Greetings. This pic was the one that most grabbed me from today's Drawfriend on EquestriaDaily. For a picture designed to strike a pose, it does a fine job exaggerating and highlighting the character. While the eyes are large relative to the head, the overall area taken up by the facial features is actually quite restrained relative to the general style of the show, creating a more compact expression that focuses the viewer's attention to a smaller space. In addition, the angle of the head tilts up to support the smug smirk and cocky expression, which also serves to leave more space for the neck. With her chest so pronounced, the pose carries the double meaning of her showing off both herself and her necklace, with much more emphasis on the former since the necklace is such a tiny rock.



Meanwhile, there's a supernova of some sort going off directly behind Trixie's person, shrouding much of the background in light. The contrast is so intense that it forces us to look away from it, the slanted angles of the piercing lighting pointing us directly to Trixie. It's a great effect that looks good and supports the flow of the piece. And speaking of flow, while Trixie does have a long flowing cape that also draws the eye right to her face, the cape is almost rendered redundant by that bombastic tail of hers. While the picture would flow just fine without it, the addition of such an exceptional appendage adds so much more to the sense of ostentatiousness in Trixie's pose. It's so ludicrous that it paints the entire picture in a farcical new light, one of a fantasy entirely in Trixie's mind. This is how Trixie sees herself, and it is glorious.



In terms of constructive criticism, I'd note that the foreleg on the left is in a bit of an awkward position when noting its proximity to the back leg on the same side. It looks like there would either be a collision or some kind of intangibility going on there. There's also the minor bit of color confusion when it comes to the overlap of the hat and the cape. The outline and the way you've shaded it do help, but that would definitely be an area I'd like to double-check with a quick grayscale test. You also may wish to try getting the hooves to look a little flatter when they are touching the ground. There's a bit of an inconsistency in how they look.



The way you've drawn the hair is superb. Delicious even. I love how the right side of the tail evokes the feeling of a tidal wave coming into shore, adding some subconscious symbolism to how Trixie perceives herself. It blends right into the design, and to paraphrase George Plinkett, "you may not notice it, but your brain did." Great color choice, great effects, great pose, great design, and great expression. This one truly stole the spotlight this evening. Take a bow and make the most!