Wesley (Behind the Scenes) (Patreon)

Yep-- this is the main character of the first comic! And yes, he has a name.

I first came up with Wesley in 2019, when I decided to try developing a comic based on Zenith's Outer Reach. He was basically the Iron Giant with a sword: a Protogen who lost his memory in a recent battle-- forcing him to forge an identity from scratch (characterized by the crack on his visor that would occasionally cause him to glitch out and spark). 

(My first ever drawing of Wesley in 2019)

(Another, more developed Wesley from 2019, this time with a hooded cloak)

Eventually, I decided to combine him with another idea for a character (who I named Clares): a neurotic scavenger hermit who knows a little bit of magic. He was basically gonna reveal to the characters how "Aidaban" (the planet for the setting of the story) went to shit and all the Protogens turned evil. But I thought that was kinda cliche so...

(Clares, 2019)

I combined him with Wesley. He turned into someone characterized by a seemingly esoteric, nonchalant attitude towards a life-on-the-run. Someone who would care more about his sandwiches (or making a friend) than anyone who wanted to brainwash him back into a loyal soldier. I thought it would be an interesting idea having this weirdo show the main character the ropes of "Aidaban," a planet that served as his home for as long as he can remember.

(2019, Wesley with the protagonist of my unfinished comic)

When I decided to revisit the project after animation school, I added some more ideas to Wesley, including a detail I wasn't able to fully realize for the moldy-sandwich-comic:

(Scrapped page)

Basically, you'll notice that the symbol on his leg is a little octopus. The reason why is because I decided it would be cool to base him off of an octopus: a solitary, clever creature with a tendency to squeeze their way out of tight situations. The unrealized detail of his design was that I wanted to show how his limbs were all different colors and styles: due to him replacing them constantly-- another aspect of an octopus. I'd like to make Wesley's design reflect that a little better lol



(2019 concept art)

Now that I've developed him more, there's a couple things I've started to reconsider:

1. Where and how Wesley got his name, if at all. This is why I never name-dropped him in the comic, to give me more freedom to decide.

2. Where he got his sword-- and whether or not it's got Arcane magic in it.

Honestly, neither of which are... Super important? But it's given me some story ideas, which I'll most likely use in future comics. :)

That's basically it! Hope you found that interesting. Super excited to show you guys newer stuff :3