Pattern

Oh dear, we've gone from the 2nd to the 10th just like that. I have been struggling with motivation for creative tasks a lot in the last few weeks. I have some fun ideas for bits and pieces that I'd like to have committed to over the course of Inktober so far, but rather than desperately try to catch up I'm just going to jump back in for today and maybe doodle a little some other time.

When prompted by the word pattern, the papal imagination cannot escape from that wonderful adage: After a fat pope, a thin pope. The phrase refers to the way that conclaves tend to look to appoint someone with a different outlook to their predecessor. It isn't meant to refer to the physical characteristics of actual popes, but whenever I think of the phrase I am always reminded of the contrast between the large jovial John XXIII and the thin, severe-looking Paul VI. Then this happened:

The John XXIII that lives inside my head was exactly the sort of fellow that would go to a party and start a conga line. I can just imagine him shouting out the lyrics as he capers around the papal apartments, even if this is a particularly disappointing rendition of him. Paul VI is inevitably drawn in to finish what John starts, as always, and manages to bring a sort of dignified stoicism to the whole farce. Then John Paul I joins in, and when he's left a I just hanging at the end of his name like that, John Paul II has to jump on as well just so that the whole thing doesn't look silly. For some reason I've drawn him here as some kind of tiny wizened yoda figure clinging to JPI's back, which was entirely unintentional, but I love it. Benedict XVI, ever the traditionalist, jumps in just because his predecessors apparently thought that the conga was a good idea, but he wants everyone to know that he's not enjoying this at all. In fairness, Benedict XVI should really be the yoda, he looked undersized next to JPII even at the end of his life, but once I'd unintentionally shrunk JPII it would have silly to keep going. And of course, Francis brings up the rear, he likes a party, although the poor man is particularly struggling with a few physical deformities that he doesn't deserve, due to being on the far-right of the piece of paper when I was drawing him. What did I do to his ears?