Sunday, December 15, 2013

Sketchbook: Grim Reaper Redesign

"How about a Grim Reaper redesign? That ridiculous mask..."
-Anonymous

Ridiculous indeed, yet so iconic in its own way.
Just look at that goofy outfit. It screams "diabolical mastermind," but the character's more of a schemer, at best. It always ends up redesigned in adaptations, whether it be cartoons, videogames, or beyond.

And by "beyond," I mean "back from the dead as a Horseman of Apocalypse."
Like with the Top, I gave myself a few handicaps to prevent an all-out radical redesign.
  1. Keep the blue and purple color scheme.
  2. Work the Galactus-esque head fins in somhow.
  3. For any superfluous additions, function over form.
Let's see what I came up with!

...well, maybe I didn't prevent an all-out radical redesign.
And there we have it.
To me, Grim Reaper has always worked best as a goon-for-hire, but an elite goon-for-hire. I see him has the guy who's not only willing to go up against the Avengers, but actually able to. Naturally, this would essentially make him Marvel's version of Deathstroke, in a way. I took a lot of influence from Deathstroke's look for the outfit and armor.

As for the scythe, I rationalized that Grim Reaper's probably going to need a precision weapon against Earth's Mightiest Heroes. So I outfitted him with a two-in-one sword and scythe with scallops cut out to be used for blade deflecting and breaking; it's the same reason why Batman has glove fins now. Also, the scythe has a swivel hinge where it connects to his arm, letting it be used at a right angle to his arm, much like his original costume.

Grim Reaper's original costume looks like he could be taken out by Hawkeye off panel. He should look like he could at least put up a fight.

So, any characters you want to see redesigned? Any shows you want to see recapped?
Feel free to email me, tweet me (@Newtcave), or even just leave a comment!
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5 comments:

  1. AnonymousDecember 15, 2013 at 8:37 PM

    Hey, you took my request! I would love to see this version of Reaper brought to life. I love the Deathstroke armor and especially the "scythe" arm. Personally I imagine a cloak like the EMH version (he IS called the Grim Reaper after all) with the fins as a collar sticking out from behind the hood, but that's just me, and what you've done is just awesome!

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    1. NewtDecember 15, 2013 at 9:51 PM

      Glad you like it! Yeah, I didn't mention this in the post itself, but I got rid of the cape after deciding that it would clash with the rest of the design. My original redesign had a hood, but I discarded it in favor of the helmet. I like your idea with the fins coming out of the collar, though!

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    2. AnonymousDecember 15, 2013 at 11:27 PM

      Well thank you! I understand why you discarded them though. I also had an idea for the scythe to be, well, a full scythe, with the scythe-arm just being a robot arm. Though I was impressed incredibly by what you did with the scythe-arm idea.

      PS for what it's worth, my idea for the scythe was also part gun. Because I think that would be an awesome supervillain weapon.

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    3. NewtDecember 15, 2013 at 11:38 PM

      Funnily enough, I toyed with the idea of giving him a gun. That, too, was discarded once I realized that Grim Reaper usually fights people who can either dodge bullets or reflect them back.

      Still, not a bad weapon idea you had.

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  2. AnonymousDecember 24, 2014 at 5:59 PM

    Grip Reaper must be your coolest redesign yet.

    If I could suggest a redesign...
    - Dr Octopus
    - Bane
    - or Catwoman

    I really like Doc Ock and Bane and I'm curious if they designs could be improved. But at the same time I most interested in Catwoman. She had so many outfits across the years, I cant even pick which one I would consider her default.

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