Complete Heterochromia

Boxcar Astronaut #105

2009-03-15T07:00:00.000-04:00

Greetings, Fellow Astronauts! The greatest team project the backyard gang has undertaken has begun. Everybody is pitching in to build a "space station"... well almost everybody. It seems Ben feels more at home standing around barking orders rather than doing any of the heavy lifting. How does his labor force feel about his "management style"? Check out this week's All New Boxcar Astronaut to find out!

Boxcar Astronaut #104

2009-03-08T07:00:00.000-04:00

Greetings, Fellow Astronauts! Construction is about to begin for the new "space station" in the backyard. This massive project is going to require every one of the backyard gang to pitch in. Just what does everyone bring to the table? Find out in this week's All New Boxcar Astronaut!

Boxcar Astronaut #103

2009-03-01T07:00:00.001-05:00

Greetings, Fellow Astronauts! There are big plans brewing in the imagination of our little would be astronaut, Ben. This week, his plans are finally revealed! What does a boy who already has a cardboard spaceship build next? Check out an All New Boxcar Astronaut to see Ben's concept drawing of his "low orbit" space station!

Boxcar Astronaut #102

2009-02-22T06:00:00.000-05:00

Greetings, Fellow Astronauts! As we learned last week, sometimes it's nice to stop and smell the roses. This week, while helping Ben draw pictures, Devin stops and smells the markers! He quickly learns that this may not be the best of ideas as things around him begin to look a little strange. Check out the trippy action in this week's All New Boxcar Astronaut!

Boxcar Astronaut #101

2009-02-15T07:00:00.001-05:00

Greetings, Fellow Astronauts! As you all know by now, Ben has always had his sights set on the fantastic world of outer space. This week, however, our starry eyed dreamer takes a moment to recognize the amazing wonder that can be found right here on Earth. It's a nice, peaceful look at life in the backyard in this week's All New Boxcar Astronaut!

Boxcar Astronaut #100

2009-02-08T07:00:00.000-05:00

Greetings, Fellow Astronauts! This week over at BoxcarAstronaut.com, we bring you a milestone, the 100th Boxcar Astronaut strip! And what do we have in store for this momentous occasion? Why a look at the boys in their younger days. Ben finds an old picture of himself and Devin and the boys take a moment to realize how far they've come, as only children can do. Check it out the comic as well as some other special treats for this week's 100th All New Boxcar Astronaut!

Boxcar Astronaut #99

2009-02-01T07:00:00.001-05:00

Greetings, Fellow Astronauts! It's an art show for the backyard gang this week as they move from behind the fence to out by the street to show off their drawing skills. Everyone with thumbs is out on the sidewalk making drawings with chalk. It makes for quite the eclectic display as each drawing reflects the artist's personality. Witness the fun in an All New Boxcar Astronaut!

Boxcar Astronaut #98

2009-01-25T07:00:00.001-05:00

Greetings, Fellow Astronauts! As you can see, Diogee is at it again. He's running down that poor squirrel that pops up in the backyard every now and again. But, just when it looks like Diogee has lost he prey up a tree, in walks Robot. Now, together, canine and automaton, they combine to form an unstoppable force that no squirrel can escape! Check out the action in an All New Boxcar Astronaut!

Boxcar Astronaut #97

2009-01-18T07:00:00.001-05:00

Greetings, Fellow Astronauts! Everyone knows how Robot always shows up the boys by outdoing them at everything they try. Well, this week it's Caveman's turn to be outdone by our mechanical friend. Poor Cavie is trying his hand at the simple ancient craft of rock stacking only to have Robot show up and steal his thunder right at his proudest moment! The amazing automaton learns a very valuable lesson, however, when Caveman shows him that not everyone likes being shown up. Witness Caveman and Robot's "rocky" relationship in this week's All New Boxcar Astronaut!

Boxcar Astronaut #96

2009-01-11T07:00:00.001-05:00

Greetings, Fellow Astronauts! Last week, Devin made his dramatic return after suffering with chicken pox. Now, as the boys catch up, Devin is concerned that Ben might have caught the ailment. Ben, however is confident that he is immune. But, is he? DUM DUM DUUUUUMMMM!

