MOTUC Visions: Illumina

[Emiliano]

I have a long list of sketches I want to do, some are long due (I made a few promises)
But I decided to quickly take a shot at Illumina because of the resurrected talks about her on the forum
But, the real reason is also to allow me to start talking more about figures design, and more specifically, to take a look at what means to retro-style a 200x design to vintage/MOTUC.

When translating a 200x design, just applying the same costume and elements to the MOTUC bodies may not be enough.
Some shapes and design choices simply don't fit a style form the eighties unless you chose to ignore the design evolution and keep shapes vocabulary to what designer used to do back then.
So, the challenge is to take all the design elements and dicard all the extra ones that would have never appeared in vintage figure and "downgrade" the others.
I't really a rather interesting process, and I hope this will sparkle some discussion. Maybe next time we can take a look at Count Marzo and analyze him from this point of view.
In the meantime, enjoy Illumina as a MOTUC figure!
(I'm posting also her original design so you can compare the differences)

EDIT: a note about tooling and paintings.
The new molds required for this figure are only 5: Head, Dress piece, Cape, Neckband, weapon.
Also, obviuosly the colors wouldn't be grey.
She is supposed to be moslty white, but also with different shades of white, silvers and more bright reflective colors.
Think about MOTUC Prince Adam shirt and wristbands for example.
Something that is very hard to do on a quick rendering like this.



200x design:


-Note for poeple visiting this thread from outside He-Man.org: you need to be a member of this forum to see these images, as they are part of the users profiles -

[Brian-Man]

This is great. It is a noticeable albeit subtle compromise between the 200x design and if the character had existed in the eighties.
Thanks for sharing. I would definitely love to see the "Classics" version find her way into the line someday. She would be a welcome addition.

[Shecky]

Emiliano,

Simply put.......you rule .

Regards,
Victor P.

[Sandman]

Very cool! Interesting to see another Emiliano original as always!

For the design, I love it except for one thing. That "cup" style bra that I assume is supposed to be metal-like looks off. It's a bit too different in color to the rest of her outfit, which makes your eyes automatically migrate to her... uh... chest rather than say, her face.

Apart from that, it does look cool. I like how it's subtly different from Teela and Evil-Lyn's "dresses"

[Patreek]

I love it! Just wondering what made you remove her sleeves though? I think they help make her design a little more different from ELyn and Teela. Also are her hands white because she's wearing gloves?

I LOVE what you did to her weapon! The jewel and power sword shout out in it is awesome!

[JonWes]

Looks amazing! I think it's a great interpretation. I do wonder if the arms could still be white. But everything else is a clever re-use of existing parts. I don't mind the leg armor being dropped as all the important bits are there to retain the overall feel of the outfit.

[Swift Wind]

There is no other way to put it other than simply beautiful!

[gbagok]

I love your work, Emiliano, and I love Illumina!

Interesting choices here. I'm surprised about her bare arms. I would have expected her to have sleeves in the 80s, and show more skin in 200X. I like how you flattened her main skirt/flap as a way to devolve the design, although I liked it more with a point as that resembled the shape of the standard loin cloth. I am so sorry that Classics now has to have bland hair, but I think you adapted Illumina to the new look very nicely(ie no She-ra curls that could be confused with "hyper anime detail" even though she had it in the 80's style guide). I especially like that you didn't go overboard with the simplified details. She still has the cat head in there and some of the flower petal decoration as well. Her weapon might be a little big for Classics though. It'd probably be more like a double-ended version of the Randor/Whiplash spear, wouldn't it? The reuse of Teela arms and legs is spot on!

Minor quibbles aside, this is an excellent illustration of how Illumina can work in Classics. Any chance we can see her cat (and learn the feline's name too)?

[Darkspecter]

I prefer the tiny crown how it looks in the "would be cover" here:



I think her hair would look better all grouped together at the back too. Other than those two minor things, she's perfect! I love all your artwork and designs, Emil.

I also like her more detailed breasts, like Evil-Lyn/Teela has.

Oh, I also think Mattel would just re-use She-Ra's choker and cape for Illumina. In the picture above it looks shorter like She-Ra's. I would hope they make her dual blade like yours and not dual Whiplash spear. That would look awful.

EDIT: Here's a better picture of Illumina's crown. I don't think it would be a problem (Bow's crown is ULTRA detailed compared to his 80's version).

[Professor Dire]

I think the design is clever and wonderful. Thank you Emiliano for sharing
it with your fellow Orgers.

