Mickey's Not-So Scary Halloween

My emotions are mixed when it comes to the subject of Halloween. I don't have much of a tolerance for things that are scary... but I really love dressing up!

Here, in the spirit of just fun cosplay, are Disney characters dressed... as Disney characters!

Mickey Mouse as Peter Pan

Chip 'n' Dale as Tweedle Dee & Tweedle Dum

Daisy Duck as Ursula

Donald Duck as Jack Sparrow

Minnie Mouse as Belle

Pluto as Tigger

Goofy as Woody

Hope everyone has a Happy Halloween!

Rebooting Ruxpin - Newton Gimmick

     Time for me to go back and give some more of the Teddy Ruxpin characters a reboot! So far, I've done Teddy and Grubby. Here's the third in the bunch... Newton Gimmick!

     I decided that instead of the absent-minded inventor, I would re-imagine Gimmick as more of a gruff old mechanic. Maybe he used to serve on an airship in the Royal Fleet and now he spends his retirement years tottering away in his junk yard. Oh sure, he's still all about the inventions! There's just a lot less, "Eee, Err, Ehh" and a lot more "Just rub some dirt in it, ya buncha Panzies!"

Hey, Disney! Shut Up and TAKE MY MONEY!!

     There's no real point to this blog post. It was just one of those instances that I thought was really cool and decided to yammer on about it in my little corner of the internet.

Fun word.

     First off, a little backstory. A few years ago, my wife and I were lucky enough to visit Walt Disney World in Florida. I could go on and on about how awesome it was, but I'll spare you that novel only to say that one of the many things I loved about that place is how the meet-and-greet characters have their own collectively unique style. This is, of course, due to the fact that the characters at the park are in fact, real human beings and the original stylized look of the characters has to be altered to make a practical costume for these beings with human proportions to wear. But that's the pragmatical way of looking at it. If you want to look at it through my magical rose-colored Disney glasses, you would see it as a consistent style applied to a variety of characters so that they may all coexist in our reality. 

Otherwise, this is just Joyce from Hoboken

     On the flight home, I conjured up in my little nerd brain some form of collectors figures depicting the characters as they appear in the parks. As soon as we got home, I started drawing what I decided to call, "Disney Park Pals." I'll admit, I'm pretty lousy when it comes to titles.

It's at least catchier than "Hind-Legged Pluto and Friends"

     I had a ton of fun drawing these guys! I discovered the wonderful website, CharacterCentral.net and was inspired to draw these six characters.  I imagined them as toys and I also wanted to take a stab at package design, so I thought this would be a fun way to do that!

     I posted the finished product back in 2011, but eventually, I started to rethink how they should look, so I worked up a "cleaner" version.

     I loved the idea of there being figures with this realistic style, but I finally decided that I would have more fun drawing the characters in a completely different way… and this, like everything else on this blog, is for the sole purpose of ME having FUN! So I scrapped the idea of them being toys and just focused on drawing the characters in my own style… whatever THAT is. Here's a glimpse of where I am now in this process.

     It's a completely different idea than what I was imagining on that plane ride, all of those years ago, but that's how it goes, I guess. Flash forward to this year! Here's the aforementioned "cool" part of my story! I recently took a trip to my beloved Disney Store. I was busy debating whether or not it would be appropriate to buy a giant stuffed Vanellope von Schweetz, when my eyes wandered over and spotted THIS! 

     I was like Dr. Grant looking at a dinosaur for the first time! They actually did it! Now, instead of just imagining owning these things, I could actually buy them! Which, by the way, is great for Disney since they would much rather have my actual money instead of my imagination money… the little dears. 

Goofy sends his gawrshes with luv.

     I should add that I realize this idea of mine wasn't the most original and I'm sure the very talented people at Disney thought of this all on their own… BUT if there is a slim chance that someone from Disney Parks is getting ideas from this blog, how 'bout sending a couple of Disney World 'thank you' tickets my way? Oh! Also… when will Penguin Suits be hitting the shelves? 

That last part was a joke.

Snork Week presents... Tooter Shellby

     Well, Snork Week 2013 is officially winding down. Last Snork of the Week: the Silent but Spectacular Tooter Shellby.

   

     When I was a kid, we had one episode of Snorks on VHS that I watched over and over. In fact, that ONE episode is really what I base most of my Snork knowledge off of. This fact is probably the reason I keep getting booted off all of the "snork dork" fan forums. Oh well.

     That one episode focused on the beloved Tooter and his inability to speak. While I've always been able to speak, I still dealt with my fair share of bullying as a child. I really felt for Tooter and his plight. It was inspiring to see that even though some of us may have little quirks that keep us from fitting in with the rest of the crowd, we'll still have our moment to... honk loudly and scare off the giant Snorkeater... no wait. That's not right. Is it? ...aww man. I really felt like I was going somewhere with all of that. Nuts.

     Anywho! I hope all of you have enjoyed my reinterpretations of the Snorks, this week. Thanks for taking the time to check them out each day. And here's a special treat! Each Snork pic connects to make one bigger pic! That's right, kiddies! Get an adult to print each one out and just slide them together!

How's that for fun?

Snork Week presents... Junior Wetworth

     I guess every successful cartoon group of good guys needs a jerk somewhere in the mix (Grumpy Bear, Raphael, etc.) In the case of the Snorks, Wellington Wetworth, Jr. is that JERK.

   

     With the Snorks sharing a lot of the same traits, such as friendliness and good sportsmanship, I personally find Junior's elitism and overall douchey-ness somewhat... refreshing.

Snork Week presents... Casey Kelp

     I don't know what the deal seems to be with me and these girl snorks. I keep trying to think of something witty (and, of course, insightful) to say about Casey Kelp. But just as the case was with her friend Daffney... I've got nothing.

     Lately, I keep seeing these ads for the new iPhone and how the big deal seems to be that they come in different colors. It's like, "Woo-hoo! It's Pink!" I guess that's how I feel about Casey. "Woo-hoo. She's pink."

That's about it.

Snork Week presents... Allstar Seaworthy

    When I was a kid, Allstar was my favorite of the Snorks, which is funny since we don't share any of the same traits. Allstar is athletic and likes inventing things. I don't like sports at all and, as far as inventing goes, I seem to only get a kick out of things that remind me of the 1980's, so I'm not sure you could neccesarily call me "innovative."

     Allstar also has a pet octopus. Me? I've always been more of a mollusk guy, myself.

Snork Week presents... Occy

Question: What has eight legs and barks like a dog? Answer: Occy

     

     The reason that wasn't funny is because it wasn't a joke. Nope. Occy, the pet of Snork Allstar Seaworthy, happens to fit that description exactly.

     While tuna are considered the chicken of the sea, Occy, or more precisely, octopus canis, are more or less the dogs of the sea. As opposed to your typical ink-squirting octopuses, this little guy is a much smaller and friendlier species, known specifically for its loyalty, as well as the aforementioned barking. 

     They're relatively harmless, however some have been known to have a fondness for chasing tuna, or rather... Sea Chickens.

Snork Week presents... Daffney Gillfin

     Ahh! Daffney Gillfin. What can you say about Daffney Gillfin?

     Seriously! What can you say about Daffney Gillfin? I've got nothing.