johnSonder.bsky.social

@johnsonder

A Cabbage of a Man. Making my own comic! 🌀GREENHORN🌀 [COMMISSION OPEN! *DM for Sheet] 🚫 No GenAI or LLM will be tolerated 🚫

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johnSonder.bsky.social@johnsonder· 12d

Still thinking about that time I rewrote the script for Illumination's Super Mario Bros. Movie and honestly maybe I really should be in a writer's room.

[Mario walks through the dark hallways of his house to get a plate of spaghetti, but overhears his parents talking through the warm glow of their bedroom.]

Mario's Mother: "...Don't you think you were a little tough on him at dinner?"

Mario's Dad: "I know... I'm just trying to keep him on ground level. He has these crazy pipe dreams and... and--"

Mario's Mom: "-- and you're not always going to be there to protect him.

Mario's Dad: "Oh Mia... what are we going to do about that boy?"

Mario's Mom: "I know you're scared, amore mio, but he's going to do super out there. All we gotta do is help him grow."

johnSonder.bsky.social@johnsonder· Jun 25

#makeaterriblecomicday2026 It's more important that I make a comic than determine its quality, good or bad.

It's terrible because I had a very long and poignant comic that I scrapped for something being "done", which is more important.

johnSonder.bsky.social@johnsonder· Apr 14

It's #PortfolioDay ! My name is John-Michael, a comic artist, character designer, writer, and illustrator! I'm currently writing my own comic, "Greenhorn"! It's an odd little fantasy adventure about clowns, faeries, robots and monsters! There's a lot to learn! More pages will be posted soon!

Original comic character Hugo Greenhorn eating a very messy cheeseburger. Captain Pastuzo the Smile Knight has a napkin to help clean him up.

The psychopomp Death is stumped at a chess game with Hugo Greenhorn. It is framed in the style of "he doesn't know I have been eating the pieces while he isn't looking" meme

Hugo Greenhorn finds a cool stick and holds it as you would a legendary blade pulled from a stone. Captain Pastuzo watches as he drinks his morning coffee, and a wisp looms behind the child.

A page from the comic "Greenhorn".
A head from the hydra is drenched.
Hydra: "Grr... how irksome!"
One of the heads rises behind Captain Pastuzo
"You are just like..."
"...A PESKY GNAT!"
The captain detects the incoming attack.
The heads swipes at Pastuzo as he barely dodges.
After rolling back into the floor, Captain Pastuzo rolling along the floor at high speeds.

johnSonder.bsky.social@johnsonder· Feb 17

Remade some simple sprites to give them a little more bounce and character. #mario #pixelart #aesprite

A lonely goomba, stuck between two pipes.

Reworked sprites for Mario and a Piranha Plant.

Ungerground goomba sprite reworked to be more expressive.

Piranha plants now have lips and have a bit more 'oomph' to their gnashing.

johnSonder.bsky.social@johnsonder· Feb 17

It's been a while since I've posted any pixel art. I had fun redesigning Mario as faithfully as I could. Maybe I should do more? I think the hard part's out of the way. [Custom resource pack for Super Mario Bros. Remastered.] #pixelart #resprite #mario #smb #remastered #aesprite

johnSonder.bsky.social@johnsonder· Feb 2

Been a while since I've posted personal art. Here's some characters I drew for some DnD campaigns. #DnD #oc #art #fantasy

Alland Sundry, the Super Fighting Warforge

johnSonder.bsky.social@johnsonder· Jan 21

🌀GREENHORN🌀 Page Twenty-Two! Reflection. #art #oc #webcomic #comic #greenhorn

Hugo contemplates.
Hugo: "I know... I don't know much about anything, really."
"But I wanna know things! A lotta things!"
"I hate the feeling of not knowing."
"It makes me feel helpless..."
"... and scared."
"So I keep thinking..."
"... but I can't think of what I don't know!"
"There's so much to learn..."
"... and, even if it's hard..."
Hugo perks up.
"Well, then maybe there's something in this world that only I can know!"
"Something only I can do!"