RE: Spear length.
The spear could be two sword sized weapons that lock together.
That way the packaging could accommodate it easily.

[josh]

http://www.he-man.org/forums/boards/...ictureid=10148

Some days I just think I should stop buying MOTUC figures and spend my money on commissioned art of MOTU characters. This is feeling like one of those days. To summarize, this is awesome!

[oICEMANo]

Wow fantastic work Emil!! I love it!
I made the arms white in PShop and I think the blue arms actually break up the whiteness of the whole figure quite nicely.

[Eterniandreams]

Now, where do I order?

[Faceless One]

Excellent work! it is truly a piece of art. With so many good depictions of Illumina I have to make a custom of her....

[Charlie Brown]

great work emiliano (as always, as well), i was looking forward to see
new stuff like this!

[Kevenn]

I WANT THIS FIGURE!!!!!

[RocketPunch]

Beautiful. And I really like the bare arms, it improves the look of the figure.

[Agent Gibbs]

oh man i wish mattel would make this

[JafariStew]

Sweet transition Emil!!

[oICEMANo]

Hope you don't mind Em, but here's an all-white version...

[Emiliano]

Hope you don't mind Em, but here's an all-white version...

Oh, I love it, now I'm thinking she almost looks better this way!

[gbagok]

I prefer the tiny crown how it looks in the "would be cover" here:

http://www.he-man.de/newspics/140606_1.jpg

I think her hair would look better all grouped together at the back too.

I think the crown is appropriately un-detailed though. If she had been a figure in the 80s, her crown (if she had one) would have been painfully simple. Look at 80's Randor's school-play quality crown. Not that I dislike detail, but I can understand the choice in this design. That's a good point about the hair though. The locks over the ears might be more 200X than classic because if her ears had been exposed back in the day, the hair probably would have only flown in back of them. I like the hair the way Emiliano has it, but I'm not that strict with the 200X influences.

Emiliano, did you approach her as if she'd had rooted hair or plastic hair originally (or do you think that should matter)?

Beautiful. And I really like the bare arms, it improves the look of the figure.

Hope you don't mind Em, but here's an all-white version...
http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a1..._Illumina2.jpg

Hmm. Seeing it like this, I don't think the bare arms are an improvement, only another option of equal value. Breaking up the white doesn't make it better in my opinion, if anything I'd say she is stronger in a solid color. I can see her standing up very well next to the other figures in the line.

[Darkspecter]

I think the crown is appropriately un-detailed though. If she had been a figure in the 80s, her crown (if she had one) would have been painfully simple. Look at 80's Randor's school-play quality crown. Not that I dislike detail, but I can understand the choice in this design.

Teela's tiara was nicely detailed. I just meant the big circular part of the crown.

That's a good point about the hair though. The locks over the ears might be more 200X than classic because if her ears had been exposed back in the day, the hair probably would have only flown in back of them. I like the hair the way Emiliano has it, but I'm not that strict with the 200X influences.

It's hard to say because Adora kind of has the two pieces in front.

I hope nobody minds, but I edited Iceman's picture to show the changes I'd like to see (minus the hair parts...because I'm no artist. ):



Changes I made:

1) I erased the ring part of her crown and added the two "curl" parts which came directly from her left hip.
2) I used the material from her skirt to give her a Teela/Evil-Lyn like chest, which she had in her 200X design. I think it also helps her chest look less like metal coconuts.

Here she is edited with a shortened cape. This is what she would look like if she shared She-Ra's collar/cape:

Hmm. Seeing it like this, I don't think the bare arms are an improvement, only another option of equal value. Breaking up the white doesn't make it better in my opinion, if anything I'd say she is stronger in a solid color. I can see her standing up very well next to the other figures in the line.

I LOVE all art I saw of her and thought the blue arms might be better (too much white on a figure), but seeing the change, I like it more. It helps differentiate her costume a bit more from Teela/Evil-Lyn/Goddess since they all have bare arms. Plus, she looks powerful and pure in white.

I appologize about the picture size. Photobucket shrunk it and I'm currently out of .org photo space.

[sdilks]

I love the new "breast plate" change!

Don't get me wrong, I LOVE Emiliano's Vision of Illumina, because I think she fits perfectly in the line, and I really want this figure. But my biggest gripe with E's version is the breast plates.

Man I want this figure!!!!

[yodafreakmaster]

I love it!!!! Now I get why all of MOTU fandom is disappointed that we will likely not be getting her in MOTUC's!! She would make for an absolutely killer figure!!!! Great work Emiliano! You ROCK