Meet Dexter Dragon

Dexter started off with a long snout and skinny limbs, I wanted his character to be shy and almost weak looking, but this didn't work out. So from then I changed his look countless times and kept the characteristics I liked about him from the older models.

I took inspiration from a few cartoons which I grew up with, if you look closely you can see that Dexter has the same body shape and feet as Bugs Bunny, Mickey Mouse classic gloves but in red, a bow tie like Roger Rabbit and a similar snout shape as Spyro the Dragon. I then made his legs and arms thicker to give him more of a warm feeling as a cartoon.

The latest model of Dexter as you can see has a smaller snout, thicker arms

and legs and smaller horns as he is only a young male dragon. His fins on his back start off large from the head and get smaller down to his tail, his teeth are also more blunt than sharp as I wanted to give a more friendly look to his smile. The hairs on his head only contain 3 strands similar to Goofy and Bugs Bunny. To draw Dexter Dragon I use my phone and sometimes Photoshop. I use an app called Ibis Paint X which is great for someone who has a low budget but needs a digital drawing app. All my drawings on my phone are done without a stylus or pen, just my finger which can be challenging but after many years of practice with the app, I have got used to it.

I've got so used to drawing him it's getting pretty easy, that's key if you're creating your own character, keep changing the look but keep characteristics you liked before, andexperiment, find your style.

ABBY MOYLE

Right, I know it’s a change of pace from Miss Americana but s�ck with me. So, today we’re going to talk about Zack Snyder’s cut of the controversial film, Jus�ce League. You can find this film on

Both HBO Max and Sky Cinema if a�er my ramble you would like to watch it. You can also check out the trailer on YouTube.

Context �me. In 2017, DC studios released the film Jus�ce League. It was directed by Joss Whedon. This wasn’t always the case. Zack Snyder was hired with the task of direc�ng the first on-screen unity between the Jus�ce League a�er he directed the not massively well received Batman vs. Superman. Tensions between Snyder and DC were strong about the crea�ve direc�on of the very an�cipated upcoming film. Tragically, Zack and a producer of the film and his wife, Deborah, lost their daughter, Autumn to whom the film is dedicated. Zack Snyder reportedly gave up his will to fight the DC studios

So, we know who directed it, but who does it star and what is it about? No cas�ng changes were made from the 2017 theatrical cut though characters were added. Ben Affleck as Batman, Henry Cavill as Superman, Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman, Ray Fisher as Cyborg, Jason Momoa as Aquaman and Ezra Miller as Flash star as the Jus�ce League. Amy Adams, Jesse Eisenberg, Diane Lane, Jared Leto and Jeremy Irons return in their past DC characters and J.K. Simmons and Ryan Zheng come in as new DCEU characters based on DC comic characters. This film centres around the death of Superman and in his death, he awakes the Mother Boxes drawing in Steppenwolf to spark the apocalypse. Batman, in fear of a new threat, tries to unite the Jus�ce League before the Boxes are united.

So, why watch the 4 hour long (sorry I didn’t men�on that) Snyder cut when you have already watched the Joss Whedon movie? Well, it’s be�er. In the first 10 minutes I knew that. Seeing the intended tone of the movie really made a difference and the overall deeper darker tone made it feel like its own movie. The new 4:3 aspect ra�o emphasises the ac�on sequences and shows off the figh�ng skills of the Jus�ce League. The show stopping cinematography and the impeccable soundtrack steer the film away from the cliché of a DC film trying to be a Marvel film. While the original script feels more organic. The extended running �me helps the audience understand mo�ves and to get to know characters more personally. This all accounts to a spectacular piece of film that should have been released in the first place if I’m honest. Ok, this is not a perfect film. Let’s go on a tangent about the male gaze, shall we? So, in this film we see the Amazons a�er their appearance in the first Wonder Woman film. The difference in what they are wearing is a perfect example of the male gaze. Male gaze is the perspec�ve of a no�onally typical heterosexual man thought to be embodied by the audience to, in most cases, degrade women. It is no coincidence that both versions of the Jus�ce League were directed by men and Wonder Woman was directed by a woman. Superhero films and the male gaze imposed upon them is not yet something of the past and we should s�ll point things out and try to dismantle lenses of films that just don’t work and never really have Apart from that, and maybe a few issues here and there, I would say that the Snyder cut is a stand out film and definitely not one to sleep on especially if you are interested in cinema.

Thank you for reading to the end and if my rambling convinced you to watch this film you can catch it on Sky Cinema and HBO Max. Remember to stay safe and keep on nerding.