Wrapping up a few major projects. Thought I'd post this little set of sketches and warmups. This was just going to be head practice, which I think went well, but then the expressions and personalities that emerged have inspired a really fun story.
They're both spies and assassins operating in England. It's a bit of spy x spy, but they ultimately share the goal of deposing Elizabeth I during the 1585 Anglo-Spanish war. I am a history nerd and love historical fiction to death.
Remi is a French agent who seeks to help install Mary, Queen of Scots, in place of Elizabeth I. With civil turmoil in his homeland, putting down the Protestant force in England will go a long way to restoring stability to France at a time when the other major powers are weak. Mary, an ally to France, would allow a joint-war against Spain, eliminating France's only competitor as the major power of Europe.
Diego is Spanish, working to eliminate the protestant force in England just like Remi. However, the objective is to promote Catholicism for Phillip of Spain to gain papal favor--an edge in its cold war against France. Diego was appointed to his position, so he operates out of a sense of duty to his country rather than an ideological force.
The ways they accomplish their exploits often lead to them stepping on each other's toes. It's a story that's dramatic and often comedic with the English characters generally bumbling around with no idea what extreme peril they are in with these two around.
I've drawn out a pretty nice arc for their character development with their meeting as civilians, discovering another agent is present and active, and ultimately catching one another moments before they execute their plans--and the target. Fast friends to enemies to uneasy allies and then... ? You'll have to wait until I sit down and start planning out the pages. Looking to make this a short and sweet comic series.
The story's really focusing on the differences between being clever (Remi) and being intuitive (Diego). You can't out-think someone who's ruled by instinct, and you can't chase someone who knows what you're thinking before you do. They're going to find that they're opposite equals, and I'm excited to explore that relationship.
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