Meet Pyro

Though I am writing this on November 17th, this piece was finished the day prior. Aqua's character sheet, the first of many on my gallery, was completed on October 16th, 2023. Pyro's character sheet is the sixth one I have posted on my gallery over the span of thirteen months and is the seventh character sheet I've posted overall. I wouldn't be surprised if some people think these character sheets are a cop-out, as they make up three-quarters of what I've posted this year, but they have given me the chance to explore the personalities of my characters, touch up their designs, and give them more depth than I have compared to other illustrations. The consistency of the format allows me to coherently organize details about everyone in a manner that my previous notes couldn't accomplish on their own. It's a small step, surely, but it will allow me to take greater leaps going forward.

I've posted enough character sheets on my gallery for you to know where this is going; usually, it starts with me rambling about how long it has been since I've last drawn the character, what inspired me to draw them, my thoughts during the process, etc. I want to shift gears this time by putting the spotlight first on Pyro, then on his sheet rather than the other way around. He is a character who has evolved gradually, yet subtly, as he has received more focus than Chlora and Electra, yet the nuances in his appearance become more profound with every appearance. I'll be linking Pyro's previous pieces here as they come up, so feel free to compare them as you read.

Aside from Electra, Pyro was probably the character who needed a glow-up the most. It wasn't that his original design was bad; quite the opposite, in fact. I wasn't a fan of his 2019 design because it was equal parts generic, overcomplicated, and oversaturated. There were some good ideas at play, but I knew I could take them further, especially once I distanced myself from monochrome palettes. This culminated in Pyro's 2020 redesign, with most aspects of it carrying over to this day. Let's see here: Eyebrow scar? Check. Red tunic? Check. Yellow belt? Check. White undershirt? Check. Simpler hairstyle? Check. Maroon leggings? Checkmate. The only aspects of Pyro's 2019 design that made the cut were his big eyebrows and orange eyes, which is pretty damning. This even carries over to Oblivion and Brains and Brawn, where he retains his former design's taste in footwear. It also took me five years to realize he's the only one who wears open-toe shoes. Guess I didn't realize it until I acknowledged it.

So yeah, the other two pieces I drew for Pyro in 2020? Not much changed. My main focus was getting his proportions right and adjusting his outfit. Some of those ideas didn't stick, but most of them did, and they've served as building blocks for his design ever since. They've been adjusted over time not only to make him easier to draw, but to improve his appearance and simplify his design so he'd be easier to draw. I also drew him out-of-uniform on two occasions back in 2021, but any changes that resulted from them were minor, such as giving him a larger head and smaller eyes while tuning his design to fit my style at the time. Those were also the first drawings where I experimented with drawing his eyes, as I toyed with that idea despite not drawing him again until 2023.

The main reason I gave Pyro a character sheet was because I wasn't satisfied with his design in last February's mural. I found myself with a lot of small things related to the design, mainly how he had a long, pencil-thin neck despite the width of his torso, how his tunic resembled a tank top more than what it was intended to be, and how uninspired his eyes were. Those were the main things I wanted to rectify in this piece, and at the time of writing this, I'm proud of how I did; his neck is shorter and wider, his eyes are brighter and more expressive, his tunic is more prominent than his undershirt, and his design as a whole feels more polished. Most changes I made were small, such as adjusting the colors of his outfit and showing his ears beneath his hair, but a few changes I made were more significant, such as adding gold cuffs to his sleeves to match his belt and making the emblem on his tunic the same color and adding more depth to his hair. I considered reusing the gold gradient from the mural, but I got mixed results applying it here and chose to scrap it. Thankfully, the color for his belt and cuffs meshed well with the rest of his outfit, so I used that instead and I'm happy with how it turned out. I can see the emblem on his tunic getting smaller the more I draw him, but for now, this is a good start. The other change I'm really proud of, besides his hair, are his eyes. I love how the shade of orange looks, but the shape I went with works really well for him; it's gentle yet sharp, a fitting look for the gentleman soldier.

I don't have many notes about the sheet itself or the design behind it. I've used this template seven times now and the star design has been featured in four of them, so aside from the stars and text boxes being yellow at one point, I don't have much to say about it. The shade of red I used for the background influenced Pyro's palette slightly and vice-versa, but otherwise, the biggest note I have about the character sheet is how the artwork I've made for the SPACE characters reflects their personalities really well: Aqua is kind yet reserved, Electra is playful and energetic, Chlora's timid personality leaves her easily stressed, and Pyro is the most stoic member despite his profession. I intend for Shadow to continue this pattern when I get to her sheet, but it will be a while before I start hers. For now, I hope you enjoyed seeing the evolution of Pyro's design and his much needed glow-up. He's come a long way, hasn't he?