This was a redesign that I had a really hard time trying to figure out because his original design was already really perfect. I mean, he was a skeleton in a suit of armor all the color of old, dried blood. That's a really tough act to follow, especially when you consider that the character is basically this world's version of Satan. I tried to make parts of his armor sharper, give him glowing eyes, and a different face. I tried to do a combo of Hades from Disney's Hercules and concept art of The Horned King from The Black Cauldron.
For his Shadow Phoenix form, I kept it similar to its original look but gave him glowing eyes, made his head look similar to his helmet, and made his wings actually made of fire. I mean, the phoenix is known for having wings of fire, so why not do the same here?
A problem that Darkar has always had is that, while he's still a great villain, he's not really as interesting as The Trix, Valtor, and arguably even Selina. He's a demonic bad guy that wants power and that's pretty much it. He's theatrical, which definitely helps but that's not much. While he could be cringy in the 4Kids dub (I say this as someone who considers the 4Kids dub to be the BEST Winx Club dub), he was definitely more memorable with more personality and iconic lines. So in my version, I would like a mixture of both versions with him being a demonic deity but also have a memorable and enjoyable personality without being cringy. Basically, I'd have him be like Hades from Hercules, only without the James Woods style of humor because that wouldn't work for Darkar. Basically, being a great villain that is flamboyant and fun while also being a serious threat. I mean, he was the master of The Ancestral Witches for crying out loud. But I do like that he is a more distant threat and would keep that as part of the character because of how it led to more character focus stories, which is one of the reasons why season 2 was such an amazing season. My personal favorite episode from that season is the one about Musa and her dad.
Anyway, I hope you guys like it and think that I did justice to the character.