Good Thing: Julia Reck’s ‘Overwatch’ Instagram Art Is A Buoyant Delight

Through punchy voice lines, bold designs, and a sparing use of canon lore, Blizzard has crafted Overwatch characters that reach fans in a way that fosters creativity and reinterpretation. A single line reading between characters is enough to send avalanches through Overwatch's vibrant and prolific fan community.

One such member of that community is artist Julia Reck, whose Overwatch Instagram series captures the game's iconic heroes when they're not defending the payload (or, more precisely, when they're not not defending the payload).

Reck's first piece (above) highlights the two celebrity heroes most likely to double as social media mavens: D.Va, a professional gamer and real-world feminist icon, and Lúcio, an internationally-renowned DJ and social activist. Both characters exude "casual cool" in ways unique to them; Lúcio with his upbeat charm and D.Va with her flirty ambivalence. The piece features a feminine and fresh take on both characters, united in their pink apparel, damn near revolutionary crop tops, and eyelashes for days. D.Va's forward shoulder hunch is a fashion editorial staple.

Subsequent "Overwatchstagram" pieces see hacker Sombra brigading cowboy LARPer McCree with a selfie; assassin Hanzo enjoying some bubble tea; and mother-daughter duo Pharah and Ana gettin' swole at the gym.

Killer angles stand out as a key component to Reck's work, whether in characters' body language or in glass-cutting cheekbones. Then there's her characters' lips and mouths, which communicate sans words: Hanzo's embarrassed smile, D.Va's pursed lips, and McCree's tipsy "coochy-coo" face.

The mission of Overwatch heroes is, ultimately, to make the world a better place; Julia Reck's art series proves that this can mean more than just defending a limousine for eight minutes. Follow Reck on Twitter to see more of her art!

Good Thing is a new feature at ComicsAlliance where we celebrate something we love from comics or pop culture, because every day could use something good.