Hollow Knight Bugs Playing Poker Painting Parody

Written by Teresita Blanco (The Artsy Sister)

Today, I got around to making my new Hollow Knight parody. This one took a little longer to make because I had a lot of characters to work with.

I was making a parody of a painting called A Friend in Need, 1903. This painting was made by Cassius Marcellus Coolidge.

Coolidge did an entire painting series of Dogs playing poker. From all his poker dog paintings, I chose the one I liked best for my Hollow Knight parody.

Aside from poker, Coolidge has his dogs playing pool and other betting games. In my version, I had the Hollow Knight characters playing poker.

The story is that in order to bond with his new friends, Master Grimm invited them over for poker night.

He fancies himself to be the most talented poker player in all the World, but he ends up losing everything.

At this moment, he is pitching a fit because he thinks that Hornet is cheating. Every time he tries to bet, he looses to Hornet.

He also doesn’t like that Hornet is playing with the Hollow Knight, as a team. He lost everything, and he is thinking of betting his son in order to reclaim owner of the Grimm Troupe.

What Grimm doesn’t know is that the true cheater is the Collector. You can see that he is holding an Ace underneath the table. He is waiting for the right moment to use it.

For now, he is hanging back and studying his opponents. The other loser players in this parody are Salubra and the Grey Mourner. The Grey Mourner betted a delicate Flower.

He brought it all the way from his garden, back to the Poker table in order to bet it. Salubra betted her necklace.

She dropped it with so much force that it immediately shattered the delicate flower. So, now the Mourner is crying because Salubra broke his pretty flower.

Now, it is Grimm’s turn to match the bet, with the only thing he has left, his firstborn son. Iselda is the other talented poker player in the scene. She doesn’t know that the Collector is cheating, but she is good at reading people.

To keep his giggling under control, the Collector is smoking something to keep him super chill. Hornet is the other smoker of the party. I gave her a pipe. In the old days, the pipe was smoked by those who associated with Plebians.

Hornet might be a princess, but she is a Working Princess who doesn’t like to be pampered. She earned her Geos by questing. She didn’t inherit her wealth. The rich, refined people smoked cigarettes.

The Collector fancies himself a refined Socialite, since he was born and raised in the City of Tears. By smoking a cigar, he is showing that he thinks himself better than everyone else.

The Hollow Knight is drinking Honey beer. He is not trying to make a statement. He just wants to forget his past, and beer is a good antidote for his woes.

He suffered a lot as a Vessel for the plague, and now, he is done being altruistic. He just wants to live his life. He wants to indulge in all the pleasures his father denied him.

As for Grimm, I gave him blood in a little glass. The glass has a straw because a vampire flea drinking blood through a straw looks silly. He zippies his blood.

I think that makes him extra cute. The Hollow Knight is not a good poker player, but his little sister Hornet always gives him chips to allow him to continue playing.

She feels sorry for him. So, by letting him drink and play as much as he wants, she is trying to erase the scars of his past.

I chose for him his pure vessel look, with the scar over his face. He got rid of the black cape that reminds him of his captivity.

This poker game took place after the Chibi Knight defeated Absolute Radiance. Without the fear of the plague, bugs can indulge in idleness.

The Chibi Knight or Ghost is not dead. He just wasn’t invited to play because he is too young to play poker.

He is somewhere off screen in the kiddy pool area, with all the Grubs and the other Younglings of the group.

So, this is all the thoughts that went into the creation of this silly Hollow Knight parody.

I hope it makes you smile. My name is Teresita Blanco, the Artsy Sister. Bye, bye and God bless.