Boxcar Astronaut #95

2009-01-04T07:00:00.002-05:00

Greetings, Fellow Astronauts! Devin has been gone for quite some time suffering with chicken pox and poor Ben has been trying to occupy his play time without his best friend. But, has Ben gone off the deep end? Has the loneliness driven our hero mad? You be the judge in an All New Boxcar Astronaut!

P.S. Check out the cameo by Clovis, the surly teddy bear from Imagine This!

Boxcar Astronaut #94

2008-12-28T07:00:00.001-05:00

Greetings, Fellow Astronauts! While Devin is stuck at home suffering with chicken pox, Ben is in the backyard suffering with boredom. One of the All Time Great cures for boredom is building stuff with the classic children's toy Lego blocks, and that's just what Ben decides to do. His one mistake, though is inviting Robot to play along. You know Robot can never resist a chance to outdo poor Ben. See what happens this time in an All New Boxcar Astronaut!

Merry Christmas!

2008-12-22T07:00:00.001-05:00

Just a little Christmas chuckle to brighten you holidays! Enjoy!

Boxcar Astronaut #93

2008-12-21T07:00:00.001-05:00

Greetings, Fellow Astronauts! Poor Devin has been stricken with that dreaded childhood malady, chicken pox. Now, as he suffers, he faces the ultimate question, to scratch or not to scratch. Sure, we all know that scratching chicken pox is bad news, but it's sooooo itchy, who can resist? Watch Devin struggle with this most irritating dilema in an All New Boxcar Astronaut!

Boxcar Astronaut #92

2008-12-14T07:00:00.001-05:00

Greetings, Fellow Astronauts! When last we left the backyard gang, we witnessed Ben's horror as he learned about Devin's case of the dreaded CHICKEN POX! Now we see the aftermath of this revelation. Is Ben overwhelmed with concern for his sick buddy? No, of course not! He's worried he might contract the pox himself. Watch as Ben seeks help from Robot, and as usual, regrets it!

Boxcar Astronaut #91

2008-12-07T07:00:00.001-05:00

Greetings, Fellow Astronauts! Ben, our little space hero is sulking. It seems he hasn't seen his buddy Devin in quite some time and he's feeling lonely. Where could Devin be? That's just what Ben sets out to find out, although he may not like the shocking answer! Check out this week's All New Boxcar Astronaut to see what we mean.

Boxcar Astronaut #90

2008-11-30T07:00:00.001-05:00

Greetings, Fellow Astronauts! After all the drama in the backyard lately, it looks like or favorite little mutt is trying to take a nap. Suddenly, it looks as if one of Diogee's fantasies is about to come true! Can it be? Is Diogee going to prove himself a player among canines, or is it all just another wild puppy dream? Check out this week's All New Boxcar Astronaut for our raciest episode yet!

Boxcar Astronaut #89

2008-11-23T07:00:00.000-05:00

Greetings, Fellow Astronauts! The epic battle is over for now, ending with the mutual laughter of our heroes, Ben and Devin. Now, while the boys are away from their ships, Diogee and Caveman are looking to have a little intergalactic fun. Check out the hilarious results in this week's All New Boxcar Astronaut!

Boxcar Astronaut #88

2008-11-16T07:00:00.000-05:00

Greetings, Fellow Astronauts! The boxcar spaceship battle for back yard supremacy is on! Ben and Devin have each other dead in their sights. It's a tense battle of wits as the two former companions stare each other down. How will this stalemate end? What will be left after the smoke clears, mangled bodies, bruised egos, or just plain silliness? Yeah, it'll probably end in silliness.

Bond, James Bond

2008-11-12T21:38:00.004-05:00

With the new 007 film, Quantum of Solace, coming out this Friday, I thought it'd be a good time to draw a little character sketch of my all time favorite fictional character, James Bond. This little drawing was done on dark brown paper using colored pencils, a warm gray Tria marker, and a couple of pastels for subtle shading.

