Comments: 1280
LeahPlainAndTallish [2014-07-24 05:13:23 +0000 UTC]
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First thing I'm going to say is that I do not really care for the MLP Friendship is Magic fandom. That being said, I do care for this. I care for it A LOT.
The character designs of the five elements is simply amazing. Each has been rendered with so much care and love and attention to detail, its astounding. Each has such a distinct character and represents their designated element so beautifully. I love the fact that each has a little detail of their own: the phoenix, the guns, the totem, the butterflies, death's headdress. They look like a band of travellers who have come a very long way. Your shading style is exquisite and the way you have positioning the light source makes each face seem to glow. On top of that, the back ground has been so carefully put together as well, the clouds rolling in over the rock adds great drama and depth to the piece, as well as the flying dragons. The expressions of the two earth ponies is are lovely, very expressive, and I particularly like how feisty the little one is.
There is a real feel of some sort of disaster just occurring, from the rubble in the foreground and the turmoil in the background, although the elements themselves look benevolent and kind. A wonderful contrast.
This is a gorgeous piece, I cannot fault it. It tells an amazing story. Well done.
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commode7x In reply to HeavyHitterConnor [2013-03-29 05:22:39 +0000 UTC]
You should've gone with "Surprise must've been a humerus old bag of bones back then.
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HeavyHitterConnor In reply to commode7x [2013-03-29 16:56:43 +0000 UTC]
Why? That would've made my critique too short. Besides, I needed to state my opinion about each character.
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commode7x In reply to HeavyHitterConnor [2013-03-29 21:59:08 +0000 UTC]
I meant that one line, not the entire critique. Sorry if that was unclear.
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Nizzlewis [2012-11-28 00:35:19 +0000 UTC]
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A unique concept and one that has been beautifully executed: a supreme combination.
Your detailed art style is wonderful to look at, and every time I look at this piece, I see something new. Dragonheart's totem pole, for instance, or the dark citadel behind the royal sisters.
From an artist's perspective, I appreciated the different approaches you took to the elements- they all have a unique quality about their look that sets them apart.
Surprise is the most surreal one in the picture, but (s)he does not look out of place- The fact that Surprise is a skeleton is weird yet fitting. It reminds me a lot of the Death of Rats from Terry Pratchett's Discworld series.
Ban Dragonheart looks very much to be a gentle giant with fierce loyalty. His Native-American garb is very fitting, and you have done an excellent job with his expression- he looks like he has seen many years pass, but was never soured by his experiences.
The lifekeeper looks like (s)he could easily reincarnate into Fluttershy. Again, the face is very expressive, and the sympathy for the royal sisters is, for me, plain to see.
Doctor Whooves is a very nice touch- I love the steampunk vibes he gives off. I really like his mane!
Without reading your description, the Dragonslayer was clearly generosity. The addition of Philomena really rounded him off well.
Your interpretation of Celestia and Luna stick so true to their personalities- Luna is frightened and reluctant to approach their new comrades while Celestia stands slightly in front of her, as if to defend her. Both of them are reminiscent of the work of Berke Breathed, which is never a bad thing.
Every element has a distinct look and feel to them, and it sets them apart from one another. Somehow, though, they don't clash. You have managed to pull off variety without making it clash.
The whole piece emanates the feeling of old Equestria- a dark land filled with fear and despair, but with a glimmer of hope. A most powerful piece of art.
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Nizzlewis In reply to Kaille400 [2013-01-07 00:14:02 +0000 UTC]
Very true- thanks for pointing that out! After all the negative experiences and betrayal they must have been through, it doesn't surprise me in the slightest.
Celestia's position makes more sense now. Again, thanks for pointing that out!
I tip my hat to thee. Here's looking forward to the next episode!
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CaptRicoSakara [2012-11-05 05:38:49 +0000 UTC]
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Ziom05 has done it again! =3
The moment I saw this brilliant piece, my mind instantly thought, "If Hayao Miyazaki were a brony, this would be his vision for a MLP origin story on the Elements," hands down.
Every time I look at the characters, especially the Pallanen Lifekeeper character, my mind instantly took me back to those wonderful Japanese animated films by the great Miyazaki, such as Spirited Away and Princess Mononoke. Hell! If it were possible, I could instantly see a MLP:FiM anime like this does in his animation style, and it would so work! It just fits!
Zoim05, if you're reading this critique, you are THE Hayao Miyazaki of MLP. And to that, I tip my hat to you. =3
OUTSTANDING!!!
