Time for me to introduce this lovable goofster…. Addilae Grimm. CEO, Headhoncho, Ringmaster, Grand Poobah and Cult leader of “The Guild of Grimm”.
Your gonna see this guy frequently in the “The Land of Odd”, my in-development webcomic series coming soon to a theatre near you. Addilae was a character I had for years since elementary school. I was always intrigued with the works of Jim Carrey specifically not more so of his cartoonish rubbery character movement (but that does play a good part on him) but more so of his voice direction and enunciation. Most specifically “The Cable Guy” and “Ace Ventura” characteristics were what I was going for but I figured it would be hilarious if stuff like that would came out of the mouth of a fanboy/otaku-like geekboy whose not only obsessive over the occult and all things weird but has the same vernacular when discussing his favorite anime moments or hypothetical conspiracy theories. Vocal wise, although I want some Carrey-mannerisms sprinkled into it, I was also envisioning both the soft-spoken vocal tone of Paul Reubens (another fantastical actor RIP) but with the occasional fast-talking and sometimes overly banting Robin Williams pattern for how he speaks.
Addilae’s hairstyle is essentially inspired by John Linnell of They Might Be Giants but simplified and stylized for an animated type look. Plus the spiky haired style fits the anime-obsessed motif I was going for. I was also trying some outfit choices (even using the Linnell black striped shirt) but was inspired by Leonard Hoftsteder from The Big Bang Theory to give him a jacket.
Addilae is practically Carrey trapped in the body of a “overly-geeky and nerdy 21 and over” P.T. Barnum showman cultist enthusiastically obsessed with under-covering the beauty of what humanity has to offer all abnormality and mysterious discoveries, and wants to share these thoughts with others. And although he possessed many magic abilities such as shape shifting, teleporting and many more unmentionable powers, he rarely exhuberates them unless it’s for a simple visual gag or joke. Addilae isn’t necessarily the main focus of the comic, as the comic is gonna have a large plethora of characters and Addilae is part of the small group that’s the most centered on. When I was worried about how characters of no relation and with different driven-objectives would even work together, I remembered one of my favorite graphic novels “American Born Chinese” was able to execute a story perfectly using three recurring ones that look like they shouldn’t go together but were able to connect to one another in some way.
But what is “The Guild of Grimm” that you ask? Welp…
Thus concludes our broadcast day!