I grew up in the Roger Moore era, however, even as a kid I always preferred the Sean Connery films. Connery just seemed like more of a threat. Living Daylights, with Timothy Dalton was the first Bond flick I got to see in the theaters, and I've gone to see every one since on opening weekend. I'm rather excited about this new film because for the first time in 007 history, they've actually made a direct sequel, continuing the story from the wonderful Casino Royale. I can't wait to see more of Daniel Craig's take on the character. With the exception of his blonde hair, he looks and acts the most like the Bond from Ian Fleming's classic novels, even more so than Connery. Any true Bond fan will tell you that the character in the original books is much darker and more nuanced than the cartoon superhero he's been portrayed as for the past 40 plus years. It is the Bond from the books I really enjoy trying to capture in my drawings from time to time. For instance here's a painting I did a few years ago to highlight my favorite book, Goldfinger:

I remember back in the mid nineties when I found my first Ian Fleming book, a worn out old paperback copy of For Your Eyes Only, in a great used book shop in Philadelphia called the Book Trader. It was two creaky floors of mismatched, loosely organized shelves filled with ragged old books, just waiting for curious minds to dig through them. If you were looking for a slick Barnes & Noble shopping experience, this wasn't your place. No, this place had real character, a motley assortment of folks perusing the racks, the heavy quiet of an old library, and the unique smell of old paper and woodwork. Finding what you wanted was more like a treasure hunt, it required patience, perseverance, and a willingness to get your hands dirty. This was the place I first met the real James Bond, and found many other old literary gems I never even knew I was looking for. I guess the point of my nostalgic rambling is sometimes to find the truly interesting, life changing stuff, you need to look past the flashy, glossy, commercialized facade and get some dirt under you fingernails and dust on your knuckles.

Boxcar Astronaut #87

2008-11-09T07:00:00.001-05:00

Greetings, Fellow Astronauts! An epic battle is on the horizon as the boys each attempt to force poor Diogee to choose sides. Will our lovable mutt stick with his helmeted master, choose to jump aboard Devin's new spaceship, or get distracted by something else and run off? Find out the entirely predictable, yet charmingly hilarious answer in this week's All New Boxcar Astronaut!

Master Yoda

2008-11-08T12:00:00.001-05:00

You know, as much as I love Yoda, I am ashamed to say I can quote more of his philosophical lessons than that of Plato, Socrates, Aristotle, Confucius, Machiavelli, Jesus Christ and John Lennon combined. It's a sad commentary on the state of the world when you realize I'm not alone in this. Fortunately, I don't need to be some well read, deeply profound, inspirational beacon of humanity to draw pretty pictures. At least I know my place.

Mighty Marvel Sketches!

2008-11-07T22:12:00.004-05:00

Ok, it's been a while since I posted anything other than the weekly Boxcar Astronaut strip, but I'm here to change that. In the past few months, my wife and I have bought a house, spent a lot of time on necessary fixing up of said house, moved in to this very same house, celebrated my daughter's first birthday, and went to Disney World all while working our full time jobs, raising our little girl and me putting out a weekly webcomic. Anyway, I don't want to bore anyone with any more excuses, so on to the pretty pictures!

For this post, I bring out a couple of older sketches of two of my favorite mighty Marvel characters I did just for the fun of it. First up is New York's favorite wall crawling menace, the Amazing Spider-Man. Spidey is one of my favorite characters to draw. Many a slow hour at the day job have been spent scribbling the webbed wonder on post-it notes and scrap paper.

Next we have a bit more detailed sketch of the clawed Canadian, Wolverine. I know Logan can sometimes come off as a bit cliche, but when handled right, he's just plain bad ass!

So that's it for now. More sketches to follow soon, I promise!

Boxcar Astronaut #86

2008-11-02T07:00:00.001-05:00

Greetings, Fellow Astronauts! This week, Devin makes a dramatic return to the backyard, but he's not back for the reason Ben thinks. Watch the tension escalate as Devin unveils his own boxcar spaceship! Can an epic space battle be far behind? Keep reading the most dramatic Boxcar Astronaut story of All Time!

Boxcar Astronaut #85

2008-10-26T08:56:00.002-04:00

Greetings, Fellow Astronauts! After watching his best friend, Devin, storm out of the backyard last week, Ben is trying to recruit a new "best friend". His first choice is Caveman, but can Cavie fill the void left by Devin? The answer is yes, and then some (physically, at least)! See what we mean in this week's All New Boxcar Astronaut!