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rorycon [2012-11-03 00:58:44 +0000 UTC]
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Ever since the Elements of Harmony were introduced back in Season 1 Episode 1 of the My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Cartoon series, there has been a lot of renditions as to how they originated, how they are used, and more often than not, who these Elements are, or who they will be, come the proper time.
Of all the ideas surrounding the elements however, I could safely say that Ancient Elements of Harmony by Ziom05 served as the one if not the most outstanding that I have ever seen.
For those who are not familiar with the Elements of Harmony, these are six magical artifacts, that when used together, can defeat any being of chaotic origin. One must obtain all six if they are to defeat Season 1 villain Nightmare Moon, a dark queen who wants to shroud the land in eternal night.
The twist is that the Elements of Harmony are not just artifacts that can be used by anyone, but are inherent inside very special beings. Twilight Sparkle, the show's protagonist, realized that the Elements are within her and her friends. Knowing this, they enveloped Nightmare Moon in a rainbow field thus destroying her in the process. This rainbow super attack is a throwback to the My Little Pony: Rescue at Midnight Castle television special.
It was also said that Celestia and Luna (pictured at right) were once wielders of all six elements. The concept of 6 beings getting together with sacred items and the idea of an inheritance to these artifacts pushed the beginning of origin stories and stories of alternate universes involving the Elements, both in fanfiction and fanart.
Like I said, there are a lot of fanart involving the Elements of Harmony. All I can see here at first glance are nothing but the strong points though. Starting with the obvious, the art is amazing! I can see that a lot of work has been put into the details of this art. Fenix the Dragonslayer's armor looks straight out of the pages of a League of Legends character! Having a flaming mane only piques the masses' curiosity of what wonder that mail has hidden inside. The hair of each character drawn here are something everyone can learn from, especially Ban Dragonheart's braids! All of them blend into the gritty and grim background pretty well, despite being candy colored.
Speaking of background, there is a lot to see, surprisingly. Like how one does not simply walk into Mordor, one does not simply unsee that there are a bunch of dragons in Discord's Rampart of Cha-O's. Speaking of Discord's castle, what I can see here is Mordor plus Pride Rcok combined. (I wish I can unsee that). I love the touch of ominous in those blood colored clouds hovering over the fort. The sky as well as the terrain looks really stunniing, and gives off that otherworldly yet familar feeling. Overall, the background works really well. Everything is really beautiful.
On to the story. this looks like a final meeting between heroes, a calm before the storm, I say. There may be no action here, but rather, tension. The chemistry between all the "ancient elements" really works here. The same vibe can be felt at the last hours of Final Fantasy and Elder Scrolls games, where the greatest boss fights anxiously awaits at the last dungeon. Going back to chemistry, there is a well-rounded RPG team-up here. You got the tank, the healer, the nuker, the sniper and the initiator. All these characters do feel like they belong in DotA 2 or any sort of epic RPG. Heck, I think they deserve their own!
There is just so much imagination put in this if you read between the lines. Surprise seems to be the element of laughter because he's got a funny bone. I don't really know about the others but I'm certain the artist has a reason for each designation of the elements.
From here, anyone can carve out a story on how they met each other and how this will all end. A great backstory can be conceived for each.
I'm sure there's a negative somewhere around here, but don't let that ruin the experience for you!
Overall, from Idea to Implementation, The Ancients Elements of Harmony is a picture that does not just say a thousand words, but a book any fantasy buff can treasure. I am completely blown away by this.
This isn't anything better that what Ziom05 already does, but it's really breathtaking nonetheless, especially if you work up those imagination cogs. Sit back, relax, and enjoy the picture!
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Arc-Tempest [2012-10-05 23:26:54 +0000 UTC]
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God I love this drawing.
It's absolutely incredible how well you were able to get the message across, or at least what I hope the message is you were trying to get across.
I want to believe that this image turned out /exactly/ how you wanted it too, because holy crap, it certainly turned out how I wanted it too e.deviantart.net/emoticons/let⦠" width="15" height="15" alt="" title=" (Lick)"/>
Your characters absolutely breathe life into the image, and give it an incredible feel of movement and realness, despite the fact that this is based off a show about pastel horses.
I fucking love your technique. Really. More people should try to draw like you, I'm serious. It's so pleasing to the eye, and even with the intense colours, it doesn't give me an eye ache at all.
The only reason I don't give you a five out of five in originality, is simply because The Doctor is there, and while I definitely agree with his character being there, I'm confused as to why he has a gun, seeing as he's a pacifist, and he wasn't a creation of your own. As for the image as a whole, I love the entire concept; it makes me want to write stories about how Fenix the Dragonslayer set out a quest to find the other elements, and how they've saved the world, countless times.
