Ship Building For Comics
The Space Raven 6000
One of the fun parts of creating a comic universe is diving into designs—even down to schematics. While working on new issues of Margo: Intergalactic Trash Collector, I took a hard look back at what worked the first time around—and what didn’t.
What stuck out to me most was her ship—the Space Raven 6000. Margo’s old, outdated vessel once ran the Delta Prime trash route. In the original series, its exterior only showed up in a few panels, and it looked like a generic ship—old, but not something you’d expect to haul garbage across the galaxy. So I went down a rabbit hole of real-world trash truck designs, looking for inspiration—something I could reimagine as a spaceship while still keeping that gritty, utilitarian trash truck aesthetic.
I redesigned the ship’s exterior by blending elements from several real-world trucks to get that trash-hauling vibe. Then I created a cutaway of the interior—complete with a legend. I’ve always loved those old-school cutaways of hero hideouts, and this one doubles as a handy reference for my characters.
To top it off, I styled the whole thing like a retro car ad, complete with notes on the ship’s original launch and the model that eventually replaced it.
Keep Creating,
I remember seeing these kind of schematics in sci-fi magazines when I was little. It was so exciting to see the foundations of all the gadgetry displayed like this. Great work.
Always loved those old cutaways too! And world maps (e.g. R.E. Howards Hyborian Age:))