BK: These early Eska concepts by Ki-Hyun Ryu all have a great sense of spooky, icy, formal elegance.

JDS: Eska and Desna are two of the more memorable characters from Book 2. Their designs were a bit tough to break. I can remember seeing earlier versions of these characters on Josh Middleton’s computer or nearly a month as he struggled to pin down their look. Everyone was chipping in ideas and I believe we even went so far as to get full character turns made based on those previous takes. But they just did not feel right. It was not until Ryu took a pass and gave them their distinctive hunch and dead-eyed expression that the characters finally came to life. If I remember correctly, Josh came up with the slit in their long sleeves that allowed their arms free range of movement, which I thought was a nice touch. Eska and Desna character designs by Ki-Hyun Ryu and Josh Middleton. Cleanup by Studio Pierrot. Color by Sylvia Filcak-Blackwolf and Bryan Konietzko.