The wisp is quiet.

johnSonder.bsky.social@johnsonder· Jan 3

🌀GREENHORN🌀 Webcomic OST ♫The World Library♫ I'm feeling a bit confident after the first attempt, so I wanted to write something more ambient. Maybe it's time to get a bit more ambitious after this? #webcomic #comic #greenhorn #beepbox

johnSonder.bsky.social@johnsonder· Jan 2

🌀GREENHORN🌀 Page Twenty-One! First of 2026! #art #oc #comic #webcomic #greenhorn

Hugo Greenhorn is in a heated debate with the wisp.
Hugo: "You?!" I don't wanna talk to you! You're why we're in this mess!"
Wisp: [Am I?]
Hugo: "YOU ARE!"
Wisp: [Could a wisp write on a map?]
[Can it lead against one's will?]
Hugo is quiet.
He lifts up the map to look at the scribbles he had made on it.
The wisp continues.
Wisp: [Does a wisp lead to great fortune?]
[... or to one's early doom?]
[Why is it that you follow, despite not truly knowing?]

johnSonder.bsky.social@johnsonder· Jan 1

First up, I wanted to make a song for the Smile Knights. It actually didn't turn out as bad as I thought it would! I've tried to compose here and there as a teenager, but this time I finally was able to do it in a way that was methodical. A good start to the new year!

johnSonder.bsky.social@johnsonder· Dec 12

GREENHORN Page Twenty. Lump in the Throat. #art #oc #comic #greenhorn

A tear drops and lands on Hugo's sandwich.
Hugo: "You can't eat this... how could you?"
"Now with this... this big lump in your throat!!"

"How could I eat?!"
"After everything?!"
"This isn't funny! I can't do anything but eat!"
"I HATE THIS!!"

Hugo is downtrodden.
Hugo: "I... wanna fix this... but I'm just... too weak... too stupid..."
He pauses.
His stomach growls.
"... and still hungry..."

[Do you get strong by hurting yourself?]
Hugo looks surprised. He looks towards a light.
Hugo: "You...?"
It is the wisp from before. It speaks to Hugo.
[Don't you know muscles will strengthen under stress, but a bone will be weaker once broken?]

johnSonder.bsky.social@johnsonder· Dec 11

GREENHORN Page Nineteen. The Hydra's Secret Attack! #art #oc #webcomic #comic #greenhorn

Pastuzo climbs the bookshelf upwards, thinking of a plan.
Pastuzo: "The lad's sharper than most people give him credit for..."
"... I have no doubt in my mind that he left these items for a reason!"

The Hydra rises behind the captain as he climbs.
Hydra: "You dare try to scuttle away? you are a sad little insect!"

The Hydra unleashes an attack that blindsides Pastuzo. It is a direct hit.
Hugo watches in shock!
Pastuzo falls down.

Pastuzo: "Gah! What did that thing do?! It was too small and sharp to be its head! Like a whip!"
"My bag took the brunt of it, but it still hurts like the dickens!"

Hugo is at his limit.
Hugo: "No... Cap'n.... I-- you..."

johnSonder.bsky.social@johnsonder· Dec 2

GREENHORN Page Eighteen. Thinking it through... #art #oc #webcomic #comic #greenhorn

Pastuzo: "Leavin' the flour sacks makes sense... the thing weighs quite a bit!"
"More than the lad is able to hammerspace... but what about the flasks?"

[Earlier that day...]
Image depicts Hugo trying to pick up the flour sack but is having difficulty. Pastuzo is sleeping under a tree.

Suddenly, a hydra head slams into the bookshelf Pastuzo is holding onto.

Captain Pastuzo scurries up the bookshelf as the Hydra chases him.

johnSonder.bsky.social@johnsonder· Dec 1

I'm making an adventure comedy series akin to Scrooge McDuck comics, TinTin, Asterix, and the original Dragonball! I'm about 2/3 of the way through this first pilot arc. You can read the full thing on my profile. It's called Greenhorn!

johnSonder.bsky.social@johnsonder· Nov 27

GREENHORN Page Seventeen. Dodge and weave. #art #oc #webcomic #greenhorn

Hydra: "Do not be so... hasty!!"
The beast slams down its tail.
Pastuzo rolls up a ramp off the plank the Hydra breaks.
The captain grabs onto the high end of a grand bookshelf.
Pastuzo: "Ooog... I'm too old for all that spinnin'..."
"Let's see... don't have my battle items, so I gotta make do with what I have."
[Item slot visualizes Pastuzo's base stats. Equipped Weapon: Balloon Sword. Flour sack: used. Flask: 2. Box of Matches: Unknown]

johnSonder.bsky.social@johnsonder· Nov 25

GREENHORN Page Sixteen. Action! #art #oc #webcomic #comic #greenhorn

Hydra: "Grr... how irksome!"
"You are just like..."
"A PESKY GNAT!!"

