirational. But when he wants attention hoo boy -he turns in to the got damn Goblin King.

Happy belated-New Years! Here’s another random one-off comic with my dinosaur!Tom character!

This one delves into just what Tom does for a living, and how he’s able to ‘get into’ his Dakotaraptor role.

I took a lot of inspiration from James Cameron’s Avatar – the whole idea of someone ‘projecting’ their mind into another body and then remotely controlling it really appealed to me. I also took inspiration from Stranger Things – the idea that, in order for Eleven (or, in this case Tom) to properly transport herself into the Upside Down (or, for Tom, into the body of a synthetic animal) she has to be underwater. The idea of Tom being able to breath while in the tank came from a scene in the movie Abyss, where Ed Harris gets oxygen at the bottom of the ocean by injecting a special type of breathable-water.  

So, basically, Tom puts himself into this special projection tank, slips into this almost effortless state of calm and relaxation, and then goes to sleep. When he ‘wakes’ he finds himself controlling the dinosaur – almost the same way a person can dream they’re a cat or dog.

Anyway, hope you enjoy, and have an excellent 2018! 

✧ﾟ･: *ヽ(◕ヮ◕ヽ)

(PS: I’ll update more as the year progresses, so check back soon!)