As for impact? Read the review, that should give you a very good idea of how much this image affected me. This is seriously an awesome piece of art. Keep on drawing man, for the sake of good art.
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lifeofthe6 [2012-10-05 17:21:08 +0000 UTC]
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One can only imagine the story behind this masterpiece. Princess Celestia and Princess Luna's rise to rule must have been a long and grueling one. This is a relatively simple scene, but each part of it shows part of what must have been an amazing adventure. Let's break it down piece by piece.
Vision:
It clearly took a lot of imagination to come up with this. I can almost see you smiling while drawing each individual character, imagining up a back-story for each of them as they were being created.
Why does Luna look apprehensive? Does Celestia know the face behind the golden mask? How did the Doctor end up here, and how did he get to be the Element of Loyalty? So many questions with so many possible answers arise every time I just glance at this picture.
Your mind must be a deep reservoir of creativity. I wouldn't be surprised to see fan-art of this fan-art very soon.
Originality:
Here is where I regretfully pull away from a maximum score. Certainly, this specific depiction of ancient Equestria is one uniquely your own, but even you must know you are not the only one who has explored the past and history of Celestia, Luna, and the Elements of Harmony.
That said, I must sing your praises again when I acknowledge the original use of other sentient species in the MLP:FiM world. The presence of two creatures we've never seen before--the ent deer and the skeleton pony require recognition, as not only are they brand new, they have such detail about them that it is clear they were not just thrown in as placeholders.
Technique:
As an amateur artist, a work like this seems years ahead of me, so I can't even begin to professionally analyze the technique that went in to this. What I can say, though, is that whatever you do, it has made many artists, myself included, both proud and envious of your skill. Your backgrounds are deep and detailed, which only brings out the intricacy of the foreground subjects even more. The figures are not static at all. I keep half-expecting this scene to come to life and play out like a Hollywood blockbuster movie.
Impact:
Not much needs to be said here. Any art like this that makes a person's eyes grow wide upon first sight is clearly one with great impact. It evokes feelings of pride, mystique, and wonder, and I kind of want to know what happens next.
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Aphroditeappature [2012-10-05 15:21:42 +0000 UTC]
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This is by far one of the best examples of how far this fandom goes for art.The shading is beautiful,the idea is wonderful,and the only thing i see as unneeded is the tribe thing on the buffalo,but other than that,the shading,the art,the style and the idea is just wonderfull.The only reason your missing the half star is because well mlp fim is from something else.I think this design deserves to be used on the show.Even the sky would be correct,how it fades into down from fire,after all,it is a dragon moutin they odviasly are fire breathing dragons,so it is logicall to have fiery skys.
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BAPOGICHI [2012-10-05 09:21:10 +0000 UTC]
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I'm new to this "critique" thing and it's a perfect opportunity to start. First of all, let me say something to sum my critique up: WOAH. It looks like an official game art or something similar to that. I'm pretty much in love with this piece.
Although I have seen a rendition of the past/original elements of harmony before somewhere(although I don't recall exactly where), this is a different take, and I love how you used other creatures as well instead of all-pony. The skeleton pony being the element of Laughter is clever. I'm not entirely sure why the buffalo is the element of Honesty, tho(but I do have a slight idea, I just can't wait to see how he turns out.) The element of Kindness is pretty much connected to the recent user, in fact, all elements do, in some way. Also, they all look so calm despite what is happening around them. Kind of like "Chill, we got this." And the princesses, I love how you drew them in a way where people have an idea of what was going on. Their faces fit in the situation too. Luna looks pretty aggressive(pretty much like her canon self, badflank adorable, anyone?) and defends herself and her sister, and Celestia pretty much looks like filly Twilight after she suddenly got "OP" in Cutie Mark Chronicles...like, "What just happened?"
And the background, I think it's just as epic as the way you drew the characters. And I love how the sky changes its atmosphere around the good and the chaotic sides.
This is amazing and all, but it kind of looks too epic, for a little girl's TV show....then again, the show itself is epic too!
I can't wait to see the comic, the concept is so awesome. Definitely worth the slow internet I have to look at.
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yeahlemons [2012-10-05 00:02:40 +0000 UTC]
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This..... This..... there are almost no words. This is an absolute masterpiece. The sheer fact that the idea for this was based from the show: My Little Pony Friendship is Magic (as well as some brony fandom) is astonishing.
Everything about this is phenomenal. The artistry, the shadowing, the coloring, the situation! It's Unbelievable!