Boxcar Astronaut #84

2008-10-19T07:00:00.001-04:00

Greetings, Fellow Astronauts! Our backyard space heroes are about to face a conflict like they've never faced before, BETRAYAL! Devin, quickly growing tired of being bossed around by Ben simply because he built the boxcar spaceship, finally snaps and storms out on his best friend. Will he come back or will he strike out on his own adventures? If he does come back, will Ben and Devin's relationship ever be the same? Keep reading each and every week to find out the answers.

Boxcar Astronaut #83

2008-10-12T07:00:00.000-04:00

Greetings, Fellow Astronauts! Curiosity, we all know what it did to the cat, but what about curious little boys? Ben has a way of making a pest of himself when it comes to learning more about Robot. This time, though he learns a valuable lesson, sometimes you should just take "no" for an answer. See what we mean in this week's All New Boxcar Astronaut!

Boxcar Astronaut #82

2008-10-05T07:00:00.001-04:00

Greetings, Fellow Astronauts! This week, the gang is having fun with one of the all time great childhood toys, play dough! Smell the sweet moist aroma as the plastic cans are popped open! Witness Ben and Devin show off their stupendous sculpting skills in this squishy, psychedelic medium! Listen as the boys express their disgust at Caveman's enjoyment of the dough! It's another silly adventure of imagination in an All New Boxcar Astronaut!

Boxcar Astronaut #81

2008-09-28T07:00:00.002-04:00

Greetings, Fellow Astronauts! Well, it looks like the boys have wrapped filming on their movie and they're ready to watch it! Unfortunately, Diogee has other ideas in his mischievous canine mind. Witness Ben and Devin's horror as Diogee proves how fragile one's hard work really is when there's a sneaky little dog on the loose! Check it all out in this week's All New Boxcar Astronaut!

Boxcar Astronaut #80

2008-09-21T07:00:00.001-04:00

Greetings, Fellow Astronauts! The sets are built, the costumes are done, it time for ACTION! Ben is about do direct his first scene with Devin and Robot and everything is looking great. However, how will devin Devin handle the intense pressure of being a sci-fi action star? Can Robot resist the deeply programmed urge to overact his scenes? Check out this week's All New Boxcar Astronaut for the answers!

Boxcar Astronaut #79

2008-09-14T00:00:00.000-04:00

Greetings, Fellow Astronauts! Movie magic is underway in the backyard as Ben and the gang get ready to shoot their own space epic. As the director, Ben is overseeing all aspects of the production, checking in on the costumes, sets, and the umm... props. Check out this week's All New Boxcar Astronaut to see if everything is coming together as planned!

Bob-B-Q 2008

2008-09-13T20:33:00.003-04:00

Every year one of my best friends throws a big BBQ we like to call the Bob-B-Q (since his name is Bob). It's become a big tradition around our social circle rivaling any of the real holidays. As part of that tradition, I always design a promotional poster and other graphics to commemorate the event. It's fun for me because Bob never asks for any particular theme or design, so I get to come up with whatever I want.

My original idea was to do a Bob-B-Q video game thing, but the more I got into it I really wanted to work a cute pin up girl into the design. Then it hit me while listening to the new cd by Ocrush, a band in which another close friend of mine plays guitar, it hit me: draw a girl in leg warmers! That's what lead to the retro 80's look of the final design, which stands in stark contrast to last year's dark horror/ zombie themed poster (see below).

Boxcar Astronaut #78

2008-09-07T00:00:00.000-04:00

Greetings, Fellow Astronauts! This week, Devin brings an awesome new toy over to the backyard, his dad's video camera! The mere sight of the camera is enough to send Ben's imagination on overload thinking about the cinematic possibilities he could create. Get ready, because it's Lights, Camera, ACTION in an All New Boxcar Astronaut!

Boxcar Astronaut #77

2008-08-31T07:00:00.001-04:00

Greetings, Fellow Astronauts! It's another dangerous mission for the boxcar crew as Ben and Devin bravely fly their spaceship into the heart of an asteroid field. How will the boys survive the onslaught of hurtling space debris? Two words: "Shields Up!" Check out an All New Boxcar Astronaut for the wild outer space action!

