'Korra' Rant

So, I realize that this blog is for my art and whatnot, but I just have to share this. It's a trailer that was released minutes ago at Comic Con for Nickelodeon's new series 'Legend of Korra' (to be released some time in 2012). The series it's based on, 'Avatar: The Last Airbender' was one of the greatest pieces of television animation ever made (Yeah. I said it). I think the show set a new standard for what can be achieved with an animated series, and it's sequel looks just as amazing. In fact, it looks better than amazing. The world seems more interesting than 'Airbender', apparently the music is "1920s New Orleans Jazz, if it was invented in Shanghai" (WHAT?!) and the overall tone seems a bit darker. It's seriously like a show that my brother Joe and I would've made if we'd worked on an animated tv series together... In the words of my bro: "So I'm watching the Korra panel, and Bryan just said "jazz age", "Manhattan", and "Dickens" in the same sentence. I was like wait a minute, when did I start doing art direction for Korra?"
Also, Korra (the character) looks amazing!! 'Airbender' had some groundbreaking female characters, and this character looks like she's going to empower some young women with her badassery. Gah, I wish I could've gotten an internship with Nick Animation and then magically been able to work on Korra. That would've been amazing...hehe. Maybe someday! Anyway-- Here's the trailer:

The original series had a huge impact on me. If I could choose to work on any animation project with any studio, it would be Avatar. It's served as a huge inspiration for me: the two creators, Mike and Bryan, are in charge of not only the art, but the story, and even write many of the episodes themselves (and Bryan is an illustration major!!). That is like... my ultimate dream. I would love to be able to pitch an animated series that I could not only be a part of artistically, but with the storytelling too. These guys have proven to me that if you have an idea good enough, you can make it happen, and that inspires me so much!
Okay. Now that I'm done fangirling, here are some drawings I did last summer of some of the 'Airbender' characters, so this post isn't completely without some of my art.