WELCOME TO YOUR FATE
For Nightmareland, sequel to the first Slumbyland tournament
Featuring opponents Henryk by artist PoolNoodle, Arthur by artist Zeedikay, Tobias and the Talking Heads by artist Prometheus and Blood Tree by Pancake.
Behind the Poet
This tournament, along with its predecessor, both took place in the fictional setting of Slumberland, from the 1905 comic strip of Nemo in Slumberland, a surrealistic dream-like landscape that twists and bends to fit the story as it progresses. What this means, in OCT terms, is that I basically have full reign over whatever location I wish.
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Location-wise, looking at the original Nemo in Slumberland comics and examples from the previous tournament, I ended up taking much inspiration from the idea of liminal spaces, connecting it back to the surreality of Slumberland's behaviors.
Examples of liminal spaces, or transitional periods.
This tournament, along with its predecessor, both took place in the fictional setting of Slumberland, from the 1905 comic strip of Nemo in Slumberland, a surrealistic dream-like landscape that twists and bends to fit the story as it progresses. What this means, in OCT terms, is that I basically have full reign over whatever location I wish.
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Location-wise, looking at the original Nemo in Slumberland comics and examples from the previous tournament, I ended up taking much inspiration from the idea of liminal spaces, connecting it back to the surreality of Slumberland's nature.
As for the Poet themself, I knew I wanted to play much more with the corporealness of the human form, and the freedom that comes with the loss of the mortal shell.
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Taken from @sys_ain115 on Instagram, and Mononoke from Toei Animation.
I ended up taking a lot of inspiration of the works of @sys_ain115 on instagram, as well as the aesthetics from the iconic horror anime Mononoke. Particularly, the use of lineless white and graphic patterned elements to imbue a sense of a loose existence in reality. I also zeroed in on the idea of smoke and vapor as a symbol for listless freedom, unrestrained capability beyond realistic measures.
Their final design ended up being much more simple than both their inspirations. Dressed in a simple oversized yukata that covers up a majority of their skin, leaving only their hands and face exposed. Even still, their eyes are never shown to the audience, but they retain vision, able to "see" without truly seeing. The yukata's pattern is seemingly clipped straight onto the cloth, a call back to the iconic graphic animation styles of Mononoke and the likes.
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There was always a human aspect that I wanted to remain within the Poet, even as all their opponents and surroundings blended even more into the fantastical and abnormal. Their name, "The Poet" draws from the past archetypes of the tortured poet or artist, and the tragedies often associated with these writer-types like the life of Osamu Dazai and the whole concept of the film Dead Poet's Society. For the Poet, however, I wanted their story to have more of a happy ending than most. The world of Nightmareland is far from reality, and as morbid as it sounds, the Poet's place in this life is like the artist who has killed themself to become rid of worldly burdens and pressures.
They are lazy, constantly lounging around in the corners of Nightmareland where you don't expect them too. Little do they care for anything other than the comforts and luxuries that come with a life full of nothingness. Wish fulfillment, after all, means nothing when there is nothing you need to wish for.
ROUND 1: Bounds
My first opponent in Nightmareland was Henryk, the hooded self-proclaimed hunter and guardian of the boundary between the dreaming and the beyond. I decided to push the contrasting dynamic between a vigilant watcher and the Poet's lazy indifference, combined with the idea that the Poet may be recognized and considered as someone that did not belong, floating inbetween the line of dreams and what comes after.
Format-wise, as this was the first round of the tournament, it was really when I had to figure out what plans I had for the Poet's formatting moving forward. Throughout all my comics and tournaments, I like to think of the specifically unique ways a character might interact with the paneling, giving each of their comics a certain feel or reading style unique to them.
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For the Poet, I knew I had to go for a looser form of paneling, hand drawn in white to
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WELCOME
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