Pastuzo dodges an attack.
Pastuzo: "WAH!!"

He rolls away as a ball of a man.

johnSonder.bsky.social@johnsonder· Nov 22

GREENHORN Page Fifteen. Snack break! #art #oc #webcomic #comic #greenhorn

Hugo: "Okay! The exit is just around here!"
Skrrt!
"Ooog... I'm real hungry... but I thought I ate a good breakfast!"
"What time is it, anyway?"

The sounds of fighting are happening below. Hugo looks over the balcony.

Hugo: "Oh! There's Pastuzo!"
"He looks... okay, I guess?"
"Good thing I put this here instead of my bindle!"

Hugo eats a sandwich as Pastuzo fights the Hydra.

Hugo: "I wonder if pastuzo's eaten yet?"
"... Should I really be eating right now?"

johnSonder.bsky.social@johnsonder· Nov 21

*Slow reverb baby laughter* #art #oc #greenhorn #meme

Hugo Greenhorn at a low angle, like the Frieren meme.

johnSonder.bsky.social@johnsonder· Nov 20

GREENHORN Page Fourteen. Fake it 'til you make it. #art #oc #webcomic #comic #greenhorn

Hydra: "It doesn't take a genuis to conclude that your powers are limited, fool! And yet here I-- 'WE' are!
Pastuzo: "R-right... that was rhetorical. But I won't tell ye exactly why I can do that, so..."
Hydra: "No need. We can figure it out. This is what smart people do."
Pastuzo: "Oh. I-- uh..."
"If ya actually do, could you... tell me?"
Hydra: "Obviously not!!!"

johnSonder.bsky.social@johnsonder· Nov 19

GREENHORN Page Thirteen. A magician never reveals their secrets. #art #oc #webcomic #comic #greenhorn

Pastuzo: "H-Hey!! At least listen when I'm goading you!"
Hydra: "Ah. Yes. The clown."
"... yay"
Pastuzo: "At least act invested! Did ya forget the feelin' of flying through the air?"
Hydra: "Yes, about that..."
"I suppose you should feel proud of yourself."
"You know something we do not."
"How can a silly human have such power?"
"Yet you still run. Why?"

Pastuzo: "HA! The inner machinations of my mind aren't for ya to poke n' prod! You wanna know somethin'? Good! Goes to show that not everything's in those books of yours! Come down here and I'll teach ya a lesson!"

johnSonder.bsky.social@johnsonder· Nov 17

Page Twelve. This guy talks too much!! #art #oc #webcomic #comic #greenhorn

The Hydra goes on a monologue whilst looking for Pastuzo's decoy, believing it to be Hugo.

"That horned Gamin was propelled within this general vicinity... and yet..."
"... We cannot detect the electric field that emits from all living organism! Why?!"
"Though purely conjecture, we have developed three viable theories..."
" Unum! (Latin for 'one') Those fools somehow surmised the nature of our abilities, and have hatched an elaborate scheme in response!"
(Note: unlikely)
"Duo! (Latin for 'two') Idiot junior landed on its neck in the fall, and thus is no longer qualifying as a living organism! Fu-fu-fu!"
"Tria! (Latin for 'three' Our talents in electro-receptivity are weakening considerably."
(Note: Completely inconceivable!"
"..."
"... Tria-beta! (Beta is the second letter in the greek alphabet, which is not latin but still in character.) Our OWN field is intensifying, therefore overpowering their own feeble emissions!"
(Note: Completely conceivable!)
"Fu-fu-fu!"

"Try as the might! Those fools cannot match our brains AND brawn!"

The Hydra continues to overlook the dust cloud of flour, which billows from Pastuzo's decoy: a burlap sack of flour with Hugo's face crudely drawn on it.

johnSonder.bsky.social@johnsonder· Nov 15

Page Eleven. Kids and adults. #art #oc #webcomic #greenhorn

Pastuzo looks down.

Pastuzo: "Listen, lad... Mistakes... it's a part of learnin'. That's what kids do best. It's the grown-ups who know to clean up after. Got it?"

