This cosplayer at PenguiCon (the open source/science fiction convention held just outside of Detroit each year) is getting ready to attend the masquerade dressed as Spider Jerusalem, the heavily tattooed hero of Warren Ellis's seminal comic series Transmetropolitan. He and his assistant are drawing in the tatts with a Sharpie pen -- and doing a fine job of it.

(Another in the ongoing series of interesting stuff I take pictures of while out and about)

Link, All ten volumes of Transmetropolitan on Amazon

See also:
Transmetropolitan #1 as a free download
I come to praise Transmetropolitan

  • Adam Rakunas

    “Read my scripture!”

    (Transmet fans will know what I mean.)

  • Graham

    Oh, for God’s sake.

  • el Dopa

    Last time I checked, Sharpies contain Toluene, which is very nasty stuff. I have no idea if he’s getting anywhere near a troublesome dose, however.

    I once decorated a friend in a similar way, but on a smaller scale. We found that “Formula 409″ cleaner (which smells like a combination of ammonia and alcohol, but who knows if it isn’t more toxic than the toluene?) took the sharpie ink right off.

  • the Other michael

    I’m embarrassed to remember the college incident where I had somebody marker my entire back just to have a chance to win a Spinal Tap t-shirt. They weren’t sharpies, but they still lasted pretty d**n long.

  • Another Aaron

    I did something similar for a girl in college as well. She was posing for someone’s photography project…afterward, the marker would NOT come off. Eventually she snapped and used one of those tough kitchen sink scrubs and mineral spirits to get the ink off.

    Probably not the safest way to remove it, but it worked. (Her body was covered with red blotches for about 2 weeks though.)

    The fellow above does look cool. :) I still remember the girl sitting in the bathroom crying trying to get it off. Oh well, it’ll come off eventually….

  • shortfatsteve

    I believe the correct term for that girl helping Spider there is filthy assistant.

  • funvill

    No glasses, no points

  • Don

    Shortfatsteve beat me to it, so I’ll just observe that he really needs a second one with short black hair helping him as well, or at least chain-smoking and cursing nearby.

  • Domomojo

    Is that healthy? Who knows what the Chinese factories are putting in marker ink these days.

  • Earth Man

    Domomojo, if its anything like what’s in Aqua Beads, I’m sure Spider would approve.

  • anangbhai

    How about a goateed editor with a gun and a t-shirt that says “Where’s my fucking article?” smoking three cigarettes at once.

  • groonk

    i saw 2 Spider’s at Dragon Con this year. they came prepared. no black magic markers needed. my camera was never ready to catch them, though.

    others caught him and his Filthy Assistants: http://www.flickr.com/photos/foenix/1340922242/

    fear what you have wrought Mr Ellis:
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/12747930@N04/1333407182/

  • Earth Man

    er, Aqua *Dots*.

  • Antinous

    Half naked cosplay and a magic marker to sniff. That’s hot.