The Realm Awaits by Liol

The artist is the completely amazing a.k.a. Brittany Jackson! I am not the artist but merely the humble commissioner of this work.

When Brittany's entry popped up in my friend 's Lost Kids contest, I very nearly immediately had the idea for this piece. Dungeons & Dragons was a cartoon in the early 80's and had been a staple of my Saturday morning. I'd like to say that I was a child at the time but by then I was already old enough where my mother thought I should be outgrowing cartoons. I'm proud to report that it hasn't happened yet.

Anyway, I was quite taken with Brittany's work and how it did so much with two characters and just their expressions so I really wanted a shot of Hank, Sheila, Eric, Diana, Bobby, and Presto just at that moment when the portal the mystical Realm started to open. Brittany, being a number of years younger than me and presumably having a life, had no idea who these characters were and had to count on my perspective.

I kind of figured that Hank, always the practical leader, would be concerned. Sheila would be worried and probably try to protect her little brother. Bobby, being the youngest, might not realize that it wasn't part of the ride and just think it's bitchin'. Presto would be surprised, Eric afraid, and adventurous Diana would definitely be intrigued. I think Brittany captured it all beautifully.

I had some initial thoughts about updating the group and making them modern kids but decided that classic was best. The one change that Brittany added that I thought was pretty cool was turning the ride into more of a roller coaster. I like that touch.

I usually commission my own characters - how original they are is definitely debatable - and never really imagined I'd be getting any fan art of other intellectual properties done. Once this was in my head, though, I really couldn't get it out. I had to see it.

Honestly, there is no real reason to fave this from here. I mean, I had an idea but the characters aren't mine and the art is completely someone else's brilliance. To fave this properly, visit Brittany's version:



Of course, if you want to comment or talk about the show, that would be great! I hadn't seen it in years but I did check out the DVD recently. The animation and stories were a little weaker than I remember but it was a nostalgic few days watching that on TV. Lots of fun.

Also, check out Brittany's winning entry for the Lost Kid's contest and her entry to my own "I Spy Vanessa Lake" contest: