Wow... that is one gorgeous piece. Bet it cost a pretty penny too. One of my mates has the Buffy signature 'B' tattooed on her bicep, but this piece is just... Again with the WoW.

Avarice | March 22, 07:05 CET

Yes, I'm sure that that cost a lot and took forever to get done; it is very impressive (and to think I was proud of my t-shirt design dedicated to Whedon shows!).

embers | March 22, 07:17 CET

My miniscule amount of ink includes no Whedonia, but I ran across this cool Buffy/Angel tat collection early on in my fan-travels.

And wow! - that Illustrated Woman represents a huge amount of money, pain and dedication.

(ShadowQuest, if you don't have them already, this Angel font and this Buffy font might interest you as well.)

QuoterGal | March 22, 07:21 CET

It's very impressive, but I'm sorry, that is the fugliest Willow I have ever seen.

Matt7325 | March 22, 07:24 CET

Wow, that's impressive!

I'm planning on getting River, Faith, Buffy and Illyria (kick-ass women) in a collage across the top of my back/shoulder blades, and a railroad spike (in honor of Spike) as if it were driven into my chest. I already have a few Firefly quotes on my arms and a cool pic of Serenity on my bicep.

Jaye! | March 22, 07:41 CET

Jason Isaacs has Serenity tattoos? Now I am impressed ;)

Matt7325 | March 22, 08:16 CET

QuoterGal Thanks! I was hoping there was an Angel font - I've already got the Buffied one. (And I just found out my WinZip expired, so I'm downloading jzip on a friend's recommendation.)

I ripped "Live Fast, Die Never" to my computer, then rearranged the tracks so they were in episode order, adding in the tracks that Douglas Romayne sent me. Comes to 71 minutes. I burned it to disc, and used Publisher to make a CD booklet. Hence the searching for the logo. I found a really cool one that was on the cover of the five season DVD box set (Angel logo over a blue cityscape) and used that. I just have to find an episode guide somewhere so I can add the episode titles to the track list.

My "Instrumental Buffy" is over three hours long - over the last couple days I ripped it to three CDs & then dubbed them to two tapes. Added "Angel" to the end of the last tape, and used Publisher to make "booklets" for the tapes. But having the font will come in handy if I ever write another "Angel" fic. Or just feel creative and wanna mess around with collages.

Oh, and I've seen that tat site before - they have a link to the actors' tats, and say Tony has one, but don't know what or where it is. I didn't have the nerve to ask him @Motor City Buffy.

One of my roomies @MCB had the Mark of Eyghon on her arm - it was a bit awkward when she dressed as an Initiative solider for our "Hush" reenactment.

MattManic7325 I have to agree. I think the artwork was designed by the wearer. Also, why is an angry Buffy stabbing her Watcher in the back?

jason_issacs That is an insane Serenity tat! How long did that take!?

ShadowQuest | March 22, 08:34 CET

@jason_isaacs sweet!

Here's *my* purdy girl!

[ edited by RobinInSeoul on 2010-03-22 09:37 ]

RobinInSeoul | March 22, 09:36 CET

I want the Mutant Enemy monster (GrrArg) tattoo from the link QuoterGal shared! That would be awesome. : )

mossome | March 22, 10:25 CET

Wow. First of all: I'm glad for everyone here who have Whedonverse related tattoos and are happy with them.

Having said that: I just don't get it. Having posters on your wall, wearing fan-shirts, slapping pics on your desktop, collecting, erm, collectibles ;), all this I get. But these tattoos just make me squirm uncomfortably (and not because of the pain endured to place them). Again, not saying what anyone should do, just saying that this would never be for me. But then, I don't even wear my fan t-shirts in regular daily life (those are for fan meet-ups only :)).

Plus, I'm one of those people who don't get tattoos in general. I have two friends who have tattoos, both having chosen things that look pretty and mean something very personal to them, but I just can't help picturing those tattoos faded on older, drooping skin, in a couple of years, which makes me wonder if they'll still be happy with them then.

The thing about tattoos is not that they're not pretty - in many cases the art itself is great to look at (I really love the design on RobinInSeoul's tat, for instance), it's that that image then permanently becomes a part of your look and influences the way that other people judge you. And while the latter shouldn't matter (although in practice in usually does), it's the permanency that'd bother me. How can you be sure that 5, 10, 15 or 20 years from now, you'll still love that one thing enough to have it permanently marked/drawn on your skin? I couldn't. It's fine if others can (my tattooed friends assure me that there's no doubt in their minds that they made the right decision in getting theirs), but I just can't quite wrap my head around it :).

Having said all that, if there'd be something like removable tats, I'd be happy to walk around with the mutant enemy monster on my arm for a year or two (as long as I could take it off from time to time ;)).

GVH | March 22, 11:09 CET

@GVH, that is 100% my feeling on tattoos as well.

Also, the back piece this whole post is about to begin with is pretty cool. But they put all the mains from season 2 except Cordy!? That makes me sad :(

Turbofist911 | March 22, 11:20 CET

I'm still trying to work out who the three people at the top are supposed to be! I'm guessing top right is Angel (although looks nothing like him at all) but the two on the top left??

cdm22 | March 22, 11:35 CET

That is lovely work, and I admire the dedication, but having "Death is your gift" at the bottom? How does that make the person feel? As a lifelong statement? I understand the tattoo reticence mentioned above: I thought long and hard about my ONE. And got the "But how will you feel about it in 30 years?" comment from a friend. I told her I would still be trying to accomplish what it meant to me. So, although I LOOOVVE my Whedonverse, unless it was one single quote that spoke volumes to me about my life and summed up all the shows, no 'verse tats for me.

hopitopia | March 22, 12:01 CET

Pretty sure that top left is supposed to be Spike and Dru, although again not so much with the resemblance. I have to believe this is removable art; otherwise I cannot imagine the insanity it would reflect.

baxter | March 22, 12:05 CET

Is that supposed to be Xander in the bottom right?? And Giles in the middle with the stake looks almost like a Hirschfeld caricature. The colors are gorgeous but if I were to be the Whedon-illustrated woman, I'd want the people of Whedon to well, look like them.

Tonya J | March 22, 13:54 CET

GVH pretty much says it. No problems with folk getting them but personally if I ever did it'd be something more general/abstract/smaller that i'm unlikely to ever grow out of, probably a word or phrase (and no, not a Saltire with "Scotland Forever" under it or anything involving "Mum" - only Sean Connery can carry off a pair of clichés that size ;-).

But on the other hand, I appreciate the love of the verse this displays and certainty that seems to go hand in hand with that love that the wearer never will grow out of appreciating Buffy. And it looks nice, is basically inoffensive and is at least on the person's back i.e. they can put a shirt on and cover it up no problem. The most puzzling tattoos for me are facial or otherwise uncover-uppable, that's basically saying "I'm never going to want or need a proper job (that's not in a tattoo parlour and/or heavy metal band)". Why would anyone not forced to join a prison gang restrict their future options in that way ?

Saje | March 22, 15:15 CET

I think if I were to get Whedon-related ink, (which I likely never would), I too would go for something a little different. The art looks like much of the early BtVS comic book art, which didn't necessarily go for actor resemblance. Still, it's colorful and fun.

Not going to get into the whole pro and con discussion of tatts; suffice it to say that I just got my first, and I couldn't be happier. If you get to my age (40), and take the time to think about what you want to get, ensuring that it has meaning and value to you, and then have it done in a suitably discreet place, well, I think it's an excellent idea. :-).

SoddingNancyTribe | March 22, 16:06 CET

Heh. I've seen it and it is beautiful.

Tonya J | March 22, 16:19 CET

That's pretty cool SNT (though bigger than i'd have the guts to go for as a first tat). Is it a dragon or a phoenix (or an open-to-interpretation ;) ?

Saje | March 22, 16:22 CET

A phoenix.

SoddingNancyTribe | March 22, 16:30 CET

I have the number 144 in roman numerals on my ankle, the serenity symbol on my back, and the angel logo (the one from their business cards) on the back of my neck.

missmuffet | March 22, 17:07 CET

I've always wanted to get Dark Angel's bar code on the back of my neck... except for how afraid I am of needles, pain, and spending money on stuff I'll regret later.

embers | March 22, 17:31 CET

I'd love to get a couple of Whedon-related tattoos: I've wanted the Angel logo for a while now. They would look cool but I just can't bear the thought of actually getting it done - with the needle and the pain...just no.
I also can't imagine them looking so good when I'm all old and wrinkly. I guess I'll settle for putting them on bags or clothing. I have the Buffy and Angel fonts on my computer though.

[ edited by Shep on 2010-03-22 18:18 ]

Shep | March 22, 18:17 CET

If it's small, the pain isn't that bad, just uncomfortable. I have considered getting another after almost 11 years of living with the one I have, but choice is important because it is forever unless you've got bucks for removal service. By the bye, I got mine done in Lahaina by a tattoo artist named Spike (!) (1999).

[ edited by Tonya J on 2010-03-22 18:28 ]

Tonya J | March 22, 18:27 CET

Alright, here's mine!! (The full text says "Every Night I Save You". :)

And I also have the "Serenity" Chinese characters on the back of my neck.

ShinyAlice | March 22, 18:30 CET

I agree with Tonya - unless you know you're particularly sensitive to pain or needles, it really isn't that bad. Less painful than dental work, or slamming a car door on your fingers, or stubbing your toe, or a paper cut. But it goes on a little longer, obviously. ;-).