Even the perspective. The whole idea of "The Ancient Elements of Harmony" really puts Celestia and Luna into some real, brand new, context. Not only that, but, because of the over all contrast of this artwork compared to the show, I think, it kind of puts a rather different view on the current spirits of the elements of harmony (Twilight, Applejack, Rarity, etc).
Unfortunately the original writers of the show were rather scarce on the details of how Celestia and Luna harnessed the elements of harmony. Which was a bit of a downer.
However, in just this ONE picture, you answered many of those lingering questions that they hadn't, and brought new view to the back-story about how Celestia and Luna obtained the elements of harmony.
Overall this was extremely well done. If there were 10 stars to give you, I'd give you 11. Amazing job. Incredible. I hope to see more from you soon.
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BentheBrony [2012-10-04 22:48:32 +0000 UTC]
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Wow, this is, amazing. Very reminiscent of World of Warcraft....
And please pardon my grammar and spelling, it ain't so gud.
I have never written a critique but this, this deserves so much praise.
The characters are just, well phenomenally well drawn, the expressions on their faces and the amount of detail put into their outfits is mind blowing to say the least.
And the story, before reading your description of the characters my mind was racing to figure out why this situation turned out how it is. I'm wondering what happened to our faithful heroes? Who are our heroes in the picture? How are they going to stop the evil that they obviously must confront?
And yet, even after reading your synopsis, I'm even more interested... I want to know how they plan to stop Discord, why Celestia and Luna are possibly wounded or stranded.
You have taken a still frame, a image, and have drawn the viewer into a magical world. A simple image, more creative than some two hour films. Truly, very impressive.
Like another critic, this will be on my wall, for a long, long, time. You sir, have a new watcher.
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dell90wattac [2012-10-04 19:39:27 +0000 UTC]
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Oh my. Oh my, oh my.
It's really hard to describe the feelings that inspire when I see a picture like this.
First and foremost, it's beautifully well done. The characters, I'm assuming completely original, are brilliantly detailed. They all look different, yet all match the theme that you were going for. The background fits very well in the message you're trying to convey. Celestia and Luna both look well drawn, though my only complaint is that they don't look quite like the Celestia and Luna that we're used to seeing. Obviously that's because this is the past, but a little more likeness would have been good.
But apart from the art, the story that this drawing tells is just phenomenal. My mind is racing thinking of all the back story behind every single little detail, from the torn and beaten Celestia and Luna, to the destroyed background and to the five different element characters. I can envision nearly endless stories just by looking at each individual aspect of the drawing; I can only imagine what you were thinking as you drew it.
I can't honestly think of any negative thing to say. This is going up on my desktop, and I doubt it'll get replaced for quite a while. Very good work.
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TimelyTheAlchemist [2019-11-23 23:29:15 +0000 UTC]
Way late, but I have to say this. Whooves as loyalty makes way to much sense. Sure he's a dedicated crackpot that seems to care more for machines. But those types of people are always handy in a pinch. And ironically, seem to be the most loyal since not many people seek out a friendship with them lol.Β
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ColonelBSacquet [2019-02-01 08:52:55 +0000 UTC]
The faces of the Princesses as fillies. I just love it.
The surprise on Celestia's face, and the child's stern determination on Luna's.
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ColonelBSacquet [2019-01-09 21:58:24 +0000 UTC]
It looks like Minas Ithil / Minas Morgul, in the background.
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ItinerantDjuradhan [2018-12-13 16:56:49 +0000 UTC]
So, the Ancient Element of Laughter is an undead being named Surprise? Peculliar, but I suppose it's original...Β ...wait.
Β Wait just a darn minute.
Pinkie Pie was directly inspired by a Generation One main character named Surprise. Surprise was, in effect, the ancient predecessor to Pinkie.Β
You are a mad genius. Well done.
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whitebearboy [2018-01-11 13:42:06 +0000 UTC]
What exactly is Surprise like as a person?
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Ebithril [2017-10-13 02:22:38 +0000 UTC]
I LOVE the idea of a undead being the Element of Laughter!
I can't put my head around at what point of if that is so god damn fitting! The morbid conflict? An alagory that life is but a joke only appreciated by the once passed? XD
There is so much one can take from that concept, and it is so fitting.
Other than that, the art is AMAZING!
*Brohoof*
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ColonelBSacquet In reply to Ebithril [2019-02-01 08:12:02 +0000 UTC]
Do you not wonder what Surprise looked like through the different stages of her earthly life?
I do want to know. I actually do.
Just for the sake of curiosity.
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