Hey.
Well for starters, one thing I have always found increasingly tough about dio is actually getting positive or constructive feedback, alot of people just dont have the time anymore to read them.
Which is honestly one of the main drawbacks, theres really nothing worse in going all out for 4-5 weeks sometimes longer to make your storyline and then only 1 or 2 people read it.
Never the less I will do what I can to give you some feedback on your dios.
Here are the answers to your questions as submitted honestly by me.
what do you think of the characters in my dios? do you like or dislike the ones i use, is there any i shouldnt use and is there any i should use more?
the characters in your dio tend to be ones I dont expect, which is good because everyone always picks the top favourites, you've got this unique way of picking, don't get me wrong I think everyone has this, it's just that you can develop a character in your own way, and because it's someone we arent used to seeing, it's usually a surprise, but a good one.
i do a lot of one shots where i can introduce new characters and give those who otherwise would have no face time, their share of the spotlight. are the one shots a good idea, or should i just work on one main storyline?
I think this comes down to the storyline your trying to put across, some of the one shots you speak of have been really effective, i definately think this is one area that depends entirely on the new characters entrance to the storyline, at the moment i'd say you have a good balance between the two.
i have some gun battles in my dios, but mostly hand to hand fighting, is the ratio in my dios good, or should i focus more on one or the other?
the ratio is pretty good atm, through your dios you can tell your a fan of MMA, and sometimes it can be this good that it makes battles far more interesting, a one shot with one gun kill policy can work just as effective, but there really isnt anything as good as getting up close and personal with hand to hand combat.
i sometimes have vehicles in my dios, but usually there just there for props, does this work or should i use them in action more.
i definately think this is one area of gijoe you need to exploit more, the vehicles are there to be used, perhaps in a chase scene maybe? it will definately help you gain some practice with vehicle shots too.
should i have more big battles with lots of characters or should i keep them short as to focus more on a few characters?
having bigger isnt always better, and you can sometimes lose the focus of the story involving the base characters if you go too big. however if your doing a grand battle then maybe it's required then why not? just have maybe 5-6 shots of the main big battle with some narration to guide you through it, then cut back to the main characters again. this is totally dependent on the dio your doing and story your telling, if the story requires a big battle then do it.
what characters would you like to see in future dios?
to be honest i'm not sure with this, i'd like to see you do a dio involving a recruit to the team, that's all i can think of for now, i cant think of anyone character specific.
what kind of story lines would you like to see?
see above.
if there is anything i can do that you think might make them better let me know, more action, more character development, whatever, just give me some pointers.
You've always seemed to me to be very gritty in your dios, very straight forward thinking with them, and the good thing is that you show no problems in getting the dio done either. alot of people (me included) have the ideas but lack the finishing focus to get it done, you have this quality to put on yours as well as the many other things i've stated above.
I hope my feedback helps you some and you had a good new year.
Rich
P.S I tried reading your dio you posted at C&C but for some reason JD was down at the time, can you post the direct link over on the forum?
Cheers