Watching a couple of recent westerns this New Year somehow, in some strange way, got me inspired to develop a scenario I'd sketched previously, a point in some future (or alternative - e.g., a dream) timeline whereby the Uzbek and Sonya find themselves in the middle of the Uzbekistan desert, free and far from the reaches of Moscow, Putin and the law. It was one of those things that felt very cathartic at the time, as it was exactly what I felt like doing at that moment, and I was really happy with the results. The characters look like their old selves, and in terms of a rebirth for this series, when time and energy allow, it looks like it's back on the cards again, as this is now simply I want to tell, for myself if nobody else.
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| Page 1 (left) and page 2 of the 'Desert Plains' story |
I had previously baulked at drawing horses in action in an earlier flashback sequence to Tamurlaine (issue #1) but this time around there was no excuse. I read up on horse anatomy and proportions and I reckon it wasn't too bad for a start - future practice will probably help.
The original inspiration for this story arc came from Hergé. and one of my favourite Tintin sequences - from The Crab with the Golden Claws - which I thought was very well recreated in the Spielberg movie. There's something about the empty vastness of a desert which opens great storytelling and character development possibilities...
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| Haddock and Tintin - less well-prepared for their trek than my duo... |
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