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Greg Martin Sonic 2 prelim (not mine) recent private sale

Discussion in 'General Sonic Discussion' started by Buyatari, Jul 9, 2018.

  1. I know you guys like seeing these things. This one is not mine (was not the buyer nor seller) but recently traded hands.

    [​IMG]
     
  2. McAleeCh

    McAleeCh

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    Ooh, nice - thanks for sharing! Great to see an in-progress version of this iconic piece - one of my favourite pieces of western Sonic cover-art. Tails with skin-coloured fur is something I've not seen since those old... what were they, Burger King or McDonald's toys? Wonder if there's a connection, haha - can't remember which year those were produced.
     
  3. VectorCNC

    VectorCNC

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    Wow, so cool!

    Buyatari, how does one become informed when this sort of thing goes up for sale? And how/why are you in possession of so much of this artwork?
     
  4. Overlord

    Overlord

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    Not the Sonic christmas crackers figurines? Tails had flesh-coloured fur in the prototype shot of those.
     
  5. I'll start off by saying again that I was not the buyer or the seller. This particular piece was never mine.
    The video game art that I do have comes from getting a head start on most other buyers.

    As for how to keep an eye on the video game art marketplace, I would recommend this group on facebook.
    Closed group so you have to be a member to see posts.

    https://www.facebook.com/groups/502536466816380/
     
  6. Pengi

    Pengi

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    Not just the prototypes, the final figures had that colouring too.
     
  7. Adamis

    Adamis

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    I've often thought that the skin colored Tails pictures were influenced by the Sonic 2 manga...

    [​IMG]
     
  8. McAleeCh

    McAleeCh

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    Nah, after a bit of Googling I found the one I was thinking of - it's the one seen in this picture:

    [​IMG]

    Apparently a 1993 Burger King kids' meal toy, so I guess my memory was better than I thought! Even at the young age I was back then, it still bothered me his fur colour was wrong, haha. XD
     
  9. Pengi

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    Last edited: Aug 22, 2020
  10. Overlord

    Overlord

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    Oh, right. They were more extreme in the protos, though.
     
  11. Black Squirrel

    Black Squirrel

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    It's unlikely this particular manga did much influencing - you'd expect Sega of America to be leading the way for Sonic 2 and 3. In fact, Tails looks as if he's been nabbed from some Warner Bros. cartoon (the cheapo ones from the 1960s) - like they only had a vague description of the character to work with.


    This Greg Martin painting is probably the first to use the wrong colours, and I would imagine licensors copied it from there.
     
  12. Adamis

    Adamis

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    It would still be a strange coïncidence that this manga has a Tails with a color scheme that was used later by the US merchandising... and let's not forget the brown Tails from the nineties cartoons.
     
  13. ICEknight

    ICEknight

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    Can't be just a coincidence... It's very likely that Tails' prototype design did have that color scheme and then that merchandise and artwork was made from SEGA's rushed orders.

    Thanks for sharing it, Buyatari!
     
  14. Endgame

    Endgame

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    That's a bit odd, the picture I had of them of Tails definitely had a very brown colour for his fur:
    [​IMG]
     
  15. Pengi

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    Yeah, it's not unusual for promotional photos to have prototypes. The Sonic and Robotnik figures’ eyes are a bit off too.
     
  16. ICEknight

    ICEknight

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    Damn, that almost looks like you-know-who:
    [​IMG]

    Isn't it possible to draw a character using Ray's color scheme with the first in-game palette from Sonic 1? Because, now that I think of it, that might have been their starting point and those crazy colors would make sense.


    EDIT: Oh and speaking of tan fur, we cannot forget about this:
    [​IMG]
     
  17. Pengi

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    Another bit of early Tails weirdness.

    The Kellogg's Frosties Spinner (yoyo) was packaged in a box labelled "Two Tails":

    [​IMG]

    (I can confirm that's how they arrived.) A little odd, but on its own probably not significant.

    HOWEVER. This Burger King Kids Club hanger (with the off-colour Tails) also calls him "Two Tails". Any other Two Tails sightings?
     
  18. Black Squirrel

    Black Squirrel

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    I have seen "Two Tails" in some of the gaming magazines, but didn't give it much thought. Check the very early stuff when Sonic 2 was announced.

    I have a vague timeline in my head about when Sonic 2 information was released, but it's very possible they showed the character before telling us his name. I wish we had press releases from that era.
     
  19. Pengi

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    A fan posted this in the SEGA Retro Gamers Facebook group:

    [​IMG]

    How deep does this rabbit hole go?
     
  20. This is Greg Martin as well.
    However, on the original painting he has white fur. Sega must have changed it.
     
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