The flash 2011 redux

Just part of my re-sketching some old designs that belong to my 2011 justice league piece. 

I always thought that the flash should have armor. I know that the speed force protects him from basically having a hole bored through his body if he smacks into a fly at mach 3 but I always figured that the clothing itself needed some protection from the weathering... Not to mention, even at super-speed and with super healing... He does engage in hand to hand combat... So I was sort of specific on the type of armor. It had to be resistant to friction as well as impact.... We all know that he leans forward when he runs, so the chest had to take the brunt of most of it... but I also felt it was important to give him a visor, and helmet... Even speed-skaters wear aerodynamic helmets with visors. It just fits the needs of the movement...

The boots of course had to match that need. They had to be obviously custom. The treads on any normal shoes would not only lose traction but it would wear out entirely in short order. These had to look like what they were, high tech, high resistance, next gen material and design with one purpose in mind... moving fast.

Aside from the actual costume design, I made the choice to make him lean... very lean. He is a runner after all. Neither Barry nor Wally really needed to be big guys and no matter who you personally feel is beneath the visor in this case... I wanted him to look like a runner... a young, smartass, motormouth, speedster.... I realize that a lot of people draw characters with large hands and feet on a regular basis as a style... but that's not the case here... the truth is that I decided to emphasize the hands and feet in order to exaggerate more than one aspect of the character...  I decided that this flash actually does have really big hands and feet. 

I have met some really skinny dudes with hands that could palm a volleyball... So my design for the flash... I made him like one of those guys. He's a skinny little dude with giant hands and big feet. He has way too much energy and he never seems to stop eating. We all know one.

Anyway, I didn't really change much in the resketch from  my 2011 design. I moved the lightning bolt back toward center. I lessened the slope of the helmet and added more textural faceting like you might see on a bicycle helmet... and I brightened the shade of red... Other than that, it is the same design but better drawn...

I'm really enjoying the chance to finally revisit these and do them the right way. I tried to do them all digitally the first time around and even the ones I did sketch parts of were half ruined by the scanning process. I kept putting this off until I got a tablet... but its been 6 years and I still don't have the money for that. Lol... I finally just decided to bite the bullet. I couldn't let it slide any longer.  To go back and show what I actually intended is like a redemption in a way... Expect more to come.