Hugo, holding a map as Pastuzo hides him from behind his back:
"... yes, sir."

Hugo darts off towards the library's exit.
[I won't let you down, Cap'n!]
[No more fooling around!]

[But one day...]
[I'll show you!]
[I can clean after myself!]

Pastuzo, in deep thought:
[I felt it, Hugo. Holdin' you... your heart...it was pounding!]
[... That good cheer amidst the darkness wasn't out of childishness or just bein' oblivious...

Pastuzo raises his fists.
Pastuzo: "That's the courage of a real Smile Knight!

"It's about time I acted my age! C'mon, fiend!"

johnSonder.bsky.social@johnsonder· Nov 13

Page Ten. Chuckster. #art #oc #webcomic #greenhorn

The Hydra wraps its large tail around the duo, trapping the Captain and the Greenhorn from escaping.

Hydra: "Fu fu fu..."
"Fools!"
"All those who bear witness to these forbidden tomes shall perish!"

The captain reaches for his pack for something that will help them flee.

Pastuzo: [I'm gonna need something with more weight...]
[What's the heaviest thing in here?]

Captain Pastuzo lifts Hugo up as he would hold an iron ball in shot putting. Hugo, bewildered, crosses his arms as a safety precaution.

[This'll hafta do!]
"Just like we've practiced a thousant times! You know what to do, lad!!"

Pastuzo chucks the small child over the Hydra and several yards away.

johnSonder.bsky.social@johnsonder· Nov 12

Page Nine. Chomp! #art #oc #comic #greenhorn

sfx:CHOMP!
Pastuzo: "Ye gotta stay sharp, lad! I dunno how... but there's no shaking this beastie!"
"Ye gotta leave this to me! Head to the exit!"
Hugo: "What!? Now way! I still gotta--"
sfx:WHAM!

johnSonder.bsky.social@johnsonder· Nov 11

Page Eight. The second part of a double-page spread. (Pictured above) #art #oc #comic #greenhorn

Hugo:
[Well! Since I'm already in trouble...]
[...Might as well follow that wisp!]
[It almost looks like it has somewhere--]
[... to go?]

"HUZZAH!"
"Hey Cap'n! Look at this! You can slide down its neck!"
"It's easy as long as you go down this spiky fur!"
"WAH!"
"Why doesn't this one have a--?!"
"--snoot?"

johnSonder.bsky.social@johnsonder· Nov 10

Page Seven. We'll Just Improvise! #art #oc #comic #greenhorn

Hydra: "You truly intend to abscond? Surely, you jest!"
Hugo: "We ARE leaving! We DO jest!"
"... and my name's Hugo, actually--"
"OH SHOOT! CAP'N!!"

Pastuzo: "Sorry lad! Keep an eye on me and stay close!"

Hugo: [It's that flame again? Where's it goin'?]
Pastuzo: "Eh?! What did I JUST say??"
Hugo: "Oop! Sorry!"

johnSonder.bsky.social@johnsonder· Nov 9

《Update on GREENHORN!》 Coming back from a period of transition. A lot of time lately has been spent writing ahead and chipping away at new pages when possible! The rest of the current arc-- Page of Swords-- is currently in editing and will start rolling out within the week! See you soon! 🤡

Hugo and Pastuzo look at a paper in awe!

johnSonder.bsky.social@johnsonder· Sep 23

Page Six. The Execution of the Said Plan? #art #oc #comic

Captain Pastuzo quickly throws the lead pipe, only to show that the Hydra has already spotted them.
The pipe falls below to the second floor of the library.
Hugo, unaware that they have been caught, asks:
"Psst! Cap'n! What was the word we were gonna use?"
Pastuzo is speechless.
"...Cap'n?"

johnSonder.bsky.social@johnsonder· Sep 20

Page Five. The game plan! #art #oc #comic

Pastuzo, pressing against the bookshelf:
"It's fine, lad. We can still make this work. But ye gotta follow my lead!"
"Here's the plan..."
[I throw the pipe down to the second floor...]
[The sound will distract the beastie and give us time to slip through!]
[When I say the word, we run!]
[Ye got it?]
Hugo: "Got it!"
Pastuzo winds up to throw the pipe.
Pastuzo: "Alright! We need to make this count!"

johnSonder.bsky.social@johnsonder· Sep 18

Page Four. It's okay, we all make mistakes. #art #oc #comic