Hi Yo Silver!

2008-08-25T06:00:00.000-04:00

I'll bet you're humming the William Tell Overture right about now, aren't you? Yep, me, too. I love the Lone Ranger. He's one of my earliest childhood heroes. As a matter of fact, if you could go back to when I was six and ask me what I wanted to be when I grew up, I'd have probably said one of three things, Spider-Man, an eye doctor, or the Lone Ranger. My Spider-Man fantasy, I'll go into in a later post. The eye doctor thing came from the fact that my childhood eye doctor was really cool, had Bill Cosby Picture Pages books in his office, and was always taking photos of my eyes because he thought they were so cool. I obviously grew out of that phase, but, I digress... The Lone Ranger, with his classic iconic look, ranks right up there with King Arthur, Robin Hood, and Superman on the all time greatest noble hero list. I've heard the rumors about a new Lone Ranger movie in the works and I can't wait to see it all come together. Personally, I think Nathan Fillion of Firefly/ Serenity fame would be a dream choice, but that could just be the little sci-fi fan boy in me doing a bit of wishful thinking. Anyway, enough of my ramblings, I'm going to go ride off into the sunset now.

Boxcar Astronaut #76

2008-08-24T00:00:00.002-04:00

Greetings, Fellow Astronauts! Poor Ben, all he really wants to do is fly his spaceship to the stars with his trusty mutt, Diogee. On the other hand, Diogee doesn't share Ben's enthusiasm for imaginary space travel and therefore is easily distracted from his "job". Check out this week's All New Boxcar Astronaut for another classic example of why dogs stink as co-pilots!

Fan art for Imagine This!

2008-08-22T06:30:00.000-04:00

The other day while reading one of my favorite webcomics, "Imagine This" I had a vision of Clovis, the wanna-be tyranical teddy bear (one of the stars of the strip) dressed up as Kim Jong-il. So being the kind of guy I am, I had to draw it and share my vision with the world. If you've ever read Imagine This, then you'll understand why this looks suits Clovis. Although, if you're not familiar with the gang from Lucas Turnbloom's crazy wonderful comic, then I highly suggest you start from the beginning and get up to speed! Better yet, go buy the book! You have no idea what you're missing.

Boxcar Astronaut #75

2008-08-17T08:51:00.001-04:00

Greetings, Fellow Astronauts! This week marks the 75th installment of Boxcar Astronaut, in which we find Ben and Devin playing with an all time favorite item, bubble wrap! We all know popping bubble wrap is fun and addictive, however, as the boys soon learn, is best enjoyed in moderation. Witness what happens when Robot gets his hands on a roll of bubble wrap in this week's All New Boxcar Astronaut!

Tough Guys

2008-08-15T18:38:00.003-04:00

Here's a recent sketch book page of random tough guy faces. Once in a while, as an exercise, I like to quickly sketch as many different versions of the same character theme as I can think of.

Zorro!

2008-08-13T00:00:00.000-04:00

Another quick sketch, this time of one of my favorite all-time characters, Zorro! This sketch was done with colored pencils, and markers.

PINKERTON!

2008-08-12T08:35:00.003-04:00

Today, I'm taking a train to Pinkerton Park!
This week the great Mike Witmer is on vacation from his comic about a gang of fuzzy friends in the wilderness. While the Head Ranger is away, a bunch of us fellow comic artists are filling in. Today, my contribution is running over at PinkertonPark.com. It's a parody of my favorite film, "A Hard Day's Night". I've put the four main characters of Pinkerton in the roles of the Fab Four, and myself in the role of "the clean old man". Head on over to the Pinkerton site to read the whole strip!

Gabba Gabba Hey!

2008-08-11T00:00:00.001-04:00

I've been listening to the Ramones in my car lately, so I drew this on my lunch break the other day. That's it, no big story.
Enjoy!

Boxcar Astronaut #74

2008-08-10T10:05:00.000-04:00

Greetings, Fellow Astronauts! Caveman's birthday party is winding down and, boy, is it getting boring. It seems not even pointy party hats can help. What can the boys do liven up Cavie's party? Check out this week's All New Boxcar Astronaut for the hilarious answer!

