Category Archives: Challenge Favorites

The winning entries for all HeroMachine contests.

Character Contest 18 Winners

The character contest challenge this week was to take a common phrase of two words (or three if you could swing it) and turn that into a super-powered pair of characters, like "Hawk and Dove" or "Love and War" or "Cloak and Dagger". A lot of the entries were very good, but the featured pair weren't really a phrase like that. For instance, I think Crinold's "Gaia and Quicksand" are marvelous illustrations, but "Gaia and Quicksand" isn't a saying:

Having said that, I thought the following submissions were great examples of good illustrations that also fit the contest concept. Well done all!

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Caption Contest 62 Winner!

I am happy to give you the winning entry for Caption Contest 62 via the one and only Frankie!

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I liked how the phrase matched up with Superman's happy expression, and the thought it provoked over whether the red tighties ARE his underwear, and if so, why they're not clean, and how. Because, eeewww.

There were other great entries, though, including our esteemed Honorable Mentions!

  • Gero: If a train leaves Boston going 135mph and another leaves Bangor going…oh SCREW IT!!
  • Tim: Test of strength in 3…2…1
  • TopHat: “What are these train tracks doing out he- Oh crap”
  • Anarchangel: “Open wide. Here comes the choo choo train. Nom nom nom.”
  • Lawrence: Hmmm, are these bear tracks or deer tracks? Uh oh!
  • Nancy: “I think you can, I think you can…”
  • Bixlord: Six Flags can suck it, this is a way better Superman ride.
  • Mad V: GET IN MY BELLY!!!

Great job everyone! Frankie will win his choice of either a caricature of his face (or someone else he chooses) or any item he likes to be included in HeroMachine 3. Congratulations, and thanks to everyone who entered!

Character Contest 17 Winner

You all submitted some great, creative, fun, interesting, and well-thought-out entries for last week's contest, and I wanted to say right off how much I appreciate the work and care you obviously put into these images. I built HeroMachine mostly because I knew there were an awful lot of very creative people out there with visual stories they wanted to tell, but who just lacked the tools to put their imaginations on paper. You continue to show how true that is week in and week out, so thank you for sharing your characters with all of us.

Now, having said that, I had to go through all the darn things and try to limit myself to just a handful to post here as Honorable Mentions, and believe me, it wasn't easy. I gave it my best shot, though, and I hope you enjoy seeing the "Best Of" gallery below.

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Caption Contest 61 Winner

With many thanks to the other entrants, the winner of Caption Contest 61 (and the right to choose either one item or a caricature of their head to be included in HeroMachine 3) is ... Loki!

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Sick, but funny. I am still laughing at it which is, frankly, a little disturbing in its own right.

Also funny were the Honorable Mentions for the week:

  • sabetoonth: YOU LIE!
  • Bixlord: And after getting into the van, there was neither candy nor puppies.
  • song_bird2103: Mommy wasn’t kissing Santa Clause, last night. I think we -both- know that, don’t we?
  • remy: Yeah, that’s him! That’s the man I saw naked in the phone booth!
  • TopHat: I put it to you,that you are not ’super’ and instead just ‘really great’.
  • Niall Mor: Look, Mommy! Superman’s gonna hurl!

Thanks for entering, everyone! I'll post the new contest in a bit, though I do want Loki and the others to have their moment in the sun, so it won't be TOO soon.

Character Contest 16 Winner

Many thanks to everyone who entered Character Contest 16! This was a tough contest to design for, and even tougher to judge, as there were a lot of high-quality submissions. You all did a nice job, and even if I don't include yours in the "Honorable Mentions" below, rest assured I still very much enjoyed it and you have my thanks.

Before getting to the more serious entries, I wanted to present Hammerknight's succinct summary of the biggest change from the Golden Age to today:

hammerknight-price-codes

And with that, awaaaaaaaaay we go!
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Caption Contest 60 Winner!

I am happy to announce that the winner of Caption Contest 60 is ... Niall Mor!

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The other entries that I thought were particularly good this week were:

  • Hakoon: Ok, ok, I’m sorry. You have a lovely tan.
  • Hammerknight: “I do”
  • Ben Trafford: “Jocasta? But I thought you were a -good- guy?!”
  • Danny Beaty: My head isn’t the only thing she shaved!
  • marx: I believe you about the dolphins, but really, I’ve NEVER been able to see those 3-D posters, no matter how I focus.

Those were all original and good takes that I'd not have thought of, so hats off to you guys. Extra bonus points (not currently redeemable for anything) go to Ben Trafford for "Best Comic Book In-Joke". I also really liked Halloween Jack's version of the lubricant joke, but didn't think it was appropriate for the space. Funny, though!

As the winner, Niall gets to pick either any one item or a caricature of his face to be part of HeroMachine 3's final release, so congratulations to him!

I'll also take this opportunity to note that if there's a pistol you really really wanted to go in (say, the Desert Eagle, which I still don't see making a separate slot for since there's something very very close already), winning a contest is the best way to go. So start thinkin'!

Thanks to all our entrants, and good luck with the next one, which should be posted shortly.

Character Contest 15 Winner

We had a great set of entries for Character Contest 15, and I want to thank everyone who took the time to put together a character. I appreciate your talent and your willingness to share your creations very much!

After the jump I'd like to present the illustrations I thought were truly exceptional, and of course the overall winner.

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Caption Contest 59 Winner

The winner of Caption Contest 59 is ... Danny Beaty!

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You'll notice that all of the Honorable Mentions and Danny's entry as well have one thing in common -- they all consist of a statement that will immediately be followed by plate hurlage. Which makes me laugh, given the expression on her face. Speaking of which, here are those Honorable Mentions!

  • Jose Inoa: “…control? A woman’s place is in the kitchen, right Xena? Xena?”
  • Bixlord: Do a good job and I’ll let you wear shoes.
  • Mike: Dear what did I tell you about getting the red china mixed in with the white china. Now all that china behind you is pink!
  • Oquies: “You do know we have a dish washer right?”

Many thanks to all the fine entries! Danny wins either any one item of his choice (within the bounds of reason) or a caricature of his head to be included with HeroMachine 3. I still owe Danny a custom illustration as well for a previous win, hopefully I can get them all wrapped up sooner rather than later.

I'll be putting up a Character Design Contest in a bit, so be on the lookout for that and YOUR chance to win!

Character Contest 14 Winner!

Our contest this week ended up being almost more of an "environment" affair than science-fiction, which is fine considering I just released those item sets recently. Having said that, the overall winner definitely embodied the spirit of the contest and also made a totally cool looking illustration, so bonus! Read on to see the Honorable Mentions for the week and the ultimate winner.

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Caption Contest 58 Winner!

I am happy to announce that the winner of Caption Contest 58 and his choice of either his face or a custom item to be included in HeroMachine 3 is ... FishPants!

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I had a hard time choosing between this one and the First Runner Up:

  • TheNate: "Gas cloud near my head? Only a blundering fool would miss that."

I think they both did the best job of incorporating Mystery Ninja's line in a way that was funny and not so forced. Ultimately, I went with FishPants because he had a higher joke density -- "Confused Ninja" makes me laugh as much as the idea of this guy calling himself "Blundering Fool", possibly the greatest sidekick name ever.

Other great entries included:

  • Michael: No worries sir he’s my new sidekick, Gassy.
  • Patrick: What makes you think I ate the kryptonite laced bean dip meant for Superman?
  • Whit: Nothing to worry about, boss. The Phantom Broccoli HATES the colour red!
  • Greft: “Yes sir. It took quite a few rolls of duct tape, but the windows are sealed from a terrorist attack.”

Many thanks to everyone who entered!