You could probably consider this a Summer 2014 issue of Artwork Adventures, as shows that ended this past week feature pretty heavily.

Fanart is an interesting thing because it represents a level of fandom engagement different than what we often experience on blogs, Twitter, Reddit, or on anime forums. It’s always fascinating to me that there’s basically another entirely different segment of the fandom (a ridiculously talented segment) that spends their time creating artwork of the shows they love, rather than just yakking away about it. Anyways, on to the pictures!

This is a tribute to happier days. RIP, Hime-sama—I liked you best. There’s a metric ton of Aldnoah.Zero Slaine x Hime x Inaho fanart out there on Pixiv, but I liked that the designs in this one were a little bit less moe than most. I’m also a big fan of the hologram-looking planet up in the sky.

Farewell, Haikyuu!! I’m going to do my best to not limit myself entirely to slick computer artwork (because that’s what most often catches my eye). This looks like colored pencil to me, and I like how all the lines in the cap give the illusion that Hinata has just thrown in out. Couple that with his dorky tongue face and you’ve got a winner.

I was actually really delighted with the way Nozaki-kun ended. Despite the fact that Nozaki didn’t grab Sakura and give her a big ole kiss, I felt like their final scene together was a really nice way to end the series. And yeah, I think Sakura does have a chance at someday getting Nozaki to notice her feelings. As for the picture itself, I mostly picked it for the funny chibi depictions of the cast in the background….okay, and a little bit for Nozaki and Sakura looking heartstoppingly like they’re about to kiss.

I found this picture at the top of Pixiv’s Mysterious Library spotlight, and man, does it deserve to be there. It’s an original, and the obvious feature is the beautiful glowing blue globe. I also like how the lighting moves from warmer and brighter on the right to cooler and darker on the left. It makes the globe stand out just that much more, and also allows for the cool effect of the lamp on the left side of the picture to make its own little spot of light in front of the plant.

Got no idea what these are supposed to be besides kind derpy-looking cute bird, and it’s an original so I’ve got no clues to go use. I found this on on the female demographics popular rankings page at #16 on 9/23. What else is there to say beside that two little bird creatures are sitting on top of what I assume to be some sort of desert food. Cuteness and sugar? Yeah, that’s fine by me. The artist (from a quick examination of their page) looks to do a lot of pictures featuring these birds. Maybe they’re a symbol for innocence or something…

KyoAni’s Free! Eternal Summer was another of the shows that ended this week. You guys should know by now that I really like red hair, and while Rin’s sister, Gou, is wonderful enough that I wrote two episodic posts just about her, I can’t deny that Rin looks quite fetching in this picture. I love his blue tinted shirt and the way the ribbons on the flowers he’s holding compliment his hair.

This is Barakamon‘s first appearance on my blog in any form, and how appropriate that it would be through artwork that it makes its debut. I’m loving the show so far (about halfway through), and depending on how it wraps things up it could beat out Nozaki-kun as my favorite of the season. But anyways, the picture. As is probably evident by now, I hugely admire pictures that imitate motion effectively, and this is just another example of it happening, with the brush in midstroke but the ink moving past it already.

It should come as no surprise to anyone who’s been reading my Zankyou no Terror posts that a picture like this would be the one I would pick for this week, the week of the show’s finale. Not only is this picture something of a reflection of what was important to me in the show, but it also is beautifully rendered. I love the way the blues progress from a brighter hue at the bottom to a deeper, richer hue at the top of the image. Lisa’s hands are on top of the boys’ hands, almost in a comforting gesture. The whole set up reminds me very much of a prayer, perhaps for a peaceful rest for these two boys who have done so many difficult things.

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And that’s all for today! Let me know how you’re liking these posts in the comments below!