The House of El

2008-08-10T00:43:00.003-04:00

Every once and a while, between other projects, I find myself sketching some of my favorite comic characters. For this sketch, I wanted to try out my own spin on Superman's origins. I've always been a big fan of the Man of Steel. Ever since my young eyes first witnessed Richard Donner's classic film, I've been in love with the story of Jor-El's son Kal coming to Earth and protecting his adopted home from the clutches of evil. Doing this sketch brought me right back to being a kid dreaming about Krypton.

Boxcar Astronaut Sketchbook #3

2008-06-15T12:00:00.000-04:00

(This post was originally published on 4/6/08 at BoxcarAstronaut.com)
Welcome, once again, fellow astronauts to another peak behind the scenes at Boxcar Astronaut! I have a few treats for you this time with a couple of pieces of early pencil art from the production of this strip.

This first one is the scene where the boys first interact with their newly reactivated automaton buddy. It goes all the way back to strip # 14.

Next is the pencils from exactly 40 strips later, strip # 54. For those of you that have been reading along for a while may remember that one as the "lightning strikes" strip, this shot being the aftermath.

And almost last, I have here an early design drawing of Devin.

In every sketch book entry I like to throw in something a little different. This time I posting a little sketch I did of the Hulk. I've been in a Marvel mood lately what with the fantastic Iron Man film and now the new movie about ol' Jade Jaws! This might be my favorite summer blockbuster season yet.

Boxcar Astronaut Sketchbook #2

2008-05-04T12:00:00.004-04:00

(This post was originally published on 5/4/08 at BoxcarAstronaut.com)
Welcome to another installment of the Boxcar Sketch Book! I know I haven't updated this section in a couple of weeks, but I've been hard at work bringing you these top-notch, terrific tales of whimsy and adventure we like to call Boxcar Astronaut! Rest assured, though, fellow astronauts, I do have more treats for you in store. This time out, I bring you three never before seen (outside of my apartment, that is) sketches.

This one is an early marker sketch of Ben from way back in 2006 when I was developing the characters. This was the one that made me say "Eureka! I've got it!" Everything else evolved out of this look.

Here is a pencil drawing of Ben and his faithful co-pilot, Diogee. This was done at the same time as the classic "Ben holding his whiffle-bat sword in the air" image that graces our header, promotional material, and even some t-shirts. I wanted to do some well rendered iconic drawings to set the tone as we were developing the strip. I think this shot sums up Ben and Diogee in that they're together as always, yet clearly seeing the world from different perspectives.

And lastly, this is just a random sketch I did to pass some time and take a bit of a break from drawing children and robots. This little lady is Jenny Everywhere*, internet open source comic sensation. For those of you unfamiliar with Jenny, check out the Shifter Archive Project for some history. Now, I have no plans to do a Jenny Everywhere comic of my own, but, I do think she's a neat character and is fun to draw. If you want to see a really fun Jenny comic that's going on now, check out the Jenny Everywhere Chronicles done by the great Benj Christensen of I Am Geek fame!

*The character of Jenny Everywhere is available for use by anyone, with only one condition.
This paragraph must be included in any publication involving Jenny Everywhere,
in order that others may use this property as they wish. All rights reversed.

Boxcar Astronaut Sketchbook #1

2008-04-06T12:00:00.004-04:00

(This post was originally published on 4/6/08 at BoxcarAstronaut.com)
Greetings, Fellow Astronauts! I'm your friendly neighborhood boxcar artist, Marc Lapierre here with a brand new section of the ol' Boxcar Astronaut website called the Sketchbook. In this section, I'll be posting all sorts of fun stuff. Periodically, I'll be bringing you early concept designs of you favorite Boxcar characters, rough pencil art of some of you favorite moments from past strips, and anything else I feel you might get a kick out of. So watch this space, you never know when I'll post something new! And now, dear Boxcar fans, I present to you a glimpse into the inner workings of your new favorite comic strip.
-M

This here is a very early concept sketch for our favorite automaton. Robot went through several different design possibilities before I fell in love with this version.

Here we have Ben and Devin's first meeting from strip # 2.

Ah, good ole Diogee! Even in this early design sketch, he's as loveable as can be.