And bringing it back to Whedon: sharing a pre-procedure ciggie with my artist, I discovered not only that he was a huge fan of Angel and Buffy, but that he did Jed's tattoo . . . a happy portent that I had come to the right guy.

SoddingNancyTribe | March 22, 18:38 CET

That's awesome!!

Tonya J | March 22, 18:43 CET

I have the Circle of the Black Thorn, hm.. 'logo' on my lower back in dark blue. I thought it was both generic and specific enough to work, although I'm not sure anyone would actually recognize it. Oh well, I know what it means.

I always wanted to get the AI logo, but I thought it would be too much to have 2 tattoos on the same subject and having to explain why I have a tattoo of an angel when I'm atheist just seemed like too much hassle.

Nocticola | March 22, 18:46 CET

Wow, SNT, that was pretty brave for a first tattoo. Purty.

I was so weeny, my first one - on my right arm (at age 48) was practically non-existent, and my second on my neck wasn't much bigger. The arm felt like nothing at all, but I hafta say even my teensy neck one was pretty painful. I can't imagine sitting through the painful hours a huge tat on a sensitive area would take.

Yeah, mine have to be more overall meaningful to me - and somewhat less confined to just one interest.

I'm thinking my next one will be a quote, combining my love of the written word with my typography obsession. Dunno yet what it will be...

(And ShinyAlice - that is a great 'verse quote.)

QuoterGal | March 22, 21:32 CET

A phoenix.

Yep, that's what I thought, nice one (checked because dragon iconography is very varied - some look quite avian - but even excluding appearance, I can see more ways that a phoenix might hold meaning for someone than a dragon. Given that you're neither Welsh nor Chinese I mean ;). Nice coincidence re: Jed too, good omens eh, take 'em where you get 'em.

Chinese characters quite appeal (they seem to be the go-to symbology for tattoos at the moment) and both sets of ancestors have family mottoes involving the word "Through" so i'd probably go with that if I did get one. Or if not Chinese then hexadecimal ;).

Saje | March 22, 22:35 CET

It's interesting that Giles is so the focal point on this one. That said... A little crazy. Then again I'm sort of the school that if you're going to go nerdy or permanent you want something slightly more obscure/abstract/arty so you can make up a story down the line. (If anyone still catches you, you're in the clear since they'd have to admit knowledge.)

Hrm, that actually reminds me, whatever did happen to Angel's tattoo? I remember hearing that it disappeared when he was resurrected and I was curious if it was ever a plot point in the event he ever went shirtless again. (Or if by the time he got his own show they just forgot that detail.)

Anyway, I'm Chinese and always wracked with guilt about the possibility of getting the characters wrong like some other people do. As visual metaphors go I seem to remember Serenity/Firefly having the most evocative imagery of any Whedon property.

Hrm, or there's also the comic book properties now that I think about it.

orangewaxlion | March 23, 00:42 CET

I'm thinking my next one will be a quote, combining my love of the written word with my typography obsession.

I recommend, "I think that I shall never see a poem lovely as a tree" in Papyrus. :)

jcs | March 23, 01:05 CET

Oh, now, dear jcs - that's just cru-el. ; > Natheless (natheless? wha-huh??) I've designed it as instructed, and I know just where I'm going to have them do it. ; >

But seriousfully? Unless I can think of a Whedon'verse quote that has the universality of this (below), I'm inclining towards Neil Gaiman's version of the much-written sentiment:

"And everything changes. And nothing is truly lost."

It just flows so nicely.

QuoterGal | March 23, 02:19 CET

QuoterGal What about "In the end, we are all who we are, no matter how much we may appear to have changed"?

Or you could always go with "There is no problem that can't be solved with chocolate." :-D

ShadowQuest | March 23, 05:57 CET

"Wherever you go, there you are"

Or the "To be or not to be" soliloquy but you need a fairly long torso for that one.

Anyway, I'm Chinese and always wracked with guilt about the possibility of getting the characters wrong like some other people do.

Yep, the ever present danger of ending up with "Wanker" on your back ;). Measure twice, tattoo once as they [don't actually] say.

Saje | March 23, 08:00 CET

I'm considering a dinosaur with the dialogue, "And we shall call it this land".

Well, maybe not, but I am intrigued by having writing.

Tonya J | March 23, 15:51 CET

Saje: "Or the "To be or not to be" soliloquy but you need a fairly long torso for that one.

; > Especially for my annotated version.

(Yeah, Tonya - the idea of a quotey-written tattoo gives me a happy, too.)

QuoterGal | March 23, 23:57 CET

Hah, i'd forgotten that QG, very welcome blast from the past ;).

Saje | March 25, 13:41 CET