A long post this time.

[tl;dr - I got Sionni’s look from a man standing outside Sotheby’s cafe when the public viewing of Freddie Mercury’s stuff was on. And I redrew the final panel by stealing a pose I came across while reading Frank Miller’s Dark Knight Returns]

My absolute favourite thing about Sionni is where I got him from -

A couple of years ago, Sarah and I went to Sotheby’s in London where they were displaying a vast collection of the contents of Freddie Mercury’s house. I won’t go on too much about the effect it had on me, only I have to say - it was breathtaking.

What struck me the most was the gap between the almost god-like glamour of his public image and the sheer ordinariness of the some of the items he owned (‘I’ve got that book at home!’), especially the tear off calendar sheet he used to write down - in pencil! - the lyrics for Bohemian Rhapsody -

And it was in that state - awe, joy and wonder - that I spotted the fellow I ‘built’ Sionni from. He was standing outside the café window while we were inside having a cup of tea and a sandwich. You can’t tell from my duotone panels, obviously, but he had purple hair and a blue beard (or maybe it was the other way around). Everything else I remember about him you can see for yourself in the pictures above. I rewrote the first panel on page fifteen of issue one to match what I saw.

If you’re that person (or if you know who it is) and you’re reading this, get in touch on one of my socials - I’ll send you (and whoever pointed you in this direction) a free copy of issue two when it comes out.

After drawing him in the final panel, I wasn’t happy with his pose. I knew what I wanted but I just couldn’t get it right -

And then, coming to the end of The Dark Knight Returns, I saw almost exactly the pose I needed. So I stole it -

I’m sure other comicbook artists must do this sort of thing all the time (that’s my excuse and I’m sticking to it).

Until next time - JJ