Every couple of years, General Mills updates their designs, but I've never really cared for them like I do the originals.
The challenge was to do something fun with them without straying too far from what I liked about them in the first place. The fun part here was taking a closer look at these characters to see how they tick and having the freedom to push the designs without having to worry about them being on-brand. If I were to actually redesign them (Which I would LOVE. Are you reading this, GM?), I'd have to take a slightly different approach.
First was Count Chocula. And for the first time I realized that isn't a funky headpiece he's wearing, it's his hair! So the first thing I did was made his hair look like actual hair. Then I just kind of grittied him up and made him look like a grizzled old vampire. But kept his silly bunny fangs. I regret only doing a headshot. I'd like to come back to this and add a body.
Next up is FrankenBerry. Because of his mutant moon head, I felt like it needed to be veiny like the thing from "This Island Earth". And building on his metal parts, I gave him a hinged metal jaw like Hanna-Barbera's Frankenstein, Jr.
Next up is Boo Berry. The obvious
aspect of this character is that his voice is an imitation of Peter Lorre. So I
added a little more of that in his face. His hate never made sense, and it
wasn't until now that I realized that it was just a poorly draw version of the
hate that Peter Lorre wears in "Secret Agent". So, if Count Chocula
wa a parody to Bela Lugosi's Dracula, and FrankenBerry was ripping on Karloff's
Frankenstein monster, then Boo Berry is the ghost of Peter Lorre! Who knew!
I had a lot of fun with Frute Brute! I've mentioned before that I have a thing for werewolves, so this guy was my favorite when I was a kid. But man, his design was so lazy and boring. I liked what they did with him in the tv commercials, though. So I started from there. Since nobody is really attached to him, or doesn't know him at all, I pushed this design pretty far and turned him into a snarling wolf beast. And added a touch of Ruby-Spears' character from the 80s, Fangface (who I also did my version of a while back, OVER HERE). But I still kept the silly overalls and his big orange nose and all the things that make him Frute Brute. I liked this one so much that I spent a little more time on him than the others.
And lastly, there is Yummy Mummy. Who, you ask? Yeah, I know. Not many people know that Frute Brute existed, but even fewer have ever heard of Yummy Mummy. Or Fruity Yummy Mummy, to be exact. I guess they didn't want you to confuse it for Ground Beef-Flavored Yummy Mummy, or Pipe Tobacco-Flavored Yummy Mummy.
Aside from his terrible name, his design looks like something from a cheap greeting card. It has zero personality and nothing that makes him unique like the others. Just a lazy generic cartoon mummy with colorful bandages. It's no wonder he was so forgettable. So, I tried to make him a little interesting. I played up the undead factor and added elements of two of my favorite Mummies: the Mummy from the movie "Monster Squad"and the Mummy from Scooby-Doo ("Coiiinnn...Coiiiiinn..."). And here's what I came up with. Hope you like him!
Aside from his terrible name, his design looks like something from a cheap greeting card. It has zero personality and nothing that makes him unique like the others. Just a lazy generic cartoon mummy with colorful bandages. It's no wonder he was so forgettable. So, I tried to make him a little interesting. I played up the undead factor and added elements of two of my favorite Mummies: the Mummy from the movie "Monster Squad"and the Mummy from Scooby-Doo ("Coiiinnn...Coiiiiinn..."). And here's what I came up with. Hope you like him!
And that's a WRAP (get it?) for this year's INKtober! Happy Halloween, everyone!!
